Top Law Schools

Given my current sub 3.0 GPA (hoping for it to reach 3.0 by December), I will probably be applying to the same schools regardless of what my LSAT is. (And I'll only apply this year if I get a 170 or higher). I know there are some schools on this list I have little to no chance at but I'm still going to apply there anyway.

SCHOOL LIST
Harvard (*shrug*- one can dream.)
Columbia
NYU
Chicago
Penn
UVA
Michigan
Duke
Cornell
Georgetown
Vanderbilt
UCLA
USC
Wash U
George Washington
Illinois
Minnesota
Fordham

Why certain schools are not on the list?
Yale/Stanford: Even more unlikely I'd get into these schools than Harvard. Harvard is very unlikely but it's my super-reach school.

UC-Berkeley: I'm not interested in working in California after law school and I'd likely pick MVPCCN over it anyway. UCLA/USC may go off the list too if they're actually harder to get into than some of the T-14's for me.

Northwestern: I'm a rising senior in undergrad with no full-time work experience, enough said.

UT-Austin: They hate splitters

I feel comfortable with this list.
As someone who has the opportunity to go into accounting or finance after college, chances are high I'd only go to law school after UG if I get accepted into a T15 (including Vandy) or a lower school on scholarship or possibly only if I get accepted into a T10.

I'm not sure what makes you think a 3.0 will get you into (school/25 percentile):

Harvard/3.76
Columbia/3.6
NYU/3.57
Chicago/3.63
Penn/3.57
UVA/3.54
Mich/3.55
Cornell/3.5
Duke/3.6
UCLA/3.57

...but good luck. NU seems to be the only T14 that would even consider an applicant w/ your GPA.

Yeah man...not going to work. GPA is just low.. MAybe if you write an amazing personal statement and have awesome ECS. LSAT is 60 percent of the application and the other 40 is everything else...

I don't know who these people are, but from someone who has closely followed the progression of this entire cycle (including a TON of splitters), I would say yes-this is a good list for a 170-172/2.9-3.0. Throw in your top local state school (if not already listed) for good measure.

In the meantime though, get that GPA up! There is a HUGE difference between 2.9 and 3.0.

Dr. Strangelove wrote:chances are high I'd only go to law school after UG if I get accepted into a T15 (including Vandy) or a lower school on scholarship or possibly only if I get accepted into a T10.

Given your numbers, this is probably not going to happen unless you get up to mid 170's and the 3.1-3.2 range. Even then it's unlikely, unless you're willing to settle for a hefty scholarship at WUSTL.

lawschoolpredictor.com indicates that, assuming a 3.0 GPA & an 170 LSAT, your best bets are :

Cornell = consider
WashUStL = consider
B.U. = consider

Minnesota, Illinois, Notre Dame, Boston College, GWU, Fordham, Alabama, UNC, Washington, Wash. & Lee = strong consider

Indiana, Ohio State, American & UC-Davis = admits

Assuming a 2.9 GPA & an 170 LSAT, then UC-Davis, Tulane & Utah = admits

--ImageRemoved--

Dr. Strangelove wrote:Given my current sub 3.0 GPA (hoping for it to reach 3.0 by December), I will probably be applying to the same schools regardless of what my LSAT is. (And I'll only apply this year if I get a 170 or higher). I know there are some schools on this list I have little to no chance at but I'm still going to apply there anyway.

SCHOOL LIST
[strike]Harvard (*shrug*- one can dream.)[/strike] Not if you have to pay money to apply.
Columbia Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
NYU Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
Chicago Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
Penn
UVA
Michigan
Duke
Cornell
Georgetown
Vanderbilt
UCLA
USC
Wash U
George Washington
Illinois
Minnesota
Fordham

I'd consider my ED multiple cycles strategy I told you about a couple threads ago.

Your list can be trimmed down more:
If you really want to leave those dreams schools at the top, you can take out Duke, Cornell, Vandy, and Fordham. Unless your LSAT is like 175+, change the GULC app to PT.

Since you claim to have the opportunity to work in finance or accounting, I would advise doing so for several reasons:

1) You'll put some time between yourself and your GPA (always a good thing for a splitter)
2) You'll actually have a decent chance of breaking into the T14 (thanks mainly to NU)
3) You'll mature, professionally and personally, more than you can imagine
4) You'll have an upper hand come OCI time for having solid work experience
5) You'll have some nice material for your resume (and possibly statement/essays)
6) You'll earn some money to put toward school
7) You might find out that you actually enjoy finance/accounting (or at least you'll know for sure that you don't)
8 ) You may even make some connections that could be invaluable down the road

I was in a similar boat a couple years ago, and I chose to postpone law school. It was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made-- and I didn't even care much for my job. I'd definitely advise anyone who has the opportunity for a good job out of UG to take it, particularly splitters, for all of the above reasons (especially 3).

Just my 2 cents.

AngryAvocado wrote:Since you claim to have the opportunity to work in finance or accounting, I would advise doing so for several reasons:

1) You'll put some time between yourself and your GPA (always a good thing for a splitter)
2) You'll actually have a decent chance of breaking into the T14 (thanks mainly to NU)
3) You'll mature, professionally and personally, more than you can imagine
4) You'll have an upper hand come OCI time for having solid work experience
5) You'll have some nice material for your resume (and possibly statement/essays)
6) You'll earn some money to put toward school
7) You might find out that you actually enjoy finance/accounting (or at least you'll know for sure that you don't)
8 ) You may even make some connections that could be invaluable down the road

I was in a similar boat a couple years ago, and I chose to postpone law school. It was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made-- and I didn't even care much for my job. I'd definitely advise anyone who has the opportunity for a good job out of UG to take it, particularly splitters, for all of the above reasons (especially 3).

Just my 2 cents.

Plus it will give time for the economy to pick up. Anything below CCN (which you have 0 shot at OP) gets dicey, and blow the T13 gets downright scary. Give big law two years to recover.

Desert Fox wrote:and blow the T13 gets downright scary. Give big law two years to recover.

Is Georgetown really that terrible?? Sigh.

MrKappus wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:and blow the T13 gets downright scary. Give big law two years to recover.

Is Georgetown really that terrible?? Sigh.

Best non13 after Vandy.

Gtown, Vandy, Texas, UCLA and USC aren't too bad, but after that its a shitshow.

You dont give enough love to the 20-40 schools. You need more safeties on the list.


Good luck this monday.

Desert Fox wrote:

MrKappus wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:and blow the T13 gets downright scary. Give big law two years to recover.

Is Georgetown really that terrible?? Sigh.

Best non13 after Vandy.

Gtown, Vandy, Texas, UCLA and USC aren't too bad, but after that its a shitshow.

I'd draw the "after that it's a shitshow" line above UCLA/USC. Vandy is doing well with a small class size and semi-national placement, and Texas is king in its own state, but UCLA/USC are getting crushed ITE.

im_blue wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:

MrKappus wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:and blow the T13 gets downright scary. Give big law two years to recover.

Is Georgetown really that terrible?? Sigh.

Best non13 after Vandy.

Gtown, Vandy, Texas, UCLA and USC aren't too bad, but after that its a shitshow.

I'd draw the "after that it's a shitshow" line above UCLA/USC. Vandy is doing well with a small class size and semi-national placement, and Texas is king in its own state, but UCLA/USC are getting crushed ITE.

How bad was USC/UCLA?

MrKappus wrote:I'm not sure what makes you think a 3.0 will get you into (school/25 percentile):

Harvard/3.76
Columbia/3.6
NYU/3.57
Chicago/3.63
Penn/3.57
UVA/3.54
Mich/3.55
Cornell/3.5
Duke/3.6
UCLA/3.57

...but good luck. NU seems to be the only T14 that would even consider an applicant w/ your GPA.

Look at LSN, buddy.
Also blatant anti-GULC trolling-if your whole argument is based on 25th percentiles..
But with that said, thanks for wishing me luck,

Desert Fox wrote:

Dr. Strangelove wrote:Given my current sub 3.0 GPA (hoping for it to reach 3.0 by December), I will probably be applying to the same schools regardless of what my LSAT is. (And I'll only apply this year if I get a 170 or higher). I know there are some schools on this list I have little to no chance at but I'm still going to apply there anyway.

SCHOOL LIST
[strike]Harvard (*shrug*- one can dream.)[/strike] Not if you have to pay money to apply.
Columbia Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
NYU Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
Chicago Only if you 175+ and have money to blow.
Penn
UVA
Michigan
Duke
Cornell
Georgetown
Vanderbilt
UCLA
USC
Wash U
George Washington
Illinois
Minnesota
Fordham

I'd consider my ED multiple cycles strategy I told you about a couple threads ago.

This is a strategy I'm really considering- but I'll only do it this time if I know I don't want to go into accounting or finance.
Seeing how strong the job market is by April 2011 will play a large role in my decision on whether I go or not.

Why are you not applying to the only T14 you have a great chance at getting into?. You need to apply ED to Northwestern. You have NO shot at T6 unless you have a Pulitzer Prize or something, and your odds of T10 are pretty bad too.

Your best T14 chance is NW, or you could go to WUSTL, UIUC, or some 20-40s on a big scholarship.

AngryAvocado wrote:Since you claim to have the opportunity to work in finance or accounting, I would advise doing so for several reasons:

1) You'll put some time between yourself and your GPA (always a good thing for a splitter)
2) You'll actually have a decent chance of breaking into the T14 (thanks mainly to NU)
3) You'll mature, professionally and personally, more than you can imagine
4) You'll have an upper hand come OCI time for having solid work experience
5) You'll have some nice material for your resume (and possibly statement/essays)
6) You'll earn some money to put toward school
7) You might find out that you actually enjoy finance/accounting (or at least you'll know for sure that you don't)
8 ) You may even make some connections that could be invaluable down the road

I was in a similar boat a couple years ago, and I chose to postpone law school. It was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made-- and I didn't even care much for my job. I'd definitely advise anyone who has the opportunity for a good job out of UG to take it, particularly splitters, for all of the above reasons (especially 3).

Just my 2 cents.

Yea, I'm really considering going into the job market after college- most of my friends who are planning to go to law school right after UG majored in useless subjects so law school is literally one of their only options..but accounting and not-too-big finance firms like the fact that I'm graduating with a Math degree- I've heard from various sources it might be one of the things which could save my ass in law school admissions.

romothesavior wrote:Why are you not applying to the only T14 you have a great chance at getting into?. You need to apply ED to Northwestern. You have NO shot at T6 unless you have a Pulitzer Prize or something, and your odds of T10 are pretty bad too.

Your best T14 chance is NW, or you could go to WUSTL, UIUC, or some 20-40s on a big scholarship.

No full-time WE, so my chances go down a lot but who knows? NU might be worth the application.

Dr. Strangelove wrote:

AngryAvocado wrote:Since you claim to have the opportunity to work in finance or accounting, I would advise doing so for several reasons:

1) You'll put some time between yourself and your GPA (always a good thing for a splitter)
2) You'll actually have a decent chance of breaking into the T14 (thanks mainly to NU)
3) You'll mature, professionally and personally, more than you can imagine
4) You'll have an upper hand come OCI time for having solid work experience
5) You'll have some nice material for your resume (and possibly statement/essays)
6) You'll earn some money to put toward school
7) You might find out that you actually enjoy finance/accounting (or at least you'll know for sure that you don't)
8 ) You may even make some connections that could be invaluable down the road

I was in a similar boat a couple years ago, and I chose to postpone law school. It was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made-- and I didn't even care much for my job. I'd definitely advise anyone who has the opportunity for a good job out of UG to take it, particularly splitters, for all of the above reasons (especially 3).

Just my 2 cents.

Yea, I'm really considering going into the job market after college- most of my friends who are planning to go to law school right after UG majored in useless subjects so law school is literally one of their only options..

romothesavior wrote:Why are you not applying to the only T14 you have a great chance at getting into?. You need to apply ED to Northwestern. You have NO shot at T6 unless you have a Pulitzer Prize or something, and your odds of T10 are pretty bad too.

Your best T14 chance is NW, or you could go to WUSTL, UIUC, or some 20-40s on a big scholarship.

No full-time WE, so my chances go down a lot but who knows? NU might be worth the application.

I still think you'll get dinged, but it is worth the application if you ED. But I really don't see you cracking the T14 without some work experience, sorry to break it to you. How low is your GPA?

The splitter-friendly schools will likely be where you end up (WUSTL, Minn, UIUC, etc.). And Vandy is not splitter-friendly, so you better have a real high LSAT for them to even consider you.

romothesavior wrote:

Dr. Strangelove wrote:

AngryAvocado wrote:Since you claim to have the opportunity to work in finance or accounting, I would advise doing so for several reasons:

1) You'll put some time between yourself and your GPA (always a good thing for a splitter)
2) You'll actually have a decent chance of breaking into the T14 (thanks mainly to NU)
3) You'll mature, professionally and personally, more than you can imagine
4) You'll have an upper hand come OCI time for having solid work experience
5) You'll have some nice material for your resume (and possibly statement/essays)
6) You'll earn some money to put toward school
7) You might find out that you actually enjoy finance/accounting (or at least you'll know for sure that you don't)
8 ) You may even make some connections that could be invaluable down the road

I was in a similar boat a couple years ago, and I chose to postpone law school. It was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made-- and I didn't even care much for my job. I'd definitely advise anyone who has the opportunity for a good job out of UG to take it, particularly splitters, for all of the above reasons (especially 3).

Just my 2 cents.

Yea, I'm really considering going into the job market after college- most of my friends who are planning to go to law school right after UG majored in useless subjects so law school is literally one of their only options..

romothesavior wrote:Why are you not applying to the only T14 you have a great chance at getting into?. You need to apply ED to Northwestern. You have NO shot at T6 unless you have a Pulitzer Prize or something, and your odds of T10 are pretty bad too.

Your best T14 chance is NW, or you could go to WUSTL, UIUC, or some 20-40s on a big scholarship.

No full-time WE, so my chances go down a lot but who knows? NU might be worth the application.

I still think you'll get dinged, but it is worth the application if you ED. But I really don't see you cracking the T14 without some work experience, sorry to break it to you. How low is your GPA?

The splitter-friendly schools will likely be where you end up.

Right now it's a 2.8- if I get straight A's my senior year- it will go up to a 3.1.

I'm very pro taking off for a two years, even when the person won't get an admissions boost. It lets you see the real work, save some cash, and know what you really want to do.

Combine that with the shaky economy, and I don't really see much downside to waiting two years.

Dr. Strangelove wrote:
Right now it's a 2.8- if I get straight A's my senior year- it will go up to a 3.1.

I can't imagine Math at Duke is easy enough to pull straight A's. I mean you've been there for three years and are averaging below B's. Have you been totally phoning it in?

Dr. Strangelove wrote:

MrKappus wrote:I'm not sure what makes you think a 3.0 will get you into (school/25 percentile):

Harvard/3.76
Columbia/3.6
NYU/3.57
Chicago/3.63
Penn/3.57
UVA/3.54
Mich/3.55
Cornell/3.5
Duke/3.6
UCLA/3.57

...but good luck. NU seems to be the only T14 that would even consider an applicant w/ your GPA.

Look at LSN, buddy.
Also blatant anti-GULC trolling-if your whole argument is based on 25th percentiles..
But with that said, thanks for wishing me luck,

Just to humor you, I did check LSN for these schools. The only ones that show *any* acceptances below 3.1 are UVA, Mich, Cornell and UCLA. Even then the number of those acceptances is vanishingly small and not a single one has an LSAT below 170. Really, I don't think anybody here is trying to be a downer -- you just really should look at your options a bit more realistically.

Desert Fox wrote:

Dr. Strangelove wrote:
Right now it's a 2.8- if I get straight A's my senior year- it will go up to a 3.1.

I can't imagine Math at Duke is easy enough to pull straight A's. I mean you've been there for three years and are averaging below B's. Have you been totally phoning it in?

That's why I'm going to be taking mostly non-Math classes. And yea-not surprisingly my Math GPA is pretty low in college.. it's a 2.5.