<p>I recently graduated from UVA with a 3.63 GPA, majors in International Relations and Linguistics with a Minor in Econ. I will be working for a law firm as a paralegal (but really more of a coffee B* sorry for my French), not a prestigious one, but a small international one. </p>
<p>I have a few years to prepare for the LSAT, as I want to ace it(literally 180 to make up for my GPA, I know it's very hard with 50% luck, but I'm hoping that studying after work for the next 2-3 years will help me get used to solving those problems).</p>
<p>Here's the kicker, the company will pay for part of my Law School -- if I go to HLS. They really want me to go there and will help me as much as they can (I think one of my rec's will come from a HLS alum who also works as a legal advisor for my direct boss).</p>
<p>What can I do, besides ace the LSAT (I know I know you can't plan on acing it !), to better my chances. What are some strong ECs... Do I even have a chance? </p>
<p>I have always been interested in applying for a Fulbright, and then I heard that HLS also like Fulbrights... but my work would not be in line with my research proposal, as I'd probably propose something in one of the fields I studied (IR/LING). Would this help/hurt? </p>
<p>Thanks for your help,I'm new here but I've been lurking, and basically from what I've read 3.63 is in that awkward maybe stage because 3.4 is def out, but 3.75 is only the 25th percentile....</p>
<p>Harvard is mostly numbers based so the fullbright won’t really help. The rec letter may help a tiny tiny bit. Honestly, with that GPA, even a 180 is no sure bet. And realistically, even if you exhaust every possible study material, a 180 is extremely unlikely. A 180 is really more about luck (if you have the skills to get 172+). So really, your chances at harvard are slim, but its not impossible.</p>
<p>so this guy’s got a better gpa and better ug, but one thing I could change is that he worked longer before going to school… any chance that could help? I heard that sometimes it helps to distance from GPA, but if HLS is all about numbers, does that still apply?</p>
<p>Also it seems like my GPA will follow me around forever… is it possible to REDO your UG? or is there any other way to boost it, at least in LSDAS’ eyes?</p>
<p>No. Once that first bachelor’s degree is conferred, you’re done.</p>
<p>But if you can get a 180 or whatever, then Columbia Law is a very mild step down from Harvard Law. I realize your work means you have a particular financial incentive to shoot for HLS, but really. It’s a relatively small drop.</p>
<p>This is a very weird profile now that I study it more. He claims to have gone to a top 5 undergraduate school but to have majored in “communications.” So far as I know, none of HYPSM (or whatever) offer a Communications Major. (I’m also a little befuddled by the fact that he applied to American University Law.)</p>
<p>Just a guess–but he resides in Canada. May be a Canadian citizen. That doesn’t matter much at Harvard, but a state school might be more reluctant to accept him if he’s a non-US citizen. If he needs $–at least a loan --to attend he can’t get federal student loans. That too might make UVa reluctant to admit.</p>
<p>OP - with a GPA below 3.7 your chances are going to be low, even with a 175+ LSAT.
Focus on getting a score that high, then worry about writing an amazing personal statement. </p>
<p>The Kuroi LSN profile seems to be an exception to HLS’s strict GPA cutoff since they have many years of work experience to distance themselves from a (for HLS) subpar GPA.</p>