Top Law Schools

So I don't know much about the law school process, so forgive me. I'm a first semester senior who has decided to go to law school after first thinking I was going to get a phd in public health though law school has always lingered in my mind. Once again I apologize for any foolish information.

My situation is a little unique and thus I wanted some help on scouting some possible law schools. I went to a four year college, did badly then transferred to another four year where I'm doing a lot better. My gpa at my previous four year was low, a 2.0 (with a good amount of Fs first semester freshmen year). That was about...30 or so credits deep. Currently, with 63 credits at my current 4 year, I have a 3.8 GPA. If things continue like they have and should, I will graduate summa and with a 3.9 at least a 3.8 gpa with 95 credits from my current four year.

My problem is this, that will make my UGPA about a 3.8-3.9 but after some calculation my Law School GPA since the Fs and such as included is only a 2.8.

I should also add the reason that got me seriously considering law school is that I took the LSAT over the summer and got a 169 on it.

I have a long string of ECs and internships (though they are more science based) 1 at Harvard and one at Boston U.



Are there any reputable law schools (I mean like...top 50) that with a low Law School GPA but a high LSAT will still accept me?

Conventional wisdom says WUSTL and Northwestern (if you can get your LSAT up a few points and work for two years).

You may find my cycle informative.
http://lawschoolnumbers.com/Wily

Retake the LSAT and get a few more points, though, and you should do better than I did.

@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

@Wily: Thanks a lot! This helped. As I said I don't know much about law school thus far but I do have a few questions for you. I'll PM you

EDIT: I should also mention since it seems to matter here, I'm an under represented minority.

Many top 50s will consider you if you are at or above their target LSAT median.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=162680

HeMustBeMagic wrote: EDIT: I should also mention since it seems to matter here, I'm an under represented minority.

OH! URMs over the LSAT median are relatively likely to be admitted at splitter friendly schools, with scholarships. For instance, last year, my URM friend got 100k from a top 20 with a 3.0/high 160s.

HeMustBeMagic wrote:@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

@Wily: Thanks a lot! This helped. As I said I don't know much about law school thus far but I do have a few questions for you. I'll PM you

EDIT: I should also mention since it seems to matter here, I'm an under represented minority.

game changer!!!

Oh awesome! So wait (another noob comment) are you telling me that schools actually do Law Schools that is, provide scholarships? I was always told Law School scholarships are only for the gods or like 4.0 175 students.

HeMustBeMagic wrote:Oh awesome! So wait (another noob comment) are you telling me that schools actually do Law Schools that is, provide scholarships? I was always told Law School scholarships are only for the gods or like 4.0 175 students.

Many schools hand out scholarships like candy. For instance,

"Minnesota awards approximately 60% of a typical incoming class with scholarships, ranging from $2,500 to full tuition"

"Virginia Law gave grants or scholarships to about 58 percent of its student body in 2007, which is the third highest amount among the T14 (the closest rival was Michigan at 57 percent). "

" [Emory] maintains that the financial aid office will always attempt to increase available aid whenever tuition increases. In 2008, around 57% of students received scholarships, with a median grant amount of $18,000. A recent first-year student reports that some applicants with median LSAT and GPA received $70-$96k scholarships to Emory while being offered only $15-$30k from similarly ranked schools. "

What is a good number of schools to apply to as a splitter? 20?

HeMustBeMagic wrote:What is a good number of schools to apply to as a splitter? 20?

15, but for a URM splitter, the number should be higher. By the way, do you mind mentioning what race/gender you are? Those can be important as well. For instance, a black male has a bigger "boost" than a mexican american applicant

JamMasterJ wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:What is a good number of schools to apply to as a splitter? 20?

15, but for a URM splitter, the number should be higher. By the way, do you mind mentioning what race/gender you are? Those can be important as well. For instance, a black male has a bigger "boost" than a mexican american applicant

I'm an african American male

Alright so I'll do about 25 then

HeMustBeMagic wrote:@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

Anytime
I would tell EVERYONE to work for a couple years if only because it's good to figure out what you do and don't like in a professional work experience, saving money is excellent, and some schools (like Northwestern) really value work experience.

Good luck!

cinephile wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

Anytime
I would tell EVERYONE to work for a couple years if only because it's good to figure out what you do and don't like in a professional work experience, saving money is excellent, and some schools (like Northwestern) really value work experience.

Good luck!

what I'm considering, to bring my LGPA up a little bit, is completing my degree, then taking a year off to intern with a law firm I have some connections with in dc, and then applying for law school then. It will give me from about 5+ months of work experience (and i'd finish it up until law school would begin), a little higher GPA, I would work on some community service and volunteer work while I'm taking that year off, and hone my application list a little more. Plus, I'd have a attorney who I interned with for 6+ months who could write me a recommendation.

HeMustBeMagic wrote:

cinephile wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

Anytime
I would tell EVERYONE to work for a couple years if only because it's good to figure out what you do and don't like in a professional work experience, saving money is excellent, and some schools (like Northwestern) really value work experience.

Good luck!

what I'm considering, to bring my LGPA up a little bit, is completing my degree, then taking a year off to intern with a law firm I have some connections with in dc, and then applying for law school then. It will give me from about 5+ months of work experience (and i'd finish it up until law school would begin), a little higher GPA, I would work on some community service and volunteer work while I'm taking that year off, and hone my application list a little more. Plus, I'd have a attorney who I interned with for 6+ months who could write me a recommendation.

could you also possibly retake the LSAT? If you pick up two points you will probably get NYU, Penn, or something

JamMasterJ wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:

cinephile wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:@cinephile: Hey thanks! Are you saying I should work a few years between law school and under grad?

Anytime
I would tell EVERYONE to work for a couple years if only because it's good to figure out what you do and don't like in a professional work experience, saving money is excellent, and some schools (like Northwestern) really value work experience.

Good luck!

what I'm considering, to bring my LGPA up a little bit, is completing my degree, then taking a year off to intern with a law firm I have some connections with in dc, and then applying for law school then. It will give me from about 5+ months of work experience (and i'd finish it up until law school would begin), a little higher GPA, I would work on some community service and volunteer work while I'm taking that year off, and hone my application list a little more. Plus, I'd have a attorney who I interned with for 6+ months who could write me a recommendation.

could you also possibly retake the LSAT? If you pick up two points you will probably get NYU, Penn, or something

I had thought about that but I was worried that NYU or something would average the scores. Wouldn't i need to then get several points higher? NYUs 50th is 172, I'd need to get a 174 to average that which would be hard I think; or am I looking at it wrong? I'm just afraid I'd score lower.

HeMustBeMagic wrote:
I had thought about that but I was worried that NYU or something would average the scores. Wouldn't i need to then get several points higher? NYUs 50th is 172, I'd need to get a 174 to average that which would be hard I think; or am I looking at it wrong? I'm just afraid I'd score lower.

Averaging is an elaborate flame.

They wont average scores. Especially for an AA male in the 170s.

If you score lower, they also wont average your scores.

Nova wrote:

HeMustBeMagic wrote:
I had thought about that but I was worried that NYU or something would average the scores. Wouldn't i need to then get several points higher? NYUs 50th is 172, I'd need to get a 174 to average that which would be hard I think; or am I looking at it wrong? I'm just afraid I'd score lower.

Averaging is an elaborate flame.

They wont average scores. Especially for an AA male in the 170s.

If you score lower, they also wont average your scores.

yeah, schools don't really average anymore. and our median is probably down to 171 (unconfirmed). If you can hit a school's median, you will be a pretty hot commodity, especially if you can get that gpa back up over 3.0

Awesome awesome and sorry additional question to confirm my logic:

A lot of school say that to get in for the 2013 class you should apply early for rolling with the general bench mark that "halloween is early, thanksgiving is on time" that being said, since I'm a splitter my gpa wont include my fall (possibly, depending on when I apply) but most def not my spring gpa. I'm confident I will continue to have this upward trend. Hence, if I apply after taking a year off I can include my fall and spring into my calculator (similar to how second semester senior grades dont count towards your gpa when you fill out your undergrad applications). Thus I calculated my LSAC and if I continued doing well, and keep the same trend, my LSAC can be about a 2.98 instead of a 2.80. Plus, as said, I'll have 1 year work experience to add.

Is that logic correct about what can and what cannot be included in my LSAC gpa calculations?

Youre logic is right. Though you always have the option of updating your trascripts while your app is pending.

Bro, youre going to have one of the lowest GPAs in the class no matter what. It really wont make much of a difference. You are going to get accepted to some T20s because of your LSAT and despite of your GPA.

IMO, you should apply this year no matter what. Then apply again next year if you dont like how your cycle shakes out.

Thank you!

and thank everyone for your honesty

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