Would love to hear TLS' opinion Forum

[gringa_con_becas]

Hi TLS,

I'm a splitter and I'm probably going to retake, but just for kicks I thought I'd see what you guys thought about my results and chances of negotiating for more scholly money with Wake and GW. The decision is coming up really fast and I'm worried about having to decide by April 1 especially if I don't have time to think for a while.

GPA 3.8
LSAT #1. 156, #2. 160

Acceptances:

George Washington: 10k/year in Merit scholarships, waiting to hear back about need based scholarships. I think I have a good chance at qualifying but I'm really not sure what they look for. I already have 40k in undergrad loans and my mom is a dislocated worker, so that's why I think I have a chance at getting at least another 10k right?
COA without knowing about need based grants is 122k + living in DC I refuse to believe it's actually 30k a year what do y'all think?

U of Iowa: full ride plus research assistant position guaranteed for 2L and 3L COA 44k

U of Richmond: full ride and I can live at home COA 18k

Wake Forest: 23k/year, applied for Hearn scholly 10k/year but who knows, will find out before April 1 COA 115k without Hearn

George Mason: 12k/year with the opportunity to increase scholarships if in the top 10-15% 2L and 3L, in state tuition COA 112k

Boston College: just accepted today and I don't know about scholly yet but I think a little at least

University of Maryland: just got accepted last week. Unknown scholarship amount but I am expecting some right?

Florida State: unknown scholarship amount but I am expecting some right?

Accepted but not truly considering anymore
Temple: 25k/year merit
Penn state: full ride
Washington and Lee: 25k/year merit
U of Illinois: 23k/year merit

Yet to hear from my top choices of course:

UNC
William and Mary
UVA (longshot I know)

also haven't heard from
Ohio State

Waitlisted at University of Georgia

[OhBoyOhBortles]

Retake for 168/169+ and then enjoy the excellent T14 outlook. Your GPA is good enough to get you there and you have another take.

[Mullens]

Where are you from and what do you want to do? You applied to a bunch of regional schools across the country, most or all of which probably will not make sense for you. You have a great GPA and should retake the LSAT, sit out a cycle, and aim higher.

[BigZuck]

Retake is the obvious answer

If your goals are modest and you can go for cheap then a regional school is fine, but you need to acquire more geographic focus. Theses schools are literally all over the map and you shouldn't seriously consider attending all of them. If you're truly open to living anywhere, then focus on where your strongest ties are (aka where you are from, went to high school, college, etc.) Law school isn't the time to pack up and move to some random part of the country for no good reason IMO.

[Dr. Nefario]

Retake is the best answer. Even a 165 gives you a decent shot at a lot more money at GW

[gringa_con_becas]

Part of the problem is that I used to want to work in the mid atlantic region within 8 hours driving distance from Richmond, VA which is where I went to undergrad and have lived for the past 10 years. I used to want to live close to family which I have in VA, NC, MD, and PA, but now I am not really sure because my mom got really sick and I think it could be better for me to leave long story but yeah I'm 23 and I don't know where I want to live!

I also am definitely not sure what kind of law I want to practice. I'm interested in litigation, big law, mid sized firms, criminal law, education, and health. I used to be set on public interest but I changed my mind about making more money. Since then I haven't made another decision. Obviously I want to go somewhere where they will guide me to the right field of law for me.

Also have some connections in Chicago because I went to a summer intensive for pre-law students there during college, and many of them are in law school now. Boston too, I was born there and my dad used to practice there until I was 11. Lot's of connections in NC too because my cousins work in the education system there and that is one of my interests. Maybe school board or policy or something. I know it won't pay but hey obviously I'm confused and need guidance!

But Iowa and Florida were kind of a last minute hail Marys. I got scared and thought I wasn't giving myself enough options.

[gringa_con_becas]

UMD's health program is interesting to me for sure

[zombie mcavoy]

Iowa sounds like a good deal, if you want to practice in Iowa. Nothing else does though, at least for your goals/GPA.

Gotta retake here.

[buckiguy_sucks]

.

[timbs4339]

Your COA estimates are way off. Use LST, which includes the accruing interest, origination fees, tuition increases, etc etc. For example, GW is going to be over a 200K investment. I think when you understand the true COA you'll see that retake is unquestionably the best option.

http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/gw/costs/2013/

I doubt that GW has a serious need-based program. Need-based aid is effectively dead at almost all law schools.

[romothesavior]

Iowa is the only school that makes any financial sense here, but it's a regional school that places predominantly in the Midwest.

Retake is TCR.

[gringa_con_becas]

Question: how bad would it be if I didn't get a real job while preparing for my retake? Because right now I am teaching English in Mexico and I feel like I don't want the evil LSAT stealing away any of my Mexican time. I go home in June, and I could just work my restaurant job while preparing for the Sept/Oct LSAT. Then maybe after I could search for a job in the legal field but I feel like it would be hard for less than a year. Just trying to wrap my brain around what the retake experience will be like.

[gringa_con_becas]

Also do I have any chance of negotiating for more money at this point? What about from George Mason since they gave me the same amount basically as GW but they are not GW...

[Aquila]

Also do I have any chance of negotiating for more money at this point? What about from George Mason since they gave me the same amount basically as GW but they are not GW...

There is ZERO harm that can be done by asking for scholarship reconsiderations. I have done it successfully multiple times

[gringa_con_becas]

Should I do it now?

[zombie mcavoy]

Should I do it now?

probably nobody is going to bump you with those stats to a level that makes it worth attending. I mean go for it, but do your best to not annoy any adcomms at schools you might want to reapply to when you have a better lsat.

[pancakes3]

Question: how bad would it be if I didn't get a real job while preparing for my retake? Because right now I am teaching English in Mexico and I feel like I don't want the evil LSAT stealing away any of my Mexican time. I go home in June, and I could just work my restaurant job while preparing for the Sept/Oct LSAT. Then maybe after I could search for a job in the legal field but I feel like it would be hard for less than a year. Just trying to wrap my brain around what the retake experience will be like.

A lack of awesome work experience won't affect your admissions much especially if you apply with a 3.8/170+. Also, legal assistant jobs are fairly easy to come by. Everyone I know - even former biglaw paralegals, had no problems leaving their gig on good terms when they explained to their boss that they got into law school. Plus you'll be employed from July to July so it's not like you're only going to be there for a couple months.

I really don't think you're in any kind of hurry to go to law school. You should withdraw your apps, enjoy Mexico, and spend June-December studying the LSATs. With your GPA and 6 months worth of solid, efficient LSAT prep, (and guessing you're in the Mid Atlantic), you have a really good chance of Duke/UVa with GULC as a "safety".