<p>I’m currently a junior so I know it’s a little early for me to be making one of these threads, but I was debating between applying to Brown or Dartmouth ED (my stats are borderline for both) so I wanted to get people’s thoughts beforehand.</p>
<p>I’m thinking of majoring in English and possibly double majoring in Philosophy/Psychology before going on to law school. My main concern is the cost of attending Brown or Dartmouth - my family isn’t poor, but we make enough to probably not get financial aid. Is it worth going to either of these schools AND paying for law school afterward? Do undergrad applicants from Ivy Leagues generally get accepted to more T14 law schools than those of other schools?</p>
<p>Also, while I know that these schools are definitely on the smaller side when compared to big city universities, what are some of the differences in terms of student body and their English/Philosophy/Psychology programs? I’m pretty liberal and I’ve heard that Brown is very liberal leaning and WM leans a little to the left, while Dartmouth is more moderate with a conservative tradition.</p>
<p>Thanks you for your help!</p>
<p>A junior in high school using the term “T14”? You may be getting a bit ahead of yourself :)</p>
<p>Most of the claims people make about having a better chance of getting into particular law schools on the basis of undergrad school are simply wrong. On the basis of the self-reported statistics of applicants, and my own experience at HLS, I’ll say this: don’t worry about prestige being a factor in your law school application.</p>
<p>I’ll say this, though: there are reasons to choose one school over another, related to law school. Elite schools have larger cohorts that go to elite law schools, creating a nice community of applicants (while still in college) and a nice community of fellow law students (once in law school). Advising might also be better. </p>
<p>Another thing to consider is grades. Law school admission decisions are made almost exclusively based on LSAT and LSAC-recalculated undergraduate GPA. The LSAT is all on you; what you have more long-term control over, and what your school can affect, is your GPA. Contrary to the insistent idiocy of people on the Internet, which school you go to has absolutely no effect on your LSAC-recalculated GPA. (The LSAC is completely open about how it calculates GPA – you can look it up.) There is plenty of evidence out there for the notion that a 3.8 from your local state school gets you farther than a 3.7 from an elite school. What’s the take-home lesson? If you’re really trying to game the system, go to a school with more grade inflation.</p>