3.2/175 Army Officer/veteran Forum

[kedom]

Hi, I've been an Army officer for three years, deployed to Afghanistan. University of Georgia undergrad. Any idea on chances at t14? I'm thinking HYS is obviously out....

[BigFatPanda]

Dear Kedom, UVA loves you, apply ED now.

[BigFatPanda]

and Northwestern

[missvik218]

And maybe Mich or Penn .. but that was more likely earlier in the cycle - at this point ED at UVA.

[Sauer Grapes]

....

[kalvano]

I would send out an app to everyone in the T14.

My guess is more than a few will bite. The military boost combined with a such a good LSAT will be huge.

[littlebit]

+1

[of Benito Cereno]

UVA ED is a really perfect option at this point. A fantastic school, especially if you want a federal government job or to work in DC. I don't really see any higher ranked schools going for that gpa so why not play it safe and get into virginia this week.

[Haribo]

I wouldn't ED. Military experience seems to be one of the softs that can make a difference, especially at the upper levels of the T14. That's a great LSAT score, nice softs - only ED if you're sure UVA is your top choice.

[bahama]

Apply to all T14 as early next fall as possible. Spend the time between now and then putting together an awesome personal statement and possibly a gpa addendum.

[NayBoer]

I would not ED to UVA. Ride it out and see what happens. Apply to at least CCN.

ED is overused, speaking as somebody who successfully used it.

[englawyer]

nice softs. I would not be surprised if you hit HYS. worth the app!

[kedom]

Forgot to mention that I'm applying to start Fall 2011.

Thanks for the responses!!

[09042014]

I would not ED to UVA. Ride it out and see what happens. Apply to at least CCN.

ED is overused, speaking as somebody who successfully used it.

Agreed on both counts.

OP has a shot at Penn, Michigan, Uva, NU, maybe duke, Cornell and GTown.

No reason to lock into UVa without seeing aid packages from those schools.

[Nom Sawyer]

I would not ED to UVA. Ride it out and see what happens. Apply to at least CCN.

ED is overused, speaking as somebody who successfully used it.

Agreed on both counts.

OP has a shot at Penn, Michigan, Uva, NU, maybe duke, Cornell and GTown.

No reason to lock into UVa without seeing aid packages from those schools.

Couldnt the OP apply early to Penn, Michigan, NU, etc... and see how that goes.

And then hold UVA ED in reserve until after he hears back from these schools?

Heck, it seems with the delayed UVA ED, you could ED Penn first, then ED UVA if that falls through.

[vanwinkle]

I agree with not applying ED to UVA, even though I recommend that often to others.

Your softs are going to be extraordinary. I honestly think you should take a shot at the T6. It's possible Yale might take you with a really solid PS, they seem a little less number-obsessed than Harvard, so I'd throw them an app too. If you really wanna make sure you get into a great school you can ED to Columbia or Chicago, but that might not be recommended 'cause then you can't go to Yale if they do accept you.

You can always get your apps in early, and if things start not going well, switch your app at UVA to ED later in the cycle. With their new extended ED deadline you have that option, and leaves UVA ED as a backup if nothing goes right early on.

[DavidYurman85]

Were you completing your studies during combat? I read on Yale's admission's blog that they give consideration to army vets and those that were in combat. That's a great lsat score, I think you will definitely crack the T6.

[Sauer Grapes]

....

[kalvano]

Definitely don't ED.

Yeah, the GPA sucks, but you actually have softs that make a difference, unlike 99% of people. Your LSAT is fantastic, and it's my understanding the military boost is huge.

While nothing is guaranteed, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if you were accepted to one of the top 3.

[09042014]

The military soft is not that huge. Its a legitimately good soft, but its not going to propel him into the T3. I extremely doubt even T6 +B. But I think it helps his chances at the t10.

I'd love to be proven wrong, but I see no indication on LSN that a military soft is worth so much.

[vanwinkle]

The military soft is not that huge. Its a legitimately good soft, but its not going to propel him into the T3. I extremely doubt even T6 +B. But I think it helps his chances at the t10.

I'd love to be proven wrong, but I see no indication on LSN that a military soft is worth so much.

Here at UVA during orientation, the Dean of Admissions took the stage and started rattling off impressive characteristics of the incoming class members. One of the very first things he said was, "Some of you were deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan."

I don't think just being military is that impressive, but being deployed to a war zone seems to count for something in terms of valuable life experience.

[jnorsky]

If I had your lsat I would ED to columbia next year. But that is just me, if I got that score I would have done that. I think you have shots at CCN on down, except probably not at Cal. Dont ED to UVA, this is from someone that is going to UVA next year you could maybe get money from MVP and get into CCN.

[bahama]

Don't ED. You are going to get into plenty of great schools without it and you may be screwing yourself out of the option at more $ at another school if you lock into one early with an ED.

Your numbers are going to matter a lot less than for most people. For one thing you are primarily competing against the other military applicants, many of whom have a lower gpa because they tend to come from schools/majors with less grade inflation and tend to have had a lot of other things going on in college other than grades. Also, the context of your undergrad grades matters. Do you have something that can explain your gpa such as you were a technical major and div 1 athlete and really involved in ROTC? Or maybe you were enlisted for a few years and got bad grades freshman year while making the adjustment back to school. Your typical 3.2/175 straight out of undergrad is either someone who put much more effort into test prep than classes (and possibly a retaker), or someone who is good at tests and just kind of drifted through college and blew things off knowing they could cram for the final or write a paper the night before it was due and come out okay. With your background you will be a lot more appealing to law schools than these folks.

GI Bill isn't going to help if the Army helped pay for undergrad unless either:
- You have eligibility left from prior enlisted time
- You serve past your initial obligation (3 more yrs for full eligibility)

[im_blue]

It's possible Yale might take you with a really solid PS, they seem a little less number-obsessed than Harvard, so I'd throw them an app too. If you really wanna make sure you get into a great school you can ED to Columbia or Chicago, but that might not be recommended 'cause then you can't go to Yale if they do accept you.

I'm going to strongly disagree with having any shot at Yale. The lowest GPA in the entire class last year was a 3.5, which is almost certainly a URM with much stronger softs than military experience. Similarly, Harvard and Stanford almost never take non-URM GPAs below 3.5-3.6, regardless of softs. The military soft gets a boost, but nothing close to the URM boost.

I would approach applying to T14 as if the numbers were something like 3.4/175, so ED to NYU or UVA would be my recommendation.

[BenJ]

I would send out an app to everyone in the T14.

My guess is more than a few will bite. The military boost combined with a such a good LSAT will be huge.

Agree on this. Stanford and Berkeley are unlikely to admit you with a GPA that low, but even Yale and Harvard might. Military gives you a big boost. Throw apps to all of the T14, sans Stanford and Berkeley if you want to save money.

I would ED to Columbia next year, but that may be shooting too high. ED at UVA might be shooting too low, although if they extend their ED deadline next year, you could ED at Columbia and then ED at UVA if Columbia defers/rejects you.