3.92/169 Valedictorian / WE Forum

[keres]

Graduated last June as Valedictorian of Business Faculty of T15 business school, now working at big private equity firm. What are my chances? Should I retake LSAT?

[Tekrul]

I'd say yea and get HYS.

[KD35]

Graduated last June as Valedictorian of Business Faculty of T15 business school, now working at big private equity firm. What are my chances? Should I retake LSAT?

URM?
And... http://mylsn.info/ check it out.

[bbsg]

Great shot everywhere below HYS, a bit 50/50 on HLS (I think you'd get in, personally), but more like 30/70 at YS. Retaking to a 173 will make a big difference, retaking to a 177 will make everywhere as close to a lock as you're going to get. If you're super serious about HYS, retake. If money is an issue, retake (a 173+ will draw huge scholarships everywhere below HYS). If neither of those two statements are applicable, enjoy your cycle.

[Clearly]

Odds are WAY worse than 50/50 at Harvard.

[twenty]

You're shooting yourself in the foot if you don't retake for those last couple points. Harvard is totally in the cards here, as are top schools with full rides.

[jbagelboy]

Why do you want to go get another degree so soon after b-school?

If your gonna go get ur JD and your already in PE, might as well make it count. Retake for 173+ and enjoy Harvard Law

[2013applicant]

...or you can not shoot yourself in the foot by going to law school.

PE for for a few years, 700+ GMAT, M7 B-School --> Enjoy far more lucrative employment options.

[Danger Zone]

Why do you want to go get another degree so soon after b-school?

If your gonna go get ur JD and your already in PE, might as well make it count. Retake for 173+ and enjoy Harvard Law

They likely meant undergrad business school. This would be like asking someone "but why do you want another degree so soon after your poly sci degree?"

[jbagelboy]

Why do you want to go get another degree so soon after b-school?

If your gonna go get ur JD and your already in PE, might as well make it count. Retake for 173+ and enjoy Harvard Law

They likely meant undergrad business school. This would be like asking someone "but why do you want another degree so soon after your poly sci degree?"

...or you can not shoot yourself in the foot by going to law school.

PE for for a few years, 700+ GMAT, M7 B-School --> Enjoy far more lucrative employment options.

I interpreted the OP to mean that the individual in question already received his MBA, in which case the above two statements are not relevant. Or Im wrong and they are highly prescient.

OP, care to clarify? Are you a BA/BS with a lame duck major in business, or do you have an MBA from a business school? Thanks!

[guano]

...or you can not shoot yourself in the foot by going to law school.

PE for for a few years, 700+ GMAT, M7 B-School --> Enjoy far more lucrative employment options.

M7 is not "far more lucrative" than T6 in terms of employment options

[2013applicant]

...or you can not shoot yourself in the foot by going to law school.

PE for for a few years, 700+ GMAT, M7 B-School --> Enjoy far more lucrative employment options.

M7 is not "far more lucrative" than T6 in terms of employment options

just lol @ this. Arguably base salaries are comparable (but not really) immediately post-MBA and JD, but the long-term MBA prospects blow those of the JD out of the water.

[rad lulz]

If you want to maximize income I'd probably stick w PE

[Dr. Dre]

should OP retake in october or december?

[jbagelboy]

...or you can not shoot yourself in the foot by going to law school.

PE for for a few years, 700+ GMAT, M7 B-School --> Enjoy far more lucrative employment options.

M7 is not "far more lucrative" than T6 in terms of employment options

just lol @ this. Arguably base salaries are comparable (but not really) immediately post-MBA and JD, but the long-term MBA prospects blow those of the JD out of the water.

While this holds water in very specific circumstances (like maybe PE), this isn't true at all in most cases. And yea, they aren't comparable in the sense that salaries out of T6 are universally higher. Look at salary figures for the top b-schools. Kellogg median is ~ 110-115. Wharton is ~110 plus bonus. The plurality* of every school outside of maybe HS goes into consulting at a junior manager lever. Even if you hit a V10 firm, your going to be making ~$120-150K as a manager, and that's after working several years in the field prior to getting your degree. If I stuck with my current consulting firm, I could become senior associate in 2ish more years -- I'd probably go for an MBA a year after promotion and hit around that salary point coming out. I would have to be able to bring in clients to get much higher than $120K + bonus; billable hours alone aren't enough. I researched the comparable degrees (naturally, since I work with a bunch of MBAs), and several other consultants told me that the JD would ultimately be more useful (although several said JD/MBA would be the way to go). Of course I take all boomer advice with a grain of salt, but still.

If you are in private equity now, MBA exit options will be higher, I grant you, but not higher than large law firms pay their entering associates. The prerequisite to be successful after MBA is that you have relatively prestigious employment prior, like finance or consulting gigs, which are tough to get out of UG unless you went to a good school and got good grades already. So for the average person with an average BA and work experience, a top law school remains more lucrative potential.

Also, you forget that a lot of top b-schools have students that are already wildly successful before they start, which inflates the figures. Yea, wharton boasted a $450K earning grad one year, but the guy's family owned the company so that had little to do with the inherent value of the degree. Salaries post-M7 range down to $35K-$40K too, just like PI law.

The major bonus to these MBA programs is tuition reimbursement service (either by the hiring firm or the school itself), which I acknowledge is a huge benefit that few law firms can top. I really wish law firms did this, but oh well. However, this is not a projection of long term salary potential.

*edit

[jingosaur]

I was the top finance major at my T20 UG business school and got a 169 on my first LSAT. I have a presigious consulting job, so I'm in a pretty similar boat to you.

That being said, you should definitely retake. I just retook in June and regardless of my score, it was definitely the right choice. If you can get up around a 172 (3 questions), you'll get into all non-YHS schools and you'll get big schollys for almost all of them. 174 on up gives you a great shot at H and as good a chance as anyone else at Y and S. Your GPA is higher than mine, so I don't know your exact chances off the top of my head, but a 169 puts you at risk for getting waitlisted or no scholarship offers from schools that are trying to hold their 170 medians. Any improvement on a retake really opens up your options.

[MyNameIsFlynn!]

171 would give you a very good shot at H. 3.92 is not high enough to get you into H with a 169 (or 170, in all likelihood). Retake, get 172+, enjoy HYS.

[keres]

Yes, just graduated from undergrad. I am looking to work in PE after JD. Law school is a way for me to differentiate myself against all those MBAs. I am in no hurry of getting in, I just thought I would get your views on where I would get it. Sounds like HYS is out of reach. I am going to apply as is next cycle and see what stick. If nothing good comes out, I might have to retake. Law schools don't penalise retake too heavily, do they? Also wondering if I should get a job at the World Bank or smthg to enhance my chances.

[jingosaur]

Any school that would penalize you for retaking a 169 won't let you in with a 169. Getting work experience first is a very good idea, but it helps more with making you employable after law school and helping you transition to that job. It will help with the admissions process, but not by much.

[twenty]

Do you have a GMAT score on file? If so, is it good enough for Penn? A JD/MBA might actually be kind of a cool solution here (as rare as that is).