Narrowing down my Options Forum

[cfox17]

I am graduating from UTK this May and I currently have a 3.6 GPA and 165 LSAT with 1 take. I have been in touch with UTK, William&Mary, Vandy, SMU, Baylor, Emory, American U, and a few other schools. I am wanting to practice corporate law and hopefully get a job with a reasonably sized firm. I would like to stay around the South (Nashville, Chattanooga, Atlanta) but I am not against moving to places to increase my chances at a better career. I really like William&Mary and Vandy, but is there any other options I should look at with those numbers? Northwestern? Texas? Thanks for any and all advice!

[Clearly]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

[BigZuck]

Wait, these are schools you are looking to apply to, not ones you have been accepted to, right?

The only school there that gives you an ok shot at working for a decent sized firm is Vanderbilt and you won't get in there unless you are URM. Will not get in to Texas or NU either. Check out mylsn.info and play around with that.

If you want big law you need to retake and go to a T14.

[jbagelboy]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

[BigZuck]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

Solid anti-GULC and UCLA trolling

I am BigZuck and I approve this post

[rickgrimes69]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

+1

I'm getting scooped a lot in these threads lately

[NoodleyOne]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

I think he was implying that if he wants Biglaw, retaking is the option, not that the T6 is. That's how I read it, at least.

[jbagelboy]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

I think he was implying that if he wants Biglaw, retaking is the option, not that the T6 is. That's how I read it, at least.

Ah, well retaking is TCR so I'd agree then. If I misinterpreted your statement Clearlynotstefsn then I apologize

[cfox17]

Correct, these are schools I am considering. I was just hoping to use some advice from you all and narrow down some schools. I am not opposed to retaking, I took this time without much preparation. I was looking close to Vandy and UTK and I know Vandy is a better law school but as I said earlier I wouldn't mind getting a nice job in the region. (Nashville, Chattanooga, Atlanta) I have ties in Nashville and Chattanooga. As well as some corporate ties in Raleigh/Charlotte NC. Would this open up maybe UNC and Wake? My dad lives in NC so I could probably get instate. Also, William&Mary I had been in touch with a lot. How is that school? Then how do the DC schools stack up nationally? (Gtown, AU, etc)
Thank you guys!

[jbagelboy]

Correct, these are schools I am considering. I was just hoping to use some advice from you all and narrow down some schools. I am not opposed to retaking, I took this time without much preparation. I was looking close to Vandy and UTK and I know Vandy is a better law school but as I said earlier I wouldn't mind getting a nice job in the region. (Nashville, Chattanooga, Atlanta) I have ties in Nashville and Chattanooga. As well as some corporate ties in Raleigh/Charlotte NC. Would this open up maybe UNC and Wake? My dad lives in NC so I could probably get instate. Also, William&Mary I had been in touch with a lot. How is that school? Then how do the DC schools stack up nationally? (Gtown, AU, etc)
Thank you guys!

Vanderbilt with decent $$ would be a good target for you given your goals. If you score over 171, you'd have a solid chance at Duke, which would be even better. But retaking for 168+ and hitting Vandy is TCR.

[Ti Malice]

I am not opposed to retaking, I took this time without much preparation.

Then you absolutely need to retake. If you got a 165 without much preparation (could you be more specific as to your study regimen?), you very likely have potential to score well into the 170s. If you do that, we're talking about an entirely different level of schools -- some of which would offer you very substantial scholarship money.

I was looking close to Vandy and UTK and I know Vandy is a better law school but as I said earlier I wouldn't mind getting a nice job in the region. (Nashville, Chattanooga, Atlanta) I have ties in Nashville and Chattanooga. As well as some corporate ties in Raleigh/Charlotte NC. Would this open up maybe UNC and Wake? My dad lives in NC so I could probably get instate. Also, William&Mary I had been in touch with a lot. How is that school? Then how do the DC schools stack up nationally? (Gtown, AU, etc)
Thank you guys!

Here's something you need to understand: getting a "nice job" in Nashville or Atlanta is harder than getting a nice job in NYC. There is much more competition for each of the far fewer available jobs, and going to some place like UTK is not going to help you just because it's in the same region. From what rad lulz (Vandy student) has said, you need to have top-third grades at Vandy to even get a sniff from Nashville firms. You would probably have to be top five (or ten?) percent at UTK. Your odds of landing a job in one of these places would be a hell of a lot better coming from Duke or UVA (or other top schools). Vandy with a very substantial scholarship wouldn't be a bad arrangement, either, but you're not getting Vandy with those numbers.

None of the local schools you're mentioning have great placement power anywhere. American places worse than most TTTT schools. Seriously. Don't even think about going there. GT is one of the T14, but it's clearly the bottom of the top 14. They tend to be fairly stingy with scholarship money as well, so it usually seems to me that someone admitted to GT has other offers that make more sense, whether that's a similarly-priced offer at a better school or a huge scholarship offer at a strong regional school.

The bottom line is that there's no good reason for you not to retake. Study properly for the LSAT and get yourself a 172+. Go to an elite school or a strong regional (like Vandy) with a load of scholarship money, and enjoy far better career options than you'll have coming out of UTK, SMU, and the like.

[cfox17]

For studying, I bought some test books and LSAT books from PowerScore. I just scanned through them and worked out problems using their methods and such. I thought I may take the test twice anyways, because sometimes that first one can be nerve wrenching but I wanted to take a class from PowerScore or Kaplan this time around.

Secondly, that is what I had originally thought. I know going to a place like SMU, UTK, etc would allow me some options and yes I could potentially make it, but with a more prestigious T14-T25 school I could have a lot more options.

[Clearly]

Are you opposed to retaking? Do you feel like if you spent 4 months on it you could get better? Every point counts from where you are now, and CCN is in play if you can do really well. If you're looking for corporate / big firm its basically your only option.

Lol okay saying CCN(HYS) is the ONLY option for big firm work is a pretty ludicrous statement, even for TLS. Any T13 gives a strong chance at corporate firm work, and the strong regionals like Vanderbilt and UT give a decent shot. They are definitely an option at the right price.

I think he was implying that if he wants Biglaw, retaking is the option, not that the T6 is. That's how I read it, at least.

Ah, well retaking is TCR so I'd agree then. If I misinterpreted your statement Clearlynotstefsn then I apologize

Sorry, that was really ambiguously worded. Noodles got it right. Ccn would be in play with a good retake, and if the op wants a good shot at corporate, retaking is basically his only option.

[ndirish2010]

OP needs to do some research. Asking whether American is a good school, for instance, shows that OP has not put much thought into this process.

[cfox17]

Well no, I care very much about the school I choose, the education I get and the opportunities it will present me. I have spent a lot of time looking at this site and the respective schools websites as well. I was solely going on schools I have been in touch with and then looking at the rankings on this site. I know a lot of you guys are telling me if I do not get in to a T-14 then my options will be limited but how will my job prospects be if I can get in to a Vandy, William&Mary, Notre Dame, or a school similar. I was fine with settling in the region like at Emory, UTK, or Wake but a lot of you are telling me I would be screwed and need to retake and go to another school or it would be just a waste of time.

[Myself]

.

[romothesavior]

Well no, I care very much about the school I choose, the education I get and the opportunities it will present me. I have spent a lot of time looking at this site and the respective schools websites as well. I was solely going on schools I have been in touch with and then looking at the rankings on this site. I know a lot of you guys are telling me if I do not get in to a T-14 then my options will be limited but how will my job prospects be if I can get in to a Vandy, William&Mary, Notre Dame, or a school similar. I was fine with settling in the region like at Emory, UTK, or Wake but a lot of you are telling me I would be screwed and need to retake and go to another school or it would be just a waste of time.

You've come to the right place. Poke around the forums, check out the job data on Law School Transparency, and read up on LSAT studying techniques and tips in the LSAT forum. The schools you are talking about (Vandy, W&M, ND, Emory, etc.) are all decent schools, but you should be working on getting big scholarships. Going at sticker would not be wise.

Given your lack of preparation, you should RETAKE, without a doubt. If you put in 3+ months of solid study, 170+ is absolutely within reach. That would be a game-changer for you, and would make you competitive at the T14 schools. Good luck.