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So I got my Feb. LSAT score back: 165. meh.

I have a high gpa 3.91, and it keeps going up...so my question is where do I go from here?

I have t14 ambitions but retaking is not an option for me right now (i have a cancel from June and a 160 from september -- third time was not exactly a charm). I'd like to see how I can do next cycle (Berkeley being my top choice) before I have to dive back into the LSAT.

Also, any great soft ideas for the summer and year off I will be taking would be appreciated...any little bit helps.

I got a 164 and would've almost killed a puppy for a 165. I can't party with you, homes.

I received a 164 in December, but I imagine it feels a lot like a 165. There does seem to be a world of difference between a 165 and a 166, at least this cycle.

Those numbers are good enough to get into some of the easier T14.

RCG37 wrote:So I got my Feb. LSAT score back: 165. meh.

I have a high gpa 3.91, and it keeps going up...so my question is where do I go from here?

I have t14 ambitions but retaking is not an option for me right now (i have a cancel from June and a 160 from september -- third time was not exactly a charm). I'd like to see how I can do next cycle (Berkeley being my top choice) before I have to dive back into the LSAT.

Also, any great soft ideas for the summer and year off I will be taking would be appreciated...any little bit helps.

Youhave a shot at Berkeley dude. Their 25% as I remember is 163.

3.91 is Solid.

apply, if fail - take a year off, pull it to 170 and go from there

If I was in your situation, I would pick a school that was a good fit with my scores, T14 or not. I personally believe that is true for any applicant, whether you get a 155, 165, or 175. Contrary to what some people believe, going to a lower ranked school is not career suicide. It all comes down to your personal career goals. If you want NYC biglaw, your situation is a lot different from someone who wants to hang their own shingle in a small rural town.

hsprophet wrote:If I was in your situation, I would pick a school that was a good fit with my scores, T14 or not. I personally believe that is true for any applicant, whether you get a 155, 165, or 175. Contrary to what some people believe, going to a lower ranked school is not career suicide. It all comes down to your personal career goals. If you want NYC biglaw, your situation is a lot different from someone who wants to hang their own shingle in a small rural town.

I concur. However, I not only want NYC biglaw, but also a high profile political career... Oh and a good return on my investment (law school).

Anyone have ideas as to what I can do over the summer and year off (aside from working) to bolster my softs?

traehekat wrote:I received a 164 in December, but I imagine it feels a lot like a 165. There does seem to be a world of difference between a 165 and a 166, at least this cycle.

Yep, good enough to make us dangerous, not quite good enough to make us lethal...

165 is the worst. I took the LSAT once and got a 165. With my GPA, I was told "You'll be fine. You should get in anywhere." Well- people were wrong. While I am still to be rejected from any school I applied to, I have been waitlisted at USC, Berkeley, and Georgetown. Getting a 165 puts you in purgatory.

I don't know. Maybe I have lower expectations but I am excited to attend UCLA or USC. They're not T14... but they will get me where I want to go. I have a 165/3.98 and have yet to hear from Berkeley (I'm in FR) and a few other huge reaches. Go for it! ED at Michigan or UVA (if you like those schools) and you will have an especially good chance of getting in.

Also, I had a friend last cycle with a 165 (twice) and a 3.72 who is now a 1L at Penn (off the waitlist). Granted, he has very strong softs. If you have those, you will get in somewhere you'll love.

RCG37 wrote:So I got my Feb. LSAT score back: 165. meh.

I have a high gpa 3.91, and it keeps going up...so my question is where do I go from here?

I have t14 ambitions but retaking is not an option for me right now (i have a cancel from June and a 160 from september -- third time was not exactly a charm). I'd like to see how I can do next cycle (Berkeley being my top choice) before I have to dive back into the LSAT.

Also, any great soft ideas for the summer and year off I will be taking would be appreciated...any little bit helps.

If I were you, I'd keep raising that GPA, and then find a decent job to pay the bills. Enjoy life, and apply to MVPBDNCG, and maybe a regional school where you want to work. And see if you can pull scholarship money, if you can't wait another year and apply again.

If you absolutely want to go after only one year off, I'd apply ED to Northwestern or UVA, whichever you prefer more. You'll likely get into either.

Didn't you apply to any this cycle? If not, then:

Apart from working, keep studying for the LSAT and volunteer with a political campaign/organization. I have no idea where you live currently, but from your career goals I would want to network like crazy. Obviously the studying for the LSAT advice is the most critical. With a 3.91 and a 168+ you'll get some great T20 offers.

Keep your chin up. I had a 165 a year ago and retook in September, getting a score in the range that I needed.

but then again dude that's a waste of a beautiful gpa

you can keep that lsat and do fine

or score higher and do amazing

edit

Your numbers aren't going to completely DQ you from the T14. They need high GPAs to balance out splitters. You are probably in for a fight though. In terms of soft, I wouldn't start something new that will seem random. What have you done over the course of college? Sports, volunteer work, travel. Find a sort of theme you want to play up and then spend the summer really devoting yourself to it. Get that GPS as high as possible. The closer you are to a 4.0, the less ground you have to make up.

And remember, everyone is throwing themselves a pity party. The 97% of us who didn't break 170 (and probably a number who did ) are sitting around kicking themselves for the one or two additional questions that might have cost them their dreams. The reality is what it is, would an extra point have helped, sure maybe. But we tend to overestimate the importance of those points, and underestimate everything we do having going for us. This is the hand you have, and you need to play is the best you can. Good luck! I am all too familiar with that feeling of disappointment you just can't shake. But a 165 is an entirely respectable score, especially paired with that awesome GPA. Chin up!

RCG37 wrote:So I got my Feb. LSAT score back: 165. meh.

I have a high gpa 3.91, and it keeps going up...so my question is where do I go from here?

I have t14 ambitions but retaking is not an option for me right now (i have a cancel from June and a 160 from september -- third time was not exactly a charm). I'd like to see how I can do next cycle (Berkeley being my top choice) before I have to dive back into the LSAT.

Also, any great soft ideas for the summer and year off I will be taking would be appreciated...any little bit helps.

Really bad timing, 3rd time in Feb. means you have to wait all the way until next feb. to retake so you would basically have to give up two cycles.. For your goals you should give schools like Vandy and Illinois good looks in addition to the T14. Politicians basically graduate from everywhere and both these schools place pretty well. Also, 165 is a top 10% score and can get you a few bucks with that gpa at illinois maybe.

jks289 wrote:Your numbers aren't going to completely DQ you from the T14. They need high GPAs to balance out splitters. You are probably in for a fight though. In terms of soft, I wouldn't start something new that will seem random. What have you done over the course of college? Sports, volunteer work, travel. Find a sort of theme you want to play up and then spend the summer really devoting yourself to it. Get that GPS as high as possible. The closer you are to a 4.0, the less ground you have to make up.

This sounds like a plan.

I was unsure of what exactly constituted good softs, but throughout college I interned at CBS (i'm a journalism major) and for Mayor Daley (I live in Chicago and I think Northwestern might like that soft) as well as being involved in a community service fraternity and holding a position in my sorority. For next year I'm looking at editorial jobs with NPR, Conde Nast (publishing company who owns the New Yorker, Vogue, etc etc), the Wall Street Journal, and though they are entry level, the big names might help. So it sounds like pursuing the work experience will be a solid soft that will hopefully make me some $$.

Also, I didn't apply this cycle -- I plan to apply next fall as soon as the cycle opens.

RCG37 wrote:

jks289 wrote:Your numbers aren't going to completely DQ you from the T14. They need high GPAs to balance out splitters. You are probably in for a fight though. In terms of soft, I wouldn't start something new that will seem random. What have you done over the course of college? Sports, volunteer work, travel. Find a sort of theme you want to play up and then spend the summer really devoting yourself to it. Get that GPS as high as possible. The closer you are to a 4.0, the less ground you have to make up.

This sounds like a plan.

I was unsure of what exactly constituted good softs, but throughout college I interned at CBS (i'm a journalism major) and for Mayor Daley (I live in Chicago and I think Northwestern might like that soft) as well as being involved in a community service fraternity and holding a position in my sorority. For next year I'm looking at editorial jobs with NPR, Conde Nast (publishing company who owns the New Yorker, Vogue, etc etc), the Wall Street Journal, and though they are entry level, the big names might help. So it sounds like pursuing the work experience will be a solid soft that will hopefully make me some $$.

Also, I didn't apply this cycle -- I plan to apply next fall as soon as the cycle opens.

Yes, the work experience jornalism angle sounds like a good one to play up. Write a PS that ties law to journalism in some way. Show how law school is the logical progression for you. Also get apps in early. Berkeley loves numbers like yours, and applying very very early is going to be your friend here. Get your LORS lined up now (they are such a pain last minute) and start drafting a PS over the summer. Good luck!

I got a big rejection from B with a 165/3.92, but others with similar numbers got in. I have fairly average softs compared to a lot of T14 applicants, though.

Neelio wrote:165 is the worst. I took the LSAT once and got a 165. With my GPA, I was told "You'll be fine. You should get in anywhere." Well- people were wrong. While I am still to be rejected from any school I applied to, I have been waitlisted at USC, Berkeley, and Georgetown. Getting a 165 puts you in purgatory.

You should've applied to a safety

sandiecohen47 wrote:ED at Michigan or UVA (if you like those schools) and you will have an especially good chance of getting in.

I was rejected from Michigan ED.

KimmyGibbler wrote:

Neelio wrote:165 is the worst. I took the LSAT once and got a 165. With my GPA, I was told "You'll be fine. You should get in anywhere." Well- people were wrong. While I am still to be rejected from any school I applied to, I have been waitlisted at USC, Berkeley, and Georgetown. Getting a 165 puts you in purgatory.

You should've applied to a safety

I did- in at UC Davis, and still waiting on Oregon and Utah.

I got a 165 (feb 2009) /3.5 and I'm still pretty stoked about it. I prepared a pretty great application and got into Fordham. I don't really understand why you're looking for pity.

Not everyone scores in the top 1%. Asking for pity because you're in the top 8% is like a multi-millionaire sending out an e-mail crying to the guys on the forbes' list of richest men. Either retake, or deal with it in some other productive manner, like using the next six months to make the best application you can.

RCG37 wrote:So I got my Feb. LSAT score back: 165. meh.

I have a high gpa 3.91, and it keeps going up...so my question is where do I go from here?

I have t14 ambitions but retaking is not an option for me right now (i have a cancel from June and a 160 from september -- third time was not exactly a charm). I'd like to see how I can do next cycle (Berkeley being my top choice) before I have to dive back into the LSAT.

Also, any great soft ideas for the summer and year off I will be taking would be appreciated...any little bit helps.

You have a shot at any of the UC's, they LOVE gpa's

i think the concept of a T14 is a false illusion. i think cornell and GULC are much closer in quality of education (and perhaps the kind of students they admit) to UCLA, UT, and Vandy than to DVN. i say this not to imply that GULC and cornell are bad. rather, T14 should be expanded to perhaps a T15 or T17. the number of lawyers are increasing and so are the number of jobs. to insist on an anachronistic system of rating law schools is ridiculous. especially when UT, UCLA, and Vandy can provide you with similar, if not better, education as GULC and Cornell.