Aspiring Ivy Law Student

Graduate School Law School
1

<p>Hey everyone,</p>

<p>Harvard Law has been a dream of mine since I was 8. I have a few questions regarding the admissions process. I'm graduating a year early because I was a concurrent student(attending community college during high school in order to get ahead), and will have been at UCLA(where I attend now)for only three years. Bear in mind that I am also double majoring in English and French Language and Literature, receiving departmental honors in both. However, I heard that Ivys prefer students who remain at their unis for the whole four years. Yet, I am practically done and really cannot afford another year. I know Yale is impossible to predict and it is actually not my first choice, but what about Harvard? I have a very very high GPA(will not disclose here because I do not want to jinx anything) with many legal internships, legal activities, and volunteer experiences under my
belt. So will graduating early really make a big difference in the long run?</p>

<p>Also, I have not taken the LSAT yet. Can I take it after I graduate(after next year) and apply later and take a gap year? Or is this also frowned upon by the Ivies? I am scoring pretty well right now on my own, but would like to take a course when I am free from the stresses of college courses.</p>

<p>Please let me know what you all think.</p>

2

<p>It sounds like your Harvard fate rests upon the shoulders of your LSAT score. I will say that those who want Harvard over Columbia are crazy. Columbia is in the greatest city on Earth. Harvard is in freakin’ Mass.</p>

3

<p>Of course my LSAT score is an integral part of my application. I am doing very well on the practice tests and am aiming towards 175+. I wasn’t asking to get chanced, I was merely asking whether if 3 years at an undergrad and a gap year is acceptable for Harvard.</p>

<p>Columbia is among my top choices for law school :)</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

4

<p>I intended to imply that, yes, you’d be fine- if your LSAT was spectacular. </p>

<p>Good luck! I’ll be there in a few years. I plan on rejecting Harvard.</p>

5

<p>Purely out of curiosity, what makes Harvard your pick over Yale?</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>For students interested in top clerkships and academic positions in law, Harvard seems to have a sizable advantage over Columbia.</p>

6

<p>

</p>

<p>

<a href=“http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/NYC_wideangle_south_from_Top_of_the_Rock.jpg[/img]”>http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/NYC_wideangle_south_from_Top_of_the_Rock.jpg

</a></p>

7

<p>^ You’ve suggested one potential advantage, but to deem crazy those who weigh Harvard’s advantages more heavily or do not prefer NYC is narrow. I’ll assume that you’re mostly joking, though.</p>

8

<p>I do not necessarily prefer Harvard over Yale. Yale seems to be a reach for EVERYONE, though. Harvard is more number based, no? I have a spectacular GPA and am aiming for a great LSAT score. My extracurriculars are good, but let’s be honest here: I am not a Rhodes scholar nor have I done anything that has made the papers. I look at Yale’s applicant pool and am seriously intimidated. I will apply, but my hopes are not too high. Anyways, I love the location of Harvard. Both of them would be a dream for me. If I get into Yale, I’d be tempted to turn down Harvard. Also, Yale feeds more into legal academia(or so I’ve heard).</p>

<p>So anybody else have opinions on my decision to only remain at UCLA for 3 years and take a gap year afterwards(during which I study vigorously for the LSAT)?</p>

9

<p>

</p>

<p>Ah. I had interpreted otherwise.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Yes.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>This is true.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Maybe the thoughts in this thread will help you out: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/law-school/699679-graduating-early.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/law-school/699679-graduating-early.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

10

<p>

</p>

<p>The term “crazy” was obviously facetious hyperbole.</p>

<p>To me, NYC and Columbia, an Ivy no less, is far more attractive than Hahvahd. I couldn’t care less about academia/etc. I want to make money.</p>

11

<p>IMO-
all you need to do your "gap year is to spend it wisely-- show you are maturing into adulthood- have some real life experiences and that you are a bit older and wiser because you have gained some real life experience. No one is expecting you to write a book or cure cancer.
Study for your LSAT and get a job too-- even a part-time sales associate at the GAP (no pun intended) and preparing for the test is sufficient . Just studying for the LSAT and doing nothing else seems to be a bit self indulgent and immature.<br>
There is no reason why you can’t join the real world, study for the LSAT and gain life experience in your “gap” year by working too.
High gpa- and LSAT in 170’s will get you into a great school.
Don’t waste your time speculating where you will be admitted into law school until you get your actual LSAT score.</p>

12

<p>Same situation. Have a 3.87 GPA and plan on taking the LSAT in December. Any advice on the best way to study for it? I have already started on the powerscore logic bibles and own 10 practice tests that I was going to start taking in late September/early October. </p>

<p>My dream law school is Cornell. I like the area, they have good employment numbers and it appears to be easier to get into than most other schools in the t14</p>

13

<p>As they say, practice makes perfect! And there are what? 60+ practice exams at this point? Go to top law schools though. I’m sure someone can give you a more detailed plan of attack. By the way, start taking the exams now that way you can fit in as many and be able to review them with a fine tooth comb before the exam and not feel crunched for time.</p>