170/ 3.75- advice please.... Forum

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lawschoolapps12345

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170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by lawschoolapps12345 » Sun Aug 12, 2018 7:42 am

170 on July exam/ 3.75 GPA/ two years out of undergrad doing a Fulbright fellowship in South America. I'm really focused on T7 and my practice tests were 173-174 range (maxed @176). Now I'm torn- retake in September and delay my apps- or apply Sep 1 with July score? Do y'all think I am competitive at T7? I know y'all think "softs" don't matter but I think my Fulbright fellowship helps+ internships at ACLU, US Attorney's Office, Public Defenders office.... thanks guys and good luck to all!

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tada77

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by tada77 » Tue Aug 21, 2018 8:40 pm

I have similar stats and am keeping my score. Write a killer personal statement - mean it. If you put together coherent, passionate applications I think you have a shot. Nobody can predict it for sure and there are a ton of variables, but people get into the T7 with those stats. Where in South America are you? I'm doing the same thing.

QContinuum

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by QContinuum » Tue Aug 21, 2018 9:57 pm

  • Softs mostly don't matter, but a Fulbright's prestigious enough that I think it will give you a boost. When people say "softs don't matter," they mean common softs like being a paralegal or doing mock trial in college.
  • I don't think there's any substantial advantage to applying on Sept. 1. If you have everything else ready to go, I don't think it'd hurt you to take the September LSAT, esp. since you've been PTing at 173-174 and a few extra points could really make a difference at the top schools. I took the LSAT in October back in the day and applied in early November (as soon as scores came back) and did just fine. IMO as long as you apply before December you don't need to worry about being at a disadvantage due to rolling admissions.

law56789

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by law56789 » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:32 pm

Hi OP. I'm a rising 2L at a T6. Had a 171 with a similar GPA and very strong softs, was T6 or bust. I decided to retake in Dec. and applied in Jan. worrying it was too late, but new I could score higher. A 170 is solid and an objectively good score. But for T6 and especially if you're hoping for a good financial package, 170 quickly isn't so strong anymore. If you're confident in your ability, there is a huge difference between 174/5 and 170 in the admissions game, and if you perform you could go from barely getting in at one or two of the schools to $$$ and/or HYS. IMO, well worth the really minimal disadvantage from an early November app vs. a September one.

cathy951107

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by cathy951107 » Wed Aug 22, 2018 4:17 am

law56789 wrote:Hi OP. I'm a rising 2L at a T6. Had a 171 with a similar GPA and very strong softs, was T6 or bust. I decided to retake in Dec. and applied in Jan. worrying it was too late, but new I could score higher. A 170 is solid and an objectively good score. But for T6 and especially if you're hoping for a good financial package, 170 quickly isn't so strong anymore. If you're confident in your ability, there is a huge difference between 174/5 and 170 in the admissions game, and if you perform you could go from barely getting in at one or two of the schools to $$$ and/or HYS. IMO, well worth the really minimal disadvantage from an early November app vs. a September one.
Hi, want to know how you did on the December test? Did you get accepted into a T6 with your Dec test score? If so, when did you start to apply?
Thanks.

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mmac

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by mmac » Wed Aug 22, 2018 10:19 am

My understanding is that they don't look at apps until October anyway, when you should be able to get yours in.

law56789

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by law56789 » Wed Aug 22, 2018 11:19 am

cathy951107 wrote:
Hi, want to know how you did on the December test? Did you get accepted into a T6 with your Dec test score? If so, when did you start to apply?
Thanks.
I did much better on my December retake (174+, which was where I was consistently PTing) and got T6 $$$ and HYS. I could've scored worse or no improvement, but I felt good about the test and my ability. The way I looked at the situation was that retaking and applying later with the same score disadvantages minimally, but scoring higher is a big gain. Very small risk, high reward potential. I applied within a couple days of receiving my score.

albanach

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by albanach » Wed Aug 22, 2018 4:39 pm

law56789 wrote:
cathy951107 wrote:
Hi, want to know how you did on the December test? Did you get accepted into a T6 with your Dec test score? If so, when did you start to apply?
Thanks.
I did much better on my December retake (174+, which was where I was consistently PTing) and got T6 $$$ and HYS. I could've scored worse or no improvement, but I felt good about the test and my ability. The way I looked at the situation was that retaking and applying later with the same score disadvantages minimally, but scoring higher is a big gain. Very small risk, high reward potential. I applied within a couple days of receiving my score.
This is the important factor. A higher LSAT opens up more $$$ and a lower debt at graduation gives you much more freedom to enjoy your legal career. If you believe you can score better, the ROI almost always makes retaking the correct response.

Unless you can comfortably self-fund your legal education, don't go to school until you have maximized your LSAT.

cathy951107

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by cathy951107 » Thu Aug 23, 2018 9:57 am

law56789 wrote:
cathy951107 wrote:
Hi, want to know how you did on the December test? Did you get accepted into a T6 with your Dec test score? If so, when did you start to apply?
Thanks.
I did much better on my December retake (174+, which was where I was consistently PTing) and got T6 $$$ and HYS. I could've scored worse or no improvement, but I felt good about the test and my ability. The way I looked at the situation was that retaking and applying later with the same score disadvantages minimally, but scoring higher is a big gain. Very small risk, high reward potential. I applied within a couple days of receiving my score.
That's great! Congrats on your success!!
And I agree that retaking comes with minimal risk and max rewards if you are confident that you could score higher. :)

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doggo

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Re: 170/ 3.75- advice please....

Post by doggo » Mon Aug 27, 2018 7:26 pm

So NYU will be a shoo-in . . . they are liberal with admissions in my opinion. Most people I know at my T13 (ranked lower than is NYU) also got into NYU. I think you also have a good shot at Chicago. I am not sure about the others, but you are definitely competitive.

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