Need Advice, college senior but new to pre-law
Posted: Sun May 01, 2016 7:37 pm
Hey guys. I'd like to thank you all for taking the time to read this and for any advice you offer.
I'm a college senior about to graduate in May. I'm a History major and Biology minor. I began university as a pre-medical student but found that my interests lay more in law and associated fields. This realization occurred recently during my senior year, even though I've taken nearly all the pre-med prereqs, and I'm still learning more about the law school application process. I'm not planning on going straight into graduate school. I was going to take a gap year when I wanted to do medicine and I still intend to take a gap year, so I am planning on taking the LSAT this summer and applying to law school this fall for entrance next fall (as far as I understand the timeline). I enjoy both science and non-science fields and feel like law could open the door to diverse career opportunities.
I would appreciate any advice. I currently have a 3.98 GPA but I think it will go down after this semester to a 3.94-3.95. I attend a decent but by no means elite public university. How much does college prestige matter? I'm anticipating my semester GPA this spring to be a 3.5 or so, but my overall GPA will be around a 3.94 - how bad will that look? I worked a bit more this semester and had to put time into taking care of my mother. I don't want the trend to look as though I got lazy when they look at the transcript, but I'd appreciate brutal honesty here.
I also plan to study for the LSAT this summer and take it in August or early September. I have found many online self-study guides and hope to be able to do it without the need for courses. I have also applied to teach English in Latin America during my gap year, but will I be able to include this on my application or in an update if I begin after my application has been sent in?
Lastly, my activities are okay but nothing overly impressive. I have some honors (Phi Beta Kappa, etc) and a few leadership roles as well as volunteering at a hospital. I was an officer in a medical club - should I include this on my app or will it look out of place?
I appreciate all the advice. That's all I can think of right now, but I'm glad I found this forum and hope to learn more here. Thanks!
I'm a college senior about to graduate in May. I'm a History major and Biology minor. I began university as a pre-medical student but found that my interests lay more in law and associated fields. This realization occurred recently during my senior year, even though I've taken nearly all the pre-med prereqs, and I'm still learning more about the law school application process. I'm not planning on going straight into graduate school. I was going to take a gap year when I wanted to do medicine and I still intend to take a gap year, so I am planning on taking the LSAT this summer and applying to law school this fall for entrance next fall (as far as I understand the timeline). I enjoy both science and non-science fields and feel like law could open the door to diverse career opportunities.
I would appreciate any advice. I currently have a 3.98 GPA but I think it will go down after this semester to a 3.94-3.95. I attend a decent but by no means elite public university. How much does college prestige matter? I'm anticipating my semester GPA this spring to be a 3.5 or so, but my overall GPA will be around a 3.94 - how bad will that look? I worked a bit more this semester and had to put time into taking care of my mother. I don't want the trend to look as though I got lazy when they look at the transcript, but I'd appreciate brutal honesty here.
I also plan to study for the LSAT this summer and take it in August or early September. I have found many online self-study guides and hope to be able to do it without the need for courses. I have also applied to teach English in Latin America during my gap year, but will I be able to include this on my application or in an update if I begin after my application has been sent in?
Lastly, my activities are okay but nothing overly impressive. I have some honors (Phi Beta Kappa, etc) and a few leadership roles as well as volunteering at a hospital. I was an officer in a medical club - should I include this on my app or will it look out of place?
I appreciate all the advice. That's all I can think of right now, but I'm glad I found this forum and hope to learn more here. Thanks!