Top Law Schools

Hey everyone,

Deposit deadlines are looming and I need some advice before I do anything hasty. Schools I'm considering:
Maryland (near full scholarship) - I'd also be able to commute here which would save $
Emory (33k / year scholarship)
GW (20k / year scholarship)

I've lived in MD/DC my whole life and would like to stay here. I'd like to get biglaw but I know that's virtually impossible at Maryland and very difficult at Emory and GW. Maryland has very good STATE clerkship numbers and I know I'd be able to get one, but I'm not sure if that's even something to strive for. My original plan was to attend law school last fall and I had planned to with a 152 until I found TLS. Unfortunately, I have maxed out my retakes and only managed a 167. That's not even the worst part - I have a sub 3.0 gpa. Tried harder last two years, significant upward trend, whatever. I also applied in January.

I don't think I underperformed my stats, but I'm not really satisfied with the outcomes. I was dead set on going this fall but I've been thinking REALLY hard about sitting out for two years, and retaking again when I'm allowed to which is Feb 2017. My question is, do I take one of those options above, or try to kill the test in a year and apply early in the cycle, maybe ED to NW. If I retake in February, I can also take in June and Sep/Oct as well. I'm confident that I'll hit 172+ but I'm worried how adcoms, particularly in the T14 will look at someone with 4 or more takes. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

"Confident" about 172+ is pretty big statement. Adcoms will look way more favorably at a 172 than your current LSAT. If you really think you can get it up then get it up.

Even with a 172, your T14 options are limited at best.

Oh missed that sub 3.0 comment.

Yeah maybe you should be readjusting your goals here. I think Maryland on full ride (plus your CoL will be covered) is a pretty good outcome since you have ties to the state.

Sorry, not to pile on, but to address your confidence in "172+"... the numbers don't get better even if your score increases past 172.



Take Maryland. If you are dead set on T14, do your best and transfer up. Just don't bank on that.

RaceJudicata wrote:Sorry, not to pile on, but to address your confidence in "172+"... the numbers don't get better even if your score increases past 172.

Take Maryland. If you are dead set on T14, do your best and transfer up. Just don't bank on that.

Yeah, but there's very limited data on MyLSN with those numbers. Even when you broaden the inputs, it still doesn't give you more than maybe two or three students who applied to each school. I know my gpa is a killer and I hope a higher lsat will help, but do you think 4, 5, maybe even 6 takes would be a big red flag as well? I'd have to agree that Maryland is probably where I'm leaning towards. I'd try to employ the whole big fish small pond thing and do as well as I can. Maybe snag one of the 8! federal clerkships or 20! biglaw jobs.

Admissions is a numbers game. There is no stat that the school puts out that addresses how many times an applicant does or does not take the LSAT. Sure, it may be a "red flag," but not in NEARLY the same way a sub 3.0 gpa is.

The sub 3.0 gpa gets factored in to their PUBLISHED stats.

Finally, sure, there is limited data. And of course there is a possibility that your app blows adcomms away and you beat the odds. But unfortunately, the data suggests this won't be the case. Feel free to approach this however you please, but don't be so quick to ignore the facts in front of you.

ETA: Big Fish/Small pond mentality is risky... Remember, everyone thinks they are going to be in the top 10%, but only the top 10% are in the top 10%

RaceJudicata wrote: Remember, everyone thinks they are going to be in the top 10%, but only the top 10% are in the top 10%

I just figure it may be a bit easier for me to get into the top whatever % at Maryland compared to that same percentage at a better school. How much easier, I'm not sure. Obviously I'm not banking on being anything though. Worst case, if I don't do well enough, most expenses will be covered here so I could always drop out after 1L if I'm not where my goal is, right? At that point I just pay the one year opportunity cost.

Since you want to remain in MD/DC, I would say that Maryland with a nearly full scholarship, plus lower COL expenses, is your best bet. Depending on how you do during your 1L year, BigLaw may be a realistic option, but you should also be prepared to find work in other practice settings. Being in Baltimore will give you the opportunity to network with Maryland attorneys, and you should be doing a lot of that while you're in law school.

There are some market-paying BigLaw firms in Baltimore (Hogan and Venable, off the top of my head), but of course they do look for top grades and hire only a few people a year. There are some Maryland graduates in DC proper, but the competition for BigLaw spots in the District is even tougher.

Thanks for the input Aeon. Definitely plan on networking around the two cities. You seem to be pretty familiar with the market here. Are you from the area? PM if you want, as I can't send you one.

WhyYaCryin wrote:Thanks for the input Aeon. Definitely plan on networking around the two cities. You seem to be pretty familiar with the market here. Are you from the area? PM if you want, as I can't send you one.

Not from Maryland, but I'm familiar with the market.