Top Law Schools

Hey there, posting after reading a lot of threads on this site and visiting law school numbers/comparing myself to the profiles there. Still having a hard time really nailing down where I stand bc there seem to be many more AA males than females posting online with my numbers and from what I've read chances are still significantly different based off gender.

The closest profile I saw to me on LSN was a white male who'd been an engineering major. Comparing that to my government major is difficult.

Undergrad: UT Austin

Work post grad: human rights org, magazine, father's solo crim defense practice, solo immigration practice

Softs: Spoke at Texas Conference for Women, recently partnered with Catchafire organization for pro bono assistance on online social project, worked with two small AA female owned businesses (marketing and strategy) to help build them up - nothing too significant. [Still working to tie all these together into Personal Statement]

Question 1: Guess the first is obvious? Where should I be looking? I've printed off and studied all rankings, etc - maybe more specifically - is it a waste of time for me to even consider applying to Tier 2 schools? Should I just stick to tiers 3 & 4, or should I shoot out to some bottom Tier 2 schools hoping one will take a chance on me assuming I can separate myself from my idiotic screw of a GPA 4 years ago? In a dream world, I'd have the ability to return to UT for law - but screwed up that opportunity completely when I came face to face with sec 4 #19 on the oct 2013 lsat (yes, I remember the question that tripped me up and screwed me out of a potential 165/66 ). Now I'm wondering if my next best shot is attending a low tier on scholarship - maybe Howard since it still has a fairly strong reputation if I could get money to go there in which case I know I won't be getting into any top firms post grad - but perhaps won't be paying a shit ton either.

Q2: Are there some T2 schools that maybe are minority sparse where I'd have a better chance?

Q3: Rarely see this discussed much - but is there any benefit to getting even 5 minute phone calls with admission personnel in admission offices just to get your name in? Do admissions personnel even take the time out of their day to talk to people who call in? (Waiting on the Ann Levine book to get tips on polite/non-annoying ways to interact with admissions offices).

-- Thanks so much in advance! Hopefully there are some other AA females out there who can chime in about their experiences as well as absolutely anyone else. I hardly have anyone to talk to about all this so super glad that this site exists.

First, I have a question of my own:

Are you guaranteed a job with your father's firm upon passing the bar? If so, attend the closest law school that will give you a full scholarship.

Since you graduated four years ago, your maturity as a worker will outweigh the shortcomings you had as a student. Nonetheless, you will still need a letter of recommendation vouching for your academic prowess.

According to USNWR diversity ratings, minority rates tend to reflect the demographics of the surrounding region.

Unless you directly interact with an officer that reviews applicants, calling admissions won't make a difference.

IpleadtheFiF wrote:First, I have a question of my own:

Are you guaranteed a job with your father's firm upon passing the bar? If so, attend the closest law school that will give you a full scholarship.

Since you graduated four years ago, your maturity as a worker will outweigh the shortcomings you had as a student. Nonetheless, you will still need a letter of recommendation vouching for your academic prowess.

According to USNWR diversity ratings, minority rates tend to reflect the demographics of the surrounding region.

Unless you directly interact with an officer that reviews applicants, calling admissions won't make a difference.

This is bizarre advice. What if she has no interest in becoming a lawyer in order to work in her dad's firm? I mean, maybe she does, but how about finding that out first? And then there's the terribly wrong advice: her work experience absolutely will not "outweigh" her 2.67. Not even close.

OP, question #19 didn't permanently screw you out of anything. You just need to retake the LSAT. If you're interested in working outside of your father's firm, there's no school you can get into with your current stats that would be worth the price you'd have to pay for the employment opportunities offered. With your GPA, unfortunately, you're locked out of receiving substantial merit aid -- but you're not locked out of admission to certain elite schools (like Northwestern). You just need a better LSAT score.

Ti Malice wrote: This is bizarre advice. What if she has no interest in becoming a lawyer in order to work in her dad's firm? I mean, maybe she does, but how about finding that out first? And then there's the terribly wrong advice: her work experience absolutely will not "outweigh" her 2.67. Not even close.

It was wrong of me to assume she would work for her dad's firm. I come from a culture where this is law.

Using "outweigh" was definitely poor word choice. I meant that her GPA is not as indicative of her current character and work ethic as it would be for a person who had recently graduated. Is 2.67 bad? Yes, very. Does having four years of work experience showing maturity and responsibility mitigate the damage? Yes, although the degree to which it mitigates will be subject to an admissions officer's discretion.

There was one guy who got into UT last year with your GPA and a 169 LSAT. If you retake and get 165+, there's possibility with SMU and Baylor.

Edit:
Retake = devote hundreds of hours, dozens of practice tests, whatever it takes to achieve the highest score within your capacity because the rest of your career and thousands of dollars rests in the balance.