Looking for an international law program with 3.84/169 Forum

[twykim]

Hey all,

(*The questions I would like to have answered by you guys are bolded at the bottom*)

I am an Asian American student 1-2 years out of undergrad. My LSDAS gpa is a 3.84 and I received a 162 (December 2010) and a 169 (October 2011) LSAT score. I am interested in pursuing a career in international law. Specifically, I would like to find a program that puts me in the best position, after law school, to work with East-Asian multinational corporations and/or governments. Here is a list of the schools I was planning on applying to:

1) NYU *ED
2) UC Berkeley
3) University of Michigan
4) Cornell University
5) Georgetown University
6) George Washington University
7) Duke University
8. Northwestern University
9) UCLA
10) University of Virginia
11) USC
12) American University
13) Washington University-St. Louis

Preferably, I would like to find a law school on the East Coast but I am not completely averse to relocating across the country.

I was debating on waiting another cycle and using the time to study (June 2012 LSAT) in order to break the 170 mark with a 3rd LSAT, but was hesitant about doing that because 1) such a score increase is not guaranteed 2) it is 1 more year of not starting law school

1) Would it be ill-advised to wait another cycle and retake the LSAT a third time?
2) Am I missing any programs that are renown for their international law programs and may be realistic possibilities with my numbers?
3) What can I do to emphasize my desire to pursue international law at these schools?

Thank you in advance for your input!

[de5igual]

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1&t=163901

[tennisking88]

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1&t=163901

If you don't feel like clicking the link: There is no such thing as "international law"

If you want to "work with" East Asian corporations, you can work as a corporate lawyer in an East Asian city. I don't really know how you would work with their governments per se, as a lawyer.

[tennisking88]

Hey all,

(*The questions I would like to have answered by you guys are bolded at the bottom*)

I am an Asian American student 1-2 years out of undergrad. My LSDAS gpa is a 3.84 and I received a 162 (December 2010) and a 169 (October 2011) LSAT score. I am interested in pursuing a career in international law. Specifically, I would like to find a program that puts me in the best position, after law school, to work with East-Asian multinational corporations and/or governments. Here is a list of the schools I was planning on applying to:

1) NYU *ED
2) UC Berkeley
3) University of Michigan
4) Cornell University
5) Georgetown University
6) George Washington University
7) Duke University
8. Northwestern University
9) UCLA
10) University of Virginia
11) USC
12) American University
13) Washington University-St. Louis

Preferably, I would like to find a law school on the East Coast but I am not completely averse to relocating across the country.

I was debating on waiting another cycle and using the time to study (June 2012 LSAT) in order to break the 170 mark with a 3rd LSAT, but was hesitant about doing that because 1) such a score increase is not guaranteed 2) it is 1 more year of not starting law school

1) Would it be ill-advised to wait another cycle and retake the LSAT a third time?
2) Am I missing any programs that are renown for their international law programs and may be realistic possibilities with my numbers?
3) What can I do to emphasize my desire to pursue international law at these schools?

Thank you in advance for your input!

If you can't do any better than 169, no, your GPA is high enough to make competitive at all of the schools above.

[Borhas]

What is international law, in your mind?

[kwais]

Just throwing this out there. Like many things on TLS, nuance is lost because people get hard-ons by repeating conventional wisdom. Yes international law is elusive, yes you need to go to a top school. However, the idea that it doesn't exist is silly. I am learning from people who have had extremely meaningful careers in international law, both public and private. They are enthusiastic about helping others do the same and realistic that it's tough.

My advice, see if you get into a T6 this time around and if not, retake and reapply.

Also, that Tyra gif is spot on.

[danitt]

Every time people on TLS throw shade at international law I have to laugh because I work with a division in my company called International Law, Treaties and Legal Affairs (the reason I have to go to law school essentially).

[NewYorker86]

I'd encourage you to check out NYU's RTK scholarship. It's a full ride for people committed to public interest law, and the program considers international law to fit the bill. Moreover, the program is looking to expand the diversity of its scholars so you seem like you could be a god candidate. I'm actually doing international environmental law through the program right now and would be happy to answer any questions you might have.

[blsingindisguise]

The reason people make fun of "international law" wannabes is not that it literally "doesn't exist," but that most people have a kind of vague fantasy about what it means, combined with an unfounded idea that it's somehow more interesting, cutting edge or sexier than US law. That and also people imagine that a "program" is going to somehow set them up with said sexy cutting edge international law job of mystery.

International law practice is in some sense a real thing, but it can mean dozens of different things. You could work in a big firm in corporate on a deal involving a foreign company, for example -- hey congrats, you're now practicing "international corporate law." You're still just proofreading a 500 page document.

Another element of this is that most law is territorial/jurisdictional. There's a lot of activity between parties of different countries, but there isn't actually much "international law" that gets applied -- usually an agreement or a litigation is going to be applying the law of one country or another, and you're mostly going to wind up working on things involving your own country's law (because if it's another country's law, there will be counsel from that country).