Should I get an admissions consultant? Forum

[NA12345]

Hello TLS,
I am a rising senior and I am starting to put together my application components to apply to Law Schools when applications open. I plan on applying to nearly all of the Top 20 schools. I already took the LSAT (170) and my LSDAS GPA is 4+.
The major weakness that I see in my application is that I have weak softs. Would an admissions consultant help me with putting my application over the top or is it a waste of money? Would an admissions consultant be able to push me over the top to get into a top 4 school?
Thanks.

[HopefulSplitter0000]

No.

Only get an admissions consultant if your app has red flags (very low GPA, academic probation, criminal record, etc.).

If you have weak soft factors, just get a job after college for 1-2 years. If you want to go to straight through, then get some internship experience.

Some of my coworkers do law school admissions consulting for cases like yours, but 99% of the time their students get in based on numbers.

Edit: to get one of the T6, you will want an even higher LSAT. That said, you can do that later. Focus on your GPA for now.

[mudiverse]

Not necessary for your case. Law school consultants can make the difference at the fringes or to help craft a narrative, but you are already a strong case for most of the T14. If anything, focus on writing a compelling personal statement and save money by sharing it with some of your former professors.

[msf305]

Yes, I would recommend one from person experience. Not only can they help guide you into getting into T3 (as they do often) but they can help portray your soft skills in the most appealing light. What most people don't realize is the strength of your application with an advisor can open up the door to larger scholarships as it did for me, paying for the consultant 50 fold.

[cavalier1138]

Yes, I would recommend one from person experience. Not only can they help guide you into getting into T3 (as they do often) but they can help portray your soft skills in the most appealing light. What most people don't realize is the strength of your application with an advisor can open up the door to larger scholarships as it did for me, paying for the consultant 50 fold.

But the problem is that most people only apply to law school once (or if they apply twice, it's after retaking the LSAT). There's no way to know what effect, if any, the consultant had. So if you got into HYS with a consultant, it likely had less to do with your softs being framed in an appealing light and more to do with your LSAT/GPA.

That's not to say that consultants aren't helpful for some applicants, especially those with more unique circumstances. But the vast majority of traditional applicants are going to have the same results with or without a consultant, which is why some of the better consulting services won't take you on if you don't need them.