<p>I am currently a high school senior with aspirations of practicing law. My ambitious side is hoping to attend a T10 law program; but more importantly set myself up to be a great lawyer. </p>
<p>I've read that law school admission is basically 95% GPA+LSAT. Does this mean it would be a better choice to attend a good university that has a reputation for higher GPA's, rather than a tougher school in which I may not do as well?</p>
<p>This also brings into question how much impact the "name" or prestige of a University has on law school applications. Would law schools rather take a 3.9 student from a top 100 undergraduate program, or a 3.5 from a top 20?</p>
<p>If law school admission is really 95% GPA+LSAT, what comprises the remaining 5%? Extra-circulars? First generation applicants? Minority status? Legacy? Essays? </p>
<p>From what I've read, there is no general consensus on the best undergraduate major for aspiring law students. However, many people dissuade going pre-law; quite ironic. Would a major in Philosophy, Politics, and Law be a beneficial choice for LSAT prep? Or should my major be solely based on my strengths, so I can pull off a higher GPA?</p>
<p>Lastly, my plan after law school is to hopefully get a job in New York City. How much, if at all, would becoming fluent in Spanish increase my chance of getting into law school and / or obtaining a job?</p>
<p>Thanks for taking the time to read and hopefully answer some of my questions, and since every question answered will more than likely lead to 10 new ones, check back!</p>
<p>Higher GPA trumps university name for law school admissions. A 3.9 in basketweaving from backwater U. is more likely to be admitted, assuming same LSAT, as a 3.5 in electrical engineering from MIT. HOWEVER, this is true only for law school admission. For the far more important obtaining a job, your undergrad name and major are going to play a role. </p>
<p>As to major, it depends on whether you want to do IP work. If you do, you need that science undergrad. If you don’t, then it doesn’t much matter. PoliSci is popular; I was philosophy. If you want corporate work something finance related couldn’t hurt. If you want tax they’ll probably be pleased to see some accounting work. There isn’t any one major that gives you LSAT prep, but physics and philosophy majors do the best on average. The best LSAT prep is actual LSAT prep, not your undergrad major. I would not pick a major based on their average LSAT scores. </p>
<p>The Spanish fluency would definitely help in certain fields, though there’s a substantial gap between conversational fluency and legal fluency, especially in Spanish.</p>
<p>Edit: I should add, this is assuming you want BigLaw. If you are interested in DA/PD work, I imagine Spanish fluency would help a lot, though I don’t have any personal experience so you should check around.</p>
<p>After doing some prowling online, I really like the idea of studying philosophy in college. I’m also extremely interested in sociology / psychology(more-so the former); so perhaps a mix major of Philosophy/Sociology would be a perfect fit. </p>
<p>How did you like taking philosophy in college? What did you learn / would you do it over again? </p>
<p>Also, I know it’s early to start studying for the LSAT, but what do you think I should start doing to prepare? (i.e. reading the newspaper)</p>
<p>You’re a senior, don’t worry so much about being sure of your major going in. Everyone I know switched majors at least once. I switched twice. In terms of law school it doesn’t matter terribly much outside the ones I listed, so take what you like. </p>
<p>What you should do now to prepare for the LSAT is stop worrying about the LSAT. In a few years you can worry about it. Until then, just keep that GPA up. Oh, and spend your summers building up a couple of softs worth talking about.</p>
<p>I agree, and I’m not going to worry about the LSAT yet, but it can’t hurt to have an idea for my major beforehand! Since you majored in philosophy, do you remember any really good books or anything that could test my interest in the subject?</p>
<p>On a side note, would I be able to include a law internship I had in the summer after 10th grade in my LS application?</p>
<p>What would some good softs be that helped you / would have been good to do in retrospect?(Not only for LS, but practicing law) and are there any specific softs that a LS would respect more?</p>
<p>Lastly, I’m going into college with around 40 credits; leaving the door open to easily graduate in three years. Tuition and living expenses will definitely be a factor, but my parents think I should stick to the four year plan and take fewer credits per semester. Personally, I think it’s smarter to follow that route as well and hopefully hold a 4.0 in the process, but half of the schools I applied to were 50k+ a year; a huge burden which would be completely avoidable. Advice?</p>
<p>The best way to test your interest is to take one of the entry level survey courses your school will undoubtedly offer. You should do that for a number of things. I’m sure the college specific parts of the site will have better information than I have though. I know a good bit about law school, much less so about colleges. </p>
<p>You can include your 10th grade internship but honestly no one will care. Law school admissions are about GPA and LSAT. Unless you won a death row appeal in 10th grade, it isn’t likely to have any effect on your admission. By the time you graduate you’ll hopefully have plenty of other things pushing 10th grade off the resume. </p>
<p>As to debt, I recommend avoiding it, as a rule. I went to a state school with scholarships and came out with no debt from undergrad. I can’t imagine what it would look like to have 200k in undergrad plus the 200k debt you’ll face from law school.</p>
<p>Law school admissions for non-URMs is 75% LSAT score & 25% cumulative (LSDAS) GPA. Quality of undergraduate school rarely is a factor. Softs are not important unless you’re waitlisted, typically.
Spanish proficiency is important for prosecutors & criminal defense & immigration attorneys. And it often means the difference between a job offer & no job offer.</p>
<p>OP: Your thread title “Setting Myself Up Early” is a bit of a misnomer as your URM status & LSAT score will drive your law school choices. Just enjoy college & work hard for good grades.</p>
<p>@Demo, thanks for the information, I was previously ignorant of the entry level survey courses you mentioned. Philosophy continues to become more and more appealing to me; my only worry being an over 10% unemployment rate for philosophy majors after college. Of course, that would only affect me if my LS plans go astray. </p>
<p>@Axelrod, Did you get the 75%/25% from a specific school, or is that an estimate? Also, how do you feel about a philosophy major?</p>