Top Law Schools

This is likely going to be fairly long, but I'm hoping some people will take an interest in discussing my situation. I'll be a 1L at Arizona Summit starting this fall. I'm fully aware of the quality of this law school and its reputation, etc. In the end, attending ANY law school was what I ultimately decided was the best option for me. If I'm being fully realistic, I'm never the smartest guy in the room... however I'd say I have above average intelligence.

Long story short- if I hadn't drank and partied away my life during my undergrad years and fully applied myself, I'd say I would've graduated with a GPA competitive with students being accepted into some Big 10 law schools such as U of I, Iowa, Wisconsin, etc. I picked myself up and graduated obviously, but with an abysmal GPA. I did fairly average on the LSAT and likely could have done better, but with such a poor GPA I didn't work as hard as I should have as I assumed the large majority of schools were still a long shot. Realistically, I absolutely know I have the ability to be successful in a Tier 1 school.

Clearly, I REALLY would like to transfer. Does anyone have experience in transferring from a T4->T1? I'm extremely certain that I could finish towards the top of my class. My situation is also a bit different in that money is essentially a non-issue. Not to divulge too much, but I have a settlement from a medical malpractice suit in the form of an annuity that will basically amount to just under 900K, ending when I'm 40. I essentially have all the money I need, any loans I do need to take out will obviously be able to be paid almost instantly and with ease as these annuity payments roll in. Personally, I feel like that makes the decision to want to transfer a no-brainer, right? I'm only 23, single, and have everything money wise figured out. I'm just trying to figure out my best path in terms of transferring. I really don't want to graduate from Arizona Summit, and that's putting it nicely. I'd be interested in schools such as U of I (I'm from Chicago), Tulane (for the sports law program), Arizona State, Emory... and a few others. If anyone has ANY insight on the process of transferring and how to make all of this a reality, I'd really appreciate it!

PS- I've only been on the site a few times, I'm not entirely sure if posts such as mine are common and if not I do apologize!

Just kill it 1L year and you can transfer somewhere better

You should absolutely not attend Arizona Summit under any circumstances. I understand that with a shit GPA your employment options are grim, but they are grimmer still if you attend law school - annuity or not.

dmcmanus wrote:Just kill it 1L year and you can transfer somewhere better

Hopefully you know better than to pay absolutely no attention to this post. But in case you don't know better, pay absolutely no attention to this post.

Don't go to a law school you wouldn't feel comfortable graduating from. If you got into a better school than Arizona Summit, go there.

Don't go to Tulane for the sports law program. Specialty programs don't matter and you probably won't get a job as a sports lawyer.

Also keep in mind that TTTT law schools in many cases do all they can to keep people from transferring (i.e. insanely low curves)

You will be surrounded with folks at Arizona Summit with your same numbers, more or less. If you don't feel comfortable graduating with a JD from this dumpster fire, then DON'T go.

I'll drop this here:

https://www.azsummitlaw.edu/sites/defau ... 202014.pdf

Most of these folks have no business being in law school and will most likely not pass the bar exam. Where you fall on the spectrum, I have no clue, but think long and hard about the opportunity cost you will incur as a result of throwing three years of your life away.

[quote="BasilHallward"]I'll drop this here:

https://www.azsummitlaw.edu/sites/defau ... 202014.pdf

Most of these folks have no business being in law school and will most likely not pass the bar exam. Where you fall on the spectrum, I have no clue, but think long and hard about the opportunity cost you will incur as a result of throwing three years of your life away.[/quote


I was there for the admitted students weekend recently, and trust me, you're completely right. I realistically do believe I could blow all these people out of the water, which isn't saying much I know. I suppose I'm completely banking on being able to transfer to somewhere that at least has SOME sort of reputation. I know that obviously isn't very smart, but how hard is it exactly to transfer to even say a school ranked towards the lower 100 such as a DePaul or Kent back in Chicago? Finishing in the top 25% at a school even with Arizona Summit's reputation would likely do the trick, yes?

Transferring from Arizona Summit to DePaul or Kent is most likely going to end up with you in the same position: jobless and with a bunch of debt.

Today I learned there's a law school called Arizona Summit.

Run, don't walk, away from that school, and drop a lit match on your way out to save everyone the utter financial and career ruin it will result in for nearly everyone.

If you really want to be a lawyer and really have "above average intelligence," then you know damn well that your only logical choice is to study properly and re-take the LSAT. Chances are, your GPA does not lock you out of decent schools entirely. I know people with below-3.0 GPAs who got scholarships at Northwestern, a T14.

scottidsntknow wrote:Transferring from Arizona Summit to DePaul or Kent is most likely going to end up with you in the same position: jobless and with a bunch of debt.

Which I would be worried about if I wasn't in the situation with my settlement (not sure if you read that part). If it wasn't for that, I'd completely agree. I just feel like I may be in more of a position to take a gamble with money truly not being an issue in the slightest bit. Really appreciate you guys though, definitely needed some unbiased input.

jp32592 wrote:

scottidsntknow wrote:Transferring from Arizona Summit to DePaul or Kent is most likely going to end up with you in the same position: jobless and with a bunch of debt.

Which I would be worried about if I wasn't in the situation with my settlement (not sure if you read that part). If it wasn't for that, I'd completely agree. I just feel like I may be in more of a position to take a gamble with money truly not being an issue in the slightest bit. Really appreciate you guys though, definitely needed some unbiased input.

Excuse me, jobless and with $200k essentially burned. Doesn't seem much better.

I can only reiterate what others are saying. If you think you're smart enough to finish at the top of the class at Arizona Summit, don't go. Retake the LSAT, work your butt off preparing for it, and score much higher on it. Get a 170+ and you can get into a T1 school with a bad GPA.

There is absolutely no guarantee that you'll finish highly enough at your school as a 1L that you'll be able to transfer to a T14 or T1 school with a good reputation and employment scores. You're going to need to be at or near the top of your class to pull that off. And that's far from guaranteed...especially with your undergraduate academic record.

Don't go to a law school that you aren't comfortable graduating from.

OP is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs and does not understand what an opportunity cost is... Seriously. you can do ANYTHING else with three years of your life and probably be in a better position than after going to Arizona Summit and POSSIBLY transferring to some other garbage school. Go enjoy Europe and learn some languages. Get a near-free graduate degree in Europe. GO meddle in real estate, if you have access to some capital. Go learn how to basketweave underwater at your local community college. Do ANYTHING else. Getting a JD from Arizona Summit will ruin your life and be an insurmountable stain on your résumé.

You've been warned

Heard from someone that they are confident Arizona Summit is going to close in the next 2-3 years...

Edit: That someone may or may not have been a dean of a school.

Literally everything about this post made me want to cry.

Out of the 326 2014 graduates of Arizona Summit Law, only 136 got full-time long-term bar passage-required jobs. That is a bit less than 42%. 2 graduates got biglaw (firms of 100+) and 2 got federal clerkships.

Why does this school exist? Why is it ABA-accredited?

TIL: Arizona Summit Law School was founded in 2005 and was known until 2013 as the Phoenix School of Law. It is not affiliated with the University of Phoenix.

Please retake...even with a bad GPA, a high LSAT could get you into several T25 schools, which are pretty strong regional schools.

95% of T4 students describe themselves: "of above average intelligence, just underachieved in college."

You may not get T14 even with a 180, but you can get far, far, FAR better options than that InfiLaw cesspool.

If transferring is your aim, you need to go to a school thst will not actually get laughed at by adcomms. Even being 1 there is still going to be a hard sell compared to someone going to a shitty school that at least has practicing attorneys and requires more to get in than money and a pulse.

See my other post in another thread for why this is such a god awful idea.

You have 900K from a medmal suit so obviously somebody hurt you. That's a great personal statement/overcoming story that can tip the scales for you if you put the work into the lsat. It's harder for schools to get the lsat because or grade inflation so between a good lsat and whatever happened to you to get the settlement you have a shot at a decent school.

OP should post GPA/LSAT for advice other than "do not go to Arizona Summit".

Listen to Lori. Don't go. She didn't save us from Mifflin, but she can still save you from Arizona Summit.

[youtube]jmIFwSKnuRM[/youtube]

stasg wrote:TIL: Arizona Summit Law School was founded in 2005 and was known until 2013 as the Phoenix School of Law. It is not affiliated with the University of Phoenix.

Remarkably, it might be better if it were.

Do not go to Arizona Summit Law School.

What are your numbers ?

Your annuity income of about $53,000 a year for the next 17 years should not be wasted on a poor investment. You have a great opportunity to invest wisely in yourself by enrolling in an LSAT prep course while working full-time. If you score in the high 150s, you should be able to get scholarship offers from several better, more established law schools.

P.S. Rather than thinking about spending your annuity money over the next 17 years, think of that money as your retirement fund that must be preserved & nurtured until you are near retirement age. Consider working as a paralegal to get a taste of what small firm legal work entails.