<p>What are my chances for law school? I currently have a 3.4 GPA at UCLA for Psychology, and a 3.78 from my Pasadena City College (I am a transfer student). My LSDAS GPA comes out to a 3.64. A pretty low GPA if I want to get to one of the top 15 law schools (preferably UCLA, Columbia, etc). I will be taking two years off, what should I do in between these two years (internships, volunteer work, studying for LSAT, brushing up on my writing skills). My dream schools are Columbia, NYU, and UCLA. I got a decent LSAT score, 168-170, what are my chances?</p>
<p>Also how much weight does Letters of Recommendations hold?</p>
<p>You say you “got a decent LSAT score, 168-170.” I assume you mean if you got a score like that but that you have not yet taken it.</p>
<p>For admission to law school you should usually assume that LSAT score is about 60% or more of everything, college GPA about 35% or more and everything else about 5% or less. A high LSAT score can often save a lower end (for the law school) GPA but the opposite, a very high GPA (even a perfect 4.0) but a low LSAT will land you almost always on the rejection pile. Recommendations need to be good because, though good ones won’t help that much, bad ones could get you rejected if you are borderline. What you should do in the interim if waiting a couple years to apply is usually work in a program for which you have or need a college degree because such work experience is somewhat of a plus, and more so at some law schools such as Northwestern.</p>
<p>For the schools you list your GPA does not necessarily rule you out although it is on the lower end for NYU and Columbia, and it is actually about mid-range for UCLA. Nevertheless, the fact that your higher grades come from a community college will not be overlooked. For NYU and Columbia, part of the “T14,” you will need a 170 or better, preferably better, LSAT to have a chance, and no, 168 or 169, is not considered close enough. 168 puts you in range for UCLA.</p>
<p>Ahh okay, thank you so much! You don’t know how much you have helped me!</p>
<p>I had a quick question! What did you mean by, “Nevertheless, the fact that your higher grades come from a community college will not be overlooked.” Is that a good thing or a bad thing? That my higher grades come from my city college as compared to UCLA?</p>
<p>^Though overall GPA is important, a law school is likely to consider that GPA at UCLA for the last two years somewhat more indicative of ability than the high CC GPA before attending UCLA.</p>
<p>Joshringu, I hope you don’t mind me asking Drusba a question; you also might be interested in the answer.</p>
<p>Drusba, let’s say I graduate my CC with a 3.8 GPA and transfer to UF (just a school at the top of my head) and get a 4.0 gpa there. Also, let’s say I receive a 170+ LSAT score. What will be my chances of entering any of the top law schools?
I know a major doesn’t matter but I will be majoring in Poli Sci.</p>
<p>^^there are several websites dealing with numbers for law school and predictors for law school admissions. Google them and you can play ‘what if’s’.</p>
<p>I’m not a expert on this matter, but from what I have heard the LSAT is most important. But your GPA is excellent and if you get a 170+ it will be even better. I’m sure you can get onto the top 15 law schools, and even the top 5!</p>