3.7/168, shot at T14? Forum

[tealkat]

Double major in English and Psychology, president/founder of org, interned with civil rights organization...do I have a shot at T14, and if so which ones?

[rinkrat19]

You need to specify that the LSAT is not a real score.

lawschoolnumbers.com
lawschoolpredictor.com

[top30man]

Shot at Cornell. That's about it.
Eta: that's hypothetical? If so I worry more about studying that posting hypos. Don't worry until you have an actual score.

[tealkat]

yeah that was my score first shot at a real old test administered in real test conditions. assuming that I study and improve my score, that's a hypothetical but a minimum. Or a decent estimate of my real score, if somehow my score decreases upon retesting.

[chasgoose]

yeah that was my score first shot at a real old test administered in real test conditions. assuming that I study and improve my score, that's a hypothetical but a minimum. Or a decent estimate of my real score, if somehow my score decreases upon retesting.

If you got a 168 under real test conditions with little to no prep, you should have no problem raising your score to the mid 170's. I wouldn't take the LSAT until you were consistently scoring in that region in simulated test conditions...

[tealkat]

Thanks guys...the truth is, despite the 168 on my practice real LSAT and a shot at T20, I'm planning NOT to do law due to the unemployment stats. I actually posted here to see if anyone would change my mind, and I would like to hear the counterarguments.

I can either risk law school, or become an Occupational Therapist ($60k-$90k), amazing job market.

I've heard that about 1/3 of new law grads get jobs, and with an average starting salary of $40,000 unless you're from T14, working 12-16 hours a day. I've heard from successful corporate attorneys that the stress and the hours are terrible, and to not do law. My research online tends to confirm these stories. (I tried to see if I have a shot at T14 and Patent Law to escape the worst economy effects, but I can't do patent law, and I have an ambiguous shot at T14).

I'm wondering if anyone here has a different opinion, or if my picture of the law situation is accurate as it is.

[Tiago Splitter]

You're right to be cautious, but you heard wrong. And comparing your potential outcomes to everyone's outcomes when you could be applying with a 3.7/175 is just illogical. But good luck.

[tealkat]

If you were me, would you risk it? as opposed to having a very secure, excellent market job as an Occupational Therapist for $60-90k working 8hrs/day? I would not estimate my ultimate score as more than 170. I went in having done some sample problems before, though it was my first real practice test (very grueling...learned you need to practice stamina). Also, the 168 was on the 2001 LSAT; I don't know if it got harder.

[Tiago Splitter]

If you don't want to be a lawyer then no, you shouldn't do it. But you really don't lose anything by spending a few months studying hard for the LSAT and seeing what happens.

[moxy]

Double major in English and Psychology, president/founder of org, interned with civil rights organization...do I have a shot at T14, and if so which ones?

Shot at Cornell, GULC
Some chance at Berkeley

[Nova]

If you were me, would you risk it? as opposed to having a very secure, excellent market job as an Occupational Therapist for $60-90k working 8hrs/day? I would not estimate my ultimate score as more than 170. I went in having done some sample problems before, though it was my first real practice test (very grueling...learned you need to practice stamina). Also, the 168 was on the 2001 LSAT; I don't know if it got harder.

The LSAT score band is +/-3 pts... meaning based on that PT, you should score between 165 and 171 66% of the time. 2001 is still relevent. People improve their scores 15+ points sometimes. To think you cant raise your score more than 2 points from your diagnostic is pretty weak.

[tealkat]

Thanks for the comments.

The 170 is the highest score for the purpose of a safe estimate/assumption, not for possible achievement.

I just looked through the graphs on this website for past applicant stats - a 3.7/170 gives you a shot at all T14 except the HYS. Seems like 170's the cutoff, 169/168 gives you a shot at Georgetown/Cornell.

So last question: I heard from a lawyer that UCLA grads are getting an average of $40,000/yr right out of school. UCLA is ranked #15. Does crossing the "T14" line into Cornell or Georgetown make THAT much difference?

[eaper]

Thanks for the comments.

The 170 is the highest score for the purpose of a safe estimate/assumption, not for possible achievement.

I just looked through the graphs on this website for past applicant stats - a 3.7/170 gives you a shot at all T14 except the HYS. Seems like 170's the cutoff, 169/168 gives you a shot at Georgetown/Cornell.

So last question: I heard from a lawyer that UCLA grads are getting an average of $40,000/yr right out of school. UCLA is ranked #15. Does crossing the "T14" line into Cornell or Georgetown make THAT much difference?

http://www.lawschooltransparency.com Check out different schools.

[Nova]

So last question: I heard from a lawyer that UCLA grads are getting an average of $40,000/yr right out of school. UCLA is ranked #15. Does crossing the "T14" line into Cornell or Georgetown make THAT much difference?

Thats not right. For the C/O 2010, At least 21% of UCLA's graduates made $160,000....

LST.

[Kring345]

TL;DR the responses... but Im going to Columbia with a 3.8/168, waitlist at Harvard, NYU, Chi, accepted at Cornell, GULC, Michigan, Boalt. But I am a military vet, so that obviously helped.