URM friendly schools? Forum

[gatorlaw]

Obviously this is an incredibly unscientific way of going about it (and I'm sure it's been asked before) but which T14's are more lenient when it comes to accepting splitter/ lower-end URMs?

From what I can judge on lawschoolnumbers and TLS stats, NYU and Berkeley seem to be pretty forgiving of low LSAT with a high GPA and a decent UG school. Any thoughts or anecdotes on this?

[Alltheirsplendor]

Obviously this is an incredibly unscientific way of going about it (and I'm sure it's been asked before) but which T14's are more lenient when it comes to accepting splitter/ lower-end URMs?

From what I can judge on lawschoolnumbers and TLS stats, NYU and Berkeley seem to be pretty forgiving of low LSAT with a high GPA and a decent UG school. Any thoughts or anecdotes on this?

Please, please, please utilize the search function.

Scour lawschoolnumbers and this website. Take everything with a grain of salt, and if you find your stats mirroring the profiles of those who are accepted to T14 schools, then make sure you apply to all of the T14 (yes, even if you only match certain profiles that applied to certain schools).

[futurelawstudent1]

Harvard is especially lenient for black students.

[yngblkgifted]

OP, judging off of your GPA, if you get in the 160s, apply to all schools in the T14. Seriously. If you'd like more details, PM me.

Edit: Sorry, I assumed you were black. If not, that may change things.

[paulinaporizkova]

"gatorlaw"? I'm guessing some variation on Hispanic

[gatorlaw]

I was born in Argentina and moved here when I was 13. So...hispanic

Would the fact that I wasn't born here also help a little? I learned English at 13 which made the LSAT a bit tougher. I'm not trying to make excuses but I definitely struggled though those RC passages in June.

[bk1]

I was born in Argentina and moved here when I was 13. So...hispanic

Would the fact that I wasn't born here also help a little? I learned English at 13 which made the LSAT a bit tougher. I'm not trying to make excuses but I definitely struggled though those RC passages in June.

If you're only Argentinian you won't count as URM. Only MX/PR/AA/NA will count, so if you have one of those then you would be.

From what I have read, they won't look at your LSAT score any different whether you are a native or non-native speaker.

[gatorlaw]

Really? Does it make a difference that I am a Permanent Resident in the U.S?

So foreign-born hispanics are not a URM at all? I feel like we'd be underrepresented in the practice of law.

Well, that's a bummer, if so.

[bk1]

Really? Does it make a difference that I am a Permanent Resident in the U.S?

So foreign-born hispanics are not a URM at all? I feel like we'd be underrepresented in the practice of law.

Well, that's a bummer, if so.

The only hispanics that count as URM are ones that are black, Mexican, or Puerto Rican (being foreign born or domestic born does not make a difference in this regard). That's just how law schools do it.

However, other hispanics have been seen to get a slight boost but it isn't as large as a normal URM boost and it isn't as consistent. It would be worth applying to higher reach schools just in case you do get a boost of some sort. There is also a thread on TLS called something like "other hispanics who feel they got a boost" and has some stories regarding admissions cycles of non-MX/PR hispanics.

[gatorlaw]

Thanks a lot for the info! Also, I don't know if anyone else caught it but there's no "mexican" box to check on the LSAT demographic bubble-in. So, they'd be forced to check Hispanic/Latino. I'm not sure how else the adcomm would know they were Mexican unless they explicitly wrote it in their PS..? The whole thing seems kinda weird because there is a "puerto rican" box to check. Oh well, I'm just going to apply here and there and hope for some bites, at the end of the day it's not like I'm relying on my presumed minority status to get me into LS : )

[bk1]

Thanks a lot for the info! Also, I don't know if anyone else caught it but there's no "mexican" box to check on the LSAT demographic bubble-in. So, they'd be forced to check Hispanic/Latino. I'm not sure how else the adcomm would know they were Mexican unless they explicitly wrote it in their PS..? The whole thing seems kinda weird because there is a "puerto rican" box to check. Oh well, I'm just going to apply here and there and hope for some bites, at the end of the day it's not like I'm relying on my presumed minority status to get me into LS : )

LSAC has a demographic questionnaire that is filled out online and then sent to all schools when you apply (this is optional). Also, most schools ask for ethnicity/race on their applications as well.

I don't think schools see the ethnicity/race you checkmark on the LSAT, just the online LSAC one and the one in their own application.

[20121109]

Well, I see bk has this one pretty much covered.

/leavesthread

[bk1]

Here is the "other hispanic" thread I was referring to: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 4&t=133626

Well, I see bk has this one pretty much covered.

/leavesthread

<3

[gatorlaw]

Ahh gotcha. Thanks, I had forgotten about that.

SO, in light of everything you just said, I should probably rephrase my question...

What T14 schools do you think are more lenient when it comes to applicants with interesting life stories?

I immigrated to this country after the government stole our money in "el corralito" ( it's a long, boring story, but basically the government froze everyone's bank accounts, devalued our Peso, took our dollars, left us with 25% of our life savings and kept the difference). We sold everything we had left and moved here. Blah blah blah sob story. At least it has a good end because I got to live to the U.S

[bk1]

Technically you will be a reverse splitter if you get a low LSAT (a splitter is someone with a low GPA and a high LSAT).

The schools in the T14 that will look past numbers a bit for people with good softs tends to be Yale/Stanford/Berkeley. However, if you really do want to get into a T14 and do score in the low 160's, your best bet to getting in would be to retake aiming for high 160's/170+. There are some schools which will dip slightly lower in the LSAT range for people with high GPAs but it tends not to be so uniform (off the top of my head I've seen Michigian and Cornell do this the most, sometimes Virginia/Penn).

[lawyerwannabe]

167+ LSAT, 3.9+ GPA seem to snag people one or two acceptances in the lower T14 - think UMich, UVA, Cornell and to a lesser extent Penn, Berkeley (w/ interesting softs), Duke, NW (w/ WE), and Georgetown. An ED application to one of these law schools, excluding Berkeley because they do not offer ED, would increase your chances of acceptance if you find yourself in the situation initially mentioned or a situation that is at least similar.

[gatorlaw]

Thanks a LOT guys, all the info really helped out. Duke would be a dream, so I'm going to talk to my parents about finances and the such because EDing is a huge $$ commitment.