<p>Canadian law schools each have their own system for evaluating applicants. Some use an index formula, some use best three years gpa, some best two, some last two. You’d have to, for Ontario schools, convert your gpa, course by course, using the OLSAS formula. Each school’s website will provide you with the most recent medians for their 1L class. For instance, U of T, arguably the top law school in Canada (as well as the most expensive at ~$25,000/yr), cites its medians at 168 and 3.8. It’s the most selective Canadian law school.</p>
<p>I believe that UBC uses its own index formula where you can plug in your numbers and see if you’re competitive. McGill has its own requirements, including that you be passively bilingual. You will be required to be able to read cases in French in some classes and thus must be at a certain level of proficiency in the French language. If this can’t be established by your application materials (transcripts, etc.), you will be required to submit to an interview in French before the admissions decision is made. McGill’s program is longer because you also student the Civil Law component which is used in the province of Quebec. This can affect the traditional timeline of OCIs, summer work, and articling when compared to the rest of the country.</p>
<p>Osgoode is an excellent school and, after U of T, has the highest number of students who are successful with OCI placements. It’s a large law school, with excellent profs and a great reputation in the legal community. The one negative, one with which you’ll already be familiar as a York grad, is the location of the campus.</p>
<p>I would recommend having a look at lawstudents dot ca for good information on Canadian law schools. Pay particular attention to the U.S. and Foreign Schools forum there for excellent advice on the positives of remaining in Canada for law school. Attending a U.S. law school if you want to practice in Canada makes little to no sense these days, and the chances of getting a U.S. job are very slim. You’re going to need to score quite a bit higher than 165 to have a chance of admission to the U.S. schools on your list above, as well as at U of T.</p>
<p>Are you applying this fall? If you haven’t yet written the LSAT, you are late for optimal U.S. admissions. Going complete prior to the release of the October scores is what applicants should be aiming for and that can’t happen if you haven’t take the test yet. This isn’t to say that it’s impossible but it makes it more difficult. Do you have your LORs lined up? You’ll also likely need a Dean’s certification, which can take some time.</p>
<p>My advice, if you haven’t already done so is to spend some time on each law school’s website, the OUAC site, the OLSAS site, and law students dot ca. A wealth of information awaits you. Lastly, I’ll say that you are better off focussing on Canadian law schools, all of which are good. The same cannot be said of U.S. schools. The legal world is in turmoil there and the chances of a good job are slim. In Canada, you will not face those issues. The governing bodies in Canada are very careful about allowing the opening of new law schools, those in the U.S. could learn something. There is a new school opening in B.C. this fall and it’s the first new law school in Canada in over 40 years. Good luck to you!</p>