Courses to take to get my GPA up? Forum

[John1988]

Hey everyone,

So I'm potentially considering a career in law but my undergrad GPA was between a 2.5 and 2.6 from a liberal arts college due to certain life circumstances.

I know there are no pre reqs for law school but if I wanted to take some classes which would be best to raise my GPA? Psychology? Political Science? Will law schools look at those grades heavier, do i have a chance?

Just wanted some advice.

Thank you!

[twenty]

Taking additional classes after you've graduated will not raise your GPA. If "certain life circumstances" include legitimate medical reasons, you may be able to get a retroactive semester withdrawal from your university.

As it stands, you have absolutely no business going to law school with a 2.5 GPA.

[TheSpanishMain]

If you've already graduated, your GPA is locked in. You could take a hundred additional courses and get an A+ in all of them. Wouldn't help.

You probably shouldn't go to law school unless you have a really high LSAT, get into a good splitter friendly school, and finance it with something other than loans (rich parents, GI Bill, etc.)

[John1988]

I guess this is not like medicine (Or nursing rather) where pre reqs can be heavily weighed.

Perhaps not the best field for me, maybe it's for the best.

[Yea All Right]

Good luck with whatever you choose to do OP.

[ilikebaseball]

Hey everyone,

So I'm potentially considering a career in law but my undergrad GPA was between a 2.5 and 2.6 from a liberal arts college due to certain life circumstances.

I know there are no pre reqs for law school but if I wanted to take some classes which would be best to raise my GPA? Psychology? Political Science? Will law schools look at those grades heavier, do i have a chance?

Just wanted some advice.

Thank you!

They don't really look at major or class load, just LSAC GPA. If it really was a life circumstance that caused your grades to be under 3, then I'd make an addendum for the application, request some withdrawals from your UG, and get in the 170's on your LSAT. Anything less is not gonna be worth it. If you're willing to put in the time to study for your LSAT on a regular basis for several months to get a target score in the 170's then that's what you gotta do. But if you make a 2.5 GPA and you really put forth an effort in UG, law school probably isn't for you. I'm a 0L, so I guess I don't know for sure, but that seems to be the general consensus here. You may be able to get a decent regional. I know someone who went to U of Texas who got a 2.45 and got a 174 on their LSAT. If you REALLY wanna do law, I'm not gonna tell you to give up, but you gotta put in MAJOR work on your LSAT.

Edit: just saw your post about med school. It seems to me that law school isn't your only choice or your primary interest. In which case, don't go with that GPA. Idk if you were interested because of the "prestige of it" or for the money or whatever, but hopefully you make the right choice in whatever you choose. Good luck OP

[TheSpanishMain]

I guess this is not like medicine (Or nursing rather) where pre reqs can be heavily weighed.

Perhaps not the best field for me, maybe it's for the best.

Good on you for being rational and mature here. Good luck in whatever you decide to pursue.

[Nep11]

If the life experiences really impacted your ability to perform, you could address that in an addendum. Otherwise, you're stuck with your grades, unless you can convince your school to allow you to drop courses after the fact.

It would be best to concentrate on doing very well on the LSAT - extreme splitters can do very well if they get good recommendations and have a compelling life story. You have the most control over this element of your application, so before you give up on a career in law, I'd advise you to see how well you do on a few practice tests or invest in prepping for it. It would also help to work in a law firm to see if you even like the work.

[John1988]

Thanks for the advice and well wishes.

I just can't help but feel I've ruined my life getting a 2.6 GPA (not just for law) even though I am a well rounded individual (Have traveled and lived in other countries, speak several languages and have ample extra curricular activity experience.)

I always like to hear success stories.

[Yea All Right]

Precluded yourself from starting in a career with GPA barriers, maybe, but ruined your life, no. Your life experiences, especially the ability to speak several languages, should allow you to be successful at whatever you do given that you put your mind to it and network with others.

[tabula rasa]

Precluded yourself from starting in a career with GPA barriers, maybe, but ruined your life, no. Your life experiences, especially the ability to speak several languages, should allow you to be successful at whatever you do given that you put your mind to it and network with others.

This. There are literally thousands of unhappy, indebted lawyers who would trade their J.D.s for fluency in multiple languages.

[John1988]

Yea I suppose, thanks for the support, I just feel that anything worth while or any masters program requires a super high GPA.

I'm not really sure if law school is even for me but I don't understand why taking some pre requisite classes for other programs wouldn't prove that I am now a much better candidate than I used to be, shouldn't that matter way more?

Thanks!

[Johann]

What are you doing now? How do you pay bills?

[John1988]

I'm a waiter at a nice restaurant, I also come from an upper middle class family and have a good deal of money invested, dividends etc.

[Yea All Right]

I'm not really sure if law school is even for me but I don't understand why taking some pre requisite classes for other programs wouldn't prove that I am now a much better candidate than I used to be, shouldn't that matter way more?

The US News rankings are viewed by law schools as very important for prestige and attracting students, so to boost their rankings they would rather accept people with high GPAs regardless of their majors and classes.

[twenty]

There are a lot of professional fields that don't require a high GPA. Don't get "stuck" in the medicine, law, academia, etc. mindsets and feel like just because those particular professions are GPA-selective doesn't mean that all professions are GPA selective. With my friends in real estate, 2.5 is right around average.

[John1988]

Academia?

Do you really need a high GPA to be a teacher? Certain Areas of medicine are possible with low GPA like nursing or Occupational Therapy but med. school wouldn't be for me either and I'm okay with that.

How would one go about getting a paralegal job with no experience? I feel like having that under my belt would help me get in somewhere.

[03152016]

As it stands, you have absolutely no business going to law school with a 2.5 GPA.

idk if i 100% agree
remember that guy who posted in choosing with 2.4/177 and got full ride from wustl

op, if you really want to go to law school
take half a year and study as intensely as you can for the lsat
if you get a truly great score, you might end up with some good options
but i mean you'd really have to knock it out of the park to have good options tbh
without a top top score, twenty is absolutely right, find something else to do

[Nep11]

Most law firms will hire you as a paralegal if you have a bachelor's degree. Just apply and interview like you would for a normal office job. You don't even have to bring up your grades in your resume. They primarily care about the ability to learn how to do things quickly, a good level of typing speed, and intelligence.

And once again, a high LSAT score opens doors. Schools may ignore a low UGPA if you score in the 170 range.

I wouldn't get psyched out - you can't do anything about your UGPA, so focus on things you can control: maybe getting a position as a paralegal/legal assistant but definitely maxing out your LSAT score.

[DecisionTime999]

Mostly just posting to add weight to what others have already said - your GPA is a major handicap, but it needn't preclude you from going to law school if you REALLY want to and can knock the LSAT out of the park.

Take a practice test and see how you do, then ask us again. Your options at this point are hugely contingent upon how well you can do on the LSAT.