Shot in the dark 160 LSAT, 3.28 GPA Forum

[jdul34839]

Took a year off after my undergrad and I am planning on applying for fall 2015 cycle when applications start opening up. I originally planned on applying to 2014 cycle but didn't have enough time to properly study for the lsat. I would really like to find a great JD/MA in international relations program.

Stats:

UGPA 3.28

LSAT 160

Non-traditional 1st gen college student.

Really looking to get scholly money and not graduate with too much debt. I'm not too picky in regards to prestige, national recognition, etc.


EDIT: Schools I am looking at. I am aware this is a huge list

Michigan State (top choice)
Baylor
Charleston School of Law
Charlotte School of Law
Emory University School of Law (far far reach)
Florida Coastal (scholly $?)
FIU
UF (reach)
Gonzaga
Mercer
USC (South Carolina)
Stetson
Syracuse
University of Tennessee
Alabama
UGA
Miami

[Louis1127]

I originally planned on applying to 2014 cycle but didn't have enough time to properly study for the lsat.

Not to be a dick, but...

There are people on here who work 40-60 hour weeks with families that find time to study for the LSAT. Hell, some of them are in our current TLS study group right now.

The bright side is if you can score 160 without prepping adequately, you can probably score high enough to get some serious scholarship money at a school where you have a solid chance of getting a decent job if you were to rep adequately.

[jdul34839]

I originally planned on applying to 2014 cycle but didn't have enough time to properly study for the lsat.

Not to be a dick, but...

There are people on here who work 40-60 hour weeks with families that find time to study for the LSAT. Hell, some of them are in our current TLS study group right now.

The bright side is if you can score 160 without prepping adequately, you can probably score high enough to get some serious scholarship money at a school where you have a solid chance of getting a decent job if you were to rep adequately.

I have tremendous respect for tls'ers who work 40-60 hour weeks with families that find time to study for the LSAT.

Maybe I should retake?

[Louis1127]

I think you definitely should. You could literally make $100,000 by studying. (In the form of scholarships, not cash)

[90convoy]

I originally planned on applying to 2014 cycle but didn't have enough time to properly study for the lsat.

Not to be a dick, but...

There are people on here who work 40-60 hour weeks with families that find time to study for the LSAT. Hell, some of them are in our current TLS study group right now.

The bright side is if you can score 160 without prepping adequately, you can probably score high enough to get some serious scholarship money at a school where you have a solid chance of getting a decent job if you were to rep adequately.

I have tremendous respect for tls'ers who work 40-60 hour weeks with families that find time to study for the LSAT.

Maybe I should retake?

Retake. Work on developing a study plan now....get motivated! You can do it

[Ti Malice]

Both the scattershot nature of your list of schools and the fact that many of the schools made your list at all show that you have a lot to learn about the law school application/admissions game. (Also, be aware that dual degree programs are a bad idea for the majority of aspiring lawyers.)

Don't take this as an insult -- everyone starts out knowing very little. Just stick around here with an open mind and a bit of a thick skin, and you will find advice that will help you avoid a potentially life-ruining decision.

The first thing you absolutely must do, as others have said, is give the LSAT the respect it deserves and retake after extremely thorough study and practice. Your LSAT score is far and away the most important part of your application and is thus the single biggest determinant of your future career options (since where you go to law school more or less sets the boundaries of your options). If you can score a 160 without proper study, there's no good reason for you to settle for anything under a 170.

By the way, URM or non-URM?

[jdul34839]

[quote="Ti Malice"]Both the scattershot nature of your list of schools and the fact that many of the schools made your list at all show that you have a lot to learn about the law school application/admissions game. (Also, be aware that dual degree programs are a bad idea for the majority of aspiring lawyers.)

Don't take this as an insult -- everyone starts out knowing very little. Just stick around here with an open mind and a bit of a thick skin, and you will find advice that will help you avoid a potentially life-ruining decision.

The first thing you absolutely must do, as others have said, is give the LSAT the respect it deserves and retake after extremely thorough study and practice. Your LSAT score is far and away the most important part of your application and is thus the single biggest determinant of your future career options (since where you go to law school more or less sets the boundaries of your options). If you can score a 160 without proper study, there's no good reason for you to settle for anything under a 170.

By the way, URM or non-URM?[/quote]

non-URM here

[Big Dog]

do not apply to LS with those numbers.

"International" is really not a thing, but to the extent that international transactions firms do exist, they are all prestige hounds. Thus, for that biz, the higher ranked the better.

Retake is the only option, particularly if you need $$.

[transferror]

Both the scattershot nature of your list of schools and the fact that many of the schools made your list at all show that you have a lot to learn about the law school application/admissions game. (Also, be aware that dual degree programs are a bad idea for the majority of aspiring lawyers.)

Don't take this as an insult -- everyone starts out knowing very little. Just stick around here with an open mind and a bit of a thick skin, and you will find advice that will help you avoid a potentially life-ruining decision.

The first thing you absolutely must do, as others have said, is give the LSAT the respect it deserves and retake after extremely thorough study and practice. Your LSAT score is far and away the most important part of your application and is thus the single biggest determinant of your future career options (since where you go to law school more or less sets the boundaries of your options). If you can score a 160 without proper study, there's no good reason for you to settle for anything under a 170.

By the way, URM or non-URM?

Agree completely. Don't settle for a mediocre LSAT. I wish someone had drilled that into my head before I went to LS. Get your score up to 170+ and come back to TLS for help with assembling the list of schools you should apply to. You can get into schools you never thought possible (even with a 3.28) with a 170+ b/c a high LSAT score is such a commodity.

[jdul34839]

[quote="Big Dog"]

"International" is really not a thing, but to the extent that international transactions firms do exist, they are all prestige hounds. Thus, for that biz, the higher ranked the better.
[/quote]

International is really not a thing? what?

[Mullens]

Why do you want to go to law school? What do you think it means to practice any sort of international law?

[jdul34839]

Why do you want to go to law school?

So I can put Esq. after my name

[Mullens]

0830: Wake up in stately 16th Century hotel in Zurich. Kiss beautiful Russian model you met last night goodbye.

0930: Breakfast at cafe overlooking the clear waters of Lake Zurich. Read the Financial Times and chuckle about their shoddy reporting on a deal you headlined last week.

1000: Take high-speed train to Paris, fielding conference calls from several CEOs and bankers.

1100: Negotiate $13 billion merger between US company and European conglomerate. Everyone speaks English with a broken accent, of course, so you can understand all the documents and the negotiations.

1230: Lunch with other International Corporate Lawyers at International Corporate Lawyer Club, everyone, of course, speaking English with a broken accent.

1400: Fly to the Hague for some pro-bono work. By 1500, you've convicted a genocidal African dictator of every war crime imaginable. He curses you in broken English. A hundred survivors from the village he attacked gift your their ceremonial hunting horn. The chief's beautiful, Oxford educated daughter, who you've been working closely with, flashes you a flirtatious smile.

1730: Return to London office of International Corporate Law Firm. Exchange witty banter with secretary. Get dressed down by your curmudgeonly boss.

1900: High-stakes Baccarat game at Monte Carlo with head of European finance ministry. After beating him, he agrees to relax certain disclosure requirements for IPOs. Also he pays for champagne (in broken English) and you party with Russian model and African chief's daughter.

2300: Returning to hotel, concierge informs you of a call. Picking up, you hear "Mr. Corporate Lawyer, this is our fifth call. You've missed the last three payments on your student loans. If you'd like to discuss repayment options, you can contact me at 1-800-FANTASY."

You wake up in a cold sweat, and realize you have less than 20 minutes to get dressed, shower, and get to your document review job in a warehouse in New Jersey. Think about going back to law school for the "International Law LLM.

Credit:timbs4339

[Straw_Mandible]

[jdul34839]

0830: Wake up in stately 16th Century hotel in Zurich. Kiss beautiful Russian model you met last night goodbye.

0930: Breakfast at cafe overlooking the clear waters of Lake Zurich. Read the Financial Times and chuckle about their shoddy reporting on a deal you headlined last week.

1000: Take high-speed train to Paris, fielding conference calls from several CEOs and bankers.

1100: Negotiate $13 billion merger between US company and European conglomerate. Everyone speaks English with a broken accent, of course, so you can understand all the documents and the negotiations.

1230: Lunch with other International Corporate Lawyers at International Corporate Lawyer Club, everyone, of course, speaking English with a broken accent.

1400: Fly to the Hague for some pro-bono work. By 1500, you've convicted a genocidal African dictator of every war crime imaginable. He curses you in broken English. A hundred survivors from the village he attacked gift your their ceremonial hunting horn. The chief's beautiful, Oxford educated daughter, who you've been working closely with, flashes you a flirtatious smile.

1730: Return to London office of International Corporate Law Firm. Exchange witty banter with secretary. Get dressed down by your curmudgeonly boss.

1900: High-stakes Baccarat game at Monte Carlo with head of European finance ministry. After beating him, he agrees to relax certain disclosure requirements for IPOs. Also he pays for champagne (in broken English) and you party with Russian model and African chief's daughter.

2300: Returning to hotel, concierge informs you of a call. Picking up, you hear "Mr. Corporate Lawyer, this is our fifth call. You've missed the last three payments on your student loans. If you'd like to discuss repayment options, you can contact me at 1-800-FANTASY."

You wake up in a cold sweat, and realize you have less than 20 minutes to get dressed, shower, and get to your document review job in a warehouse in New Jersey. Think about going back to law school for the "International Law LLM.

Great write up.

However International Relations/ IR Theory is a completely different field from International Law.

[Mullens]

What do you envision yourself doing in "International Relations/IR Theory?" Please inform me of what sort of jobs exist in the field and why you would even need a JD, as I clearly have no idea.

[jdul34839]

What do you envision yourself doing in "International Relations/IR Theory?" Please inform me of what sort of jobs exist in the field and why you would even need a JD, as I clearly have no idea.

A majority of these jobs do not exist to the common public sphere.

It might not get you far, but Google can be your friend.

[A. Nony Mouse]

The thing is, a huge number of people regularly show up here wanting to do "international law" (which, yes, not the same as IR), and don't actually know anything about what those jobs entail or how to get them. So unless you can explain what you actually want a JD for and what kinds of jobs you're trying for, it's going to be hard to advise you.

[chuckbass]

The thing is, a huge number of people regularly show up here wanting to do "international law" (which, yes, not the same as IR), and don't actually know anything about what those jobs entail or how to get them. So unless you can explain what you actually want a JD for and what kinds of jobs you're trying for, it's going to be hard to advise you.

Plus, whatever OP wants to do is probably unrealistic given the schools which OP is asking about.

[Chrstgtr]

Troll.

If you are actually serious you need to seriously readjust your expectations. People who go to Yale cannot expect to have the type of career trajectory you want and I don't think your google skills are better than the institutional connections that exist between the ivory towers and high level IR.

Also getting a J.D. from a place like Charleston or Florida Coastal for the title might be the most pretentious yet delusional thing I have ever seen.

[bugsy33]

Michigan State (top choice)-Please god no. MSU has many strong programs and is a great school for many things. Law is not one of those things AT ALL
Baylor-Do you enjoy being miserable? Cuz that's what you'll be at Americas most cutthroat law school
Charleston School of Law-WTF? NO, NOT EVEN WITH A FULL RIDE
Charlotte School of Law-NO
Emory University School of Law (far far reach)-You aint gettin in with those numbers
Florida Coastal (scholly $?)-WTF NO!
FIU-NOOOOOOOOO
UF (reach)-This is not a reach at your numbers. Okay option if you currently live in Florida and want to stay, FSU is better though, and has hotter girls
Gonzaga-NO
Mercer -Do you live in Georgia? Otherwise NO
USC (South Carolina)- If you live in SC this is a good option
Stetson-NO
Syracuse- NO
University of Tennessee- Good option if you live in TN or get a huge scholly
Alabama -You aint gettin in
UGA- Long shot
Miami- NO, Trap School

I don't know where the heck you came up with this seemingly random list of schools. Do not attend a TTT with a 3.0+GPA and a 160+LSAT. Where do you live? A 160 can give you decent options, but you should retake and reassess your career goals. If you want to be in international law you need to go somewhere that has an international brand name ie. T-14+Some Flagships.