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Where do you want to practice? Apply to regional schools that feed into that market for starters.

As of now, I really don't have a preference as to where I want to practice. I live in Chicago so I'm throwing apps to DePaul, Loyola, UChicago, Northwestern, and U of I.

Rigo wrote:Where do you want to practice? Apply to regional schools that feed into that market for starters.

Exactly...

mmart207 wrote:As of now, I really don't have a preference as to where I want to practice. I live in Chicago so I'm throwing apps to DePaul, Loyola, UChicago, Northwestern, and U of I.

You say you don't have a preference, but have you really thought about it? You're committing to live and start off your career (and more) wherever you end up. It's at least worth playing around with some criteria about what makes a city/region appealing to you. Weather, sports teams, liberal/conservative, etc. There are also practical implications -- for example, I refused to apply anywhere where there weren't LGBTQ employment protections, because I would like to avoid being discriminated against, if possible. If there's some overarching concern like that in the back of your mind, bring it to the fore in deciding where you want to go.

Also, it's hard for us to give you advice if you have almost no criteria beyond your LSAT/GPA. You're making us do all the homework here. Give us something to work with.

Addendum: other criteria to consider is whether the kinds of jobs you're seeking are available in the city/region you're looking at, obviously. But I wanted to emphasize the other soft attributes of a place that bring you joy in those rare moments when you won't be working.

mcmand wrote:

mmart207 wrote:As of now, I really don't have a preference as to where I want to practice. I live in Chicago so I'm throwing apps to DePaul, Loyola, UChicago, Northwestern, and U of I.

You say you don't have a preference, but have you really thought about it? You're committing to live and start off your career (and more) wherever you end up. It's at least worth playing around with some criteria about what makes a city/region appealing to you. Weather, sports teams, liberal/conservative, etc. There are also practical implications -- for example, I refused to apply anywhere where there weren't LGBTQ employment protections, because I would like to avoid being discriminated against, if possible. If there's some overarching concern like that in the back of your mind, bring it to the fore in deciding where you want to go.

Also, it's hard for us to give you advice if you have almost no criteria beyond your LSAT/GPA. You're making us do all the homework here. Give us something to work with.

Addendum: other criteria to consider is whether the kinds of jobs you're seeking are available in the city/region you're looking at, obviously. But I wanted to emphasize the other soft attributes of a place that bring you joy in those rare moments when you won't be working.

I only gave my LSAT and GPA because people on these forums make it clear everyday that adcomms do not care about anything else besides that. As stated in my original post, I'm a URM K-JD applicant. My softs are nonexistent, just a part time job I've held for the past 3.5 years. Since you are someone who identifies with the LGBTQ community, I understand why that would be a concern for where you would want to live/practice. I do not consider myself to be anything besides part of the Latino community, so my only preference would be to live/practice somewhere where people are not blatantly racist. Given that racism occurs just about everywhere, I really do not have a preference. With that in mind, I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

mmart207 wrote:I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

That's the problem, though. Almost all schools will leave you stuck in their respective regions, and the handful that don't are out of reach given your LSAT.

icechicken wrote:

mmart207 wrote:I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

That's the problem, though. Almost all schools will leave you stuck in their respective regions, and the handful that don't are out of reach given your LSAT.

I wouldn't say they're out of my reach, if there's anything I've seen from URM cycles is that they can be unpredictable. The samples are anecdotal, but URMs have gotten into amazing schools with weaker numbers than mine. I believe my PS is unique and strong, as well as my LORs, which all play a larger role in URM applications than they do for others. I'm not saying I'm going to get into every school I apply to, but I definitely believe I will be a strong applicant. Which is why I'm just asking for some suggestions of where to apply. Specifically, strong schools outside of the T-14.

mmart207 wrote:

icechicken wrote:

mmart207 wrote:I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

That's the problem, though. Almost all schools will leave you stuck in their respective regions, and the handful that don't are out of reach given your LSAT.

I wouldn't say they're out of my reach, if there's anything I've seen from URM cycles is that they can be unpredictable. The samples are anecdotal, but URMs have gotten into amazing schools with weaker numbers than mine. I believe my PS is unique and strong, as well as my LORs, which all play a larger role in URM applications than they do for others. I'm not saying I'm going to get into every school I apply to, but I definitely believe I will be a strong applicant. Which is why I'm just asking for some suggestions of where to apply. Specifically, strong schools outside of the T-14.

Did you include AA data?

Rigo wrote:

mmart207 wrote:

icechicken wrote:

mmart207 wrote:I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

That's the problem, though. Almost all schools will leave you stuck in their respective regions, and the handful that don't are out of reach given your LSAT.

I wouldn't say they're out of my reach, if there's anything I've seen from URM cycles is that they can be unpredictable. The samples are anecdotal, but URMs have gotten into amazing schools with weaker numbers than mine. I believe my PS is unique and strong, as well as my LORs, which all play a larger role in URM applications than they do for others. I'm not saying I'm going to get into every school I apply to, but I definitely believe I will be a strong applicant. Which is why I'm just asking for some suggestions of where to apply. Specifically, strong schools outside of the T-14.

Did you include AA data?

I don't use those sites. I look at the URM cycle results threads on these forums, where people list specifically what type of URM they are.

mmart207 wrote:

Rigo wrote:

mmart207 wrote:

icechicken wrote:

mmart207 wrote:I'm looking for suggestions of schools I could attend that would not leave me stuck in that given region.

That's the problem, though. Almost all schools will leave you stuck in their respective regions, and the handful that don't are out of reach given your LSAT.

I wouldn't say they're out of my reach, if there's anything I've seen from URM cycles is that they can be unpredictable. The samples are anecdotal, but URMs have gotten into amazing schools with weaker numbers than mine. I believe my PS is unique and strong, as well as my LORs, which all play a larger role in URM applications than they do for others. I'm not saying I'm going to get into every school I apply to, but I definitely believe I will be a strong applicant. Which is why I'm just asking for some suggestions of where to apply. Specifically, strong schools outside of the T-14.

Did you include AA data?

I don't use those sites. I look at the URM cycle results threads on these forums, where people list specifically what type of URM they are.

That's called "anecdata" (it's a joke). Your LSAT is most likely going to keep you out of the running for schools with national reach. Make sure you're really paying attention to which schools actually have reach outside their regions. Even within T20 schools, Vanderbilt isn't going to place very well on the West Coast, and UCLA isn't going to place very well in the South. T13 schools are some of the only places where you can be more flexible post-graduation.

The issue coming up now is that there's a difference between not having a strong regional preference and not wanting to get locked in to a region. If you don't have a strong regional preference, gun for a full scholarship at a state flagship school anywhere you want. But if you want regional flexibility, you aren't going to get it with your current stats.