Given my current AP/Community College credits, I will possibly be able to graduate in two years instead of four. My end goal is law school (top 10 preferable, but I am realistic); what should I do in the meantime to maximize my chances? (I am an EECS major.)
Apply directly to law school. (I heard this is a bad idea, regardless of LSAT and GPA, since apps are open in fall, so to them I'll only have 1 to 1.5 years of grades.)
Double major and get a second bachelor's, then apply to law school in my 4th year.
Apply to graduate school and get a master's, then apply to law school when I am done.
Spend 1-2 years gaining work experience, and apply in my 4th year.
If I am going to apply early (choice #1) I will also apply to grad schools just to be safe. I am just wondering if there is even the slightest chance for me, and if I should even bother.
Your grad school gpa will not be factored into your LSAC goa. It is not a safe proposition to go to grad school with the hope that it is going to help you get into law school. Having a grad degree will help you bet little in his process. It will be s big challenge to get into any law school with only one year of college where you will be competing against people with stronger academic records.
If you know that you want to attend law school invest some time as law school is not going anywhere
Your GPA, for law school purposes, stops the moment you have your first Bachelor's degree. Any college-level classes (including those community college classes but not the AP) taken up to that point are counted. Any others are not.
Of the four plans, the fourth is clearly the best. Employers love work experience, and some law schools do too (specifically, Northwestern). Plus, money earned is money not borrowed. The first puts you into the job market a little young. That can count against you with legal employers.
On what basis do you think law is the right path for you? Do you have first-hand experience from interning in a law office?
EECS is one of the most rigorous majors at any college. For LS, you need A’s, and lots of them.
I’d ease into your four-year school by taking a minimum load first semester and see how you do. Then, if you find something else you like, you can consider graduating early or a double major. The second major won’t matter to adcoms, but hopefully it means that you have more chances to earn A’s and boost the GPA.
I saw on another thread that your SAT scores are 2350. You are clearly a good standardized test taker, and will likely get a high LSAT score. With a high LSAT score, plenty of law schools will accept you. But if you want to get into the very top law schools and you want to get scholarship money from them, getting work experience before applying is your best bet. If you are considering patent law, getting some engineering work experience will make you much more marketable once you have the law degree.
While working as an engineer before attending law school, you can take the patent bar and become a patent agent. Being a patent agent would help you get better summer internships while a law student, which also helps you find permanent post-JD employment. Preparing for the patent bar will also give you some exposure to help determine if you would actually be interested in that kind of work.