<p>@Chelz</p>
<p>I might just glue it to my forehead. 10-year reunion? HI I’M JUSTINE DID YOU KNOW I WENT TO UNIVERSITY, BECAUSE I DID
haha. IDEALLY, I’d like to go to either Cal or UCLA. there are major pros and cons for both schools, so at this point what matters the most is which one accepts me! where are you hoping to go? UCLA?</p>
<p>Thanks soooo much for posting all this info. UCLA is the only school I’ve applied to as Phil major; however will be taking the exact same route as you education wise.</p>
<p>I love philosophy, however was very worried of ability to find a job during that gray period between undergrad and law school. Did you seem to see alot of your peers finding jobs just as easily as you did?</p>
<p>Also, while in UCLA do you feel as if there were any other majors that were more suited towards the LSAT, and eventually law school?</p>
<p>@LAforlife</p>
<p>"lol ok. Did you like Philosophy? I listed it as my alternate major (History is my 1st choice), I have TAP. I loved the Philosophy course I took last year, but I found it to be bit difficult as well. My term paper for that class might have been the hardest thing I’ve ever written. "</p>
<p>I think I answered this already. It won’t be hard switching to another major regardless of what you apply with, so long the major you’re switching into isn’t impacted. </p>
<p>@Chelz</p>
<p>You got it. </p>
<p>@ThePavin</p>
<p>"Did you seem to see alot of your peers finding jobs just as easily as you did? Also, while in UCLA do you feel as if there were any other majors that were more suited towards the LSAT, and eventually law school? "</p>
<ul>
<li><p>‘A lot’ is two words. </p></li>
<li><p>I think I’m better at interviewing than most people. I mean, my peers are exactly the people I beat out to get my jobs. That said, if you want a job and you look good on paper, you’ll land interviews. (I’ll PM you my thoughts on interviewing.)</p></li>
<li><p>About the LSAT: I don’t think that what you studied in college correlates to your performance as much as conventional wisdom lets on… In fact, the people I know directly who scored the best (I was in the pre-law frat on campus… I know many…), none studied phil. I think it has the most to do with the following: your natural aptitude, how long you study for, how often you read (generally), whether you’re good at studying (read: whether you ‘actually’ study), whether you’re good at taking this sort of test (the time constraint is nuts), and, lastly, where you take the test (noisy, small tables, bad proctors, etc, can all weigh heavily). IMO, your particular major is subsidiary to each of those factors, and probably more. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>That said, take a look at these links:</p>
<p>1) [Brian</a> Leiter’s Law School Reports: Which Undergrad Majors Do Best on the LSAT?](<a href=“Brian Leiter's Law School Reports”>Brian Leiter's Law School Reports)</p>
<p>2) [Average</a> LSAT Scores for 29 Majors with over 400 Students Taking the Exam](<a href=“http://www.uic.edu/cba/cba-depts/economics/undergrad/table.htm]Average”>Business | University of Illinois Chicago)</p>
<p>For your law school / LSAT prep questions:</p>
<p>3) [Welcome</a> to LawSchoolNumbers.com | Law School Numbers](<a href=“http://www.lawschoolnumbers.com%5DWelcome”>http://www.lawschoolnumbers.com)</p>
<p>4) [Top</a> Law Schools](<a href=“http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/index.php]Top”>Top Law Schools - Index page) </p>
<p>Good luck and remember that for trying to break into top law schools, besides the LSAT and unless you’ve come up with the cure for cancer or something, grades are the single most important thing in your undergraduate life.</p>
<p>^Question, not about UCLA but just about Law School…I’ve been considering it heavily…even though I’m a Bio. major. I heard somewhere (don’t remember where) that law schools take A+'s into account for admission purposes…is this true to any extent that you know of?</p>
<p>@oceanpartier </p>
<p>Yes, it’s true.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>[LSAC</a> - JD: Frequently Asked Questions - Credential Assembly Service (CAS)](<a href=“http://www.lsac.org/JD/Help/faqs-cas.asp#gpa-different]LSAC”>http://www.lsac.org/JD/Help/faqs-cas.asp#gpa-different)</p></li>
<li><p>[LSAC</a> - Policies: Policies Related to Transcript Summarization](<a href=“http://www.lsac.org/policies/transcript-summarization.asp]LSAC”>http://www.lsac.org/policies/transcript-summarization.asp)</p></li>
</ul>
<p>@pinkerfloyd</p>
<p>What do you think are some the most underrated aspects of UCLA. It obviously has a great reputation, location, and sport scene. But beyond those things, what did you appreciate most about it?</p>
<p>^^Alright thanks…there’s a little hope after all lol</p>
<p>@LAforlife</p>
<p>“What do you think are some the most underrated aspects of UCLA. It obviously has a great reputation, location, and sport scene. But beyond those things, what did you appreciate most about it?”</p>
<p>I don’t know who told you about the current state of UCLA sports, but you’ve been sadly misinformed.</p>
<p>Beyond those things, I dunno… I mean, I love LA. If I have my way, I’ll end up working and living in this city after all is said and done. That’s for I think obvious reasons. Great beaches, great weather, great music scenes, great motorcycle riding, great women, great culture (must be sought out), etc., et al, ad infinitum. Mostly anything you’d want from a city can be found in LA. </p>
<p>About UCLA specifically… I guess the campus events were a big thing for me. I went out of my way pretty often to take advantage of that sort of thing. Performances at Royce, guest lectures, student showcases, panel discussions, workshops, etc. There is consistently a ton of stuff to be done on campus ([UCLA</a> Happenings - All Events](<a href=“http://www.happenings.ucla.edu%5DUCLA”>http://www.happenings.ucla.edu)), and I really enjoyed it. Also, the acts that come to Royce are usually pretty impressive and you only ever pay $15 for a ticket as a student… </p>
<p>As terrible as the sports have been the past few years, I really loved going to basketball games. Student section is dope and unless you empty you wallet, you won’t get another opportunity to sit that close for a LONG time. I also liked when I’d happen upon a tennis match on my way home from class (I play(ed) tennis). </p>
<p>The campus is gorgeous and safe. I’d take walks late at night with girls I was trying to woo and stuff. It’s pretty great being able to do that. </p>
<p>The hills are also great if you happen to skateboard. When I lived on campus, I’d skate down Charles E Young to get to class each morning… can’t think of a better way to start a day. </p>
<p>The women are mostly gorgeous and in good plenty. </p>
<p>My professors and TAs, with very few exceptions, were really kind, knowledgeable and accommodating. Not the story I heard from friends at UCSB and SD. </p>
<p>Really, though. Great time here, but, as with anything else, it is what you make of it.</p>
<p>When you say that they heavily take into consider GPA; would they for example consider a 3.75 from an easy major better than a 3.5 from a more difficult one?</p>
<p>Also I’m not surprised that UCLA was difficult however from my cousins and other people who went to UCLA (mostly science majors). They spoke very lowly of philosophy majors saying they had it very easy etc. Are the sciences just that much more competitive and philosophy still considered fairly difficult on the totem pole in the liberal arts/humanities area?</p>
<p>@ThePavin</p>
<p>South campus people tend to think they’ve got it harder than North campus-ers. They’ve certainly got more work, but if most of them were asked to do actual philosophy (and not just what they think philosophy is), the grades would probably be distributed just as they are among philosophy majors. I’d consider phil among the harder liberal arts for two reasons: 1) the people grading your papers are probably a bit more arrogant than in other departments; and 2) the material, being so conceptual and with use of such strictly (or I guess sometimes ambiguously) defined language, is objectively more difficult to really ‘get’. Bottom line, anyone with half a brain making an earnest attempt can get a B, but there are no easy A’s / A-'s. Realtalk. Sciences are more competitive… there’s a curve, and everyone wants to be to the left of it, so I believe it when they say it’s cut throat. Especially given that everyone’s pre-med and how competitive med schools are. Still, **** your cousins. </p>
<p>Re law schools and GPA: The thing about law schools is that rankings really matter… Both in how employers look at you and how you look at schools. Better students will do better work and reflect better upon the school they come from. The best students (obviously) want to end up at the best schools. The higher the rank the tangibly better the school. US News ranks are the only ones that matter. Their methodology takes “many things into account,” but among the heavier factors are the GPA and average LSAT scores of incoming students. So, schools that can boast higher averages for their incoming classes will do better in the rankings → will attract better students who will reflect better upon the school and take jobs at better law firms → prestige prestige prestige. Point: there’s a direct incentive to let the guy in with the higher GPA from the easier major because he/she boosts your combined average more than the other guy. </p>
<p>With law school, think of it like this: 45% GPA, 45% LSAT, 10% everything else (what you studied, where you studied, extra curriculars, work experience, etc). </p>
<p>Some schools love 2 years work experience and allow that to compensate for lower than average LSAT / GPA (specifically Northwestern, Michigan and Virginia). </p>
<p>Also, schools like to (or say they like to) diversify their classes. So let’s say everyone else studied liberal arts and 50% are getting in with 3.7/171. You studied physics and and got a 3.5/170. Based on what I’ve seen at law school numbers and among the people I know, I’d say you’re in pretty good shape. </p>
<p>However, World Arts and Cultures (WAC) is arguably the easiest major at UCLA. Again, based on what I know / have observed, the WAC guy with a 3.7 / 170 is better off than the phil/ poli/sci / econ / history / whatever with a 3.6/170. Not every time, but most of the time… If you’re looking for exceptions, you’ll find them.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Hey, I applied for philosophy at UCLA. :)</p>
<p>I totally get you on reason 2. One of my professors has us reading Heidegger right now, and that guy should come with a warning label and a supplemental dictionary. </p>
<p>Anyway, did you make any philosophy buddies at UCLA? I have a few over here in my community college, but most of them are hella strange and I can’t imagine talking to them outside of class, let alone partying or having dinner with them.</p>
<p>This BruinView thing, a student would start looking for jobs in their last quarter? You mentioned you’re going to law school. Do you figure there are decent resources in the career center for philosophy students not interested in law school? I don’t mind having to apply to all of them just to land some interviews. As long as the opportunities are there, I know I can land something. That’s why one of the most important factors for me is the quality of the school’s career center.</p>
<p>By the way, if you’re PMing your take on interviews, I’ll take one if you don’t mind.</p>
<p>@Salmos</p>
<p>Yeah. Heidegger. What a dick. Wait till your phil of language class(es). It gets worse… you’ll see. </p>
<p>I made a few friends through phil. The major attracts a bunch of weirdos… you know the type. You’d think that they’d have been filtered out by then, but you’d be wrong. It sometimes gets difficult in class, and especially in section, when their ■■■■■■■■ questions take over, but it’s not SO bad… I’ve had professors and TAs say things like, “No. I’m sorry. You’re missing the point. We’re moving on now.” Multiple times… However, there are some cool, normal people in the bunch. If you’re one of them, you’ll find them. </p>
<p>BruinView: I’m not sure what you’re asking… You look for a job when you feel like working… I would recommend trying to secure some sort of internship early on, though - ideally one in a field you’re interested in working in. Consulting, PR, copy writing, grant writing, etc… There are plenty of opportunities available… I personally never set foot in the career center, but I heard good things about it from the people I know who went. Seriously, if you want to do something and you work toward it, at worst, you’ll settle for something similar. There are a TON of opportunities available… Don’t trip.</p>
<p>I don’t have any questions yet; just stopping by to let you know it’s “et al.,” with a period; ya dig?</p>
<p>I appreciate all your responses, too. I’m a hopeful Philosophy applicant.</p>