3.0 165 lsat Forum

[c5reynolds]

Hi everyone : )
I am DETERMINED to get into law school, but once in a while I feel a flash of panic when thinking about my GPA. . It is extremely low due to the fact that I single handedly cared for my father who suffered from early on-set Alzheimer's disease while attending school. . Even after my Junior year when it was no longer safe for him to be alone while I was at class, work, etc. . causing him to move into a group home, I visited him daily, took him to doctor apts, controlled his finances, & most importantly was his only companion. (Talk about time consuming & emotionally draining!) I also payed for on my own expenses & tuition that wasn't covered by grants (aka worked 30 hours a week.) It was a lot to handle and I am proud to have managed to do as well as I did considering the circumstances. Of course I will be writing an addendum about the situation I found myself in, but given the circumstances. . Any insight as to my chances of getting into schools such as:

University of San Diego (Top choice)
Chapman
DePaul
Pepperdine
Loyola (IL or CA)
Vermont Law (bottom choice)

I graduated with a 3.0 (3.6 major gpa. . )and have a 165 LSAT. . applying in Fall 2012
Thanks for taking the time to read this & for any feedback you might have! : )

[lovejopd]

Hi everyone : )
I am DETERMINED to get into law school, but once in a while I feel a flash of panic when thinking about my GPA. . It is extremely low due to the fact that I single handedly cared for my father who suffered from early on-set Alzheimer's disease while attending school. . Even after my Junior year when it was no longer safe for him to be alone while I was at class, work, etc. . causing him to move into a group home, I visited him daily, took him to doctor apts, controlled his finances, & most importantly was his only companion. (Talk about time consuming & emotionally draining!) I also payed for on my own expenses & tuition that wasn't covered by grants (aka worked 30 hours a week.) It was a lot to handle and I am proud to have managed to do as well as I did considering the circumstances. Of course I will be writing an addendum about the situation I found myself in, but given the circumstances. . Any insight as to my chances of getting into schools such as:

University of San Diego (Top choice)
Chapman
DePaul
Pepperdine
Loyola (IL or CA)
Vermont Law (bottom choice)

I graduated with a 3.0 and have a 165 LSAT. . applying in Fall 2012
Thanks for taking the time to read this & for any feedback you might have! : )

I am sorry about your father and I understand your pain as I took care of my grandma who has Parkinson's disease (my best friend) in my house.
I think it is too late to apply for a law school now for Fall 2012. Can you sit out this cycle and apply for a better school? 165 is a great score!

[law4vus]

If you aren't applying until fall 2012, have you considered registering for the LSAT again and trying to get above 170?

You have some time to study for either the June or Fall LSAT, you already have the 165 in hand, and it will greatly improve your school prospects. You shouldn't be wasting a 165 on SD anyway, but a 170+ could get you into much better schools.

All it will really cost you is the registration fee (which can be easily recouped in scholarship money) and an hour or two a day of studying. Since you already got a 165, I promise it won't take THAT much extra effort to break a 170. You don't have much to lose and if you don't score higher, you can still apply with the 165. Retaking won't hurt your chances even if you somehow score lower.

Also, just to add: I can't imagine doing what you did. I commend you on your dedication and I wish you all the best in your future endeavors.

[c5reynolds]

Thanks so much for your responses! Do you think it would be possible to get into those schools without retaking the lsat? Will scoring in the 170's be my only hope? Also, thank you for your encouragement : )

[bk1]

Thanks so much for your responses! Do you think its possible to get into those schools without retaking the lsat? Will scoring in the 170's be my only hope? Also, thank you for your encouragement : )

You can get into those schools you listed without a 170's LSAT, however they really aren't worth going to. A 170's LSAT would open up law schools that aren't financial suicide.

[romothesavior]

Thanks so much for your responses! Do you think its possible to get into those schools without retaking the lsat? Will scoring in the 170's be my only hope? Also, thank you for your encouragement : )

I am sorry to hear about your father. That certainly is a difficult situation and a horrible disease.

I agree with bk. You can probably get into some of these schools, but whether or not you should go is a different story. The legal market is atrocious right now, and the employment prospects at those schools are particularly poor. I think your best decision would be to spend 2-3 months studying for the LSAT and retake it. Get a score in the 170+ range and go to a splitter friendly T30 on a scholarship or try to gun for a T14. You might be able to gain some leeway on your GPA due to your situation in college, but law school is a numbers game first and foremost. You need a better LSAT score.

Good luck.

[c5reynolds]

Hm.. seems unanimous that I should try again. . My own mind might be my worst enemy. . Scoring in the 170+ seemed so out of reach the first time around. . Any suggestions for CA or Chicago schools that would be willing to look past my low GPA if everything else fits? ALSO, is San Diego totally not worth my time? I feel embarrassed I held it so highly. . Is there something I'm missing? I know it's expensive. . Thank you again for the responses! This is all unbelievably helpful, although your feedback was far from what I was expecting & hoping for!

[Tiago Splitter]

Hm.. seems unanimous that I should try again. . My own mind might be my worst enemy. . Scoring in the 170+ seemed so out of reach the first time around. . Any suggestions for CA or Chicago schools that would be willing to look past my low GPA if everything else fits? ALSO, is San Diego totally not worth my time? I feel embarrassed I held it so highly. . Is there something I'm missing? I know it's expensive. . Thank you again for the responses! This is all unbelievably helpful, although your feedback was far from what I was expecting & hoping for!

I nearly went to USD last cycle, but the job prospects really are horrible. They offered me a 30K scholarship, but it came with a top third stipulation, which means that if you finish outside the top third after 1L you'll have poor job prospects and gigantic debt. And my numbers were better than yours (3.5/166) so I doubt you'll get more money or friendlier stips.

I know that retaking seems tough but it really is the only answer. Your GPA puts you in a hole, but the LSAT is your chance to dig out of it.

[Helmholtz]

Thanks so much for your responses! Do you think its possible to get into those schools without retaking the lsat? Will scoring in the 170's be my only hope? Also, thank you for your encouragement : )

You can get into those schools you listed without an LSAT in the 170s, however they really aren't worth going to. An LSAT in the 170s would open up law schools that aren't financial suicide.

+1