3.92/160 URM - HELP! NO RETAKES LEFT Forum

[trenhardeatclen]

.

[icantwait]

.....

To begin, I'm fairly disappointed that I'm out of retakes and my highest score is a 160 (especially because I PT'd well.. Oh well). However, it is what it is..... :'(

Anyways, does anyone think I have a shot at T14?


URM (Cuban)
Worked throughout UG, 2 jobs at once at certain points while volunteering and
1st Gen College Grad
Finished UG in 3 years despite graduating High school with 0 credits and nearly a 2.0 GPA

Some other interesting things are:
Mentor high school students
Tutor
Give motivational speeches to high school students (spoken to hundreds of kids so far)

I'm currently working in a non law related job.

Unfortunately, Cuban is not considered URM under the traditional definition. The only Hispanic URMs are PRs and MAs. Given that, I think you have a pretty slim shot. You may be able to sneak into one of the 11-14 schools since you have a strong GPA but you would certainly be paying sticker. Good luck!

[A. Nony Mouse]

I think the Hispanic URM boost is hard to predict. One thing a number of people have pointed out is that LSAC recently changed its categories so that people don't have to pick a particular Hispanic ethnicity (Mexican, PR, etc), and simply choose Hispanic. I think this is true for many if not all schools, too. So to the extent there is any distinction between different kinds of Hispanics, schools don't really have that info any more.

[Jrr13]

Because of your GPA, you have a great shot at schools like Vanderbilt, WUSTL, Georgetown, and Cornell. Apply to a lot of them and make sure your application has a lot of information about you. Have several people read everything for advice. Do a Why X essay for each school.

You CAN get in with that GPA, just look at LSN splitters with 3.8+ and 155-160, a lot of them get in with some money too.

And I think this whole "Cuban is not a real URM, so no boost" is just a rumor. Schools report how many minorities and hispanics are in their classes in general, so I would argue almost any minority (especially black, hispanic, and indian )are a boost in your application. I've never heard of a school reporting how many Mexicans and Puerto-Ricans there are in their class, usually just Hispanics as a whole.

[rav17]

And I think this whole "Cuban is not a real URM, so no boost" is just a rumor. Schools report how many minorities and hispanics are in their classes in general, so I would argue almost any minority (especially black, hispanic, and indian )are a boost in your application. I've never heard of a school reporting how many Mexicans and Puerto-Ricans there are in their class, usually just Hispanics as a whole.

Hmmm. I don't really like your reasoning here. Indeed, schools do usually report the proportion of students of color in their classes. However, not all students of color (basically any student that isn't white) are under represented, the latter group is a subset of the former. URM's : AA, MA's, PR's, NA's get a boost, not all students of color. By your logic, Asian-Americans must also receive some sort of discernable boost in admissions because they are racial minorities, when in fact this isn't the case at all, they are actually over represented in many professional schools. The URM status pertains to racial groups that have been historically disadvantaged and that are under represented at law schools, not to all racial minorities in society at large. I will concede however that because many law schools strive to assemble the most diverse class as possible, someone who grew up in India and or has had unique life experiences may be looked upon favorably during the admissions process, but that is by no means equivalent to the boost that URM's receive, also keep in mind such experiences are not necessarily limited to racial minorities.

[icantwait]

And I think this whole "Cuban is not a real URM, so no boost" is just a rumor. Schools report how many minorities and hispanics are in their classes in general, so I would argue almost any minority (especially black, hispanic, and indian )are a boost in your application. I've never heard of a school reporting how many Mexicans and Puerto-Ricans there are in their class, usually just Hispanics as a whole.

Hmmm. I don't really like your reasoning here. Schools do usually report the proportion of students of color in their classes. However, not all students of color (basically any student that isn't white) are under represented, the latter group is a subset of the former. URM's : AA, MA's, PR's, NA's get a boost, not all students of color. By your logic, Asian-Americans must also receive some sort of discernable boost in admissions because they are racial minorities, when in fact this isn't the case at all, they are actually over represented in many professional schools. The URM status pertains to racial groups that have been historically disadvantaged and that are under represented at law schools, not to all racial minorities in society at large. I will concede however that because many law schools strive to assemble the most diverse class as possible, someone who grew up in India and or has had unique life experiences may be looked upon favorably during the admissions process, but that is by no means equivalent to the boost that URM's receive, also keep in mind such experiences are not necessarily limited to racial minorities.

I agree with you, but I'm thinking by Indian he meant Native American.

[LoganCouture]

I think the Hispanic URM boost is hard to predict. One thing a number of people have pointed out is that LSAC recently changed its categories so that people don't have to pick a particular Hispanic ethnicity (Mexican, PR, etc), and simply choose Hispanic. I think this is true for many if not all schools, too. So to the extent there is any distinction between different kinds of Hispanics, schools don't really have that info any more.

Not sure if this is helpful to OP/anyone but on T14 apps last cycle (14-15):

Yale - doesn't ask for any race/ethnicity info.
Harvard - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Stanford - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
UChi - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
Columbia - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
NYU - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Penn - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
UVA - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
Berkeley - "answer suppressed" when I go back and look at my app.
Mich - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Duke - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
NU - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Cornell - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
GULC - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.

[icantwait]

I think the Hispanic URM boost is hard to predict. One thing a number of people have pointed out is that LSAC recently changed its categories so that people don't have to pick a particular Hispanic ethnicity (Mexican, PR, etc), and simply choose Hispanic. I think this is true for many if not all schools, too. So to the extent there is any distinction between different kinds of Hispanics, schools don't really have that info any more.

Not sure if this is helpful to OP/anyone but on T14 apps last cycle (14-15):

Yale - doesn't ask for any race/ethnicity info.
Harvard - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Stanford - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
UChi - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
Columbia - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
NYU - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Penn - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
UVA - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
Berkeley - "answer suppressed" when I go back and look at my app.
Mich - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Duke - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
NU - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.
Cornell - asks for Hispanic/Latino and specific group.
GULC - only asks Hispanic/Latino, not specific group.

Berkeley and Michigan do not consider due to state law.

ETA: supposedly.