Top Law Schools

So I took the LSAT for the first time in December after only studying a few hours and got a 161. I applied late this cycle (February) and have been accepted at some T2s and waitlisted at a few T1s. After reading the advice here, I decided to sign up for the June test and to actually study this time using the Powerscore Bibles and the Blueprint online course. My question is: what score would warrant withdrawing from this cycle and reapplying next cycle? If I go to law school in the fall, it would be to Marquette with a scholarship (I'm from Wisconsin). What score would I need for a T30 or T14?

My GPA is a 3.2 which is low but I did write in my application how the drop in my GPA was due to a severe medical condition that I have gotten under control since graduating from college in May 2010. (My GPA was a 3.9 before I got sick). Any help deciding what LSAT score I would need with this GPA to get into a top school would be appreciated!! Thanks!

what score would warrant withdrawing from this cycle and reapplying next cycle?

answer to this is heavily dependent on what you will do w/ your degree. what are your goals?

What score would I need for a T30 or T14?

according to my cursory estimation: for T30, maybe 169; for T14 (lower end), maybe 172; this is also assuming you are not URM or non-traditional

TLS, please correct above if too optimistic or pessimistic

best wishes.

tourdeforcex wrote:

what score would warrant withdrawing from this cycle and reapplying next cycle?

answer to this is heavily dependent on what you will do w/ your degree. what are your goals?

What score would I need for a T30 or T14?

according to my cursory estimation: for T30, maybe 169; for T14 (lower end), maybe 172; this is also assuming you are not URM or non-traditional

TLS, please correct above if too optimistic or pessimistic

best wishes.

166/167 will do for T30

I'm not sure exactly what type of law I want to practice but I'm interested in child law, sports law and maybe health law. I don't know exactly what the definition for "non-traditional" is but I will have 1-2 years work experience (not including work during undergrad and depending on when I decide to go to law school), I have a health disability, first generation traditional college student and first in my family to seek an advanced degree. I was under the impression though that none of that mattered which is why I just asked about scores. I'd like to aim for T14, Vanderbilt, WUSTL or Emory.

Since my 161 was basically cold, is it too much to aim for my score to go up enough to get into those schools?

non-tradition is any non-standard applicant i.e. 10 years of work experience, nobel peace prize winner, 10 years military experience, stuff like that.

"health disability, first generation traditional college student and first in my family to seek an advanced degree." this could be written out in a compelling essay that could somewhat make up for a lower GPA.

a 161 cold is solid. it is definitely not too much to aim for a score to get into vandy, WUSTL, or emory. check out lawschoolnumbers.com but a quick check emory would probably need a 166 or 167, vandy might be hard.

If you bump that over 165, I would definitely reapply next year. 165+ should be easily attainable, as a 161 cold is a very good score, and the BP video is a very good course . Anything in the high 160s/low 170s would be even better.

Sending you a PM to talk about a few things.

Thanks for the help everyone! I'm hoping to get to 170+ which I hope will be possible after a 161 cold. Emory is kind of my dream school right now since I really wanted to go there for undergrad but ended up at the state school for money reasons (even though it was still a top school). Here's to studying and hopefully making it!!