<p>Im currently in a strange (albeit not bad) spot and was hoping someone could help satiate my curiosity. I went to Georgetown undergrad, majored in history and got a certificate from the School of Foreign Service in Australia/New Zealand studies (sounds like a blow off, but was basically a minor), graduated 3.96/4.0, accepted to Gtown Law early assurance (in other words didnt have to take LSAT), deferred matriculation for one year to pursue M.St. in Modern History at Oxford (where I am currently), deferred again to pursue M.Phil in Real Estate Finance at Cambridge (next year).
I took challenging courses at Georgetown but did not take five classes (full load) every semester because I had enough high school credits. And I am wondering how that will impact my chances for admission at Northwestern/University of Chicago Law, and of course Id love to send an app. to HYS just to see. Also, to what extent will two post-graduate degrees help my chances? Do credentials like that truly matter in this LSAT/GPA environment? And of course, the requisite question, what kind of LSAT should I shoot for to have a legitimate chance at the schools mentioned above?<br>
I ask these questions because if I decide to apply to any law schools I must forgo my acceptance to Georgetown Law (part of the deferral agreement), and obviously dont want to overconfidently chase that which is just out of reach and end up with nothing to hold on to. Im trying to find a rational way to decide whether to make the leap and am a bit apprehensive. Thank for whatever information/advice you can throw out there.</p>
<p>uh, why would you apply to other laws schools when you have clearly been accepted by gtown?</p>
<p>Two most important things for LS admission are LSAT and GPA. </p>
<p>Considering that you don't have an LSAT score, it's really tough to say what your chances are. If you want a good way to guess your chances at other schools, taking the LSAT would be the best way to do it. If you break 175, you'll be in at almost every school in the country. </p>
<p>LSAT and GPA determine most of law school acceptance. Beyond that, many factors come into play:
*recommendations
*personal statement
*undergrad school
*major
*graduate work
*work experience
*etc.</p>
<p>That is in no particular order. Best thing you can do for yourself is to not think of law school admissions like undergrad admissions. So very much of it is based on LSAT and GPA; the other stuff fills in the gaps and gets you over the finish line. With many schools, you're not even allowed in the race if the numbers aren't there. Of course, schools will use the above list in different ways - some, like Northwestern, value work experience very highly, while others put more emphasis on other factors. Some schools are more numbers-focused; some put different weights on LSAT and less on GPA, or vice versa. </p>
<p>Therefore, no one can give you any decent advice until you take the LSAT. Once that's there, you'll know which schools (use the calculator at lsac.org) you're in the range for. The master's degrees might help (or they might make you look like a dilettante - then again, some law schools might appreciate it.</p>
<p>If you do really well on the LSAT, you might be able to get (some) merit aid. I'm not sure what your financial situation is, but it would be in most people's interest, with a 3.96 GPA, to find out if they could get merit.</p>
<p>Lsat Is Huge Without Lsat You Can Not Know. Georgetown Is A Great Law School In A Great City (washington Dc Is One Of Only Three Places Where You Can Earn Seven Figure Salaries As A Lawyer In America). The Only Reason You Might Not Want To Go There Is Maybe To Hys But Then You Would Have To Get Like A 172 On Your Lsat And Get Good Recs And Hope That Year Doesn't Have A Lot Of Applicants Like You. Just Matriculate And Enjoy The Washington Gravy Train.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses. I love Georgetown and know I'll be very content there. I guess I was just struck with 'grass is always greener' situation, but I don't feel like spending the summer trying to get a 175 and I should be very happy with what Ive got, so Gtown it is.</p>
<p>You don't need a 175. You can get in with a 165 even with your GPA if you have certain edges and are solid. Not saying that you shouldn't go to georgetown but keep things in perspective. Its not that hard to get a 168-169.</p>
<p>^There is no way you're getting into HYS with a 165. I don't care what the GPA is. That's probably too low for NU or Chicago, too.</p>
<p>You can get in with a 165 if you're a urm (the biggest edge of all). You can get in with between a 169-171 if you're overall solid, and with your gpa that will still make this guy in the 50th percentile for harvard admits. I'm just saying his gpa is good enough to offset a slightly weaker lsat.</p>