Top Law Schools

All-

I am at 33-year old, and wondering what my chances are to get into a top law school. I am toying with the idea of going to law school, but only if I can get into one of the following: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, NYU, Penn

GPA: 3.80, with a triple degree (B.A., B.S., M.A.) in 4 years from an Ivy League
LSAT: Not taken yet, but I got a 99th percentile on other tests I took in the past. Say a 170 for now.
Other degree: MA from Harvard (Literature) and MBA from Harvard Business School (top 10% of the class)
Experience: 5 years with McKinsey & Co.
Ethnicity: Not a US citizen, but would be a minority if I were one

Yes, I know I need to think about it more yada yada, but just want to get a sense if I should bother taking the LSAT

CLARIFICATION: I will be 33 when I enroll; I am 31.5 now

Take the LSAT, get a score.
Then weigh your options.
(Your age will not be a factor in admissions; there are varying views on whether it will affect you in terms of a big law gig.)

necmergitur1982 wrote:All-

I am at 33-year old, and wondering what my chances are to get into a top law school. I am toying with the idea of going to law school, but only if I can get into one of the following: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, NYU, Penn

GPA: 3.80, with a triple degree (B.A., B.S., M.A.) in 4 years from an Ivy League
LSAT: Not taken yet, but I got a 99th percentile on other tests I took in the past. Say a 170 for now.
Other degree: MA from Harvard (Literature) and MBA from Harvard Business School (top 10% of the class)
Experience: 5 years with McKinsey & Co.
Ethnicity: Not a US citizen, but would be a minority if I were one

Yes, I know I need to think about it more yada yada, but just want to get a sense if I should bother taking the LSAT

CLARIFICATION: I will be 33 when I enroll; I am 31.5 now

Changes: Exactly equal to someone with your numbers.

Your age does not matter. No one will care but you.

Go get an LSAT score and come back. Unless you score very high, you have no chance at your target schools.

So you are saying an MBA from HBS (top 10%) and several years of top-tier experience are irrelevant?
That' helpful to know - thanks guys. Know nothing about the process.

necmergitur1982 wrote:So you are saying an MBA from HBS (top 10%) and several years of top-tier experience are irrelevant?
That' helpful to know - thanks guys. Know nothing about the process.

The process is almost 100% numbers driven. Your experience could help you get a job later but law schools will not care about it even 1/20th the amount they will care about your LSAT.

Not sure that this thread really has a point. "I've been awesome my whole life, if I get a great LSAT score will I still be awesome?" You have a Harvard MBA, why would you even want a law degree? FWIW, your softs will help at OCI if you get into one of those schools and your grades aren't terrible.

EvilClinton wrote:

necmergitur1982 wrote:So you are saying an MBA from HBS (top 10%) and several years of top-tier experience are irrelevant?
That' helpful to know - thanks guys. Know nothing about the process.

The process is almost 100% numbers driven. Your experience could help you get a job later but law schools will not care about it even 1/20th the amount they will care about your LSAT.

The one top school that appears to care about work experience is Northwestern (I know you didn't list it). You still need the numbers to get in though. For now you need to focus 100% on the LSAT, get a 170+ (probably 174+ for HYS) then come back.

Check out the posts on the admissions forum for some great LSAT study strategies.

Good luck.

necmergitur1982 wrote:So you are saying an MBA from HBS (top 10%) and several years of top-tier experience are irrelevant?
That' helpful to know - thanks guys. Know nothing about the process.

Yes it matters; despite what 99% of people on this board think, this does get taken into consideration. Thing it, it doesn't make as big a difference as you think. Maybe equivalent to 1 point on the LSAT score, certainly no more than 2 (I've got excellent credentials too, so I would know)

I'm also wondering about your timeline (I can squeeze it in, but it doesn't make sense) and concerned about your goals. Why do you want to go to law school?

I'm calling flame. Only his second post and he's a URM with a BA, BS, MA and MBA from Harvard, +5 years as a top-tier consultant, and he's asking for our help on how to throw all of that away on a law degree?

yeah right.

PS 1982 wouldn't make you 31.5... you'd barely be 31 if you were a New Years baby.

"CLARIFICATION: I will be 33 when I enroll; I am 31.5 now"

it's more like I just turned 31...Also I am not a URM as I am not a US citizen, and even if I were my ethnicity is not generally considered URM (though we should be, but that's another debate).

A big reason I am considering law school is because I am sick and tired of the consulting BS. Ideally, I'd want to go into research/teaching - thus the narrow scope of schools which offer a reasonable shot at becoming a Professor.

necmergitur1982 wrote:Ideally, I'd want to go into research/teaching - thus the narrow scope of schools which offer a reasonable shot at becoming a Professor.

then why is Penn on your list? (or NYU, for that matter)

dingbat wrote:

necmergitur1982 wrote:Ideally, I'd want to go into research/teaching - thus the narrow scope of schools which offer a reasonable shot at becoming a Professor.

then why is Penn on your list? (or NYU, for that matter)

or CLS really

Crowing wrote:

dingbat wrote:

necmergitur1982 wrote:Ideally, I'd want to go into research/teaching - thus the narrow scope of schools which offer a reasonable shot at becoming a Professor.

then why is Penn on your list? (or NYU, for that matter)

or CLS really

That one can sneak in as an also-ran (barely)

If you are thinking about becoming a professor, maybe you should add Chicago to the list, and delete everything else other than HYS.

Same age as you. Thus far it doesn't feel as though schools actually care about non-traditional outside of marketing to sound 'nice'.
I typically pass all my tests well, LSAT is nothing more than reading, I also guessed I should be at a 170, even when I practiced at first.
Don't underestimate the problems of not taking a real half a day test in some years, or the fact that when one like myself works full time, actually two jobs while the kids on here get to study for hours, it makes a difference. I didn't get a 170.
I'm applying right now, but I'm also studying off and on to go again in June in case things don't work out and no one actually does care for 'non-traditional' students.

necmergitur1982 wrote:"CLARIFICATION: I will be 33 when I enroll; I am 31.5 now"

it's more like I just turned 31...Also I am not a URM as I am not a US citizen, and even if I were my ethnicity is not generally considered URM (though we should be, but that's another debate).

A big reason I am considering law school is because I am sick and tired of the consulting BS. Ideally, I'd want to go into research/teaching - thus the narrow scope of schools which offer a reasonable shot at becoming a Professor.

I use to do consulting. Some of it really blows, especially the repetitive nature of it. Some work seemed to have to be done just for the hell of it two or three times.