Should I just give up???

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Notre Dame
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D is a sophomore at Notre Dame. One option to consider is attending Holy Cross college which I believe has a program whereby some students can be admitted to ND as juniors after attending Holy Cross for 2 years. Midwestmomofboys advice is right on the money. D’s plans are to attend law school after ND as well but she is not considering ND’s Law School at this point. Look at law school admission trends over the past decade and you will find very sharp drops in enrollment at lower tier law schools of 30% or more. There has been a corresponding drop in jobs in the legal profession. So, if you want to go to law school you had better go to a highly rated law school which means you need a strong undergraduate GPA and a high LSAT score. D is thinking a 3.85 or higher GPA and a 170+ LSAT score will be necessary

Consider this at you think about what colleges you can get admitted to and ultimately attend. You have been a successful high school student and, unless you went to a private school, where you attended high school was dictated by where you live. You might not attend the best high school in your state or city but despite this you have been successful in high school. The same is true in college - yes ND and other colleges are prestigious and the name might mean something to some people in a job interview but what really matter is what you do when you get to college not where you go

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@Wje9164be One needs to be accepted by ND into the Gateway Program with Holy Cross. Admission is very competitive with only 30-40 students/year begin invited to the program.

If the OP is female, perhaps consider St. Mary’s College.

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There are other programs from a few other schools like 3+2 programs where you graduate with a degree in science from one school then a degree in engineering from notre dame, which may be worth looking into.
http://admissions.nd.edu/information-for/transfer-students/dual-degree-programs-with-partner-schools/

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Check out this article about transferring to Notre Dame:http://magazine.nd.edu/news/18906-transfer-mation-what-its-like-to-transfer-to-notre-dame/

“Students apply from schools all over the country, but Camilleri sees applicants from about 10 institutions on a regular basis: from Indiana University, Purdue, Boston College, Marquette, Loyola University Chicago and Villanova to Holy Cross and Saint Mary’s colleges across the road.”

If you want a big school with great sports, and a little less competitive admission: University of Pittsburgh and Penn State come to mind.