Top Law Schools

Hello forum,

I know this will sound as an other guy trying to find relief in posting his profile on the forum, but i really need answers concerning my admissions (coming up in february...)

Reasons to study a JD: bunch of family in the US, nice prospects for bicultural lawyers (french/US), love for the law.

I have an "international" profile: i am french, born and raised in Hong Kong. I spent 8 month internship in London, 1 year exchange in Berlin U, and i will soon graduate in a master's in Economic Analysis at the University of Paris.

What i am afraid is that most people seem afraid of an "overloaded resume": i actually hold 3 undergrad degress (one in bilingual French/english Law, one in political science, and one in German Language and Literature), with an average of 13/20 (that would be a 2.8 GPA, but really guys thats quite good (=top 10% of class). Master's degree: 15/20 (3.1 GPA if i am not mistaken).

So double question:

- Are law schools afraid of students "gluttony" of degrees ?
- I am afraid my grades are not competitive enough for a top 30 law school...or are they, considering i am a foreigner ?

Thank you for reading me, help really appreciated...

PS: yeah i know the name of the post is pompous, but trying to catch attention here

_

LSAT mid february.

seriously, GPA hoovering between 2.5 and 3.0 doesnt look great... does the rest take it all or what ?

Is that your LSAC GPA? I mean, that sucks, top 10% would be 3.7 or so at my school.

I'm sure LSAC will translate his grades accordingly. OP, you really don't have many degrees; you're fine.

TheRuffle wrote:Are law schools afraid of students "gluttony" of degrees ?

No, they are not afraid of three degrees. The number of degrees likely will not aid you either. Many people have at least two undergraduate degrees, and you'll find many applicants have master's and ph.d's.

TheRuffle wrote:I am afraid my grades are not competitive enough for a top 30 law school...or are they, considering i am a foreigner ?

The GPA will be an issue. One option is to have your LOR's state the difficult grading at your school and how you are actually in the top 10%. I don't know if anyone else would agree with me, but I would attach a grade addendum highlighting relative performance.

ok, thank you for the infos. I will attach an addendum to my grades report.

By the way, anybody has feedback from Golden Gate University ? I worked with some professors to organize a comparative french/us seminar in Paris... And the general feelings from the US student body was quite unequal...

The GPA will be an issue. One option is to have your LOR's state the difficult grading at your school and how you are actually in the top 10%. I don't know if anyone else would agree with me, but I would attach a grade addendum highlighting relative performance.[/quote]

lol You are funny.

baboon309 wrote:lol You are funny.

Got a better idea?

One of your degrees is law already? I think you need to check if you qualify for the JD program first. Don't foreign educated lawyers have to enroll in the LLM instead?

JD are for everyone who can apply, regardless of the nationality. I prefer a JD to an LLM because i want to STAY in the usa, and also because it gives a better employability. And yes, i already studied French National Law, which has (almost) nothing to do with common law system.

About the Grade thing, i think i have to point out that if we only consider numbers, having a 4.0GPA in France is impossible (except in hard science). I mean, exceptional students get a 16/20 or 18/20 at most, and that can be converted to 3.5GPA max.

Therefore, the addendum for "grading philosophy" is not a bad idea.

I think law schools also have a place that you check if you have attended foreign schools for undergrad. It is right on their application. I know the LSAC does. So my guess is do an Addendum like others have said and have good letters of recommendation. I also recommend contacting the LSAC about the grading scale and maybe speaking to a few schools.

Comme vous le savez, le système de notation français est complètement différent que l'échelle GPA aux Etats-Unis. Les évaluateurs le savent bien, ils sont habitués à réviser les dossiers des candidats étrangers (y compris les français)..donc ils n'effectueront pas la conversion par une simple opération arithmétique, pas de soucis.

your Lsat score will matter the most for admission. You will not (at least I highly doubt) have a reportable gpa. For the french system your marks are top notch. Schools (depending on their experience with int. applicants) will more or less understand that you did extremely well at your home institution. As someone pointed out earlier having 3 degrees will niether help or hurt. A higher LSAT score is much more important than your degrees.

Also you mentioned english/french law... Do you have a LLB/Maitrise en droit?

No, I have a Bilingual "Licence" in French and English Law, and a "Maîtrise" in Law/Economics.

Thaks for the tip on the grades!

Provided you get a good LSAT score, I think your application sounds great. Most people want more on their resume, not less, so don't feel the need to humble your achievements. You're trying to get in to law school after all.

Yeah... your grades will not matter. LSAC will not convert it to a U.S. GPA, they will just "evaluate" your school and your ranking in the school to an overall "grade" (for example "superior"). Schools that you apply to will get your transcript and LSAC's evaluation. LSAC will not convert your GPA to a U.S. 4.0-scale GPA, and (this is conjecture now) schools probably won't give your GPA as much weight as they would a normal, reportable U.S. undergrad GPA.

Since you obviously excelled in academics, though, and since law schools do look for diversity when choosing their class, as long as you get a competitive LSAT score you should be able to get into a top 30 school.