Top Law Schools

no col are included

Wake Forest
$85,578 costing Total
$28,526 each year
(waiting for further negotiation)
(no stip)

Ohio State
$53,982 costing Total
$17,994 each year
(waiting for negotiation and financial aid)
(no stip)

University of Florida
$66,543 costing Total
$22,181 each year
(this is sticker price, waiting to hear back for scholly info)

Basically, I want to work in a big city (DC, Miami, Columbus, Atlanta), I don't care whether I end up in BigLaw or not. I have ties to South Florida. I want to do business law or intellectual property law. i ultimately want to create my own law firm after a few years of experience.

Thread seems premature. Also you should include col, it's very difficult to understand what your numbers mean.

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Where do you want to live & work after law school ? To state the obvious: Ohio State for Columbus & UFlorida for Miami.

CanadianWolf wrote:Where do you want to live & work after law school ? To state the obvious: Ohio State for Columbus & UFlorida for Miami.

To be honest, I have very great ties and connections with law firms in South Florida. I have met many attorneys and judges through internships in Miami. I believe that if I go to OSU, I could get a job in either columbus or miami (through my network)

Then OSU it is.

bugsy33 wrote:retake the LSAT

100% agree. You have to retake. When you tack on COL and interest these schools are too expensive.

Good call bugsy

bugsy33 wrote:
Or you can retake the LSAT and go for free hur hur hur (since we know everyone can get a 170+!!!)

I know you're being sarcastic, and I sometimes roll my eyes too when people blithely suggest getting a 170+, particularly if the poster is nowhere close to that. That said, OP has a 3.8 GPA and a 158. Breaking into the 160's (which should be doable by any reasonably intelligent person willing to put in the time) would mean significantly more money at these schools, if not full rides. Retake is obviously the correct answer here.

PS Sup MSU buddy

OP, I'm not usually in the retake camp, but I am here. The reason is that, IMO, schools like UF and Ohio State are about the minimum level of schools that people should shoot for (not based on ranking, but on employment stats and state/regional reputation). However, I don't think any of these schools is worth $100k+ in debt. So I won't tell you to retake and go to T-14 (though great for you if you can), but I will say retake and go to these schools for less.

To offer some perspective, I have a similar GPA but a 163 LSAT, and we applied to several of the same school. I was PT'ing in the low 160's/high 150's leading up to the Feb test, so I bailed and signed up for June. I eventually started PT'ing in the mid 160's and got a 163 on the real deal. In terms of ability, it seems we're very much alike. However, a few points more got me these results:

90%+ discount at Wake
Half to 2/3 discounts at UF, FSU, UGA, W&M, SMU, Tulane
1/3 to 1/2 discounts at Vandy, Emory, and WUSTL

Again, I won't tell you T-14 or die. But $100k is a huge gamble, and I think more cash at someplace like UF/FSU/Miami would put you in a good position with your S. Florida ties. Good luck either way!