Chances of Getting into Law Schools? (171/4.0)
Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 12:29 pm
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https://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=119196
scrantonkr wrote:I go to the University of Scranton (it's a private Jesuit University in Pennsylvania) and I'm applying to law school. I'm an English and Theology/Religious Studies double major, a philosophy minor, and I have a concentration in Catholic Studies. I brought 27 AP credits into college with me, so I'm graduating a full year early and plan to go to law school right afterwards.
GPA: 4.0
LSAT: 171
Softs:
-I have a double major, a minor, and a concentration
-I've taken courses in calculus, business, and economics (18 credits each semester) and still have a 4.0
-Graduating a year early (motivated?)
-I'm involved in ten campus organizations and I lead one of them
-I lead a weekly bible study not affiliated with the school
-I volunteer at a Church during the summer and lead the youth program
-I've volunteered at a pro bono law service for a year (during school and summer)
-I am a Resident Assistant (which is a 20 hr + / week job)
-I've been on the Dean's List every semester
-I tutor part time during the school year, work part time during the school year, and I've worked full time during the summer for the past five years
-I'm a member of three honor societies
-I speak Spanish and Norgwegian (my father was born in Norway)
-I'm the first person in my family to go to and (assuming I graduate) graduate college
I'm planning to apply to: Notre Dame, Columbia, NYU, Harvard, Yale, Chicago, Northwestern, Boston College, Boston University, Cornell, Georgetown, Fordham, and St. John's (which I think is a good safety school)
---> What do you guys think my chances are? Thanks!
At the very least, he's lying about the LSAT.Hi! I was originally planning to take the LSAT in the fall, but I recently decided that it would be better for me to take it in June. That means I have about six weeks to study. I took my first diagnostic test today without ever looking at the LSAT before, and I got a 161. I got 4 wrong on each LR section, 5 wrong on the LG, and 7 wrong on the RC. I just ordered a book of previous LSATs and a few PowerScore Bibles. How can I raise my score to at least a 171 by the June LSAT? I plan to take 12 more pracitce tests and try to work through all three of the bibles. Any other advice? Think it's possible? Thanks!
I think that makes OP a retard.Kiersten1985 wrote:I think OP just posted with the assumption that s/he will get that 171 to make the predicting easier.
Come back with an actual LSAT score first.scrantonkr wrote:Boy, a lot of you guys on here are very harsh. I understand you may be disgruntled, but don't take it out on me. And yes, I've been consistently testing at 175, so i'm assuming I may do a little worse on the actual test, so I'm saying 171, to be safe. And I do have a 4.0. That's not an assumption. I'm applying for schools this fall, so it will still be a 4.0 on my apps. Any productive answers?
scrantonkr wrote:Boy, a lot of you guys on here are very harsh. I understand you may be disgruntled, but don't take it out on me. And yes, I've been consistently testing at 175, so i'm assuming I may do a little worse on the actual test, so I'm saying 171, to be safe. And I do have a 4.0. That's not an assumption. I'm applying for schools this fall, so it will still be a 4.0 on my apps. Any productive answers?
markdiz430 wrote:If you get a 170 minimum with that GPA, I'm sure you're set for any school you want. Just did the number on lsp...I'm jealous lol
People ask about their specific case, you have a hypothetical LSAT, and thus just want general trends.scrantonkr wrote:ConMan345 wrote:markdiz430 wrote:If you get a 170 minimum with that GPA, I'm sure you're set for any school you want. Just did the number on lsp...I'm jealous lol
This isn't right, though you will have a chance at every school.
Ok, so what would you say I'd have to improve? I know LSAT and GPA are most important, but is there anything i should do to improve my chances, like in terms of extra-cirriculars?
And Desert Fox .. why are you even on here? Obviously people are going to ask questions like this. Graphs give numbers, but I want to hear people's actual experiences. If you think it's stupid, don't even respond, but posting just to be rude makes me wonder why you're even on this site.
This one time at band camp, I looked at a graph.scrantonkr wrote: Graphs give numbers, but I want to hear people's actual experiences.
Nope. Your extracurriculars are fine and won't have much bearing on your cycle, other than to reinforce that you are a hard worker. Just get the highest LSAT you can manage (obviously). I think what ConMan was saying is that 171/4.0 isn't auto-admit for all schools. If you actually squeeze out a 175 on test day I'd say you're in everywhere except Yale and very possibly there as well.scrantonkr wrote:Ok, so what would you say I'd have to improve? I know LSAT and GPA are most important, but is there anything i should do to improve my chances, like in terms of extra-cirriculars?ConMan345 wrote:This isn't right, though you will have a chance at every school.markdiz430 wrote:If you get a 170 minimum with that GPA, I'm sure you're set for any school you want. Just did the number on lsp...I'm jealous lol
I did give you an honest answer, and I just finished my cycle with the same numbers. The person who told you you're in everywhere doesn't have a clue. Like I said, HYS are 95% out, CCN are 50/50, and you're most likely in at the rest. Some schools can be pretty random. For example, UVa and Michigan waitlisted a bunch of people with those stats in lieu of EDers or lower numbers. You can probably finagle a large scholarship out of a couple of lower T14s.scrantonkr wrote:thank you so much! i really appreciate getting an honest answer .. there's so much hatred from a lot of others haha
+1 LSAT is king.sundevil77 wrote:I did give you an honest answer, and I just finished my cycle with the same numbers. The person who told you you're in everywhere doesn't have a clue. Like I said, HYS are 95% out, CCN are 50/50, and you're most likely in at the rest. Some schools can be pretty random. For example, UVa and Michigan waitlisted a bunch of people with those stats in lieu of EDers or lower numbers. You can probably finagle a large scholarship out of a couple of lower T14s.scrantonkr wrote:thank you so much! i really appreciate getting an honest answer .. there's so much hatred from a lot of others haha
As far as improving your chances, any extracurriculars at this point probably wouldn't be meaningful enough to provide you with any type of tangible benefit. Everyone on here will tell you, improve your LSAT score. That is the one factor left that is completely dependent on you. The difference between a 171 and 173/4 is the difference between a likely acceptance to H and great scholarships to many of the T14.
Edit: Seriously, though, go to lawschoolnumbers.com. Everything is spelled out there.
In my opinion, for the very top schools, you need to market yourself as the best of a certain type. LSAT and GPA being fairly equal, the top schools are looking for a diverse class, so you have to craft an application that has a clear, consistent message; one that says, "Hey, so I have this interest/background/whatever, and I'm one of the best you'll find with it." When someone is done reading it, they should think, "Oh yeah, this is the ______ kid," or "the kid interested in ________," "or the one who did ________." Being an academic powerhouse (a brain in a jar) only makes sense if you're ridiculously strong in that department (175+, 3.95+). In your case, a huge potential red flag is this "I'm involved in ten campus organizations" business. More power to you on a personal level, that takes a lot of work; but as far applications, I hope those have a common thread or two because otherwise you'll seem all over the place. Every piece of your application should be part of a whole cloth, not a bunch of different threads. Your personal statement should bring everything together. Mine was about how my love of a challenge, intellectual curiosity and passion for a particular cause made law school the perfect next step. Nothing fancy or schmaltzy. My resume backed it up with my record for the cause I was passionate about, my numbers were good enough, my recs were strong, and it all fell into place (minus Yale, haha).scrantonkr wrote:ConMan345 wrote:markdiz430 wrote:If you get a 170 minimum with that GPA, I'm sure you're set for any school you want. Just did the number on lsp...I'm jealous lol
This isn't right, though you will have a chance at every school.
Ok, so what would you say I'd have to improve? I know LSAT and GPA are most important, but is there anything i should do to improve my chances, like in terms of extra-cirriculars?
And Desert Fox .. why are you even on here? Obviously people are going to ask questions like this. Graphs give numbers, but I want to hear people's actual experiences. If you think it's stupid, don't even respond, but posting just to be rude makes me wonder why you're even on this site.