What can I do right now? Forum

[cireland67]

I am currently a second semester sophomore in college with the goal of attending law school after I receive my undergrad degree.

I have heard horror stories about applying to law school and was wondering what I could do to get the ball rolling right now?

I can answer any other questions if they're necessary for this process as well.

[Kobe_Teeth]

get your gpa to be as high as humanly possible.

also, if there is a logic course offered to fill a gen ed requirement take that course. or if you happen to be a philosophy major/minor find a logical reasoning course and take it. (this will help with the lsat).

other than that, enjoy yourself until its time to study for the lsat (4-6 months ahead of time, though some do it in less).

[LSATWIZ]

get your gpa to be as high as humanly possible.

also, if there is a logic course offered to fill a gen ed requirement take that course. or if you happen to be a philosophy major/minor find a logical reasoning course and take it. (this will help with the lsat).

other than that, enjoy yourself until its time to study for the lsat (4-6 months ahead of time, though some do it in less).

if you can start earlier than 6 months, you'll be better off. the more the better. if you gave yourself a full year and a half of consistent studying, you'll likely break a 170. i'd say bypass all useless internships, and spend that time LSAT studying if your only goal is to be a lawyer.

[cireland67]

We'll my current GPA is 3.88, I was wondering if it would be possible to start writing an essay or a personal statement I could use with my Apps?

I'm a finance major.

[LSATWIZ]

I would advise against that.

The PS is important, but pales in comparison with a strong LSAT score. Additionally, your approach to your PS should be correlated with your score. If you score lower than you had hoped, you might want to take risks you would not otherwise take.

Additionally, as you get older you will likely mature as a person and your PS will reflect that in both what you focus on, and how you convey information.

Right now, if I were you, I'd only worry about the LSAT and your GPA. The 3.88 is very good. If you can keep that consistent and hit a 170, law school is a great option for you.

I see many people who have similar GPA's, start on the LSAT in the 140s and study hard or work with a tutor for 1 month to break a 150, and just get into a law school. I feel bad every time, because they are taking a large financial risk by not continuing to work to maximize their score. But they never want to listen because the 10 point improvement was a lot of work, and 20 is that much more, but it is worth it.

If you start now, you can maximize your score by the time you hit your senior year. The LSAT should be approached like the SAT. You normally start off with PSAT in 9th grade to prepare you for the real thing in 12th grade. If possible, I would do that with the LSAT. I did not have that option, because I did not realize I wanted to be a lawyer until well into my 20s, but if I knew when I was your age, I'd have started ASAP and have gotten a 180.

[kalvano]

If you can maintain a 3.88 - 3.9 and score a 172 or better, you can write a PS about how you like to do Irish Car Bombs and then go out and punch hookers with a roll of quarters and you'll still have law schools lining up for you.

[rinkrat19]

I agree with those who are saying don't worry about the LSAT yet, just work on maximizing your GPA. And I'd add: READ. Read constantly. Read hard stuff, fun stuff, fiction and non-fiction, books and magazines. It helps on the reading comprehension section of the LSAT like you wouldn't believe, and it improves your writing skills. RC is the hardest section of the LSAT to improve on, and I firmly believe that your natural ability on it stems directly from how much of a reader you are.

[Kobe_Teeth]

I agree with those who are saying don't worry about the LSAT yet, just work on maximizing your GPA. And I'd add: READ. Read constantly. Read hard stuff, fun stuff, fiction and non-fiction, books and magazines. It helps on the reading comprehension section of the LSAT like you wouldn't believe, and it improves your writing skills. RC is the hardest section of the LSAT to improve on, and I firmly believe that your natural ability on it stems directly from how much of a reader you are.

+1

If you can maintain a 3.88 - 3.9 and score a 172 or better, you can write a PS about how you like to do Irish Car Bombs and then go out and punch hookers with a roll of quarters and you'll still have law schools lining up for you.

...and this was hilarious.

[cireland67]

Alright... thanks guys.

So just curious... I got some powerscore books, is there any specific order the lsat should be studied in? I was going to start logical reasoning first.

[zjs4]

Alright... thanks guys.

So just curious... I got some powerscore books, is there any specific order the lsat should be studied in? I was going to start logical reasoning first.

In my experience test-takers have the most trouble with the analytical reasoning/logic games section. The logical reasoning sections account for half the test though. You still have time, so it's not really an issue where you start at this point, but for the sake of answering the question I'd start at logic games, work on that for now, and then take a logical reasoning class at your university and couple that course with studying logical reasoning in the power score books specifically for the LSAT.

[NU_Jet55]

I am currently a second semester sophomore in college with the goal of attending law school after I receive my undergrad degree.

I have heard horror stories about applying to law school and was wondering what I could do to get the ball rolling right now?

I can answer any other questions if they're necessary for this process as well.

You're a sophomore and you haven't done anything yet? You're screwed, man.

[nina09]

Similar situations as you , I'm focusing on rocking this semesters and the summer classes I'm taking to solve the problem I had with my gpa in the first three semesters .


I only took a diagnostic and I have started to get material and different strategies for it.


I'm working on the vocabulary and explanations how to solve the problems, sudoku, etc.. . Nothing hardcore until I set my gpa , in a place where is easier to raise/maintain in my remaining semesters.

[random5483]

Law schools care about two things: 1) LSAT, and 2) Grades. Everything else is gravy. Personally, I would recommend you focus on your grades first, and LSAT second. Your LSAT can always be improved. Improving one's GPA is close to impossible. I did very well on my LSAT and had a horrible GPA. I ended up in a decent school, but now my only shot at a great school is a transfer. With a good GPA I could have started off at a great school.


With that said, working on your LSAT early is definitely good. Just do not sacrifice your grades for it. Most schools value the LSAT more than grades; however, the LSAT can be improved post degree with several months (or more if needed) of studying. You cannot improve your GPA post degree (or significantly improve GPA once you are a good way through your degree).

[LSATclincher]

1) Stay out of trouble. Only hang out with successful/ambitious people.

2) Get some kind of internship or something in the legal field (even unpaid). The profession is very dry, and it can isolate you from non-attorneys. Your personality might match the career, but you won't know unless you get some experience first.

3) Don't get distraught about the economy. If you find out you REALLY want to become a lawyer, you'll put the hard work in to succeed no matter what.

Good luck!

[NU_Jet55]

1) Stay out of trouble. Only hang out with successful/ambitious people.

2) Get some kind of internship or something in the legal field (even unpaid). The profession is very dry, and it can isolate you from non-attorneys. Your personality might match the career, but you won't know unless you get some experience first.

3) Don't get distraught about the economy. If you find out you REALLY want to become a lawyer, you'll put the hard work in to succeed no matter what.

Good luck!

1) This is stupid. Hang out with whoever you want.

2) You absolutely don't need to do this. Just get a job-any job- you enjoy. Nothing you can get as an undergrad is going to help anyways.

3) There are a lot of people that REALLY want to become lawyers AND put in the hard work that are unemployed and hate their lives. If there's one thing you should do, it's be completely aware of the difficulties of this economy.

[retake]

Whatever score you get on the LSAT, retake. The answer is always retake.

[flcath]

No other academic program relies on its standardized admission test like law schools rely upon the LSAT. There are a variety of reasons (and pros and cons) for this that may make for fun academic debate, but are outside your control.

The principle opportunity to 'game the system' in LS admission is by prepping for the LSAT to the point where you cannot possibly squeeze another point out of your brain. Skip entire application cycles if need be.