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I was just accepted off Vanderbilt's waitlist yesterday with a 20k per year scholly which puts tuition around 30k per year.

I have already accepted a full ride to Richmond but I'm wondering if I should consider Vanderbilt's offer.

My fear is that being 150k in debt g after graduation would be crippling if I didn't secure a very lucrative job (which means I would have to finish in the top % of the class). However, I love Nashville/Tennessee and I believe Vanderbilt would provide more opportunities than Richmond.

What do you think... Is law school worth this much money in the current legal market? Or should I just stick with my full tuition offer and make the best of a much lower ranked school.

Thanks for your help!

Probably not.

In order to receive the best feedback in this forum, please provide as much of the following information in your original post as possible:

-The schools you are considering
-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each. COA = cost of tuition + fees + books + cost of living (COL) + accumulated interest - scholarships. Here is a helpful calculator.
-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
-Your general career goals
-Your LSAT/GPA numbers
-How many times you have taken the LSAT

Those can't be your only two options right? WUSTL should be offering near a full ride if Vandy is giving you $20k/year. Reapply if those are your only two options.

But yes, to service that debt, you'd probably need biglaw. To get biglaw from Vandy (non-URM) applicants will have to be top third. It's not impossible, but it's also not ideal.

162/3.91 (Only took LSAT once)

I had other offers that I turned down to attend Richmond. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to get into Vandy.

I could have gone to UGA for about 20K total, or IU-B on a full ride, or W&M with 18k per year. Looking back, I should have gone to Georgia, but that ship has probably sailed.

This entire time I've been so worried about debt that I think I may have limited myself to a mediocre law school with mediocre job prospects.

Although it's difficult to turn down a full tuition scholarship, your GPA is well within T-14 law school territory, but your LSAT is not. Consider retaking the LSAT. Even a few points higher should yield T-14 acceptances while still allowing for full tuition scholarship offers from other tier one law schools.

Dear god plz retake

I considered taking it again but didn't want to sit out a cycle to yield better offers. I was also worried that next cycle may see more applicants which could limit my scholarship offers. I would hate to be in a worse position this time next year.

Also, what would I do for an entire year? I feel like that could be a big waste of time.

Vandy rising 3L here.

I generally don't recommend anything over $100k unless there are weird circumstances, which you haven't mentioned. TCR is retake.

Do anything for a year. Get some work experience, travel, learn an instrument, do whatever alongside some heavy lsat studying. You have a great gpa, and if you add a higher lsat to the equation you could easily have a full ride at Vandy next year as well as some t14 options. Your gpa paired with a 168/169 this year might have earned you a Dillard, for example. Please retake, OP. Right now you think sitting out is wasting a year, but I think you'll be wasting four years of hard work to earn that gpa if you sell yourself short by accepting one of your current offers instead of retaking.

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nickt92 wrote:I considered taking it again but didn't want to sit out a cycle to yield better offers. I was also worried that next cycle may see more applicants which could limit my scholarship offers. I would hate to be in a worse position this time next year.

This is dumb.
Please retake. I did. You'll be much better off if you can raise that score even just to high 160's.

Retake is TCR. I was in a similar situation as you and foolishly did not retake. I lucked out and landed biglaw, but I'll have similar/more debt and even with biglaw it's not ideal. And again, when you're not at a T14 (and even when you are) there is a lot of luck in who gets biglaw and who doesn't and it is definitely worth a year off to decrease debt and maximize your odds.

I would stab myself in the eye for that GPA, retake(btw I'm going to Vandy for a little less than 100k and I'm not 100% thrilled by that, 150k is too much)

Best choice: retake.

Second-best choice: vandy.

Third-best choice: become prostitute or gigolo.

Fourth-best choice: Richmond.


You would be a fool not to retake with that GPA. If you literally sit on your ass and do nothing but increase your score to like a 168, at minimum, you'll have done wonders for your legal career, and made a ton of money. Again, you would be a total moron not to do this, but if you are a total moron, then Vandy with this much debt is probably better than Richmond. This is definitely too much debt to make vandy justifiable. It is an OK price to pay if you get good grades, but there is no way to know whether you will have good grades, and if you don't get a biglaw job you're going to be pretty much fucked.

Richmond only really make sense if you were born and raised in Richmond, won't have any debt upon graduation, and you have very modest goals for a legal career that do not involve working in places outside of Richmond. If that doesn't isn't you, see third-best choice above.

I really do appreciate the responses.. It's nice to get come candid advice.

When I took the LSAT it's not like I just walked in and got a 162. I took testmasters online in the summer and spent several months preparing. That being said, I still think I can improve but a 170 isn't likely. Realistically 164-167 is my range for a retake with rigours preparation. However, things can happen and I could only improve marginally or not at all. If that's the case, would I be in a worse position next cycle b/c I'd have to apply to all the same schools and ask them to admit me again? Would they be less inclined after I've already turned them down once?

nickt92 wrote:I really do appreciate the responses.. It's nice to get come candid advice.

When I took the LSAT it's not like I just walked in and got a 162. I took testmasters online in the summer and spent several months preparing. That being said, I still think I can improve but a 170 isn't likely. Realistically 164-167 is my range for a retake with rigours preparation. However, things can happen and I could only improve marginally or not at all. If that's the case, would I be in a worse position next cycle b/c I'd have to apply to all the same schools and ask them to admit me again? Would they be less inclined after I've already turned them down once?

no

nickt92 wrote:I really do appreciate the responses.. It's nice to get come candid advice.

When I took the LSAT it's not like I just walked in and got a 162. I took testmasters online in the summer and spent several months preparing. That being said, I still think I can improve but a 170 isn't likely. Realistically 164-167 is my range for a retake with rigours preparation. However, things can happen and I could only improve marginally or not at all. If that's the case, would I be in a worse position next cycle b/c I'd have to apply to all the same schools and ask them to admit me again? Would they be less inclined after I've already turned them down once?

Have you visited the lsat prep threads yet? http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=6 Self-study is the way to go. You can learn to do well on the lsat. Even 170 range.

The schools won't mind that you turned them down previously. They'll be busy salivating over your stats when you have an upper 160s or 170s lsat to pair with your great gpa. Even if you don't improve, you won't be in a worse position.

Well there is no way in hell I could apply to Richmond again. If I go back on my commitment for a full ride.. Why would they give it to me again next year?

nickt92 wrote:Well there is no way in hell I could apply to Richmond again. If I go back on my commitment for a full ride.. Why would they give it to me again next year?

Because they want your stats to bring their medians up.

Where are you even from & what kind of employment outcomes do you seek?

nickt92 wrote:Well there is no way in hell I could apply to Richmond again. If I go back on my commitment for a full ride.. Why would they give it to me again next year?

Don't worry about Richmond. With another three points on the LSAT you'll be worrying about whether to go to WUSTL for free, Vandy for 50k or a T-14 at sticker.

The year off is not a waste, it is a gift. Judging from your answers so far you're a senior in college. If that's the case, you've been a student for your entire life. Work for a living. Get some perspective. It will be very, very good for you. I've never met you and don't know anything about you beyond what you've posted here, and I can still say with absolute certainty that taking some time away from academia and working is a smart move for you. (Because it's a smart move for anyone.)

I'm not an expert or have much knowledge on law school, but it seems like you are really worried about debt and you might just rush into debt, If law is your passion, why not reapply in a year after improving your LSAT? You might get into the school you actually want to go to at that point.

I'm from VA about an hour outside of Richmond. I wouldn't mind working in Richmond but don't know how big the market is there.. I've heard it's over saturated with lawyers. Would love to work and live in the south ideally Atlanta. But I'd go wherever the best job prospect is.

As far as what I want to do.. I'd like to make the most out of my investment so big law would be nice. But anything that pays reasonable is fine with me.