178/3.73 non-URM Forum

[s'all good, man]

Hi all,

I graduated from the University of Chicago earlier this year and currently work at a legal think tank in DC. I plan on entering law school in fall 2020 and hope to submit my applications as soon as the portals open in August/September etc.

What are my chances at HYS/CCN, assuming that I am able to apply extremely early? I think my softs are pretty good and that I have a cohesive story to tell in my personal statement.

I know that I can punch all this into MyLSN, but it's nice to hear what people think! Thanks.

[UVA2B]

You should be looking at a T13 for a good discount. That should be your goal. T6 may happen, but you’re better off with $150k discount at Duke or NU instead of going to CLS for close to full price.

If you’re aiming for strictly PI, this entire calculus changes.

As always: Law school admission is not the goal, and it shouldn’t be treated that way. Disabuse yourself of a mindset that gets excited about an acceptance to Harvard or Chicago because any school you attend comes with a nondischargeable price tag.

[QContinuum]

If you’re aiming for strictly PI, this entire calculus changes.

To expand on this a bit, if you're the slightest bit on the fence about what you want to do out of law school, then you are not in the "strictly PI" bucket.

But if you're 200% all-in on PI, then you should absolutely still consider attending a lower T13 for cheap, but it'd also be defensible to consider attending, say, NYU at sticker (or close to sticker) for the PI placement power it offers. If you're all in on PI, you can factor in PSLF in your considerations. But again, only do this if you could not imagine doing anything other than PI. Be aware that many, many T13 0Ls come in to law school with a vague desire to do "meaningful" legal work and a general interest in PI, but the vast majority of them get sucked into the 2L OCI BigLaw pipeline. You have to be 200% committed to PI to have the fortitude to resist the siren call of BigLaw.

[s'all good, man]

Thanks for your responses. I don't know if you would consider it PI, but I am most interested in working for the DOJ -- not in big law.

[s'all good, man]

Thanks for your responses. I don't know if you would consider it PI, but I am most interested in working for the DOJ -- not in big law.

But, anyways, while I appreciate the advice re: paying for law school, I am for the moment only wondering about my chances of admission to various schools.

[cavalier1138]

Thanks for your responses. I don't know if you would consider it PI, but I am most interested in working for the DOJ -- not in big law.

Government work is PI, and it's certainly treated that way for LRAP/PSLF purposes. However, competitive federal government positions are usually not available to you right out of law school. If you want DOJ, your most likely route there is through biglaw. You can and should focus on an honors program application if you're dead set on government, but there are too few spots for you to be able to plan on getting in. So prepare yourself for a few years in biglaw if your ultimate goal is DOJ.

Your chances of admission are pretty solid across the board (or as solid as they can be at YS). There's nothing anyone can add to MyLSN, because the extra info you've provided isn't that remarkable as law school applications go. Your chances will be the same if you submit in September or in October/November. Basically every app submitted before Thanksgiving is "early" for admissions. As mentioned above, you should go to whichever school offers you the best scholarship. So unless you qualify for significant need-based aid, that will likely be one of CCN.