Chance a southern boy Forum

[GinzPete]

Hey everyone, just thought I'd gauge some of your opinions on my chances at a few law schools. I'm a junior at a non-HYP ivy with a 3.51 GPA, and recently received my score on the LSAT, which was 174. I don't want any smart ass responses giving me a law school predictor please, I would like your personal feedback. I am half white/half black, and plan on checking both boxes since I have always identified as such. Also, I am from Louisiana, not sure if that adds anything. I'll be working somewhere this summer, and hopefully will be receiving a full-time offer. I plan on applying early on this cycle to three law schools which I think are far reaches for me, HYS, to see if I can get lucky, and please assume I will be applying very early. While I'd prefer to go right through to law school and finish my education as early as possible, I have no problem taking 1-2 years off. As for softs, I have great work experience and ec involvement, in addition to some leadership positions (VP of frat, Secretary of Political Org, etc.) Let me know what you guys think and I appreciate your input.

EDIT: Also, I am a Philosophy major and have showed marked improvement (GPA first couple of years was lower and improved significantly this year)

[lawyerwannabe]

You will probably get in everywhere you apply. And some pretty big money from the T14. Congrats.

You will probably face HYS vs. T10 scholly at the end of your cycle.

[gaud]

You will probably get in everywhere you apply. And some pretty big money from the T14. Congrats.

You will probably face HYS vs. T10 scholly at the end of your cycle.

This. Study hard and keep improving on that GPA and you're golden. Good luck!

[TommyK]

The reason people respond with the suggestion to go to LawSchoolPredictor.com and LawSchoolNumbers.com is not to be a smartass. It's because it's actual data and that's where we would extract our responses to these posts anyway... You're 3.5/174 URM...You have it made. I'm not sure there's anywhere that you are completely locked out of with those stats and I see no reason to look at anything below the top 10 schools. There's not a lot of value in waiting for a couple of years. You already have the LSAT to be competitive anywhere and your one stat that isn't awesome won't improve by waiting. So if you really want to go, aim high and blanket any of the top schools you'd have an interest in going to.

[GinzPete]

Thanks for the replies. The law school adviser I visited at my school, who I think is fairly new, told me that she thinks H & S practice AA, but that she was not sure how I would be judged due to the "half" status. I don't plan on/will not only check that I am black, since that is not how I solely identify myself. But yea, I understand the predictors use the numbers of other people and things like that, but these processes are based on other things as well, so the human element is useful in my point of view. So I have 2 questions:

1. Are "half" black applicants benefactors of the Aff action policies?

2. My adviser told me not to waste my time thinking about Yale (which is fine, it's actually my 3rd choice between Stanford at 1 and Harvard at 2), because of my GPA. While I plan on sending the app in anyway since there is no harm in trying, what are my chances more specifically at H & S?

Thanks very much

[ahnhub]

URM cycles are unpredictable, and doubly so if you are biracial. I still think you're a lock for H.

For you, it's probably gonna matter a lot whether a school thinks you bring genuine diversity (as in, whether you bring an interesting perspective, as opposed to just being a random suburban kid who happens to be of mixed race). So your PS, any addendums, and other softs are gonna matter.

[soj]

The best thing you can do to improve your odds at HYS and T14 scholarships is to improve your GPA. Other than that, think strategically about your recommendations (it's never too early to ask professors) and essays.

URM splitters are uncommon so LSN won't be very helpful; LSP, even less so. I don't think being biracial will preclude you from AA. You should apply broadly since your cycle will be unpredictable, but you'll get a lot of fee waivers so it won't be too onerous to submit many applications.

Here are some examples from LSN. Obviously, there are too few of them to draw meaningful conclusions, but take them FWIW.

http://harvard.lawschoolnumbers.com/app ... ,8&type=jd

http://harvard.lawschoolnumbers.com/app ... ,8&type=jd

http://harvard.lawschoolnumbers.com/app ... ,8&type=jd

[GinzPete]

Thanks a lot for the responses. Personally, I think I'll be someone who is "on the fence" and officers will be looking for recommendations from people who can speak to my academic and professional potential, as well as a really good PS. I plan on writing a DS, but don't want it to be about something very cliche, any ideas on that front?

[AreJay711]

Thanks a lot for the responses. Personally, I think I'll be someone who is "on the fence" and officers will be looking for recommendations from people who can speak to my academic and professional potential, as well as a really good PS. I plan on writing a DS, but don't want it to be about something very cliche, any ideas on that front?

There isn't a lot to say -- just say why you are diverse and what it would bring to your class. I think way too little emphasis is put on the what it brings to the class part which I think is more important. Also don't think you have to focus on race if you don't want to in your DS -- obviously it should be mentioned but if your think that your family or community growing up juxtaposed to your Ivy education adds more to your diversity then you should talk about that for example. If your focus is on your race, look for tangible diverse perspectives you have and that you would bring to your class.

[amc987]

Congrats on the score, OP! I don't usually comment on chances threads, but I think you should do very well. Just make sure that your personal statement is as good as it can be, and your GPA is as high as possible when you apply. If you get a full-time offer from the place you're working at this summer, you might consider even sitting out next cycle, getting some WE and waiting to apply. You don't need to, but doing so might even enhance your resume/ make you more competitive when you apply.

I imagine that if you cross all your ts and dot all your is, you should have a strong chance at Stanford, Harvard, and the rest of the T14 with $$$. Yale will be trickier-- it's Yale, so they can really pick the cream of the crop; plus, they seem to have a GPA floor somewhere between 3.6 and 3.65 even for URMs who score in the 170s. Still, it's absolutely worth applying there if you think you might be interested in attending.

I only have a marginally higher GPA and significantly lower LSAT (169) and I got into CCN with $ and was WL'd at Stanford. Still haven't heard from Harvard. There is an AA female who applied this year with a 3.5/168 and was accepted to Stanford and WL'd at Harvard. With your stronger LSAT score, I can't imagine why you shouldn't be able to get at least one of the top 3.

Good luck!

[Tom Joad]

2. My adviser told me not to waste my time thinking about Yale (which is fine, it's actually my 3rd choice between Stanford at 1 and Harvard at 2), because of my GPA. While I plan on sending the app in anyway since there is no harm in trying, what are my chances more specifically at H & S?

Tell your adviser where he or she can shove it. Numbers like yours don't come around very often. Y is still probably unlikely, but well worth the app fee.

ETA: I look forward to sending you my resume in a few years.