I am considering the law path, but I am only interested in doing this if I can shoot for Top 50. I am undergrad at Syracuse University.
I have “messed up” my undergrad so far in the following ways:
I am a first semester junior, as I took a leave of absence my first semester after high school. I have still not declared a major (I’m actually not sure how nothing has happened yet because of this, as I was told we needed to do so before first semester junior year). The courses I have taken have been all over the place, but I think I will/may go towards a B.S. in biology. I currently have a 3.32 GPA. I have done 0 extracurriculars of any sort.
This semester ends in may, and I if I get all A’s my GPA will raise my gap to a 3.42. After that, it will take me at least another 2 years to complete this degree, and thats IF I take classes over the summer. I would apply right before my final semester, at which I could have raised my GPA to a 3.63. If I were to score 160-165 on my LSAT, my “end numbers” would be in the range nicely of the schools ranked #26-#50. But that wouldn’t take into account the fact that it would be obvious on my application I took 5 years to graduate, would that throw me down to the lower part of the #26-50 range? (or possibly even worse?)
The law path is a substantial investment of both time and money. I’d make sure you’re positive and talk to some lawyers before committing. Most I’ve spoken to will do their best to discourage it. Even more of them say up front that it’s not worth going to law school if you’re not going to the top 14 schools because job prospects aren’t great. The 5 years to graduate I would guess wouldn’t be too much of a deterrent since most schools just report the average numbers of scores and such from admitted students.
You can see which schools you would have a shot at by looking at their LSAT/GPA median markings. For most schools they care a lot about those two numbers. Until you have an LSAT and more finalized GPA its hard to know.
ASU Law School is considered #26 by USA News Week. Median LSAT : 163 Median GPA : 3.65. If you can get your GPA up and the projected LSAT score of 160 you would still be below their average applicant.
FSU law school is considered #50 by USA News Week. 158/3.52 is the median.
If you get your GPA up and a good LSAT then you would probably get into a 26-50 ranked school. But it’s a lot of debt to take on if you’re not positive it’s what you want to do.
Fizz; there are a lot of “ifs” in your post. As law schools are pretty open about majors, I’d recommend that you, for now, focus on your undergraduate work. As you’re at least two years from getting your degree, take the time to decide what your major will be-you usually can’t graduate without one-and do as well as possible in all your classes. A year from now you’ll have a much better sense of your GPA and will be able to make a more informed decision whether you still want to go to law school. If so, you’ll need to take the LSAT, which will require additional study. So I’d strongly recommend that your focus for at least the next year be your classwork; you can decide on graduate school later, as your grades will play a large role in what your options will be.
What are your reasons to consider law?
If making a lot of money is one of your reasons, don’t go. Median salary for lawyers is $115,000. This is not just a starting salary. Starting salaries are much lower.
Its not about money. Its more about prestige.
Since anyone can go to law school somewhere, and since most bar exams aren’t that hard, I don’t consider being a lawyer prestigious: anyone can do it. Medical school is a different story.
I wouldn’t decide your career based just off of prestige.