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How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2011 6:27 pm
by Tainted_Praise
Just curious... Like someone who is the child of a celebrity, or maybe someone who invented something, or like someone who was an Olympic champion, etc. I know this is random. But just curious if law schools consider these things for bragging rights.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2011 8:31 pm
by Gizmo
Very much. Attempt to accomplish these feats at the expense of your GPA.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2011 8:53 pm
by duckmoney
If you're an olympic champion or you invent something that the adcom has heard of, that's actually significant and will give you an admissions boost.
Child of a celebrity, not so much.
Only things that make you truly stand out against other law applicants will give you a real boost above your numbers, and there aren't that many things. Even things like Teach for America and Peace Corps don't help that much because so many other people do these as well and a big hunk apply to law school.
I had a friend who was a Truman Scholar with a high GPA but a lackluster LSAT score and he got shut out at all of the T14 except for Berkley.
Unless you're truly exceptional, expect the cycle to go mostly by your numbers. Granted, softs never hurt you, and a real lack of them can hurt you, but it takes something special to make up for more than a few points on the LSAT.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2011 9:01 pm
by BrianGriffintheDog
Being a child of a celebrity probably wouldn't help you get in, but it'll help you write an interesting personal statement.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2011 1:58 am
by fixxion
If your a Bush or a Kennedy then def it helps to be a celebrity's kid. If not then...... sorry.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2011 11:42 am
by Tainted_Praise
Gizmo wrote:Very much. Attempt to accomplish these feats at the expense of your GPA.

Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2011 1:55 pm
by JamMasterJ
To do: invent some random Home Shopping Network bullshit...
get into an awesome school
profit
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 5:21 am
by zanzbar
JamMasterJ wrote:To do: invent some random Home Shopping Network bullshit...
get into an awesome school
profit
Just imagine how much easier this would be if Billy Mays hadn't cut his coke with Oxy Clean....
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 5:34 am
by 3ThrowAway99
Gizmo wrote:Very much. Attempt to accomplish these feats at the expense of your GPA.
Accomplishing being the son or daughter of a celebrity could be a tall order.
But seriously, very strong softs can make a major admissions difference. One example (verified by NYTimes) is the author of the book Prozac Nation, who is white (as far as I know) but got into Yale with a 160 flat. I'm fairly sure that her soft of being a well-known author was basically what got her in.
Re: How much do "Extra" factors impact acceptance?
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 10:28 am
by DocHawkeye
BrianGriffintheDog wrote:Being a child of a celebrity probably wouldn't help you get in, but it'll help you write an interesting personal statement.
This isn't always true - I offer an example:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 8&t=157335