uGPA:3.06/Finance Masters:3.95/GRE: 165/168/LSAT: 172/180 Forum

[jl0118]

Hello,

I am currently in the process of applying for next year's round of Law Schools in the US - currently 28 y/o.
I would love to attend a top 20-30 Law School (If I were to be accepted - considering my low uGPA, chances may be bleak). Attended a top 50 for undergrad, but have a lower GPA due to taking rigorous science courses during the first two years. Attended an IVY for my Masters to somewhat compensate for a low uGPA. What would be my chances of being accepted to a top 30 assuming the stats below? Thinking of transferring after my 1L year to a T14 - hopefully. Thanks for the help!

uGPA:3.06
gradGPA(Finance):3.95
GRE: 165/168
LSAT: 172/180

[Johnnybgoode92]

Hello,

I am currently in the process of applying for next year's round of Law Schools in the US - currently 28 y/o.
I would love to attend a top 20-30 Law School (If I were to be accepted - considering my low uGPA, chances may be bleak). Attended a top 50 for undergrad, but have a lower GPA due to taking rigorous science courses during the first two years. Attended an IVY for my Masters to somewhat compensate for a low uGPA. What would be my chances of being accepted to a top 30 assuming the stats below? Thinking of transferring after my 1L year to a T14 - hopefully. Thanks for the help!

uGPA:3.06
gradGPA(Finance):3.95
GRE: 165/168
LSAT: 172/180

Why do you want to be a lawyer

[decimalsanddollars]

Why do you want to be a lawyer

Super important question to answer before you plan applications to law school. Your graduate GPA won't matter basically at all, although it may be a positive "soft factor" in admissions for a situation where you're high in the maybe pile for a good outcome. With a 3.06 and a 172, you're a splitter for almost all law schools in tiers 1 and 2. You won't get into HYS, and you're unlikely to get in at CCN, but the rest of your outcomes will depend mostly on factors beyond your control---e.g., whether a particular school ranked in the teens/20s/30s needs another high-LSAT splitter this year. Splitters often have unpredictable cycles, so it will be hard for anyone to give you a good forecast of your odds at any close-to-top schools.

As for transferring, proceed with caution. T14s can be picky about transfers, and some are more accommodating than others---and, of course, you will have to pay sticker price at your destination school. Coming from a top 40 (but not top 20) school, your grades will have to be pretty good to transfer to a T14. Also note that UVA, Duke, and Cornell take very few transfers, and Cornell doesn't allow regular-cycle transfers to participate in OCI or journal write-ons.