Top Law Schools

My top choices are Berkeley/Stanford, which I know are a stretch, at best, based on my gpa. I am just wondering whether or not that can be overlooked somewhat, considering I finished college almost a decade ago, and have pretty strong "softs" since then. Is it worth me applying with these numbers, or should I aim lower?

My husband works in the tech/dot-com industry, and if we leave Northern California, we have to go somewhere where he has a good chance of getting a comparable job. What other schools should I be looking at?

Not really sure about hate hat kind of jobs he could get there but I'd be surprised if you didn't get at least 2/3 CCN. Still send apps to Berkeley and Stanford.

Boalt applicants
173-177 & 3.6-3.7

You're in the range of possibility, but you're definitely going to need to:
1) apply early
2) have an amazing ps
3) why boalt
3) luck


I think you're out at Stanford.

Here's how people with numbers similar numbers to yours have done over the last six years: http://myLSN.info/dispresults.php?sk=5q1fm.

With your GPA, you have a vanishingly small shot at Stanford, unfortunately, absent some pretty incredible softs. Folks with your numbers obviously don't fare too well with Berkeley, either, but you do have a realistic hope there if you submit a terrific application early in the cycle. I would apply to both with no expectations, just so I would have no regrets later on. With your numbers, you should apply to every top school you would be interested in attending -- and also schools that you wouldn't attend, so you can possibly use their scholarship offers as leverage in negotiations with schools you would attend. Your odds are low to extremely low at YHS and Boalt, but very good to excellent everywhere else (though you'll probably get waitlisted at MVP for yield protection purposes, unless you can convince these schools that you really would attend).

Would you consider Hastings? I know its not ranked as high but if your intention is to stay in NorCal they place very well regionally and have a great reputation. Plus you should be an auto admit, and even get some money. If I were you, I would include this on my list for sure

Spritzpiggy wrote:Would you consider Hastings? I know its not ranked as high but if your intention is to stay in NorCal they place very well regionally and have a great reputation. Plus you should be an auto admit, and even get some money. If I were you, I would include this on my list for sure

No

Br3v wrote:

Spritzpiggy wrote:Would you consider Hastings? I know its not ranked as high but if your intention is to stay in NorCal they place very well regionally and have a great reputation. Plus you should be an auto admit, and even get some money. If I were you, I would include this on my list for sure

No

Yeah... not so much.

UC-H wrote:46.5% of graduates were known to be employed in long-term, full-time legal jobs. This figure includes an unknown number school-funded jobs.
59.4% graduates were employed in long-term jobs.
57.9% graduates were employed in full-time jobs.

--LinkRemoved--

Br3v wrote:

Spritzpiggy wrote:Would you consider Hastings? I know its not ranked as high but if your intention is to stay in NorCal they place very well regionally and have a great reputation. Plus you should be an auto admit, and even get some money. If I were you, I would include this on my list for sure

No

Agreed. Hastings should not be on OPs radar.

If she has to stay in NorCal for family reasons theres really no better third option tho. If she can leave than of course I agree she should go to a better school. But Hastings actually does alright for Norcal

Spritzpiggy wrote:If she has to stay in NorCal for family reasons theres really no better third option tho. If she can leave than of course I agree she should go to a better school. But Hastings actually does alright for Norcal

Better "third" options: Columbia, Chicago, NYU, Penn, UVA, Michigan, Cornell, northwestern, UCLA, USC. Maybe not all of these options would have the best market for her husband, but plenty of these options should.

Spritzpiggy wrote:But Hastings actually does alright for Norcal

Did you even look at the jobs stats I posted?? Hastings grads have less than a coin flip's chance of landing fulltime, long term, JD required legal employment. Thats not alright.

OP, You have a good shot at CCN, which are in major markets that would give your hubby a decent shot of finding comparable work.

Nova wrote:

Spritzpiggy wrote:But Hastings actually does alright for Norcal

Did you even look at the jobs stats I posted?? Hastings grads have less than a coin flip's chance of landing fulltime, long term, JD required legal employment. Thats not alright.

OP, You have a good shot at CCN, which are in major markets that would give your hubby a decent shot of finding comparable work.

They also can send you back to cali with ties.

IF her husband finds comparable work THEN she will leave NorCal. I don't think three years of long distance marriage is what shes hoping for if he cannot though, hence an alternative NorCal suggestion as a back-up. If it must be, then she could try to transfer after a year

Spritzpiggy wrote:IF her husband finds comparable work THEN she will leave NorCal. I don't think three years of long distance marriage is what shes hoping for if he cannot though, hence an alternative NorCal suggestion as a back-up. If it must be, then she could try to transfer after a year

OP, please don't listen to this poster