<p>Hello everyone. I am new to this law school forum, but I really want to get into Stanford Law School in 2 years. I am interested in studying corporate law, but I'm not sure how strong the program is at Stanford.
I need to start off by telling you some information that might make me look like a shaky candidate. I started off college at an OK Liberal Arts College, but had to go to community college for the past year because of financial problems.
I was recently admitted into Fordham University as a transfer student and am in the process of registering for Fall classes.
My cumulative GPA through 58 credits is a 3.75
I'm an English and History major and I'm looking forward to spending the next 2 years at Fordham working hard to graduate on time with the highest GPA possible. I also plan to intern at a law firm in NY next summer, if possible.</p>
<p>Here are some questions I have.</p>
<p>Will the fact that I'm going to graduate from Fordham for my undergraduate degree(s) hurt me when competing against applicants from Ivy League schools and like schools such as Stanford, Northwestern and Duke who have comparable/higher GPAs?</p>
<p>Will my year at community college hurt me? I should make it clear that I NEVER intended to go to community college. There was a financial complication that prevented me from returning to my first college and it was the only option.</p>
<p>Are GPA, LSAT score and experience in law really the determining factors for admission? Would my status as an ethnic minority help? (Hispanic American)</p>
<p>Do I have a chance right now, provided I do well on the LSAT or is it too early to tell?</p>
<p>In answer to your question about whether you will be hurt by where you are graduating from, I’m going to say No, but with conditions. Being from Fordham (which is still a great school btw!) will not put you at a disadvantage when you have a GPA like the one you have (and are aiming to presumably get). However, everything will hinge on your LSAT. As this is a standardized test, this will be how they compare you to the Stanford/Princeton undergrad. If you get a High GPA and High LSAT score, you will probably be in the clear. If you get a High GPA and low LSAT, this would probably be the worst situation as it would make it seem like your school is easy to get good grades in, but you are still a comparatively weaker student.</p>
<p>Anyways, take as many challenging courses as you can handle and nail the LSAT!</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I’d appreciate any other input other people here might have.
I’m planning to spend this summer preparing for the LSAT, even though I’ve got quite some time before I have to take it. I’m not nervous as much as I am curious about its content. I know the format and what types of questions may be on it, but I imagine the actual exam will be incredibly difficult and will take a lot of preparation.</p>
<p>a 3.75 GPA can get you into a T5 law school? I’m a freshman right now at UC - Berkeley and I’m about to end the year with a 3.73 but I was already starting to give up on a top law school.</p>
<p>3.75 probably won’t get you into Yale or Stanford, but with a 178+, you’ll have a solid chance at Harvard, and it’s a perfectly good GPA for any other school (including other “T5”) - median LSAT will make you competitive.</p>
<p>your status as a hispanic american is HUGE. stanford does seem to prefer elite undergrads though, and it is a fairly tough nut to crack since it is such a small law school. </p>
<p>nonetheless, check out the promising data for so-called “URM”:</p>
<p>Demoz, a 3.75 can get you into pretty much anywhere with the appropriate LSAT score except maybe yale and stanford. But keep a 3.75 and study A LOT for the LSAT and you could be in to Harvard, Columbia, or Chicago. So don’t worry about it just do your best.</p>
<p>Not all URMs receive the same treatment. I’d wager that a Mexican American or a Puerto Rican would still need something like a 172, and that any other type of Hispanic American would need a higher score yet.</p>
<p>To answer your question: Yes, undergrad will make a difference. Normally, the difference caused by undergraduate school is very marginal, but Yale, Stanford, and Boalt have a reputation of having the most holistic application process of any of the T14. These schools specifically tend to add more weight to undergraduate institution. </p>
<p>More important than the name or difficulty of the school, however, is relevant to my response to another statement you made: </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>First two: yes.
Experience in law: no. </p>
<p>Extra factors do not have to be experience in law, and in realty real work experience or things like TFA and PC would be in my opinion much preferred to things like shadowing a lawyer, being a secretary at a law firm, or even working as a paralegal. This applies to summer internships as well. </p>
<p>Other extra factors can be things such as first generation college student, fellowships, leadership positions in clubs in college, research, varsity/club athletics in college, and your case URM. URM tends to be one of the bigger ones, but when look at things like LSN be careful not to assume there exists an ambigousness between African American, Mexican American/Puerto Rican/and other Hispanics. BDM does a good job of pointing this out.</p>
<p>From what I’ve gathered, going to Fordham will cripple my hopes of getting into Stanford Law unless I can bring my GPA up to at least a 3.8+ (I’d guess I’ll probably need around a 3.85+) and can score a 172+ on the LSAT. OK, not bad. I think it’s attainable.</p>
<p>3.8/172 for a Mexican American with no stand-out soft factors from Fordham would, in my opinion, not have a great shot at Stanford. Then again, they always look for different things. </p>
<p>The above candidate would have a great shot at Harvard though, not to mention excellent chances at the rest of the T6. </p>
<p>Just wondering, why are you so set on Stanford?</p>
<p>actually, I’m a Puerto Rican American, not that it makes much of a difference. But speaking of ethnicity, I think I’m going to get a DNA test done, because I’m pretty sure, like most Puerto Ricans, I’m probably a mix of Caucasian Spaniard and Taino Indian, in which case, I’d be compelled to claim Native American ancestry as part of my race on my applications. (No I can’t prove lineage, but isn’t a DNA test proof enough? Besides, I’m sure very few people can prove lineage when they fill out their ethnic+racial information on college applications)
Hope it doesn’t sound like some pathetic attempt to make my URM status look more desirable to law schools.</p>
<p>The reason I want to go to Stanford is because, from everything I’ve read on the internet about law schools, I think Stanford is actually the best law school in the world. I’m determined on at least trying to get in before giving up all hope.</p>
<p>I feel like, if you have to get a DNA test to see if maybe you’re a certain type of ethnicity, you REALLY shouldn’t be able to use it for such an advantage.</p>
<p>What makes you think that? I wonder how people find out the comparative size of the benefit of being one under-represented minority over and another. Is it guesswork, or just lying?</p>
<p>I’ve never been able to figure out exactly what happens to Native Americans in the law school scene. The rumor is that they get boosts nearly (or more than?) equivalent to African Americans, but I’ve never seen any data.</p>
<p>I can’t put a finger on it, but for some reason I feel like I’ve seen similar analysis that BDM posted for AA’s for American Indians being in the 2-4 range of LSAT points. </p>
<p>This is just speculation, but since the study shows that Native Americans don’t score that much lower on average on the LSAT, what would you feel the reasoning is behind their equivalent boost in law school admissions to African Americans? Just the simple fact that the make such a smaller proportion of the population?</p>
<p>You know, I’m not sure. It might be that. It might be that because the standards are higher for what it means to be Native American – you need tribal membership, apparently? – that law schools really are willing to give the cultural considerations even more weight.</p>
<p>… or something. I’m by no means confident about what I’ve read on the subject.</p>
<p>Montauk, who is probably the more reliable source, says it’s 3-5 points. Less than Hispanics. I’m inclined to believe him rather than Internet gossip mills, probably.</p>