Can I get into a good law school with a low GPA? Forum

[BCEagles2014]

I just graduated from Boston College this past May and have been employed at a full-time position in Manhattan since July. I graduated with a degree in Communications and a final GPA of 2.616. I realize my GPA is extremely low and I would do anything to go back in time to fix that, but I am not going to let that stop me from my dream of going to law school.

To give my GPA some perspective, let me give a quick summary of my college experience. In high school, I was near the top of my class with a GPA over 4.0. I was enrolled in the most AP classes out of all the students in my class. I was a member of the lacrosse team, as well as several honors societies and academic clubs. I was extremely diligent about my studies and sports, and did not go to a single party during those high school years. When I went to college, however, I was not used to the structure I had in high school and focused primarily on my social life in lieu of my studies. My GPA was absolutely horrible; sub 2.0 horrible. It was so bad, I was in danger of failing.

I was crushed. I was used to being a perfect student for my entire life. The grades I was getting did not reflect how well I knew I could do. I went into my sophomore year telling myself that I'd do better. My GPA was slightly better but it was still in the low to mid 2's. Despite my attempt to do better, I was just honestly depressed about my freshman year. I found myself thinking that my future was over with those grades so what was the point? My peers were all doing so much better than me and I was stuck at the bottom. I was also in a major that I had no passion for and felt like I was out of place. I was diagnosed with pretty bad depression that year and saw an on-campus therapist almost every day. My grades didn't improve but my mental health and confidence did. I learned to stop comparing myself to how others were doing and to just do the best I could. I spent the entire summer after my sophomore year doing a lot of soul searching and I became a better person for it.

I went into my Junior year energized and more at peace with myself. I didn't know what I wanted to study, but I knew my old major certainly was not for me, so I switched to Communications because of the flexibility it offered. People often give this major a bad reputation, but at BC it's #2 in the nation and my professors were very demanding of me. It was in these classes where I found myself not studying to get the high grade, but to fully take advantage of my education. My Junior year, I received low to mid 3.0 GPA's. It wasn't the +4.0's I was used to, but after my last 2 years I was ecstatic! I felt like I was finally back!

That success continued in my Senior year, never going below a 3.0 again. A couple months after graduation, I accepted a job offer at a telecommunications company in Manhattan. 6 months later, my hard work paid off with a promotion to a managerial position within the company. I'm working harder than I ever had before, and I attribute this success to my ability to to climb out of the low point I was in college and find peace with myself.

I always thought about law school as a possibility, but a few months into working I realized that this is what I wanted to do. With my first paycheck, I bought numerous LSAT books and have been studying everyday after work. I know my GPA will hurt me, so I'm studying as hard as I can to get the best LSAT score possible. I'm doing well on my practice exams and am confident in my ability to get a very high score. I'm setting the bar high so I will not allow myself any room to slack. I am treating the LSAT in a way that anything lower than a 170 is a failure.

I've put a lot of thought into law school and I will not allow my GPA to hold me back from applying to the schools I want to go to. Right now Vanderbilt is my #1 choice, and I am constantly researching what I can do to get in. I am also looking at several other schools around the same caliber.

I know my GPA will automatically reject me from elite law schools, but are schools like Vanderbilt still a possibility. I pray that my grades in my last 2 years of undergrad, a hopefully high LSAT score and my work experience will help my chances. Is this just wishful thinking or do I have a chance? I appreciate any advice and feedback.

[sublime]

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