Rhodes Scholarship Interview Same day as December LSAT!?! Forum

[FlyHigh]

Was informed today that the Rhodes interview is on December 3rd - the same day as the LSAT. I can't move my LSAT of course because I haven't taken it yet and want to apply this cycle. When I asked the interview coordinator if she could move the interview date she said it wasn't possible because it was pre-set from months ago.

So, I am probably looking at a reception the night before, then a 4-5 hour LSAT followed by an intense interview. With that amount of pressure, nailing both (especially the LSAT with interview anxieties) seems really difficult.

Advice please?

[CanadianWolf]

Didn't know that LSAC held receptions before the test !

[JoeMo]

Was informed today that the Rhodes interview is on December 3rd - the same day as the LSAT. I can't move my LSAT of course because I haven't taken it yet and want to apply this cycle. When I asked the interview coordinator if she could move the interview date she said it wasn't possible because it was pre-set from months ago.

So, I am probably looking at a reception the night before, then a 4-5 hour LSAT followed by an intense interview. With that amount of pressure, nailing both (especially the LSAT with interview anxieties) seems really difficult.

Advice please?

FLAMER!

[CanadianWolf]

Postpone taking the LSAT. Rhodes only comes around once in a lifetime.

P.S. Will Toronto accept the February LSAT for this cycle ?

[FlyHigh]

LSAC receptions suck! Haha no it's the Rhodes reception.

But of course it is *just* an interview vs. the *last* LSAT administered for this cycle (Some schools take the Feb. but most don't).

So best case scenerio looks like 6-8 hours of LSAT/interviewing

[kaiser]

Apply to law school a year later. You only get one shot at a Rhodes, but a bunch of chances to take a test that is always there for the taking.

Note: I don't actually know how many "chances" one gets for a Rhodes, but I'd imagine most people are one and done. So I wouldn't pass it up, given how prestigious and rare the honor is, should you receive it).

[thelawyler]

You can always cancel or retake/reapply with the LSAT. I'm guessing you can't for the Rhodes. Rhodes is more prestigious than any law school. Focus on the Rhodes.

[FlyHigh]

My gameplan has been that if Rhodes doesn't work out, I'll go to law school right away. If it does work out and I also get my top law school, I will defer admissions. Toronto and Yale accept the Feb. LSAT (if I am not mistaken - Yale seems to be changing up everything this cycle) but I know HLS does not.

Rhodes is a one shot deal for most people but some reapply. In either event, the academic Gods are screwing me pretty bad by putting both on the same day.

[bandenjamin]

--LinkRemoved--

This guy passed up millions of dollars in potential future earnings for the opportunity. LSAT/Law School will be there after.

[bk1]

Have you asked LSAC if you can take the sabbath observers' test?

[cinephile]

Apply to law school a year later. You only get one shot at a Rhodes, but a bunch of chances to take a test that is always there for the taking.

Also, don't underestimate how long the LSAT will take. There can be trouble checking people in or other various malfunctions. My first administration took 8 hours in part because it was December and there was confusion about what to do with people's coats when we weren't supposed to be bringing them into the test center.

[bp shinners]

Apply to law school a year later. You only get one shot at a Rhodes, but a bunch of chances to take a test that is always there for the taking.

Also, don't underestimate how long the LSAT will take. There can be trouble checking people in or other various malfunctions. My first administration took 8 hours in part because it was December and there was confusion about what to do with people's coats when we weren't supposed to be bringing them into the test center.

This.

My advice is skip the LSAT this year and go for Rhodes. Law school will always be there.

[ant5do]

i'll bite. i'm not entirely familiar with the process for Canadian students, but, at least in the US, that means that you are shortlisted for the state round interview (i would assume that would means provincial interviews in Canada). The thing is, even though you are undoubtedly a qualified candidate (how could you apply for a Rhodes if you weren't?), this means that you're still competing against ~10-20 candidates in your particular province.

In the US, there are approximately 30 spots for the entire country; I would assume that in Canada there are significantly less, maybe 5-10? This means that you've still got a large, huge fight ahead of you. I hope that you're preparing hard, but definitely have some sort of contingency plan, you know, just in case.

Best of luck. Kill it. I would resonate the earlier responses that a Rhodes significantly eclipses acceptance at any law school, but just remember to contextualize the relative probability of not getting the Rhodes. I would think, and it's a bit ridiculous that i'm not being facetious here, that, even at this stage, getting into Yale would be a bit less difficult (and consequently more probable).

[FlyHigh]

I am just trying to be realistic here. I have yet to take the LSAT and want to apply this cycle, but probably won't be able to get my app in until mid-Dec and won't start hearing back until at least February for those schools that have rolling admissions.

I really can't do an either/or here - I will just sit the LSAT in the morning and do the interview right after. Of course to get into a school like Y or H you need a stellar LSAT regardless of GPA or ECs, so I'm trying to attack the LSAT as much as I can and get into 170+ range by December 3rd.

[Kring345]

To be honest, I say: fuck the LSAT. Focus on Rhodes. If you get it, freaking sweat. If not, finish up school, travel for a few months all over a randomly chosen continent, work for 1 year in an interesting line of work that will be useful on your resume and give you some 'real world' experience, and study for and take the LSAT later. You obviously have your ducks in a row and your head screwed on straight. You'll be able to get a sweet gig somewhere, make some bank, enjoy having an income, and you'll still be able to smoke the LSAT. No reason to push forward too fast. Enjoy life, cause pretty soon you'll be working non-stop. This is coming from someone who has been doing just that for the last 5 years (Marine Corps). Looking back on your life, 5/10/50 years from now, Id be willing to wager that you'd find that to be a smart course: some valuable and otherwise unattainable learning and fun can take place.

[941law]

#gunnerproblems

[abl]

Do NOT do both. If you do both, the chances of EITHER working out well are pretty low. The Rhodes interview isn't easy, and requires preparation. If you distract yourself with something as significant as the LSAT, forget about getting the Rhodes. Similarly, the LSAT requires not just preparation but test day performance--if you're even a little bit distracted, it's likely to lead to a score 5-10 points below your practice test benchmark. I'd put $100 on you neither getting the Rhodes nor an LSAT score you're happy with if you try to do both.

I'm a 3L at HYS. Trust me--there's virtually no downside, admissions or otherwise, to taking a year off if the Rhodes thing doesn't work out. You'll probably actually be glad to have had that year come 1L. And that's the worst case scenario of taking the Feb LSAT. Best case scenario is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will significantly positively impact the rest of your life (and will be a pretty cool experience--I spent a year at Oxbridge, albeit not on a Rhodes...it's pretty awesome).

[Jeffort]

Do NOT do both. If you do both, the chances of EITHER working out well are pretty low. The Rhodes interview isn't easy, and requires preparation. If you distract yourself with something as significant as the LSAT, forget about getting the Rhodes. Similarly, the LSAT requires not just preparation but test day performance--if you're even a little bit distracted, it's likely to lead to a score 5-10 points below your practice test benchmark. I'd put $100 on you neither getting the Rhodes nor an LSAT score you're happy with if you try to do both.

I'm a 3L at HYS. Trust me--there's virtually no downside, admissions or otherwise, to taking a year off if the Rhodes thing doesn't work out. You'll probably actually be glad to have had that year come 1L. And that's the worst case scenario of taking the Feb LSAT. Best case scenario is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will significantly positively impact the rest of your life (and will be a pretty cool experience--I spent a year at Oxbridge, albeit not on a Rhodes...it's pretty awesome).

This^ +256

OP, you are in a situation where Aesop's Fable about a dog with a bone seeing its reflection in water applies.