Considering sitting out for a second year. Please Help Forum

[Pure Protein]

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[transferror]

If you can't find real WE, then wait tables or work retail while you study. Just do something to earn income and demonstrate you weren't sitting on your ass at home. If you think you could raise your score to a 170 or better, you have a great shot at money from the T14. Sit out and retake. It sucks, but it sucks less than 300k debt.

[Theopliske8711]

Try and get a para position, or something. What kind of area do you live? If you are very near a city, you can probably find something.

[d cooper]

Retaking is objectively the best choice by a long shot. You may not even get into any of those schools at all this cycle, even late in the summer.

I won't question your job-searching strategy, but if you give it a few months (and several hundred resumes) you should be able to find full-time employment of some kind. It's good practice for the process/interviewing, and may provide a slight admissions bump or something to talk about with adcomms.

[Power_of_Facing]

You MUST retake.

Two more points puts you in range for half scholarships at the likes of Cornell/GULC; four more points and full rides are in play (and this before you've broken the 170 barrier, which you may well do).

23 is incredibly young, and you should not feel like your life will be stalled by waiting a year for law school.

Also, not having a job for a few extra months will have very little impact on your admissions chances. If you're concerned about any negative effects of the downtime, consider some law-related volunteer work, which can sometimes lead to full-time employment (it did for me).

More than anything, treat the LSAT and application preparation like your job from now until September. If you study hard and study smart, you will reap the rewards next cycle.

You MUST retake.

[ZGr88n]

This is a no-brainer, retake is the only option. You've listed a bunch of schools you're waitlisted at, coming off the WL is far from a sure thing, plus sticker is nothing more than a soft rejection. Retake for money next cycle, good luck.

[ph14]

23 is probably below or right at the median age of entering law student at my school, and there are plenty of people who are much older than 23. I agree with the other posters, study hard for the LSAT and retake it. Work experience will also likely be beneficial in obtaining post-graduate employment after law school.

[NYSprague]

For the love of God do not borrow $300,000 for a law degree. Do not pay $300,000 for a law degree with a 3.86 undergrad GPA

If you can't find a decent job, move somewhere else and get roommates. You don't have to depend on student loans to pay for you to move to a better location with better employment prospects. Believe it or not, people move to NYC area every day and very few of them are going to law school. They figure out other options. Maybe you have a friend or relative in a bigger city, it doesn't have to be NYC.

What the fuck have we been trying to do here on TLS for so long now. Why would you even consider going in that much debt for law school when you have a great shot at reasonably affordable solid options.

You can improve your LSAT score. I bet you haven't studied correctly.

I'm really banging my head against the desk here.

[Pure Protein]

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[WaltGrace83]

On behalf of the rest of society, thank you for caring about your future. I'm completely serious.

[ph14]

For the love of God do not borrow $300,000 for a law degree. Do not pay $300,000 for a law degree with a 3.86 undergrad GPA

If you can't find a decent job, move somewhere else and get roommates. You don't have to depend on student loans to pay for you to move to a better location with better employment prospects. Believe it or not, people move to NYC area every day and very few of them are going to law school. They figure out other options. Maybe you have a friend or relative in a bigger city, it doesn't have to be NYC.

What the fuck have we been trying to do here on TLS for so long now. Why would you even consider going in that much debt for law school when you have a great shot at reasonably affordable solid options.

You can improve your LSAT score. I bet you haven't studied correctly.

I'm really banging my head against the desk here.

No need to be so aggressive. People come here to get advice. Not everyone has been on TLS "for so long now" and it is useful to provide direct advice to applicants on their situation.

[NYSprague]

For the love of God do not borrow $300,000 for a law degree. Do not pay $300,000 for a law degree with a 3.86 undergrad GPA

If you can't find a decent job, move somewhere else and get roommates. You don't have to depend on student loans to pay for you to move to a better location with better employment prospects. Believe it or not, people move to NYC area every day and very few of them are going to law school. They figure out other options. Maybe you have a friend or relative in a bigger city, it doesn't have to be NYC.

What the fuck have we been trying to do here on TLS for so long now. Why would you even consider going in that much debt for law school when you have a great shot at reasonably affordable solid options.

You can improve your LSAT score. I bet you haven't studied correctly.

I'm really banging my head against the desk here.

No need to be so aggressive. People come here to get advice. Not everyone has been on TLS "for so long now" and it is useful to provide direct advice to applicants on their situation.

I gave him great advice. My frustration was meant to indicate that he would be making a terrible mistake, maybe one of the worst mistakes I have seen on TLS, and I am sure he got that message.

[d cooper]

Thank you everyone for the quick responses. I sort of knew that retaking was the best option here, but seeing others say it as well really drove it in. I also want to assure everyone that I am trying to find full time employment prior to beginning law school, I just haven't had too much luck so far.

[riverwater]

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[A. Nony Mouse]

NYSprague has been around here a lot longer than 7 days.

[Nomo]

Definitely don't go. I recommend trying to join Americorps or teaching english in a foreign country. Those types of opportunities are out there and they can allow you to move to a new place and have a little fun while you continue studying.

[ph14]

Definitely don't go. I recommend trying to join Americorps or teaching english in a foreign country. Those types of opportunities are out there and they can allow you to move to a new place and have a little fun while you continue studying.

I would recommend focusing on studying for the LSAT. I'm not sure what the time commitment for either of those two options are, but they seem considerable. Plus, living at home means you are likely saving money and have a comfortable and familiar study environment (hopefully).

[Power_of_Facing]

Definitely don't go. I recommend trying to join Americorps or teaching english in a foreign country. Those types of opportunities are out there and they can allow you to move to a new place and have a little fun while you continue studying.

I would recommend focusing on studying for the LSAT. I'm not sure what the time commitment for either of those two options are, but they seem considerable. Plus, living at home means you are likely saving money and have a comfortable and familiar study environment (hopefully).

I second this, with one caveat.

Don't overdo the LSAT studying, burnout is real.

[HRomanus]

Duke claims on its website that it averages LSAT scores, so retaking doesn't really have any merit for it. Please tell me that you applied to other schools. A 165/3.87 will get you great scholarship money at a non-T14 school.

[NYSprague]

NYSprague has been around here a lot longer than 7 days.

Yes that is my fault I guess for freezing my account when I had major life changes happening and wanted to get myself off TLS. I won't do that again.

I think my attitude about law and debt is permanently affected from the crash and seeing what it did to people's careers. Same thing with the recent no offers that people finally opened up about on TLS. I still get shocked by how much law schools continue to increase the sticker cost well over inflation in an era of dropping demand. I know Campos says that the actual cost is dropping because of non-transparent scholarship monies and other data he has, but schools seem to just be increasing their transfer classes at sticker to make more money. Wages are also decreasing, which no one wants to hear about.

The economics of law schools defy any relationship to reason, in large part, I feel, due to the years of lying about jobs and salaries. LST has begun a seismic shift in understanding the reality of employment. Remember when we didn't even know about the number of school funded jobs? That was like two years ago.

So, OP, don't borrow $300,000 for law school and pay it back for the rest of your life. You have better options open to you.


/sorry for hijacking the thread

[NYSprague]

Duke claims on its website that it averages LSAT scores, so retaking doesn't really have any merit for it. Please tell me that you applied to other schools. A 165/3.87 will get you great scholarship money at a non-T14 school.

Don't all schools claim this? The numbers don't support this as being true because the school only has to report the highest score.

[Power_of_Facing]

Duke claims on its website that it averages LSAT scores, so retaking doesn't really have any merit for it. Please tell me that you applied to other schools. A 165/3.87 will get you great scholarship money at a non-T14 school.

Don't all schools claim this? The numbers don't support this as being true because the school only has to report the highest score.

A few schools openly acknowledge the fact that they take the highest score (UChi, for example), and the rest employ the same practice but are vague or deceitful about it. The highest score counts.

[Pure Protein]

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