Top Law Schools

- LSAT: 166
- GPA: 3.65 from top liberal arts college
- Political Science and Russian major
- 2 years paralegal work experience at big law firm
- not URM
- could possibly get a good Rec from high powered attorney who went to Northwestern

Top schools (in order): Northwestern, UT Austin, Cornell, Vanderbilt, Georgetown, Emory, Notre Dame

I was really shooting for 167+ on LSAT, but obviously fell flat. Considering retaking in December, but not sure what the cost/benefit will be (applying early with 166 v. applying later with hopefully a higher score).

Thoughts?

Get 4-5 more questions right and you'll get money from NU

Retake. even one more point will help a ton. there's a big difference between being one point below median and being at median.

retake. You are out of the t13 for sure. You need to get 4-5 more questions right and you are looking at some t13 acceptances.

Thank you for the insight.

My main concern is waiting until January to apply, and I don't feel confident I can score higher. My PTs were in the 170s, but clearly there's a strong discrepancy between my PT and my actual test. But if you don't think there's any difference between applying in Oct v applying in Jan then I guess there's nothing to lose.

Bumblefly94 wrote:Thank you for the insight.

My main concern is waiting until January to apply, and I don't feel confident I can score higher. My PTs were in the 170s, but clearly there's a strong discrepancy between my PT and my actual test. But if you don't think there's any difference between applying in Oct v applying in Jan then I guess there's nothing to lose.

If you don't have any good options after applying in January, wait it out a cycle and apply next year. Law school isn't going anywhere, and you only get to start your career in this profession once. Make sure you're definitely starting it off on the right foot (read as: best school for the career you want for the best cost).

Sounds like you are in tough situation for T13 but definitely have a chance at Vanderbilt and Texas. In at Notre Dame and Emory. Good luck with your decision.

sparkytrainer wrote:retake. You are out of the t13 for sure. You need to get 4-5 more questions right and you are looking at some t13 acceptances.

I will definitely retake in December because you're right - don't really stand a chance for T13 right now. I think I'll still apply to my safeties (BU, BC, GW, Emory, Notre Dame) to get those out of the way. From what I've seen, I should be fine at those schools with my stats.

I'm still considering applying to Northwestern ED because I have a strong connection their through work. I do think it's a long shot that I'll get admitted ED with my scores, but do you think there's a solid chance I would be waitlisted? If I get waitlisted then I'd be able to submit a December LSAT score (if it's higher) for evaluation.

Northwestern does value work experience and looks more holistically at the application. Try to get your LSAT score at the median and your chance will improve. How much does your chance improve to go ED versus waiting until you get new scores?