Should I retake...
Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2014 7:08 pm
I know the answer on here is always yes, reading tons of threads telling people to take a year off and retake is what put the idea in my head in the first place, but consider:
I went to Lehigh University and graduated with a 3.55 and got a 163 on the LSAT. I didn't prepare for the test hardly at all, I took a total of 2 practice tests in the weeks leading up to the exam, because I am an idiot. I have no question in my mind that I could pretty easily achieve a much higher score, especially given that I am not in school anymore and could devote 100% of my energies to prepping. As it stands, I got into Seton Hall Law School with a $25k per year, renewed as long as I remain in the top 70% of the class. Both of my parents are Seton Hall alumni and practicing attorneys in the state of New Jersey, which is where I eventually want to work and live. Ideally, I would like to work in Biglaw for a few years out of school and make some $$, which seems to be doable out of Seton Hall, with ~10% of last years class employed FTLT at firms 101+. My parents have both told me to go to Seton Hall and have said that many of their colleagues and bosses are Seton Hall grads and the name will carry me fine in NJ, but there is obviously some amount of alumni bias there. I don't know what to do. If I were to retake and get a 175, would that even be enough to take my 3.55 to HYS or CCN? I also have some CF red flags, with a few arrests for alcohol related offenses during undergrad... Additionally, how much more difficult will it be to get to the top of my class at one of those schools, as opposed to Seton Hall's (presumably) less competitive student body? USNWR ranks Seton Hall 69th, which is not great, but ATL ranks them 36th and I think their methodology is more meaningful. If I knew today that I could go to Seton Hall and achieve all of my dreams, I would no doubt go, I have visited and really liked the school and know that I would be happy there--and I would be close to my family which would be great because my relationships with my family are really important to me. But I would obviously have better odds at getting to Biglaw from a more prestigious school with better employment prospects. I am ABSOLUTELY fishing for reassurance that going to Seton Hall isn't too risky/too much of a gamble to make considering the ~$130k debt I will be taking on. An additional piece of information: my dad has his own law firm so there is no scenario where I will be completely unemployed in 3 years, but he's got a pretty small operation and would likely pay around $50k. Thank you in advance for any and all help!
I went to Lehigh University and graduated with a 3.55 and got a 163 on the LSAT. I didn't prepare for the test hardly at all, I took a total of 2 practice tests in the weeks leading up to the exam, because I am an idiot. I have no question in my mind that I could pretty easily achieve a much higher score, especially given that I am not in school anymore and could devote 100% of my energies to prepping. As it stands, I got into Seton Hall Law School with a $25k per year, renewed as long as I remain in the top 70% of the class. Both of my parents are Seton Hall alumni and practicing attorneys in the state of New Jersey, which is where I eventually want to work and live. Ideally, I would like to work in Biglaw for a few years out of school and make some $$, which seems to be doable out of Seton Hall, with ~10% of last years class employed FTLT at firms 101+. My parents have both told me to go to Seton Hall and have said that many of their colleagues and bosses are Seton Hall grads and the name will carry me fine in NJ, but there is obviously some amount of alumni bias there. I don't know what to do. If I were to retake and get a 175, would that even be enough to take my 3.55 to HYS or CCN? I also have some CF red flags, with a few arrests for alcohol related offenses during undergrad... Additionally, how much more difficult will it be to get to the top of my class at one of those schools, as opposed to Seton Hall's (presumably) less competitive student body? USNWR ranks Seton Hall 69th, which is not great, but ATL ranks them 36th and I think their methodology is more meaningful. If I knew today that I could go to Seton Hall and achieve all of my dreams, I would no doubt go, I have visited and really liked the school and know that I would be happy there--and I would be close to my family which would be great because my relationships with my family are really important to me. But I would obviously have better odds at getting to Biglaw from a more prestigious school with better employment prospects. I am ABSOLUTELY fishing for reassurance that going to Seton Hall isn't too risky/too much of a gamble to make considering the ~$130k debt I will be taking on. An additional piece of information: my dad has his own law firm so there is no scenario where I will be completely unemployed in 3 years, but he's got a pretty small operation and would likely pay around $50k. Thank you in advance for any and all help!