GPA and LSAT weights Forum

[BruhBruhMarz]

I am currently a second semester junior and Law School hopeful. As it sits, I currently have a 2.8 gpa. My first 2 years were affected with my father suffering a stroke and i had to pick up a lot of pace when he wasn't able to work and get his day to day stuff done, along with the mental aspects of seeing my father in that state, my grades suffered. I wanted to wait a year after I graduated from college and then apply to law school. My question is: How heavily is the LSAT wighted in regards to the GPA? Im from Chicago and the schools I would like to attend are in the Midwest. What are my chances of getting into these schools with my current gpa, that will be going up, and what LSAT score will put me in the ballpark of schools like Loyola, Kent, or anywhere else in the country is need be.

POLS major
Econ Minor
UIC student.
Technical Work Experience.
Funny guy.

[preamble]

LSAT is generally weighted more heavily than GPA. Try to get your GPA up as much as humanly/mathematically possible in your last three semesters, and then dedicate a LOT of time to preparing for the LSAT. You really want to knock it out of the park on the test. A really high LSAT opens up a lot of doors.

[totesTheGoat]

The big key to these sorts of applications is to be able to show massive improvement. Most folks aren't going to fault you too much for having a sucky few semesters after such a horrible situation, but the explanation wears thin after a certain period of time. If you can get to a 3.2, that would make your application decent with a stellar LSAT. Your bare minimum goal should be getting above a 3.0. There's a huge psychological barrier to allowing 2.X GPA students in, no matter the LSAT score.

[BruhBruhMarz]

Given my credentials, I know i can’t reach schools like UofC and NW, but how about schools like Loyola, Kent, John Marshall and DePaul. I never really had an interest in BigLaw i was leaning to the side of states attorneys office. Can possible acceptance to those schools allow me to have a shot at a public position, given that i first get accepted into it and later do well. Ive always been a good test taker but I’ve never been introduced to the LSAT extensively to be confident that I’ll do extremely well in it. I know I’m thinking too far in, but i can’t help not to considering I kind of screwed my self over wth the luck i was dealt with my first 2 years. What LSAT range do you think would make me a good splitter if i couldn’t get my gpa above a 3.0?

[mmart207]

I am currently a second semester junior and Law School hopeful. As it sits, I currently have a 2.8 gpa. My first 2 years were affected with my father suffering a stroke and i had to pick up a lot of pace when he wasn't able to work and get his day to day stuff done, along with the mental aspects of seeing my father in that state, my grades suffered. I wanted to wait a year after I graduated from college and then apply to law school. My question is: How heavily is the LSAT wighted in regards to the GPA? Im from Chicago and the schools I would like to attend are in the Midwest. What are my chances of getting into these schools with my current gpa, that will be going up, and what LSAT score will put me in the ballpark of schools like Loyola, Kent, or anywhere else in the country is need be.

POLS major
Econ Minor
UIC student.
Technical Work Experience.
Funny guy.

Also a UIC student. Lets meet up

[BruhBruhMarz]

Anytime! Let’s do it haha

[mmart207]

Still on campus? lol

[albanach]

What LSAT range do you think would make me a good splitter if i couldn’t get my gpa above a 3.0?

You won't be a good splitter with a sub 3.0 GPA. As was mentioned above, below 3.0 crosses a psychological barrier. Also, if you want your addendum as to your father's illness to carry weight, you need to show the commensurate improvement in your later semesters. Without improvement, it doesn't look like the illness affected your grades.

Another option is to take a year's leave of absence and enroll in community college and get a couple of semesters of straight A grades. Everything counts until you graduate from your first degree.

[BruhBruhMarz]

What LSAT range do you think would make me a good splitter if i couldn’t get my gpa above a 3.0?

You won't be a good splitter with a sub 3.0 GPA. As was mentioned above, below 3.0 crosses a psychological barrier. Also, if you want your addendum as to your father's illness to carry weight, you need to show the commensurate improvement in your later semesters. Without improvement, it doesn't look like the illness affected your grades.

Another option is to take a year's leave of absence and enroll in community college and get a couple of semesters of straight A grades. Everything counts until you graduate from your first degree.

.


I have shown forward progress in my studies. Having contained mostly Bs and Cs in my first 2 years, after my first semester junior year, my grades have improved to the point where they are As and one B. My uni needs 120 ch to graduate. I’ve only completed 65 hours and have 16 hours currently taking right now. I’ll have about 35 credits remaining after this year to complete my degree. Plus i already have AP coursework that count toward my degree. Is it advisable to apply after I graduate? So i can maximize my gpa and LSAT or should i take a chance in the LSAT (160+) and hope to get in a sub 100 somehow?

[totesTheGoat]

My uni needs 120 ch to graduate. I’ve only completed 65 hours and have 16 hours currently taking right now. I’ll have about 35 credits remaining after this year to complete my degree.

Good! That means you're going to be able to recover going forward. A 3.8 average from here on out leaves you at about a 3.15 cumulative GPA. If you absolutely kill it and get a 4.0 from here on, you graduate with a 3.2. Your law school goal should be to get a 3.75 at a minimum the rest of your semesters until you graduate. If you can advertise a 3.1 with an addendum explaining your grades during your first 2 years, along with a mid-160s to low-170s LSAT, all of the Chicago schools will be within reach if you stretch.

Is it advisable to apply after I graduate? So i can maximize my gpa and LSAT or should i take a chance in the LSAT (160+) and hope to get in a sub 100 somehow?

Some of that depends on your situation. My immediate advice (after you figure out your plan of attack here) is to forget about law school for a little while and focus like a laser on kicking ass at undergrad. Be that nerd who is 5 minutes early to every office hours and knows the professors on a first name basis (not literally, but you get the point).

I was a somewhat non-traditional law student, and I highly recommend that everybody get some real life experience before going to law school. It can sometimes feel really urgent to jump into law school, but that pressure is all self-imposed and you're going to be a better lawyer if you've had to work a real job and pay bills before going through law school. It isn't the end of the world if you go K-JD, but I'm hoping to plant a seed in your mind that you can go to law school how and when makes the most sense in your situation. So many people (including myself) regret rushing into law school without spending enough time planning, researching, setting goals, and saving money. Then they end up working a job making $50k while owing a quarter million in student loans.

All that to say that when you apply should be dictated by your application profile (GPA & LSAT), your financial situation, and your plan for what you want to do as a lawyer. For example, it makes no sense to take out $150k in student loans to go to a sub-100 school and work at a 3 lawyer personal injury firm making $50k a year. However, it makes a ton of sense to parlay a 3.15/172 into a decent scholarship offer at one of the top tier Chicago schools. I don't know what your specific goals and risk tolerances are, but make sure that your choices of application cycle, law school, and costs make sense based on your expected legal career. Ignorance isn't bliss in this situation, and so many 0Ls cover their ears and chant "I want law school now" while ignoring the red flags popping up all around them.

[albanach]

Some of that depends on your situation. My immediate advice (after you figure out your plan of attack here) is to forget about law school for a little while and focus like a laser on kicking ass at undergrad. Be that nerd who is 5 minutes early to every office hours and knows the professors on a first name basis (not literally, but you get the point).

I agree entirely with this advice. If you really want to be a lawyer, the best thing you can do is forget about law school and focus on maximizing your GPA.