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hi all! i'll try to keep this simple.

- 3.26 gpa, 3.3 gpa converted. had a terrible junior year...we'll see how far an addendum gets me. i have 5 W's on my transcript - 3 of which is because i dropped a major/decided to focus exclusively on accounting. i literally dropped them the day after the drop date, but i'm curious as to how badly that will reflect on me. they were NOT dropped because of failing grades, and neither were the other 2.

- 178 lsats

- worked 2 years as a public accountant

- CPA certified, looking to do tax law after law school

- looking for chances at a T14 school.. is this possible? if so, which ones would be MOST likely, being that i'd rather not apply to 10 schools that i have close to a 0% shot at. my biggest hopeful is georgetown...

- also: i took undergraduate courses after i graduated to get to my 150 credits for my CPA...do those transcripts count? if so, would the grades be factored into my lsac gpa, as well?

Northwestern and UVA

Mosca wrote:Northwestern and UVA

+1. Although you could probably go even higher if you're willing to ED.

thanks for you're replies! that's not bad, i wasn't expecting much from my gpa.

do any of you two happen to know if grades after graduation are still factored in? they're undergrad.

if i ED-ed into gtown, or even as high as NYU, is that a waste of an ED or could it help a good amount?

as for the lsats, would a 180 make a huge difference compared to the 178?

Try EDing at NYU. Not likely to work out, but it's possible. They're the most splitter-friendly of the T6.

Otherwise, apply to MVP and NCG. Skip Duke and Berkeley because they place a lot of emphasis on GPA. Someone will almost certainly bite, but also choose a few schools just outside the T14 to guarantee something works out. WUSTL is particularly splitter-friendly, as is UIUC, but also apply to schools where you'd be happy working--BU/BC if Boston, Fordham if NY, UCLA/USC if LA, GW/W&M if DC, etc.

You'll probably get a lot of waitlists but also some surprising scholarships from schools looking for your sky-high LSAT. A 180 would not help significantly over a 178.

tlsfa8 wrote:thanks for you're replies! that's not bad, i wasn't expecting much from my gpa.

do any of you two happen to know if grades after graduation are still factored in? they're undergrad.

if i ED-ed into gtown, or even as high as NYU, is that a waste of an ED or could it help a good amount?

as for the lsats, would a 180 make a huge difference compared to the 178?

Grades after you receive your first bachelor's degree do not count.

A 180 will not make a difference compared to a 178 because 178 is above the 75th percentile at every school (plus you'll look like a tool for retaking a 178).

tlsfa8 wrote:thanks for you're replies! that's not bad, i wasn't expecting much from my gpa.

do any of you two happen to know if grades after graduation are still factored in? they're undergrad.

if i ED-ed into gtown, or even as high as NYU, is that a waste of an ED or could it help a good amount?

as for the lsats, would a 180 make a huge difference compared to the 178?

I would ED at NYU or Chicago. You have a shot. Not an amazing shot, but a shot. And if they defer you to the regular pool, no loss. I think Georgetown is selling yourself short.

I don't believe grades post-graduation will be factored into the LSAC gpa.

Getting a 180 couldn't hurt, but I think you'd probably still be in about the same position.

thanks everyone, i really do appreciate the advice. it's strange, i never thought i'd be posting up my chances here because i thought i'd be yearning for that one post that encourages me to go for my dreams and apply to everything...but surprisingly this is helping me a lot more than just dreaming big on the side.

i hear in general northwestern is great for those who've been employed.. will having my CPA certificate help me a lot? i'm just trying to make up for the low gpa, clearly blindly grabbing at every other skill i may have.

tlsfa8 wrote:thanks everyone, i really do appreciate the advice. it's strange, i never thought i'd be posting up my chances here because i thought i'd be yearning for that one post that encourages me to go for my dreams and apply to everything...but surprisingly this is helping me a lot more than just dreaming big on the side.

i hear in general northwestern is great for those who've been employed.. will having my CPA certificate help me a lot? i'm just trying to make up for the low gpa, clearly blindly grabbing at every other skill i may have.

Northwestern loves high-LSAT, low-GPA splitters with work experience. However, your LSAT is high enough (and GPA medium enough) that Northwestern doesn't have to be your top or only option. Northwestern is the ED choice for people with combinations like a 172/2.8 and work experience--they'll go all the way down to a 2.1 for people with 170+ LSATs and WE. That means you should be a lock there, but there are better choices that are quite possible (UVA, Michigan, maybe even Penn or NYU).

retake the lsat...it's your only option..

LiveFree wrote:retake the lsat...it's your only option..

haha, wisest words on this forum

and oh, i didn't realize northwestern took such low GPAs! well that's definitely good news for me. i've always been meaning to visit chicago anyway...

thanks everyone. i think i have all my questions answered but more advice is alllllllways welcome!

BenJ wrote:

tlsfa8 wrote:thanks everyone, i really do appreciate the advice. it's strange, i never thought i'd be posting up my chances here because i thought i'd be yearning for that one post that encourages me to go for my dreams and apply to everything...but surprisingly this is helping me a lot more than just dreaming big on the side.

i hear in general northwestern is great for those who've been employed.. will having my CPA certificate help me a lot? i'm just trying to make up for the low gpa, clearly blindly grabbing at every other skill i may have.

Northwestern loves high-LSAT, low-GPA splitters with work experience. However, your LSAT is high enough (and GPA medium enough) that Northwestern doesn't have to be your top or only option. Northwestern is the ED choice for people with combinations like a 172/2.8 and work experience--they'll go all the way down to a 2.1 for people with 170+ LSATs and WE. That means you should be a lock there, but there are better choices that are quite possible (UVA, Michigan, maybe even Penn or NYU).

where do you feel the NU GPA cutoff would be for an LSAT that high (178) before you would need to ED to have a solid shot at getting in? I haven't taken it yet but just a theoretical question to think about for the future, especially if I want to apply somewhere else like UVA, GT, or Cornell for example. I have a 3.13 LSDAS GPA FWIW

<3.2, 175+ = Enjoy Northwestern

Na_Swatch wrote:<3.2, 175+ = Enjoy Northwestern

Not necessarily. >3.4, 177, WE, and I'm out.

Mosca wrote:Northwestern and UVA

178/3.28 is solid for everything outside CCN if the application is good and early.

pertristis wrote:

Na_Swatch wrote:<3.2, 175+ = Enjoy Northwestern

Not necessarily. >3.4, 177, WE, and I'm out.

I see you applied in January though, plus you got in Georgetown (with $ if I'm reading you right). So that's gotta be something.

so it seems like law school is just a big gamble...which may be a good thing. i suppose i will just apply early and hope for the best. will applying early increases my chances by a lot?

^^apply early, yes, but be sure to also apply ED to one of NU, Cornell, GULC, or UVA. if you apply ED in october to NU, with your numbers you are a lock because of your WE, IMO, unless you do something really crazy on your PS or in the interview. FWIW I'm hoping to get LSAT scores above a 170 so with my GPA slightly lower than yours (3.1ish) I am repeating to you the advice I'm gonna be using for myself this fall (lol) as I also have accounting WE as well.

I have a friend who got into NYU ED with a 3.3/177. He's a great guy but his softs were definitely lacking.

Good luck!!!