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I'm wondering what my chances are at being accepted by any of the T14 schools. I feel that my only obstacle is making up for my low GPA. I'm certain that my letters of recommendation will be excellent, and I'm satisfied with my LSAT.

Would an addendum explaining my GPA help my chances? My transcript shows a very clear upward trend. During my Freshman and Sophomore years, I was depressed and didn't seek therapy until midway through my Sophomore year. I was diagnosed with depression and regularly saw a therapist. 2nd semester of my Sophomore year, my GPA shot up to a 3.8, and it has remained at 3.7 ever since. These grades weren't enough to make up for my disastrous Freshman year grades, though, so my GPA stalled at a 3.45.

I've read that an addendum about mental health might be a red flag to law schools. Though it took some time and a more than a year of therapy, I'm completely confident that I've fully recovered from my depression. Additionally, to deal with depression, I made myself into a work-a-holic to keep my mind off negative feelings. This caused me to become somewhat intellectually curious, and I'm interested in applying to a PhD-JD program (though I'm unsure as of yet how competitive these programs are).

Are the upward trend, recovery, and "newfound intellectual passion" things that I should highlight in my addendum? How much can an addendum improve my chances? Thanks all for taking the time to read this! Your advice is much appreciated.

If I were you, I wouldn't write an addendum for your GPA. While 3.4 is below the 25th for all of the T14, it's not so low to put you out of the running at most and your LSAT is already above the 75th for most. Apply broadly and get your apps in early, but I think you will be in for a good cycle. Best of luck

pittsburghpirates wrote:If I were you, I wouldn't write an addendum for your GPA. While 3.4 is below the 25th for all of the T14, it's not so low to put you out of the running at most and your LSAT is already above the 75th for most. Apply broadly and get your apps in early, but I think you will be in for a good cycle. Best of luck

Thank you for your reply!

pittsburghpirates wrote:If I were you, I wouldn't write an addendum for your GPA. While 3.4 is below the 25th for all of the T14, it's not so low to put you out of the running at most and your LSAT is already above the 75th for most. Apply broadly and get your apps in early, but I think you will be in for a good cycle. Best of luck

+1.

3.4 isn't terrible. Not gonna turn heads, but shouldn't get your app thrown away anywhere, especially with a 173 LSAT. I'd think most schools outside of HYS would take a very very strong look at you and even they could be possible WL.

I'd focus on making a very strong application, sweep the T-14 and letting the cards fall where they may.

MyNameIsntJames wrote:

pittsburghpirates wrote:If I were you, I wouldn't write an addendum for your GPA. While 3.4 is below the 25th for all of the T14, it's not so low to put you out of the running at most and your LSAT is already above the 75th for most. Apply broadly and get your apps in early, but I think you will be in for a good cycle. Best of luck

+1.

3.4 isn't terrible. Not gonna turn heads, but shouldn't get your app thrown away anywhere, especially with a 173 LSAT. I'd think most schools outside of HYS would take a very very strong look at you and even they could be possible WL.

I'd focus on making a very strong application, sweep the T-14 and letting the cards fall where they may.

Thank you for your advice! I'm glad to see an addendum might not be necessary after all.

I had a 173 and a 3.5. Going to NYU with a scholarship, and got into several t14s with some $$$. You will do well. For what it's worth, I wrote an addendum for my gpa, but I had a very extreme upward trend.

Generally wrote:I had a 173 and a 3.5. Going to NYU with a scholarship, and got into several t14s with some $$$. You will do well. For what it's worth, I wrote an addendum for my gpa, but I had a very extreme upward trend.

hearing that made me a lot less worried! Would a whole grade point be considered extreme?

aryasilas wrote:

Generally wrote:I had a 173 and a 3.5. Going to NYU with a scholarship, and got into several t14s with some $$$. You will do well. For what it's worth, I wrote an addendum for my gpa, but I had a very extreme upward trend.

hearing that made me a lot less worried! Would a whole grade point be considered extreme?

Like you had a 2.5 your first year and then 3.8s or something after? I had one semester that brought down what would have been like a 3.8-3.9 GPA without it.

I had 3.41/173 w/ strong upward trend, didn't write any addendum, got in to Columbia/UVa/Michigan/Northwestern/Georgetown. You'll be fine