<p>I'm in the process of finalizing my list of schools to apply for transfer as a junior (UG), and want to give myself the best shot possible at gaining acceptance to a T14 law school. My stepfather graduated from Virginia Law ('97), so I'm not completely ignorant to the process, but maybe some more opinions would help. I'm aware that going to an Ivy or even T25 UG is by no means neccessary, but just how important is it? As of now, I plan on applying to U. of Washington, USC, NYU, UVa, Vanderbilt, possibly Georgetown, and UPenn (College of General Studies). Would the more presitgous of these schools give me any distinct advantage over U. of Washington? (I'm in-state there...cheap and all but gauranteed admission)</p>
<p>Thanks for any advice.</p>
<p>If you graduate with a great GPA and get a great LSAT score, you are fine at U of Washington - save the money for law school.</p>
<p>1.) General wisdom is that your undergrad program matters extremely little.</p>
<p>2.) With that said, I do think there are nuances that some types of high-powered (or at least small) schools tend to help with. I can send an essay to my prelaw advisor and have a revision back in my inbox within twelve hours. He writes handwritten notes to every law school I'm applying to, a habit he's had now for years.</p>
<p>And I'm two years out and halfway across the country.</p>
<p>Do those sorts of things matter? You'd have to imagine that at least they matter some. It's not the name-power of the school, however. It's the other things they do.</p>
<p>3.) I claim no expertise in undergrad admissions and have not consulted USN. But in my head -- that is, including my regional (West Coast) and field (health professions) bias -- name recognition for UW is actually higher than USC or NYU and about the same as Georgetown.</p>
<p>Not that it matters.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input guys. I've actually been leaning towards UW lately, as it is a T50 school and anything else probably isn't worth the extra money. Although I think I'd still go to Virginia if I got in, just b/c I really like the place and it might help me when applying to law school there. How do you guys feel about geographic advantage playing into law school admissions? Is there such a thing?</p>
<p>No. It's not like you're deciding between princeton and arizona state. All those schools are close enough that neither will give you a bump in LS admissions....</p>
<p>speaking of UVA you said..... "it might help me when applying to law school there"</p>
<p>It will not help....your better off doing well where you are....</p>
<p>Why do you say that?</p>
<p>Just stay in washington? I mean, you're a legacy so you will get a bump in that respect and uva ug won't offer you any advantage that u-wash undergan does....plus you get cheap tuition. I mean, you're probably gonna be around 100k in debt at the end of law school....why rack it up during UG also?</p>
<p>All good points. Truth is I'll probably end up staying here for those reasons. I guess the thing is, I'm originally from the east coast and am itching to get back to that side of the country. That's really what it boils down to. I'm also 24 now, so I'm eligible for just about any need-based aid that's available...could end up getting a generous fin. aid package. These are the only reasons I'm considering alternatives to UW. </p>
<p>Without considering cost (purely hypothetical), do you think I'd be at any disadvantage by attending UVa? Maybe tougher academics, consequently lowering my GPA? What about a school like Syracuse? Do you think a 4.0 from there would be just as impressive as a 4.0 from UW or UVa?</p>
<p>Anyways, thanks for the advice</p>