Top Law Schools

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Yes, it's worth it. Even a few points higher will be huge for you, as will applying earlier in the cycle.

Also, your GPA from undergrad is the only one that matters. Having the graduate degree is a plus, but no one cares what your GPA was, since grad school grading standards can vary wildly from program to program.

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

I think you should definitely retake and reapply. Your potential for admissions and $$$ is extremely high. Why exactly are you so stressed about the prospect of reapplying, if you don't mind me asking?

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

Another important factor is what you want to do after law school. If biglaw is your goal, then I would consider reapplying. If not, then if you get $$$ from Cornell or get off any waitlists, and you don't want to wait another cycle, then reapplying may not be worth it (if you don't want to wait)

FWIW, I think as a URM with a 3.8 and not a terrible LSAT score, you're guaranteed to get off the waitlist for at least NU and Vandy. Can't say for sure about Columbia or Chicago.

Did you apply to HYS? NYU? UVA? Have you heard from them?

ek5dn wrote:

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

Another important factor is what you want to do after law school. If biglaw is your goal, then I would consider reapplying. If not, then if you get $$$ from Cornell or get off any waitlists, and you don't want to wait another cycle, then reapplying may not be worth it (if you don't want to wait)

FWIW, I think as a URM with a 3.8 and not a terrible LSAT score, you're guaranteed to get off the waitlist for at least NU and Vandy. Can't say for sure about Columbia or Chicago.

Did you apply to HYS? NYU? UVA? Have you heard from them?

I was rejected from Georgetown, Duke, NYU, and UPenn. Did not apply to HYS. Haven't heard back from any waiting lists yet..

Blueprint Mithun wrote:

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

I think you should definitely retake and reapply. Your potential for admissions and $$$ is extremely high. Why exactly are you so stressed about the prospect of reapplying, if you don't mind me asking?

Honestly, I'm worried I won't improve drastically on the LSAT or get in to any better schools. I studied for about 1 month via a book, but had a lot of difficulty balancing my MA program and law school applications... I'm just worried I apply, spend $1000 again on applications, and don't get in to any other schools. (And worse, lose my small scholarship from Fordham. They're giving me 15k a year)

cavalier1138 wrote:Yes, it's worth it. Even a few points higher will be huge for you, as will applying earlier in the cycle.

Also, your GPA from undergrad is the only one that matters. Having the graduate degree is a plus, but no one cares what your GPA was, since grad school grading standards can vary wildly from program to program.

That's what I figured. I wasn't sure how much of a "soft" a MA is.

jen203 wrote:

Blueprint Mithun wrote:

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

I think you should definitely retake and reapply. Your potential for admissions and $$$ is extremely high. Why exactly are you so stressed about the prospect of reapplying, if you don't mind me asking?

Honestly, I'm worried I won't improve drastically on the LSAT or get in to any better schools. I studied for about 1 month via a book, but had a lot of difficulty balancing my MA program and law school applications... I'm just worried I apply, spend $1000 again on applications, and don't get in to any other schools. (And worse, lose my small scholarship from Fordham. They're giving me 15k a year)

oh man, I hate to burst your bubble but 15k a year is NOT enough incentive to attend Fordham. You're looking at a LOT of debt and slim job prospects

something that i don't see people point out here very much (maybe because it's obvious) is that your second (or third) time taking the LSAT will be easier. of course you still need to study for it, but i went up 6 points after retaking in October. i studied for july/august/september, but and the whole thing was just much easier than the first time around, because i already had a foundation. worth remembering if you're worried about improving. if you want to improve, you will.

acidwash wrote:something that i don't see people point out here very much (maybe because it's obvious) is that your second (or third) time taking the LSAT will be easier. of course you still need to study for it, but i went up 6 points after retaking in October. i studied for july/august/september, but and the whole thing was just much easier than the first time around, because i already had a foundation. worth remembering if you're worried about improving. if you want to improve, you will.

Did you take a class or study on your own? If I reapply, I was thinking about studying june/july, taking a class in August, and trying for the September LSAT, submitting everything early!

jen203 wrote:

acidwash wrote:something that i don't see people point out here very much (maybe because it's obvious) is that your second (or third) time taking the LSAT will be easier. of course you still need to study for it, but i went up 6 points after retaking in October. i studied for july/august/september, but and the whole thing was just much easier than the first time around, because i already had a foundation. worth remembering if you're worried about improving. if you want to improve, you will.

Did you take a class or study on your own? If I reapply, I was thinking about studying june/july, taking a class in August, and trying for the September LSAT, submitting everything early!

I studied on my own all three (!) times. I got into my target school and retook today in order to try to bump up my scholarship. Can't speak to classes but I'm sure others here can. I used the LSAT Trainer, Powerscore, and, for the third time around, I pretty much just drilled PTs, both timed and untimed.

jen203 wrote:

Blueprint Mithun wrote:

jen203 wrote:I am extremely stressed about the prospect of reapplying next year, but I am unhappy with my choices so far.
GPA: 3.8
Graduate GPA: 3.6
LSAT: 162 (I know)
URM

I applied extremely late, like mid-February, because I was not aware of the benefits of applying sooner. Took the LSAT in December so I could not re-take. I have some waitlists from Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt, but I have only been accepted to Fordham and Cornell out of the 12 schools I applied to. I'm wondering if it's worth sitting out a year, studying more seriously for the LSAT, and reapplying for next fall.

I think you should definitely retake and reapply. Your potential for admissions and $$$ is extremely high. Why exactly are you so stressed about the prospect of reapplying, if you don't mind me asking?

Honestly, I'm worried I won't improve drastically on the LSAT or get in to any better schools. I studied for about 1 month via a book, but had a lot of difficulty balancing my MA program and law school applications... I'm just worried I apply, spend $1000 again on applications, and don't get in to any other schools. (And worse, lose my small scholarship from Fordham. They're giving me 15k a year)

I definitely understand the difficulty of balancing school and LSAT/law school applications. Though if you're sitting out a year, you won't have that issue this time around. The other thing is - 1 month is not a lot of time to spend on studying for the LSAT at all. That's barely enough time to get through all the material on the test, and certainly not enough time to absorb the strategies, memorize the important concepts, and gain sufficient experience on practice problems and preptests. I think any serious student should study for 3-6 months at the least.

If you start prepping seriously for the September exam now, you'll have nearly 3 months to get ready for it, and you'll be able to submit your application as soon as that score comes in, which will be early in the cycle (mid-late October). In case that exam doesn't go as well as you'd like, or you don't feel ready, you also have the option of taking/retaking in December.

Just the fact that you were able to get waitlisted at that many T14 schools with a 162 LSAT score is testament to your potential as an applicant. That Fordham scholarship will only cover 1/6th or 1/5th of the cost of attending that school + living expenses in NYC for three years. With a higher score, you'll be seeing some full-rides and T14 acceptances.