Does Eng. major compensate for gpa? Forum

[bret34]

Chem Engineering at top 20 school
URM
3.44 overall / 3.65 major
177 lsat
from the south
hoping to get into top 10 law (really hoping for top 1-7), particularly in NE area.
Do I have a chance?

[Hey-O]

HAHAHA I thought that Eng. meant English. I thought the post was a flame.

[clevinger33]

HAHAHA I thought that Eng. meant English. I thought the post was a flame.

+1

[vespertiliovir]

No, but URM does.

[clevinger33]

Do I have a chance?

Short answer: yes. You might have to ED at Columbia and NYU to get in, but your LSAT and your major and your URM status should compensate for your GPA (which isn't that bad).

(says someone who got into a top 10 school with a lower GPA majoring in the Eng. I thought you were initially referring to)

[Haribo]

What kind of URM? Someone with your numbers got into Harvard last year.

[bret34]

i'm hispanic

[bret34]

Oh, and female, but I don't know if that makes a difference or not.

[rayiner]

Define URM. If black/mexican, apply Harvard. You will get $$$ from CCN.

This is actually one place where I think your engineering GPA will get a bump.

[bret34]

Thank you everyone for your input.

I've been working in the engineering industry since graduation (3 years ago since May). Will this have any impact - good or bad?

[D-ROCCA]

Means you're a lock at Northwestern, but chances are you probably were anyway. I'd say, given the slight URM boost, you'll probably lock up CCN and have a good chance at Harvard, and a toss-up at YS.

[rockstar4488]

In short, being an engineer doesn't compensate. You have stellar credentials though, so I wouldn't worry about things too much.

[CanadianWolf]

Whether or not an engineering major will compensate for a low GPA probably depends upon several factors such as the particular law school's admissions policy, how far below the median GPA of a particular law school, type of engineering major & whether there is a discernable upward trend in grades.
Engineering majors demand hard work and analytical thinking involving complex issues that should enable good engineering students to perform well on the LSAT.