Hey, I've recently been flirting with the idea of attending law school in the US however I am still not sure about how URM's applicants are treated..
I am currently a junior at a Canadian university with a 3.6 gpa in math and economics. My first year was a relatively poor 3.0ish but I managed to turn it around..i had a 3.92 last year, I am looking at a 3.95 this year and hopefully I do as well in my final year. I scored a 166 on the October LSAT after studying for pretty much all of my summer vacation so i am not excited about the prospect of writing it again :/
What schools I should be aiming for?
I think rewriting will improve my score marginally, should I still do it?
Am I at a disadvantage if I apply straight out of undergraduate without working for a year or two first? If I do take a year off it will be do a masters otherwise I want to start law school right away..
Thank you and I'd very much appreciate any extra advice you guys have
Another AA male seeking advice Forum
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Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are sharing sensitive information about bar exam prep. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.
Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned."
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hovason
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Another AA male seeking advice
Last edited by hovason on Mon Mar 07, 2016 7:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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oil
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Re: Another AA male seeking advice
Don't do a masters unless it's cheap and you really want to. Blanket T14 and you'll do excellent.
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fliptrip
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Re: Another AA male seeking advice
jnwa is an AA Canadian male who frequents these parts. He can provide some insight from that perspective.
For now, as an AA male with a 3.6/166 you're in a weird spot. You'd definitely get some t-14 acceptances and good money, but you won't get the big money that you would need to make school in the US make sense for you. You should definitely re-take to get at or above 170, which should bring full scholarship at at least one of the t-14 into the equation. A 168+ would probably bring Harvard into the equation, and Harvard is great for Canadians because they have institutional loans for internationals and a need based financial aid scheme.
For now, as an AA male with a 3.6/166 you're in a weird spot. You'd definitely get some t-14 acceptances and good money, but you won't get the big money that you would need to make school in the US make sense for you. You should definitely re-take to get at or above 170, which should bring full scholarship at at least one of the t-14 into the equation. A 168+ would probably bring Harvard into the equation, and Harvard is great for Canadians because they have institutional loans for internationals and a need based financial aid scheme.
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jnwa
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Re: Another AA male seeking advice
Your numbers are good but they put you in a tricky spot. Youre treated as an AA for application purposes. As a Canadian there's really only 2 outcomes that justify going to the US. A T14 full ride or HYS. Anything else and you're probably better off staying in Canada.
I have a much lower GPA than you and a 173 LSAT and I was able to snag a full ride. You have a good shot at Harvard with your numbers, however you'll also probably get into U of Toronto(I did and Canadian schools care a lot more about GPA). Choosing Harvard over U of T doesn't make a ton of sense to me simply because of the huge differential in cost.
Basically id say rewrite. Your GPA might preclude you from CCN full rides but you should be in a good spot for full ride offers from lower t14 with a 170. Then you just have to decide where youd rather practice. As far as work experience, I'm finishing my undergrad this year and my K-jd status hasnt stopped me from having a really good cycle. It might hurt me in oci's and it does weird me out a little that a lot of my classmates are in their mid 20s and I haven't turned 21 yet however, I can't justify turning down a full ride to spend a year doing minimum wage jobs for "experience".
PM me for more info. I can keep you updated with how my process is going.
I have a much lower GPA than you and a 173 LSAT and I was able to snag a full ride. You have a good shot at Harvard with your numbers, however you'll also probably get into U of Toronto(I did and Canadian schools care a lot more about GPA). Choosing Harvard over U of T doesn't make a ton of sense to me simply because of the huge differential in cost.
Basically id say rewrite. Your GPA might preclude you from CCN full rides but you should be in a good spot for full ride offers from lower t14 with a 170. Then you just have to decide where youd rather practice. As far as work experience, I'm finishing my undergrad this year and my K-jd status hasnt stopped me from having a really good cycle. It might hurt me in oci's and it does weird me out a little that a lot of my classmates are in their mid 20s and I haven't turned 21 yet however, I can't justify turning down a full ride to spend a year doing minimum wage jobs for "experience".
PM me for more info. I can keep you updated with how my process is going.
