GPA: 3.61 LSAT 163 Forum

[JGPGH]

Wanted to get a little more feedback on the group of schools I could be looking at, ranking wise. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

[usernotfound]

Likely no chance at T14. Depends on your goals, but pretty much everyone here is going to tell you to retake. More info would be helpful as to your desired career path.

[Mikey]

Depending on your career goals, you should retake.

But with those stats you are probably looking at some decent money at a T2, and probably sticker at a T1 if you get into one.

[raven1231]

Fwiw I have similar numbers and got full rides from T2s and 75% scholarships from some higher ranked T1s.

[BigZuck]

Rankings are largely useless and irrelevant, you need to reframe your law school choice based on cost and likely career outcomes/goals

[JGPGH]

Likely no chance at T14. Depends on your goals, but pretty much everyone here is going to tell you to retake. More info would be helpful as to your desired career path.

Likely no chance at T14. Depends on your goals, but pretty much everyone here is going to tell you to retake. More info would be helpful as to your desired career path.

Thanks guys,
My goals at this point are to try and work for a firm with a minimum of 100 attorneys. Thanks for all the help

[JGPGH]

Fwiw I have similar numbers and got full rides from T2s and 75% scholarships from some higher ranked T1s.

What numbers do you think would automatically disqualify me from T2's? Anything less than a 3.58 and less than a 160?

[raven1231]

For full rides? Or in general? (As in just getting accepted) It depends on the schools but the answer to this will differ drastically.

3.3-3.5gpa and 160 LSAT is definitely high enough to probably get you into most if not all T2s with some money. 3.6-3.8 and 162-166 LSAT should be good enough for a full ride to most. Again this all depends on each school as well as other factors though. A strong splitter either way would do the same. Look at each schools medians and that's what you need to know you should be accepted, if at the 25% you have a much harder chance and likely won't get money, if at 75% or above you're looking at a full ride or close to it.

[bsktbll28082]

I had a similar GPA, but lower LSAT than you. Started at a T1 (sticker) and transferred to GW.

[JGPGH]

For full rides? Or in general? (As in just getting accepted) It depends on the schools but the answer to this will differ drastically.

3.3-3.5gpa and 160 LSAT is definitely high enough to probably get you into most if not all T2s with some money. 3.6-3.8 and 162-166 LSAT should be good enough for a full ride to most. Again this all depends on each school as well as other factors though. A strong splitter either way would do the same. Look at each schools medians and that's what you need to know you should be accepted, if at the 25% you have a much harder chance and likely won't get money, if at 75% or above you're looking at a full ride or close to it.

Awesome thank you so much. Luckily I am going through my undergrad without having to pay tuition so my family and I have been saving up for law school and I should have enough to cover the cost for almost 3 years, so I was more worried about getting in.

I had a similar GPA, but lower LSAT than you. Started at a T1 (sticker) and transferred to GW.

What exactly constitutes as a T1 school, a T2 school and so forth? Is it where they fall in rankings? Top 20 is T1, Top 30 T2? Also, what is a sticker?

[Mikey]

For full rides? Or in general? (As in just getting accepted) It depends on the schools but the answer to this will differ drastically.

3.3-3.5gpa and 160 LSAT is definitely high enough to probably get you into most if not all T2s with some money. 3.6-3.8 and 162-166 LSAT should be good enough for a full ride to most. Again this all depends on each school as well as other factors though. A strong splitter either way would do the same. Look at each schools medians and that's what you need to know you should be accepted, if at the 25% you have a much harder chance and likely won't get money, if at 75% or above you're looking at a full ride or close to it.

Awesome thank you so much. Luckily I am going through my undergrad without having to pay tuition so my family and I have been saving up for law school and I should have enough to cover the cost for almost 3 years, so I was more worried about getting in.

I had a similar GPA, but lower LSAT than you. Started at a T1 (sticker) and transferred to GW.

What exactly constitutes as a T1 school, a T2 school and so forth? Is it where they fall in rankings? Top 20 is T1, Top 30 T2? Also, what is a sticker?

Sticker is when you don't receive any money, which ends in paying full price to attend a school.

[usernotfound]

100+ attorneys = biglaw. If you want biglaw, you really need to go to a T14 to have more than a 30-40% chance to get it. On average a T1 school will give you like a 20% chance of biglaw, roughly, possibly worse. Even from a T14 with median or below median grades it can be difficult. With your GPA you need to really aim for a 169+ to have a chance at T14 + some money.

[JGPGH]

100+ attorneys = biglaw. If you want biglaw, you really need to go to a T14 to have more than a 30-40% chance to get it. On average a T1 school will give you like a 20% chance of biglaw, roughly, possibly worse. Even from a T14 with median or below median grades it can be difficult. With your GPA you need to really aim for a 169+ to have a chance at T14 + some money.

Is that the case even in medium sized cities? I always assumed those statistics were based on graduates getting employed at the biggest firms in the biggest markets

[BigZuck]

Rankings are largely useless and irrelevant, you need to reframe your law school choice based on cost and likely career outcomes/goals

Seriously though, this

Don't worry about T1/T2 or whatever, it literally does not matter at all.

A
T

A
L
L

Worry about getting the job you want, in the market you want, at an appropriate cost. If you want to work at a large firm then you need to go to a top school.

[usernotfound]

100+ attorneys = biglaw. If you want biglaw, you really need to go to a T14 to have more than a 30-40% chance to get it. On average a T1 school will give you like a 20% chance of biglaw, roughly, possibly worse. Even from a T14 with median or below median grades it can be difficult. With your GPA you need to really aim for a 169+ to have a chance at T14 + some money.

Is that the case even in medium sized cities? I always assumed those statistics were based on graduates getting employed at the biggest firms in the biggest markets

Secondary markets are generally tougher than larger markets. NY is the largest market, and is on average, the easiest to get. On average, students require higher GPA's to go to secondary markets, think at or above median, even at T14.

[JGPGH]

Rankings are largely useless and irrelevant, you need to reframe your law school choice based on cost and likely career outcomes/goals

Seriously though, this

Don't worry about T1/T2 or whatever, it literally does not matter at all.

A
T

A
L
L

Worry about getting the job you want, in the market you want, at an appropriate cost. If you want to work at a large firm then you need to go to a top school.

Got it, so basically if I identify a market that I like I should try and go to the best possible law school in that area in order to get the best possible job. Thanks guys!

[usernotfound]

Rankings are largely useless and irrelevant, you need to reframe your law school choice based on cost and likely career outcomes/goals

Seriously though, this

Don't worry about T1/T2 or whatever, it literally does not matter at all.

A
T

A
L
L

Worry about getting the job you want, in the market you want, at an appropriate cost. If you want to work at a large firm then you need to go to a top school.

Got it, so basically if I identify a market that I like I should try and go to the best possible law school in that area in order to get the best possible job. Thanks guys!

Take caution that secondary markets are generally much more tie-intensive than NY. Most T14 schools have a more national reach, but if you target secondary market, you better have some sort of decent ties to be considered.

[cavalier1138]

Rankings are largely useless and irrelevant, you need to reframe your law school choice based on cost and likely career outcomes/goals

Seriously though, this

Don't worry about T1/T2 or whatever, it literally does not matter at all.

A
T

A
L
L

Worry about getting the job you want, in the market you want, at an appropriate cost. If you want to work at a large firm then you need to go to a top school.

Got it, so basically if I identify a market that I like I should try and go to the best possible law school in that area in order to get the best possible job. Thanks guys!

But that wasn't what he said.

If you want to work in biglaw (and you do, based on what you've said), then you need to set your sights on the T14. If you just want a mid-sized firm, then focus on the region where you want to work.

[bsktbll28082]

What exactly constitutes as a T1 school, a T2 school and so forth? Is it where they fall in rankings? Top 20 is T1, Top 30 T2? Also, what is a sticker?

My understanding-

T1: top 50,
T2: schools 51-100
Top 20: top 20 schools, within T1 and includes T14

Schools rank matters to me; I've noticed a difference between my two schools. Be it teaching caliber or opportunities, I'm glad of the transfer up. Some people do not care for it; to each his own.

I agree it matters less the lower you go and that secondary markets care for regional ties.