3.3 GPA | LSAT Untaken | Intellectual Property Law Interest Forum

[vectorart]

3.25 GPA | No LSAT Yet | 11 Years Writing Experience

I ran the stats from the sites in the stickies, but I'm still not sure I have an answer in my case.

I am most interested in intellectual property law, focusing mostly on the visual arts and language, not patent law.

I haven't taken the LSAT yet, and I don't know if I would be wasting my time and money. I test very well; so I expect to do well, but I don't know if even a 175 would help me. (Yeah, I know the deadline is fast approaching.)

I'm sure some of this background information is just blah, blah, blah, but I don't know how much is relevant to soft information.

High School Background: 3.98 GPA, first place national scholarship recipient, class valedictorian, 31 ACT

Undergraduate Background: I graduated from a state school in a large city in the Midwest with a B.A. in English and minor in non-fiction, creative writing. Unfortunately, I focused more on my college newspaper than my classes and was ill at the time, so my transcripts aren't stellar, and I wound up with a 3.25 or 3.33 GPA (I transfered schools, so it depends on how you figure it). I did fail one class in my major that was pass/fail. (There's a lot of shame here.)

Since I graduated, I've been a professional writer, editor, and graphic designer. (If you include my time doing that in college, that's about 11 years worth.) I know this would relate directly to my interest in intellectual property law and cyberlaw, but I don't know that matters.

I'm pretty sure that I would not fall under the URM status, at least not for ethnicity or gender.

So, does anything think my shot at a Tier 1 law school is completely out the window? I just don't know that a Tier 3 or 4 would be beneficial to me, given my strong interests in IP.

Thank you for any thoughts.

[Adjudicator]

Without an LSAT score, there is no way to answer this question, because the answer depends 100% on your LSAT score.

You can certainly get into a Tier 1 school if you get a good score.

[vectorart]

Thanks for the idea.

I guess what I'm really wondering is.... Is my GPA too low to even bother with taking the LSAT and being able to get into a Tier 1 school? (hmmm... That was considerably more graceful than what I asked above!) I think I will score well as I have on every standardized test I've ever taken, but I don't really see myself making 179 either.

[bk1]

Thanks for the idea.

I guess what I'm really wondering is.... Is my GPA too low to even bother with taking the LSAT and being able to get into a Tier 1 school? (hmmm... That was considerably more graceful than what I asked above!) I think I will score well as I have on every standardized test I've ever taken, but I don't really see myself making 179 either.

No, your GPA is low but a high LSAT will make or break you. Realistically you need a 166+ to get yourself into decent school (read: top 30 or so) and a 170+ for a chance at the T14.

[Adjudicator]

Thanks for the idea.

I guess what I'm really wondering is.... Is my GPA too low to even bother with taking the LSAT and being able to get into a Tier 1 school? (hmmm... That was considerably more graceful than what I asked above!) I think I will score well as I have on every standardized test I've ever taken, but I don't really see myself making 179 either.

Yeah, I already answered your question... you can certainly get into a Tier 1 school, maybe even T14 if you have an amazing LSAT score. 3.25 is low but not hopeless.

[2011Law]

OP, if you do as well on the LSAT as you did on the ACT (~169), you could probably get into a t20 school. With a 172/3 you could get into the lower end of t14. You could take in Oct and probably not get the best score you could possibly get, take in Dec and not get into some schools / get less scholarship b/c you applied a little later than most, or take next year and aim for the class of 2015.

[whymeohgodno]

3.25 GPA | No LSAT Yet | 11 Years Writing Experience

I ran the stats from the sites in the stickies, but I'm still not sure I have an answer in my case.

I am most interested in intellectual property law, focusing mostly on the visual arts and language, not patent law.

I haven't taken the LSAT yet, and I don't know if I would be wasting my time and money. I test very well; so I expect to do well, but I don't know if even a 175 would help me. (Yeah, I know the deadline is fast approaching.)

I'm sure some of this background information is just blah, blah, blah, but I don't know how much is relevant to soft information.

High School Background: 3.98 GPA, first place national scholarship recipient, class valedictorian, 31 ACT

Undergraduate Background: I graduated from a state school in a large city in the Midwest with a B.A. in English and minor in non-fiction, creative writing. Unfortunately, I focused more on my college newspaper than my classes and was ill at the time, so my transcripts aren't stellar, and I wound up with a 3.25 or 3.33 GPA (I transfered schools, so it depends on how you figure it). I did fail one class in my major that was pass/fail. (There's a lot of shame here.)

Since I graduated, I've been a professional writer, editor, and graphic designer. (If you include my time doing that in college, that's about 11 years worth.) I know this would relate directly to my interest in intellectual property law and cyberlaw, but I don't know that matters.

I'm pretty sure that I would not fall under the URM status, at least not for ethnicity or gender.

So, does anything think my shot at a Tier 1 law school is completely out the window? I just don't know that a Tier 3 or 4 would be beneficial to me, given my strong interests in IP.

Thank you for any thoughts.

You were ill for 4 years?

[maroonzoon]

A high LSAT will get you into top schools, along with a compelling personal statement. Having a 3.25 with a liberal arts major makes getting that high LSAT even more important.

BTW, it's hard to guess how well you'll do on the LSAT. It's unlike any standardized test you've ever taken. I'm also someone who usually tests well. I had stellar ACT and SAT scores, and still had to take the LSAT more than once to get a score I thought was representative, so I would not approach it expecting greatness unless you happen to be the 1/10,000 people who naturally do well.

[s0ph1e2007]

definitely
you'd be surprised how hard a 175 is though even PTing well above 175 many many people get well below.
take the lsat, apply ED to northwestern perhaps and make sure you interview with them. They looovveee job experience.

Definitely have a chance at tier 1. I only have something like a 3.5-3.6 lsac adjusted and I'm shooting for the top

But start studying like CRAZY NOW
and take it in Oct. and take it again after that
GOOD LUCK!

[Zugzwang]

1. Why the fuck should law schools care about your high school
2. Why the fuck should law schools care about your 'strong interest' in IP

[Chris_cpb]

I would Google 'law school predictor' and have some fun. Your GPA is likely going to exclude you from a few schools but if you put some serious time into studying for the LSAT (at least 2 months) and perform as well as you did back in the day in highschool then I would think you have a very good chance of making it into the T14.

[justadude55]

this is dumb. depending on your LSAT, you can be anywhere from Columbia to Puerto Rico.

[Barbie]

Your question is about Tier 1, which is the top 50... I have a 3.3 GPA and am nipping at low Tier 1 with a 163. I would say you would need right around that at minimum to break into Tier 1. Anything better than that and you can slowly move your way up the Tier into the T30s and so forth.

[vectorart]

Wow! Most of your insights have been very helpful and useful. I do appreciate them.

At the very least, it provides some hope and help as to my chances. It's good to know that taking the LSAT isn't a waste of time.
______

@whymeohgodno: Yes, and thanks for asking. Your caring concern is outstanding, and your input into this conversation is marveling. The details aren't your worry other than I've had some major health problems (many that went undiagnosed until a few months ago) since I was five. And, yeah, I was a three-time cancer survivor before I could drive.

@Zugzwang: I can imagine you had amazing scores with those language skills! (And if you read, I said that I was including information as I didn't know how much is relevant.)

@justadude55: Thank you for your outstandingly insightful thoughts.

[beachbum]

Anything 170+ will give you at least some shot at T14 (and a decent shot at UVA ED). Now go study.

[Grizz]

Seriously though, take the LSAT and get back to us. You will get a lot better feedback. No one her can tell you what you can't figure out on your own.