Chances for a canadian Forum

[youngwarrior]

Hello all, i'm an african canadian male and i'll be applying to law school in the fall. I wanted to see how good my chances were of gaining admission to some of the top schools in the united states.
I just graduated from the university of toronto with a 3.98 gpa and I have a 176 LSAT score. Also, by the time that I matriculate, I will also have a Master's degree from the university of cambridge which i'll be starting in october, will this give me a boost at all?
Further, will the fact that i'm canadian be to my detriment ? I've heard that the american legal industry like that of other countries is very protectionist and that because of this the top american schools only accept a select few of international students.
Also I know that the U.S has affirmative action but i've heard that it only applies to american blacks, is this true?
Sorry for all the questions, i'm not at all familiar with how law school admission works in america.

[TLSModBot]

1. URM (under-represented minority) status covers more than just black people
2. Undergrad GPA and LSAT are 99% what matters
3. What's a Canadian 3.98 in American dollars?
4. Your GPA and LSAT are great and maybe excluding Yale you should have a strong strong chance going to the school of your choice.
5. Number 3 was a joke
6. Being Canadian won't hurt you

[youngwarrior]

1. URM (under-represented minority) status covers more than just black people
2. Undergrad GPA and LSAT are 99% what matters
3. What's a Canadian 3.98 in American dollars?
4. Your GPA and LSAT are great and maybe excluding Yale you should have a strong strong chance going to the school of your choice.
5. Number 3 was a joke
6. Being Canadian won't hurt you

thanks for responding. as a canadian would i be eligible for the under represented minority status on the account that i'm black and or canadian?
i'd honestly be happy going to any top american school, but my top choice would be harvard, thanks for reassuring me!

[jnwa]

You'll get in wherever the hell you want ..you count as a URM. Im African Canadian and attended U of T for undergrad my cycle turned out exactly as it'd be expected for a non-international candidate. Pm for details.

[pittsburghpirates]

Get your apps in early, make sure everything is buttoned up, and you will be in for a great cycle. Congrats on a great GPA and LSAT score

[youngwarrior]

thank you both jnwa and pittsburgh pirates for your responses!

[yaliehopeful]

Fellow African Canadian here. Our stats are very similar, yours are in fact better than mine, I had a 3.96 from McGill, a 174 and a M.Phil in International Relations from Oxford and I swept the T14 and so there is absolutely no reason why you should not be able to do the same. Your stats like mine are competitive even without the boost, but you'll still get the boost because you're black, being Canadian is irrelevant and won't hurt your chances. Also, the fact that you'll have a degree from Cambridge won't give you any discernible boost, it might help at Yale because they have a bias against K-JD's and value strong softs like work experience as well as graduate degrees. However, by and large schools care about your LSAT and undergraduate GPA. Right a good PS and DS, get your apps in early and you'll have your pick among the best schools. You'll most likely be offered full rides at CCN and at some mid to low T14 schools so if you're debt averse that is something to also consider. Good luck!

[Nachoo2019]

I think the most difficult part of all this for you will be deciding between YHS or a full ride to any other T-14s


Congrats on the LSAT by the way. That is a killer score!

[youngwarrior]

thank you nachoo and yaliehopeful for your responses!

[Nachoo2019]

thank you nachoo and yaliehopeful for your responses!

Also make sure you do all of the "Why X School?" Essays becaus the mid to lower T14 will know you are going to have one or all of HYS as an option so they may waitlist you to yield protect. Try to tailor each app to each school that way you can avoid getting wait listed. I know it's going to take more work, but believe it or not there is a chance they waitlist you because they know you will likely have much better options.