Top Law Schools

hello, I am currently in my undergrad program, and graduate in fall 2017. due to a lot of messing around and not knowing what i wanted to do my first two and a half years of college, my grades are very low, currently 2.22. recently after doing some serious career searching I realized that i would like to attend law school, (really any law school that will have me). I've been studying for the Lsat for a couple months with my friend who has always wanted to go to law school and in our lsat books practice tests, i always score very high. I believe i can pull off a 165 - 175 given a few tries (standardized testing has always been my strong suit).with these kind of scores and given that i have this and next semester to boost my gpa a little bit (maybe to like 2.5ish) do you think it is possible to get in anywhere? if so, what kind of schools?
so far this is what i'm looking at. are any of these possible? is it worth trying? or is my gpa just too low?
Super reach schools:
-Ohio State University - Ranked #30
-Tulane - Ranked #51
-Loyola marymount university (Los Angeles) - Ranked #65
Reach schools:
-St. louis University - Ranked #88
-LSU - Ranked #96
Average chances:
-University of Hawaii (richardson law) - ranked #100
-University of mississippi - Ranked #109
better chances:
-Loyola university (new orleans) - Ranked #142
-University of the Pacific (sacramento) - Ranked Tied for #142
best chances:
-Southern university Law Center (Baton rouge)
-Southwestern Law school (Los angeles)
-thomas jefferson (san diego)
-whittier college (costa mesa)

Yes, I just got into a lower T2 with $$ and a higher T3 with a 2.15 LSDAS. My results aren't typical. Do not go to a 4th tier school, honestly just delete Thomas Jefferson off your list. I just had a Lyft driver pick me up who graduated from TJSL and had already passed the bar. That's sad. You don't need a J.D. To drive drunkards home.

You need an interesting story- your reasoning can't just be I smoked a lot of pot from 18-21- there has to be something that caused this other than immaturity. You need softs, you need a decent LSAT score-- I"m not in the 90% or anything, and you need some super solid LORs and you need to crush your fucking personal statements. If you aren't an amazing writer, read more in your free time and practice writing. This is all stuff you need to worry about after your your attempts to salvage your GPA over the next semester. Do whatever you can to boost that. Plan on working a couple years, preferably in the legal field. It's not an easy path, and it would have been much easier to just go to class. However, there is hope, and I wish someone would have told me that before I embarked on this process.

If you're really serious about law school, you can get in. But there is a big difference between a 165 and a 175. A 175 can potentially get you into a T20(WUSTL loves high LSAT scores), a 165 most likely will not.

My advice is (like so many other people here), take a year off, get some work experience, study for the LSAT and really think about law school. Shoot for that 175 next year and see where it can get you.

Martin21 wrote:recently after doing some serious career searching I realized that i would like to attend law school, (really any law school that will have me).

This is a concerning sentiment. Why do you want to go to law school? If you're willing to go anywhere that will take you (especially looking at your list), it tells me that you haven't actually thought through what your career/life looks like after a JD.

That GPA will hurt, but a high LSAT (and a few years of work experience to distance you from the GPA) will give you options. That said, it's more important to have a goal beyond "go to law school" when applying.

Agreed with a lot of the other sentiment. Some law schools will take you, the question is if you get into one worth attending at a price worth going. On that front: the biggest thing you can do is crush the LSAT. So study for that, get a high score, and you'll have a better idea what your options are. The second thing is to consider getting a couple years of work experience, both to clarify your goals and distance yourself from your GPA.

There are definitely some schools you'll be shut out of with a GPA that low. But there are also plenty of solid schools that will consider someone with a high LSAT and work experience, even with a low GPA.

Definitley take 2 years MINIMUM to distance yourself from your GPA and put your law school goals into perspective. Just by looking at your list, I can only presume that you have no idea where you want to practice and what type of law you actually want to pursue. Choosing schools like Loyola, Mississippi, Hawaii, etc. will only let you practice in Louisiana, MS, and HI, respectively. Are you prepared to commit yourself to living somewhere for the next ~20 years?

Please do yourself a huge favor and think this through before you rush to Mississippi Law paying sticker, only to realize that "shit, I don't want to work in Mississippi."

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Definitley take 2 years MINIMUM to distance yourself from your GPA and put your law school goals into perspective. Just by looking at your list, I can only presume that you have no idea where you want to practice and what type of law you actually want to pursue. Choosing schools like Loyola, Mississippi, Hawaii, etc. will only let you practice in Louisiana, MS, and HI, respectively. Are you prepared to commit yourself to living somewhere for the next ~20 years?

Please do yourself a huge favor and think this through before you rush to Mississippi Law paying sticker, only to realize that "shit, I don't want to work in Mississippi."

Thanks, I should have clarified, I chose these places because I have immediate family in each location which would make the move and living situation much easier for me. Except for Ohio which is the dream school for me and Hawaii where I currently live and attend college. I also wouldn't mind having to live in these places for years after graduating. Though my questions are more about the possibility of getting accepted anywhere worth while rather than about my motives. Though this decision did come after spending the summer working under the lawyer who works for my family's company and a lot of talking with my fiancées brother who is a very successful lawyer who graduated from Ohio. Problem is that both of them went to law school years ago and had great grades so they weren't sure about my chances. Basically I'm wondering if those T4 schools are all I'm capable of or if schools like Loyola and HI are possible or if I could maybe even go somewhere like LSU. I want to know the possibilities so that I can narrow down the list. And I don't say "whichever one will take me" out of lack of dedication but instead because I really want to do this. I only wish I'd found the interest sooner.

Martin21 wrote: Thanks, I should have clarified, I chose these places because I have immediate family in each location which would make the move and living situation much easier for me. Except for Ohio which is the dream school for me and Hawaii where I currently live and attend college. I also wouldn't mind having to live in these places for years after graduating. Though my questions are more about the possibility of getting accepted anywhere worth while rather than about my motives. Though this decision did come after spending the summer working under the lawyer who works for my family's company and a lot of talking with my fiancées brother who is a very successful lawyer who graduated from Ohio. Problem is that both of them went to law school years ago and had great grades so they weren't sure about my chances. Basically I'm wondering if those T4 schools are all I'm capable of or if schools like Loyola and HI are possible or if I could maybe even go somewhere like LSU. I want to know the possibilities so that I can narrow down the list. And I don't say "whichever one will take me" out of lack of dedication but instead because I really want to do this. I only wish I'd found the interest sooner.

But again, what do you want to do? "Be a successful lawyer," isn't really an answer to that question. If you want to be a practicing lawyer, T4 schools won't get you there. If you want to do biglaw, none of these schools will get you there. If you want to work in local/state government in a particular region, some of these schools will give you options. Your generic idea of "go to law school" doesn't provide anyone with enough information to help you.

If you really want to do this (whatever "this" is), you need to consider which schools actually give you a chance at being employed in the field before you consider your chances at them. No matter what, this is not something you should be planning on doing right out of school; you need work experience and time away from undergrad to help with that GPA.

Seems like working for "your family's company" is the right answer here.

OP, go to Law School Numbers and search for users with your GPA with various LSAT scores so you can see how your school options change as your LSAT score increases. Also look at the graphs and profiles on several schools to compare what you'll need. You can get into law school with that GPA, but in general, your LSAT score should be high for you to go anywhere worthwhile. You should also probably have more specific goals, partially because anyone going to law school should, but also because you might have to make tougher decisions with a low GPA.

IMO, you should plan on working for a couple of years and taking a large swath of time to get your LSAT score as high as possible. You can use that time to formulate more clear career goals, which will help you in picking a school.

Martin21 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Definitley take 2 years MINIMUM to distance yourself from your GPA and put your law school goals into perspective. Just by looking at your list, I can only presume that you have no idea where you want to practice and what type of law you actually want to pursue. Choosing schools like Loyola, Mississippi, Hawaii, etc. will only let you practice in Louisiana, MS, and HI, respectively. Are you prepared to commit yourself to living somewhere for the next ~20 years?

Please do yourself a huge favor and think this through before you rush to Mississippi Law paying sticker, only to realize that "shit, I don't want to work in Mississippi."

Thanks, I should have clarified, I chose these places because I have immediate family in each location which would make the move and living situation much easier for me. Except for Ohio which is the dream school for me and Hawaii where I currently live and attend college. I also wouldn't mind having to live in these places for years after graduating. Though my questions are more about the possibility of getting accepted anywhere worth while rather than about my motives. Though this decision did come after spending the summer working under the lawyer who works for my family's company and a lot of talking with my fiancées brother who is a very successful lawyer who graduated from Ohio. Problem is that both of them went to law school years ago and had great grades so they weren't sure about my chances. Basically I'm wondering if those T4 schools are all I'm capable of or if schools like Loyola and HI are possible or if I could maybe even go somewhere like LSU. I want to know the possibilities so that I can narrow down the list. And I don't say "whichever one will take me" out of lack of dedication but instead because I really want to do this. I only wish I'd found the interest sooner.

You can get accepted into very good law schools despite your GPA. It will likely take a 98%+ LSAT score to get you into the T20, but it is definitely possible. As everyone has said before, get a real job after your UG. Work for a few years. If nothing else, it might make you realize you don't want to go to law school at all. If you are still interested in law school after maturing and experiencing working life america, then you have a better chance anyway with the work experience on your resume. Score 174+ and be sure to apply as early in the cycle as possible. Apply ED to northwestern (you will get declined, but this will show you are serious about their school and give you a leg up in regular admissions). There is a chance you could end up there if you score high enough. Apply to everywhere between Northwestern and maybe OSU. WUSTL will likely accept you if you perform how you say you can, and then you can use that leverage everywhere else for scholarship money (to OSU for example).

Law school at sticker price just isn't worth it outside of T2 schools if you wish to practice as a lawyer. If it was supplementing a business degree to give you a leg up in management, maybe. But don't waste your time or money by going to any of your aforementioned schools that are below "super reach". It'll be a terrible decision financially.

TWiiX wrote:

Martin21 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Definitley take 2 years MINIMUM to distance yourself from your GPA and put your law school goals into perspective. Just by looking at your list, I can only presume that you have no idea where you want to practice and what type of law you actually want to pursue. Choosing schools like Loyola, Mississippi, Hawaii, etc. will only let you practice in Louisiana, MS, and HI, respectively. Are you prepared to commit yourself to living somewhere for the next ~20 years?

Please do yourself a huge favor and think this through before you rush to Mississippi Law paying sticker, only to realize that "shit, I don't want to work in Mississippi."

Thanks, I should have clarified, I chose these places because I have immediate family in each location which would make the move and living situation much easier for me. Except for Ohio which is the dream school for me and Hawaii where I currently live and attend college. I also wouldn't mind having to live in these places for years after graduating. Though my questions are more about the possibility of getting accepted anywhere worth while rather than about my motives. Though this decision did come after spending the summer working under the lawyer who works for my family's company and a lot of talking with my fiancées brother who is a very successful lawyer who graduated from Ohio. Problem is that both of them went to law school years ago and had great grades so they weren't sure about my chances. Basically I'm wondering if those T4 schools are all I'm capable of or if schools like Loyola and HI are possible or if I could maybe even go somewhere like LSU. I want to know the possibilities so that I can narrow down the list. And I don't say "whichever one will take me" out of lack of dedication but instead because I really want to do this. I only wish I'd found the interest sooner.

You can get accepted into very good law schools despite your GPA. It will likely take a 98%+ LSAT score to get you into the T20, but it is definitely possible. As everyone has said before, get a real job after your UG. Work for a few years. If nothing else, it might make you realize you don't want to go to law school at all. If you are still interested in law school after maturing and experiencing working life america, then you have a better chance anyway with the work experience on your resume. Score 174+ and be sure to apply as early in the cycle as possible. Apply ED to northwestern (you will get declined, but this will show you are serious about their school and give you a leg up in regular admissions). There is a chance you could end up there if you score high enough. Apply to everywhere between Northwestern and maybe OSU. WUSTL will likely accept you if you perform how you say you can, and then you can use that leverage everywhere else for scholarship money (to OSU for example).

Law school at sticker price just isn't worth it outside of T2 schools if you wish to practice as a lawyer. If it was supplementing a business degree to give you a leg up in management, maybe. But don't waste your time or money by going to any of your aforementioned schools that are below "super reach". It'll be a terrible decision financially.

Thank you so much! This definitely shows me how hard this will be but it gives me confidence to know that it is possible. Just knowing that lets me know that it won't be wasted effort. You have been very helpful.

Martin21 wrote: Thank you so much! This definitely shows me how hard this will be but it gives me confidence to know that it is possible. Just knowing that lets me know that it won't be wasted effort. You have been very helpful.

No problem. I am also fighting an uphill battle of a bad gpa (albeit not as low as yours, I'm in the 2.6-2.9 range which is obviously limiting me as well) so I can relate to your struggles and concerns.

Please think about what cavalier said above. figure out your end goal. "Going to law school" isn't specific enough. WHY do you want to go to law school? WHERE do you want to work after you graduate? WHAT sort of market do you want to go into? Government? Small firm? Big law? Midwest? East Coast? NYC? Chicago? Cali?

All of those questions will help you target a more concrete list of schools. You need to focus schools that enable you to achieve what you want to accomplish (which it sounds like you haven't figure out yet). Best of luck. PM me if you have any questions about anything else or just want to talk about studying for the test. It's a beast.

Certainly doable. My GPA was ~2.2. I got a 168 on the LSAT, went to WashU with $$, and transferred to a T14 after 1L.

Just do well on the LSAT and you'll be fine. Good luck!

21SAVAGE wrote:
You need an interesting story- your reasoning can't just be I smoked a lot of pot from 18-21- there has to be something that caused this other than immaturity.

How would this be phrased? I gratefully have a lot of time between my undergrad years and now as well as stellar grad school grades (Conflict Management certificate), but no strong reasoning for my 2.9 UG GPA. Would it be better to not address it at this point?

Be careful. Law school is an immense amount of work. Unless you can truly say that you are a completely different person now with regards to your study habits, law school is a bad decision for you.

Someone got ~$150k at WUSTL with a ~2.5 or so GPA and a 172 LSAT iirc. Maybe they were especially desperate for LSATs that year but anything could happen.
You've gotta knock the LSAT out of the park though. If you fall short, I probably wouldn't go to law school.

I would seriously look into alternate careers paths and not get too attached to the whole law school idea.

How did this work out for you?