Are my softs sufficient? Forum

[Irundistance]

Hi all,
I plan on applying to law schools this Fall. I know that softs are important, so I wanted some feedback from you all if mine are sufficient. I'm an African-American male, currently a junior at a state university in California; my GPA is about a 3.75, Sociology major. I volunteered at a hospital for 1.5 years and have been on my junior college's and university's Cross country and track teams since my Freshman year. I've been on the academic all-state teams, and recieved numerous athletic and academic awards/scholarships from my junior college. Also I'm a first-generation college student. Should I do more to stand out or is this sufficent? I'd appreciate any feedback!

*Haven't taken the LSAT yet, plan on taking it in October

[bananapeanutbutter]

Softs are largely just a way for law schools to comply with the ruling in Grutter, and a red herring. Just get a good LSAT and stay at a 3.75.

[Irundistance]

Thanks!

[buddyt]

Hi all,
I plan on applying to law schools this Fall. I know that softs are important, so I wanted some feedback from you all if mine are sufficient. I'm an African-American male, currently a junior at a state university in California;my GPA is about a 3.75, Sociology major. I volunteered at a hospital for 1.5 years and have been on my junior college's and university's Cross country and track teams since my Freshman year. I've been on the academic all-state teams, and recieved numerous athletic and academic awards/scholarships from my junior college. Also I'm a first-generation college student. Should I do more to stand out or is this sufficent? I'd appreciate any feedback!*Haven't taken the LSAT yet, plan on taking it in October

Softs don't matter. Start studying for the October LSAT yesterday. Hit a 170+ and with your GPA you are going wherever you want and paying however much you want.

[Irundistance]

Thank you. Yes, I plan on starting my studying next month; I hope 5 months is enough time to prep and score well so I can avoid a retake

[itachiuchiha]

being black is always a bonus . lucky guy!

[Irundistance]

Didn't know race was factored in, thanks for the info!

[Clearly]

Didn't know race was factored in, thanks for the info!

A huge factor. You will see a significant boost because schools value diversity. If you keep your GPA up and crush the LSAT, you'll have your pick.

[Irundistance]

Didn't know race was factored in, thanks for the info!

A huge factor. You will see a significant boost because schools value diversity. If you keep your GPA up and crush the LSAT, you'll have your pick.

Okay, thank you! I know its competitive out there so I'm spending 5-months prepping for the LSAT. You think prep courses are necessary? Or can I manage with a lot of PrepTests and the PowerScore Bibles?

[Clearly]

Didn't know race was factored in, thanks for the info!

A huge factor. You will see a significant boost because schools value diversity. If you keep your GPA up and crush the LSAT, you'll have your pick.

Total judgement call, what worse is putting massive effort. Some people do that in courses, some people do it on their own, but one way or another patience and absurd effort are key. Significant score raises are very possible.

[jrsbaseball5]

OP I would recommend checking out the URM (Under-Represented Minorities) Forum here on TLS. Should provide you with some valuable information as you begin your law school applications. Best of luck!

[rebexness]

AA male is basically the best soft you can have.

[Irundistance]

Thank you, I'll use the bibles starting off and see if it works for me

[WhiskeynCoke]

Hi all,
I plan on applying to law schools this Fall. I know that softs are important, so I wanted some feedback from you all if mine are sufficient. I'm an African-American male, currently a junior at a state university in California; my GPA is about a 3.75, Sociology major. I volunteered at a hospital for 1.5 years and have been on my junior college's and university's Cross country and track teams since my Freshman year. I've been on the academic all-state teams, and recieved numerous athletic and academic awards/scholarships from my junior college. Also I'm a first-generation college student. Should I do more to stand out or is this sufficent? I'd appreciate any feedback!

*Haven't taken the LSAT yet, plan on taking it in October

Dude, you're gonna knock it out of the park. You are an AA male (most sought-after URM), with a 3.75. Besides, you've already got plenty of stuff to put on your resume. you should be 100% focused right now on maxing your GPA as much as possible. Study at least 6 months for the LSAT and shoot for as close to 180 as possible. If you can get to at least the mid-high 160's you'll be looking at HYS. 170 and you've got full rides everywhere.

[bp shinners]

Okay, thank you! I know its competitive out there so I'm spending 5-months prepping for the LSAT. You think prep courses are necessary? Or can I manage with a lot of PrepTests and the PowerScore Bibles?

I work for a test prep company and I will say that a prep course isn't necessary. It's a value call - with it, you'll get the materials, a study schedule that you'll need to stick to, online analytics and materials, and an instructor who (hopefully) knows their stuff. This should cut down on the overall amount of time you have to prep, but it's more expensive than self prep. Compare the courses, see the costs, and figure out if it's worth it for you for the benefits I listed above.

[Irundistance]

Hi all,
I plan on applying to law schools this Fall. I know that softs are important, so I wanted some feedback from you all if mine are sufficient. I'm an African-American male, currently a junior at a state university in California; my GPA is about a 3.75, Sociology major. I volunteered at a hospital for 1.5 years and have been on my junior college's and university's Cross country and track teams since my Freshman year. I've been on the academic all-state teams, and recieved numerous athletic and academic awards/scholarships from my junior college. Also I'm a first-generation college student. Should I do more to stand out or is this sufficent? I'd appreciate any feedback!

*Haven't taken the LSAT yet, plan on taking it in October

Dude, you're gonna knock it out of the park. You are an AA male (most sought-after URM), with a 3.75. Besides, you've already got plenty of stuff to put on your resume. you should be 100% focused right now on maxing your GPA as much as possible. Study at least 6 months for the LSAT and shoot for as close to 180 as possible. If you can get to at least the mid-high 160's you'll be looking at HYS. 170 and you've got full rides everywhere.

Okay, thanks! If I ace all my classes this semester and summer then I can hopefully bump it to at least a 3.80. May I ask what were all of you guys' stats and what schools did you get accepted too?

[Irundistance]

Okay, thank you! I know its competitive out there so I'm spending 5-months prepping for the LSAT. You think prep courses are necessary? Or can I manage with a lot of PrepTests and the PowerScore Bibles?

I work for a test prep company and I will say that a prep course isn't necessary. It's a value call - with it, you'll get the materials, a study schedule that you'll need to stick to, online analytics and materials, and an instructor who (hopefully) knows their stuff. This should cut down on the overall amount of time you have to prep, but it's more expensive than self prep. Compare the courses, see the costs, and figure out if it's worth it for you for the benefits I listed above.

Sounds good because I've heard different things regarding the different prep companies. I have a 5-month study schedule from LSAT blog and will be getting all the necessary Powerscore books/PrepTests. For reading comp, would you suggest the Manhattan books as a good resource. I took an LSAT without any prior studying two weeks ago and scored a 146. So I need a major score improvement and am wondering can this be done through studying intensely for 5 months.

[liupang]

Didn't know race was factored in, thanks for the info!

It's a huge factor. I think in your case maybe a +10 on LSAT,if not more . That being said, it would be a huge waste of your good GPA and URM if you don't try your best to score a 170+ on LSAT.

[liupang]

Okay, thank you! I know its competitive out there so I'm spending 5-months prepping for the LSAT. You think prep courses are necessary? Or can I manage with a lot of PrepTests and the PowerScore Bibles?

I work for a test prep company and I will say that a prep course isn't necessary. It's a value call - with it, you'll get the materials, a study schedule that you'll need to stick to, online analytics and materials, and an instructor who (hopefully) knows their stuff. This should cut down on the overall amount of time you have to prep, but it's more expensive than self prep. Compare the courses, see the costs, and figure out if it's worth it for you for the benefits I listed above.

Sounds good because I've heard different things regarding the different prep companies. I have a 5-month study schedule from LSAT blog and will be getting all the necessary Powerscore books/PrepTests. For reading comp, would you suggest the Manhattan books as a good resource. I took an LSAT without any prior studying two weeks ago and scored a 146. So I need a major score improvement and am wondering can this be done through studying intensely for 5 months.

Just locate your weakness and work on it. It is a learnable test, and 20+ points increase in 5 months is totally possible.

[Irundistance]

Okay, thank you! I know its competitive out there so I'm spending 5-months prepping for the LSAT. You think prep courses are necessary? Or can I manage with a lot of PrepTests and the PowerScore Bibles?

I work for a test prep company and I will say that a prep course isn't necessary. It's a value call - with it, you'll get the materials, a study schedule that you'll need to stick to, online analytics and materials, and an instructor who (hopefully) knows their stuff. This should cut down on the overall amount of time you have to prep, but it's more expensive than self prep. Compare the courses, see the costs, and figure out if it's worth it for you for the benefits I listed above.

Sounds good because I've heard different things regarding the different prep companies. I have a 5-month study schedule from LSAT blog and will be getting all the necessary Powerscore books/PrepTests. For reading comp, would you suggest the Manhattan books as a good resource. I took an LSAT without any prior studying two weeks ago and scored a 146. So I need a major score improvement and am wondering can this be done through studying intensely for 5 months.

Just locate your weakness and work on it. It is a learnable test, and 20+ points increase in 5 months is totally possible.

Thank you for your insight, I appreciate it. How did you all prep for it and how were your scores?

[liupang]

On my first PT, I didn't finish any section in time ---had about 8 questions left unanswered for EACH section. After about 2 weeks getting myself familiar with the question types and learning the system in Games bible , I was able to score 170+ on PTs. I scored a high 17x in the real test.

As for books, I think Bible on Games is a must; Bible on LR are very good. As for RC I recommend the Manhattan book.

Mastering a good system is vital for Games. Practicing on each LR type is very important for LR. You definitely want to memorize all the logical flaw types in LR Bible. I sux at RC so I can't give out suggestions on that part.

I think the best prep method is 1) do a PT -> 2) spend at least 4 hours to review all the errors you made in that PT. You need to understand 1) why the correct answer is correct 2) why the wrong answers are wrong 3) why you got it wrong and 4) how you can avoid that type of error in the future. Later in the stage when you get very few errors, you want to to add any question that took a long time to solve to your review list.

I got all the inspiration I need from "Pithypike's Complete LSAT Study Guide"
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... =6&t=41657 and I think it's a must read for anyone who is serious about LSAT.

Thank you for your insight, I appreciate it. How did you all prep for it and how were your scores?

[Nova]

A AA Male with a 3.7+/165+ has a good chance at Harvard. Dont let anything stop you from doing the best you can!!

[WhatOurBodiesAreFor]

OP, you're good.

Also, don't look at it like: "Did I enter enough clubs? am I in at enough honors societies?" Wrong way to look it. (I'm saying you are looking at it like this, by the way - just saying). Softs matter slightly more than TLS suggests, though they still don't matter a whole lot. If you are in a bunch of clubs/honors societies that really only says one thing about you.

Just be dynamic, be yourself. Just do your thing - everything else will fall into place.

I'm performing better than my numbers would predict, and I have crazy good scholarship offers at schools I've been accepted to. I made good grades in UG but did not participate in virtually any academic ECs. I've basically just followed my interests and worked hard at everything I've done. My resume isn't incredible but I'm performing as good as anyone who isn't URM, Rhodes, Military, Olympic medalist, (insert crazy soft).

Don't sweat it, just do your thing. But most importantly, as others have said, but that LSAT in a pipe and smoke it.

[Irundistance]

Oh wow, so you improved a great deal after only two weeks. When I did my PT, I had did not run out of time for any section, but my score was terrible in Analytical reasoning. It was also low, although not as low as Analytical Reasoning, in Logical Reasoning. So these are the two sections I need A LOT of work in. Reading comp wasn't too bad, but I still need to drill myself in that area as well.

[Irundistance]

A AA Male with a 3.7+/165+ has a good chance at Harvard. Dont let anything stop you from doing the best you can!!

Thanks! I won't!