<p>Though I am currently a freshman at George Washington University (where I am in the top 1% with a 3.94-3.97 GPA) I may transfer to Georgetown (not SFS) or Columbia next year. </p>
<p>Insofar as applying to "T14" law schools is concerned, would I be better off with a slightly higher GPA at my current school or a slightly lower GPA at one of those? </p>
<p>Obviously, the best situation would be to perform equally at my new school, but assuming my GPA will go down a little bit (like, a 3.8 or something), would the transfer help or hurt? In other words, would the boost in prestige overcome a potentially small drop in GPA? </p>
<p>Thanks for the input.</p>
<p>It depends on the drop in GPA. There's a huge difference between a 3.94-3.97, which is the 75th percentile at Yale Law, and a 3.8, which may be below median at a few of the top schools. This is not a slight drop, even though the absolute difference is small.</p>
<p>so a 3.9+ is basically expected from all T14 schools, regardless of undergraduate school?</p>
<p>Some T14s care a lot about GPA (Boalt and HYS), while the rest will generally be happy to take you if your LSAT is within their range and your GPA isn't a complete disaster. I'd say try not to fall below 3.5 if a T14 is your goal.</p>
<p>In terms of undergraduate prestige, there's a lot of debate about it. Based on the information and stats I've seen, I don't think the prestige of your undergraduate matters much unless you go to HYPS. Students from those schools applying to T14s can usually get in with lower than average GPAs and LSATs, though below the 'holy trinity' (plus Stanford), the differences in law school placement is arbitrary. </p>
<p>Thus, I would say only transfer if you feel you would personally benefit from the change of environment. Georgetown and Columbia will open doors for you during your summers, but will not lessen the importance of your GPA. You're on a good track, and it sounds like you'll be T14 bound either way.</p>
<p>All the T14 schools have median GPAs around 3.7, except for Berkeley at 3.8 and Yale/Harvard/Stanford at around 3.9, so I would try to stay above a 3.7. A 3.8 would put you at the 75th percentile for most of the T14. Of course, you'd need to have an LSAT in their range as well (at least high 160s).</p>
<p>I don't think there would be much consideration for Georgetown vs GWU. It's only at the very top schools like HYPS where students will get a boost from their undergrad prestige.</p>
<p>"so a 3.9+ is basically expected from all T14 schools, regardless of undergraduate school?"</p>
<p>HELL no. A 3.9+ is well above the 75th percentile for every school except HYS. People get into top 14 with 3.3s all the time.</p>
<p>
[quote]
People get into top 14 with 3.3s all the time.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Maybe with 173+ LSAT scores.</p>