The actual goal of the admin committee Forum

[jpal13]

Are schools more interested in your numbers to pull up their rankings or are they really more concerned with the whole picture? Simple question, probably impossible to answer. It would be great if someone from an admin committee actually gave their insight on this forum!

[Helmholtz]

I am on the admin board at Abraham Lincoln Law (was previously at Thomas Jefferson Law and Franklin Pierce Law (I'm working my way through the Presidents)). We look at the whole picture. Good luck!

[jpal13]

That's awesome, can I ask another question since you have identified yourself? Is everyone on the committee given a general group instruction about what each school would like in their specific class? What has been the general view on students aged 30+?

[jpal13]

Also, if you don't mind my asking, what is your background that makes them want you on admin committees and who are the people on the admin committee generally? Are they mainly professors, professionals in the field, law school students. etc?

[stuffnuff]

He's messing with you.

[jpal13]

Oh...

[prezidentv8]

Sadness.

[071816]

LOL

[jpal13]

I am very gullible, but I would love to know what are the qualities/professions of people on admin committees if anyone has some insights.

[rinkrat19]

Are schools more interested in your numbers to pull up their rankings

Yes

or are they really more concerned with the whole picture? Simple question, probably impossible to answer.

Not really. In most cases, all other factors are used as tiebreakers. There are exceptions (the cancer-curing, blind, Nobel laureate Olympic medalist may actually get accepted with lower numbers).

It would be great if someone from an admin committee actually gave their insight on this forum!

They're going to say they look at the whole picture, whether that's true or not. Your job is to use your logic skills, perfected by LSAT study, to decide which is more likely.

If you really want input from adcomms, click the 'Interviews' link up at the top of this page, and read them critically and logically. There you go.

[jpal13]

I'm going with the numbers and hope I did good on my Oct LSAT.

[thelawyler]

I think most people have to assume that you're not a special or unique snowflake and you are actually just like everybody else who is applying to law schools.

It's all numbers and self interest except for the tie-breaking moments.

[Curious1]

Well what about splitters? I would say non number factors can influence those cases.

[shoeshine]

I love the first couple posts of this thread.

The answer is no. You are largely considered by ad comms as a number based off of your GPA and LSAT. All schools claim they look at the "whole package" but the sharp cutoffs in their acceptance data seems to suggest otherwise.

Of the top schools, Berkeley does seem to be a exception to this. Although no one is sure what they base their admissions on.

URMs are also rumored to be evaluated more holistically.