. Forum

[comebacking]

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[starry eyed]

Everyone is going to tell you to save that retake for october, STUDY hard and re apply.

But if you must, no one should go to Cal Western period
all those schools are pretty similar in terms of prestige and being located in CA.

I'm assuming you live in SD and are willing to work there and with your living expenses covered it would be the cheapest option besides cal wesTTTern. So i would go there.

still, you're looking at 100k+ in debt with less than 10% chance at biglaw, not good odds

[stego]

Is that just your tuition for those schools? What is your cost of attendance?

[starry eyed]

i assumed those were the scholarship amounts he got from them

[BigZuck]

Yeah, crunch the numbers and figure out how much debt you will be in at each. Be sure to include cost of living, tuition increases, loan interest, loan origination fees, etc.

[Ohiobumpkin]

Retake. Even a 6 point increase might get you into a t-20 school with money, or perhaps a t-14 with some or no $. Those outcomes are infinitely better than all the options you so far have available. Good luck on the retake!

[WokeUpInACar]

Yes it would have been nice if you discovered this site sooner, but now is not "too late." Doing anything other than withdrawing from this cycle, truly busting your ass studying until October, and reapplying next cycle would be a monumental mistake.

[downbeat14]

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[hearsay77]

I'm assuming you live in SD and are willing to work there and with your living expenses covered it would be the cheapest option besides cal wesTTTern. So i would go there.

still, you're looking at 100k+ in debt with less than 10% chance at biglaw, not good odds

If you're not going to reapply after your retake, I'd agree with the above. I lived in SD for a few years and USD is looked at as regionally prestigious and could likely get you a decent job in SD, but it really isn't worth 6 figures.

[OhBoyOhBortles]

Yes it would have been nice if you discovered this site sooner, but now is not "too late." Doing anything other than withdrawing from this cycle, truly busting your ass studying until October, and reapplying next cycle would be a monumental mistake.

[Tiago Splitter]

I'm assuming you live in SD and are willing to work there and with your living expenses covered it would be the cheapest option besides cal wesTTTern. So i would go there.

still, you're looking at 100k+ in debt with less than 10% chance at biglaw, not good odds

If you're not going to reapply after your retake, I'd agree with the above. I lived in SD for a few years and USD is looked at as regionally prestigious and could likely get you a decent job in SD, but it really isn't worth 6 figures.

It is respected locally but getting a real legal job in san diego out of USD is definitely not likely.

OP I don't think you're getting much of a boost from your race so buckle down and get that LSAT up. There are non-URMs with GPAs lower than yours who managed six-figure scholarships to USD. But if you're shooting for biglaw none of these schools are really legitimate options.

[comebacking]

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[Mack.Hambleton]

New rec isn't going to matter much for wls

Schools want to see a new PS when you reapply, maybe save that LOR for reapplying too. Old LORs tho are fine and everything else should be the same

[NorCalLaw]

Was PT'ing back in December mid-160's and really underperformed I guess. Haven't looked at the test since and only have about a month to prep again but I quit my job so at least it will be full-time (diagnostic yesterday was a 160, so fingers crossed).

This is very easy. Everyone always says retake here, but in your case, it really is the only option based on your under-performance. You get three tries, basically, and it sounds like you whiffed on your first try. That's fine, push yourself a bit harder and you can improve. Sounds like you should be hitting 165 at minimum, and a 167 will open a ton of doors to you as a URM.

Reapply early on a fresh slate and you will see much better options, even if you only improve by a couple points.

Good luck!

[abogadesq]

Whatever you do, unless you get into a T-14 school or a decent school with $$$, go with the school that you can best network in and reduce costs, such as a school in your hometown. I went to a T-50 school and, quite honestly, most of my interviewers (non-biglaw) did not care about my school; they cared most about my proven interest/knowledge/experience in the practice area and my connections to the location. They put me on the same level as most other non-T14 schools, even TTT schools. So, you might as well minimize your costs while investing in the factors that will help you most get a job, such as local networking. Don't worry about the differences in rankings, because unless it's a T-14, all else equal, it won't matter as much as other factors.

Or retake, as is the norm!

[comebacking]

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[TheProdigal]

I know you asked to not hear "reapply," but you need to consider it. However well you did in June you went from a 45k offer from Pepperdine to 135k. Those are rather impressive increases across the board. Waitlist movement has been slow, and since you haven't said, I'm assuming no joy from your quintet of waitlists. If you're in the mid-160s now that should turn some of those waitlists into acceptances with money next cycle.

With limited information, I'd have to strongly recommend reapplying.

[thesealocust]

retake

[comebacking]

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[Tiago Splitter]

I appreciate your reply (TheProdigal). So you really think these schools at their current prices are simply not worth it? I was extremely surprised to have even received such increases in scholly. I'm afraid I wouldn't get the same next year..

You will. There is still a major shortage of applicants, and schools are really struggling to stay afloat.

The reality is that no one can go in to any of these schools and realistically expect to pay back 100k+ debt in a reasonable amount of time. Even with the drop in matriculants nationwide, you're far from guaranteed to be employed as a lawyer from any of these places, much less employed in a job where you get paid well enough to pay back that kind of debt relatively quickly.

[hairbear7]

Reapply and get money at UCLA/USC. I know it sucks having to wait another year but it will be worth it