Top Law Schools

Hello there,

It's my first time posting a question here so in case i break a rule or two inadvertently, I apologize in advance.

I am currently in a physics phd prgram at one of top 5 institutions but lost passion for my research topic and I've always thought of going to law school following my dad's advice.

I am at the end of my second year in the program and I do have a master's degree to show for my time spent after my undergraduate.

I have a decent undergraduate gpa, 3.79 with a dual degree in math and physics.

But my graduate school gpa stands at 3.0 (physics graduate school is all about research and I just did the bare minimum to pass my general exams)

Is my extremely low graduate school degree gpa going to destroy my chances of being admitted to law school?

Both my undergraduate and graduate schools are two of the top 5 physics programs.

It will likely have no effect at all. UGPA is what counts

t-14orbust wrote:It will likely have no effect at all. UGPA is what counts

thank you for such a quick response

what about my graduate degree and the fact that i have a strong science/math background?

Will it help at all?

blackwidow wrote:

t-14orbust wrote:It will likely have no effect at all. UGPA is what counts

thank you for such a quick response

what about my graduate degree and the fact that i have a strong science/math background?

Will it help at all?

Maybe slightly but not close to as much as a strong LSAT.

I just noticed that you're contemplating law school based on your dad's advice. That's a terrible reason. Please do more research on what it means to be a lawyer before you spend 3 years of time and lost income, and take out potentially substantial debt to enter a profession you might end up despising just because your dad said it might be a good idea. The notion that law school "opens doors" is perpetuated by boomers because it actually was true back in the day, but is no longer the case. Only go to law school if you know you want to be a practicing attorney and have a good idea of what that entails. Good luck

t-14orbust wrote:I just noticed that you're contemplating law school based on your dad's advice. That's a terrible reason. Please do more research on what it means to be a lawyer before you spend 3 years of time and lost income, and take out potentially substantial debt to enter a profession you might end up despising just because your dad said it might be a good idea. The notion that law school "opens doors" is perpetuated by boomers because it actually was true back in the day, but is no longer the case. Only go to law school if you know you want to be a practicing attorney and have a good idea of what that entails. Good luck

thank you for the advice.

you do raise a really good question regarding my motive as to why i would wanna go to law school.

i will have to think more about it but i do already have a pile of LSAT books so it's something i have thought about for many years.

Find a new topic. Switch advisors or something. Dont just drop out of a really good gig because it's a little hard. You're too smart for law.

Danny Mothers wrote:Find a new topic. Switch advisors or something. Dont just drop out of a really good gig because it's a little hard. You're too smart for law.

This

Your undergrad GPA is what counts. Your grad work will only be considered a soft at most.

I left my phd to go to law school. I regret it every day. Find a new advisor and reset. 2 years in isn't that long and you can still switch topics/advisors, etc.

Danny Mothers wrote:Find a new topic. Switch advisors or something. Dont just drop out of a really good gig because it's a little hard. You're too smart for law.

A PhD is physics is not actually always a really good gig. Staying in a PhD program if you don't want to do physics research is a really bad idea.

depending on your field, given your quant-looking background, you might want to consider giving the private sector a go for a year or two before committing to even more schooling (and entering a field where people joke on a daily basis about how bad they are at numbers).

Yeah you seem way too smart to become a lawyer. Do something cooler/more interesting with your life.

That being said, I have a feeling someone who has the brain to get accepted into a prestigious physics grad program would kick the LSAT in the face, so there's that.