Chances of getting in at SLU law Forum

[msanders44]

I have a 153 LSAT and GPA 3.4. I have some decent resume and diversity stuff though. I've commuted an hour back and forth to school, worked 25 hours and week, and still graduating in just 3.5 years. I've also interned at a law firm in St. Louis and have some community service stuff.

I want to know my chances of getting in and possibility of scholarship

[jared6180]

URM status? I would estimate your chances to get in are 55-60%, however getting in is only half your battle. Don't try to succeed in law school with a 60 minute commute everyday. Your first year will be tougher than probably any other time in your college career. Don't count yourself out of WUSTL if you are in the area and retake with intentions of scoring at minimum a 168. A 168 opens up all kinds of options and scholarships that you may have never even considered.

If I were you I would do the following:
1. RETAKE LSAT. Study and aim for a 180 next time. Remember that every point is money in the bank as far as scholarships go.
2. MOVE to within 0-5 miles from the new law building
3. RETAKE LSAT AGAIN! Assuming you have not already exhausted your 3 attempts in 2 years, I would take the Oct LSAT followed by another couple months of study, and then take the December LSAT.
4. QUIT your part time job.
5. Dive into law school.

[msanders44]

Well as for URM, I guess the only thing would be I'm female and raised by single mother if that counts. I've taken the LSAT twice and that was my best score and I don't see it getting any better if I would retake it in October. I live and go to school in Indiana, my family lives in St. Louis area which is why I interned in St. Louis. I want to practice law in St. Louis so I was told to stay away from WashU anyway. I wouldn't get in with my score also. I can't quit my job until law school because I need the money. But I plan on living about 15 minutes away from the law school.

[Nova]

Well as for URM, I guess the only thing would be I'm female and raised by single mother if that counts. I've taken the LSAT twice and that was my best score and I don't see it getting any better if I would retake it in October. I live and go to school in Indiana, my family lives in St. Louis area which is why I interned in St. Louis. I want to practice law in St. Louis so I was told to stay away from WashU anyway. I wouldn't get in with my score also. I can't quit my job until law school because I need the money. But I plan on living about 15 minutes away from the law school.

It doesnt. Youll probably get in as is, but not with much money. Retake in Oct for the sake of improving your scholarship. You could literally net tens of thousands of dollars if you score around 160.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... ?f=6&t=396

http://slu.lawschoolnumbers.com/applica ... order=desc

[romothesavior]

Wouldn't go to SLU unless it was next to free. Decent school in St. Louis but your odds of a big firm are slim to none, so you're going to need to make it cheap in order to make it worth it. A big chunk of their class will also never work as lawyers. If you're set on STL and have the ties, either retake for a scholarship to WUSTL (a good choice if you're from STL, not sure who told you to avoid it) or retake for a full ride to SLU. It is nowhere near worth the cost.

[msanders44]

I've been told by numerous people to stay clear of WashU if I want to practice in St. Louis. I was told they aren't viewed very well in the St. Louis community since most of the people that go to WashU don't plan on practicing in the area and that they move as soon as they graduate.

[mattviphky]

If you're planning on being around St. Louis, then SLU is a fine school. However, it is not worth 170k (to be fair, few schools are), so you should retake in order to go with a huge scholarship. I had 164/3.05, and I was offered 66k to SLU. In this sort of situation, it wouldn't be a bad deal. So to summarize: SLU is fine, but you need to retake for good scholarship money. Use it as motivation when you study for the lsat. Like, "I'm getting paid 66k to retake this test, BEOTCH!

[mattviphky]

just to clarify, if you go to lawschoolnumbers.com, you can find SLU, and it will show you what sort of scholarships people are getting. I saw someone with a 158/3.4 get 45k...so seriously think about retaking. The LSAT is very learnable, just go to the lsat prep forum and find a good study guide. Search "pithypike lsat", and you'll find a good plan. Best of luck!

[beachbum]

Wouldn't go to SLU unless it was next to free. Decent school in St. Louis but your odds of a big firm are slim to none, so you're going to need to make it cheap in order to make it worth it. A big chunk of their class will also never work as lawyers. If you're set on STL and have the ties, either retake for a scholarship to WUSTL (a good choice if you're from STL, not sure who told you to avoid it) or retake for a full ride to SLU. It is nowhere near worth the cost.

+1

[msanders44]

Thanks for the information. I've taken it twice and I did study for the LSAT but I don't think my score would improve if I took it again.

[westie25]

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[romothesavior]

I've been told by numerous people to stay clear of WashU if I want to practice in St. Louis. I was told they aren't viewed very well in the St. Louis community since most of the people that go to WashU don't plan on practicing in the area and that they move as soon as they graduate.

The problem isn't a "Wash U" problem; the problem is that STL has an insane inferiority complex and looks suspiciously at anyone who doesn't have significant ties there. The advice you are getting is completely inapplicable to you if you are from STL and can demonstrate a desire to stay. A person from STL is still in the STL big/midlaw hunt at WUSTL if they are in the top 25-33%, whereas you're going to generally need top 10% to get those kind of firms from SLU in the current market. I'm sure there are exceptions, especially since a lot of SLU kids are probably local attorney's kids, but you are generally going to need higher grades to get STL mid/biglaw from SLU than you are from Wash U.

I know firsthand how suspicious STL is of outsiders, as I went through it last fall at OCI. But I can tell you unequivocally that I'd much rather have been top 20% at WUSTL gunning for STL firms than top 20% at SLU gunning for STL firms. The reason I struggled in STL was because I wasn't from STL, not because I was at WUSTL (and I did have a few offers there, just not as many as I probably would have if I were born and raised in STL). If you are actually from STL, this advice you are getting to "stay clear of Wash U" is just not applicable.

Either way, you should not go to SLU (or to Wash U, for that matter) without a massive scholarship. If you finish median (as you should assume you will), you will struggle mightily to get a good job with decent pay. Going into significant debt at SLU is a really poor gameplan unless your dad is managing partner at Bryan Cave or something.

ETA: Are you actually from St. Louis, or did your family move there without you at some point? That could make a big difference.

[msanders44]

Thank you!

[beachbum]

Thanks for the information. I've taken it twice and I did study for the LSAT but I don't think my score would improve if I took it again.

Then don't go.

As I see it, you have two options: get a better LSAT score or pursue a different career path. You can't change your GPA, but you can boost your LSAT with additional study and practice. And a better LSAT will help you get the kind of scholarship that might make SLU a worthwhile investment. Because, as it stands now, you're looking at sticker (or close to sticker) if you're admitted to SLU. Which would be a very bad call with SLU's job prospects.

Have you tried taking an LSAT prep course? Have you read through the Powerscore Bibles? Have you worked through 20+ practice tests? The LSAT is very learnable, and time invested now on the LSAT will pay dividends later in scholarships.

[msanders44]

/

[msanders44]

Yes I took an LSAT prep course, but most people don't understand that I don't have any free time considering I go to school full time, commute an hour each way everyday, and work 28 hours a week.

[Ruxin1]

Yes I took an LSAT prep course, but most people don't understand that I don't have any free time considering I go to school full time, commute an hour each way everyday, and work 28 hours a week.

Then why don't you work on getting your GPA up as much as possible, graduate & move back home and study for the lsat while you have less obligations?

[romothesavior]

If I were you, I'd take a year off and retake then. Law school will always be there.

It's not that SLU is a bad school. It is a decent option for St. Louis. The problem is that it is going to be WAY too expensive to justify. It simply isn't worth six-figures of debt.

[westie25]

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[msanders44]

Yes I want to do criminal prosecution. The ultimate goal is to end up in the U.S. Attorney's Office in St. Louis.

[Ruxin1]

Yes I want to do criminal prosecution. The ultimate goal is to end up in the U.S. Attorney's Office in St. Louis.

Federal Gov't is on a hiring freeze. Most likely path to USAO is Biglaw ----> USAO so definitely get a 4.0 this year, take a year off and retake the lsat

[Nova]

Yes I took an LSAT prep course, but most people don't understand that I don't have any free time considering I go to school full time, commute an hour each way everyday, and work 28 hours a week.

Then why don't you work on getting your GPA up as much as possible, graduate & move back home and study for the lsat while you have less obligations?

+1

[westie25]

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[westie25]

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[msanders44]

Really? Who is it? Yea I don't expect to be hired out of law school. I would need to get some good experience first.