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So I had a spell of bad luck and was dealing with a serious family illness for the last three months. I just got my apps in to the following schools. What are my chances?

Penn state law: 1st choice
American
George Washington (only cuz it's known to accept splitters)
U of miami
FSU
Widener law (close to Harrisburg and already have ties there)
FCSL ( idk why. Maybe to not get rejected by EVERY school)



Again, 159 (retake, up from 146) and 3.87 GPA (lsac adjusted)

Not looking to go to a t14 school, so I don't plan on retaking LSAT.

You have a shot at psu for sure. Forget widener with your numbers though and american is prob a very real option as well.

I think your good (with some $) at all schools listed other than George Washington.

Congrats on raising your score 13 pts!

http://pennstate.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants

You should really consider retaking. I scanned it briefly and it looks like 6 kids under a 160 got scholarship. Additionally I would say if you increased 2-3 points you would be looking at getting some nice scholarship (for what PSU gives out). I know you aren't trying to go to a T-14, but do you really want your laziness to cost you anywhere from 15-60k?

I understand what you are saying about the $$$, but the problem with Penn State is that they wanted parental info on the FASFA before I could even fill out the scholarship form. My parents live in GA and we don't have the best relationship anyway.

Does anyone know whether or not I could get scholarships during my second/third years even if I didn't get any during the first one?

Also, thanks chants and stonewall for the encouraging words...

You are on the bubble for Penn State. WIth your numbers- and taking into consideration that most of the seats are taken- i would say you will be waitlisted. If you were to re apply again- and score one or 2 more points better on the lsat- you will be in much better shape. YOur school list is all over the map. Find out where you want to practice- and apply to that region. Stay away from florida costal as its a notorious school- and is a for profit. I know you dont want to hear this- but taking the test in June, or October, and appling before thanksgiving will put you in great shape to see the best cycle results possible. Use the summer to prep- and touch up your personal statements and write other optional essays- to stregnthen your application.( I scored where you did on the LSAT didnt do a WHY PSU essay and got waitlisted there- and i applied early in the cycle- so PSU really likes knowing why you are trying to go there). For most schools, if you do well ( to 25 % and better- maybe top 15 % or better) you can be eliegible for a scholarship- or you can try to apply to other ones as well for 2L and 3L. PSU is private, so there is no difference in tuition costs.

best of luck- hope this helps

jachrist wrote:I understand what you are saying about the $$$, but the problem with Penn State is that they wanted parental info on the FASFA before I could even fill out the scholarship form. My parents live in GA and we don't have the best relationship anyway.

Does anyone know whether or not I could get scholarships during my second/third years even if I didn't get any during the first one?

Also, thanks chants and stonewall for the encouraging words...

What scholarship form? Sorry I'm not trying to be a dick, I'm trying to encourage you. I applied to Penn State this year and didn't have to fill out any scholarship form, never saw one and got good money from them. Also, I think Penn State is trying to recruit better numbers hard. I say this because they sent me an acceptance letter back within two weeks of applying.

I think you would be doing yourself a huge disservice by applying right now. I know you don't want to hear that, but it's true.

Edit: I didn't apply till mid November. I guess that is considered early, but not early enough that they should have been able to get through my application that quick (and no other school did that quick).

kehoema2 wrote:http://pennstate.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants

You should really consider retaking. I scanned it briefly and it looks like 6 kids under a 160 got scholarship. Additionally I would say if you increased 2-3 points you would be looking at getting some nice scholarship (for what PSU gives out). I know you aren't trying to go to a T-14, but do you really want your laziness to cost you anywhere from 15-60k?

I don't know if that would be laziness. Applying to law school is more about the numbers. Having strong reccomendations and a good personal statement will take you a long way.

Being a late applicant will work to your determent. If you applied earlier with thoses number, you probably would have already been accepted. But, the reason you did not apply earlier was probably because you were retaking the LSAT's

actually the reason I did not apply earlier was my little sister was battling cancer for the last 3 months and I have been staying in GA since January.

I DID include a specific interest statement for PSU, outlining two visits and sitting through one class. Hopefully that may swing things my way. I feel my personal statement is strong, but not exceptional (didn't spend years in the congo fighting aids, etc.)

IDK. I guess just wait and see.

Also, I am talking about the need-based aid application that must be downloaded from the PSU website and sent in.

Sorry to come off as such a dick. See how it goes. Depending on that assess how you're feeling. I really think that retaking would be strongly in your interest and, if done correctly, definitely worth while.

Best of luck and sorry again.

You probably won't get in. Applied just now? That's super late. Even if you had above median numbers I'd say a waitlist is likely.

Retake, seriously. 3.87 is real good...even a 163/164 could get you UVA ED.

And yeah I know you said you're not interested in a T14...but there's no reason here not to retake. Would you go to PSU if you had a chance to go to UVA?

In at all except Miami (wait listed)

PSU even gave me 30000 scholarship. Will be matriculating there.

congrats man. Nice to see a good thing happen to someone who went through tough times

Congrats. Glad it worked out well and you got into the school you wanted.

i know you dont want to hear this, but 2-3 more pts on your lsat might make the difference between a 40% chance at biglaw vs 5-10% chance at biglaw. UVA ED vs PSU.
PSU is going to cost you 100k+ anyways. Take a year off and retake. PSU will be there for you next year. This might be the best decision of your life.

Good luck

thexfactor wrote:i know you dont want to hear this, but 2-3 more pts on your lsat might make the difference between a 40% chance at biglaw vs 5-10% chance at biglaw. UVA ED vs PSU.
PSU is going to cost you 100k+ anyways. Take a year off and retake. PSU will be there for you next year. This might be the best decision of your life.

Good luck

+1, although realistically OP needs more like 5-6 points to be able to do this.

Sorry to hear about your family, OP. I hope all is well. But honestly, with a 159, a late app is the least of your concerns. You should get that LSAT up. Don't waste that stellar GPA. You could get into some great schools if you can get that LSAT higher. You will be selling yourself short going to any of these schools, and you will be severely hampering your job prospects.