<p>Hey everyone, sorry if this is the wrong place to post this question, i wasn't sure if the 'what are my chances' forum covered this. Here's what i hope to be my resume when i apply to law school.</p>
<p>Attended West Virginia University first two years (3.6 GPA)
Attended University of Florida three years (4.0 GPA) (doing a double major)
-bachelors in political science
-bachelors in international relations
-professional writing certificate from WVU
-hope to be a teachers assistant for my junior and senior years </p>
<p>after this i plan on either teaching political science in public high school, or going to work for a NGO for at least a year or two</p>
<p>after this, or possibly at the same time I would go to graduate school to get a masters degree in political science (hopefully at a top 20 school) where i will earn a 4.0 GPA</p>
<p>Hopefully during this entire time I will study my butt of for the LSAT and hopefully get 170 or higher</p>
<p>Do you guys think I would stand a good chance of getting into any of the top tier law schools in the country? My dream is to go to Harvard (where my father went) but that is more often than not a dream. Regardless what do you all think would be my chances of getting into one of these top elite law schools given my plan of action?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for any help
*remember this is all hypothetical so feel free to critique my plan of action</p>
<p>After all this what do you all think would be my chanc</p>
<p>I don't mean to be mean, but hypotheticals don't cut it. It's more than a bit arrogant to assume you can get 4.0 --especially when you've never done it-- and a 170 LSAT score. Do it and come back. Right now, you have a 3.6 gpa. That doesn't kill your chances--you've got time to get your gpa up--but it doesn't help. </p>
<p>However, viewed as a game plan, this isn't a good one. Law schools don't care about double majors--especially when they are in two very similar fields-- or certifications. They don't care much more about master's degrees in poli sci. If you really want to go to law school, don't bother getting one. </p>
<p>You need to understand that the 25/75% ranges for law school gpa's (which count heavily in law school rankings) are based SOLELY on undergrad GPA. Assuming that you do pull off a 4.0 in a master's program, it won't change the gpa the law schools which admit you have to report for you. So, getting a 4.0 in a master's program doesn't count for much. </p>
<p>Your other post says you are a Hispanic male. That will help. Working for a NGO for a few years will help too. Last I knew, Harvard Law did NOT ask about legacy status on its application. Maybe it will by the time you actually apply.</p>
<p>NOBODY can chance you right now. You need real grades and a real LSAT.</p>
<p>Thanks very much for the timely responses guys. Jonri, i have two questions for you, regardless of my (hypothetical) masters GPA, will the fact that i have a masters help me? Also i was thinking about doing teach for america as my work experience, what are your thoughts on that? Finally do you think that the fact that I went to (or go to) a sub-par university for the first two years will hurt my chances? I plan on transferring to the University of Florida at the conclusion of this year (which I think i stand a good chance of). Do you think WVU will hold me back, or will the fact that I did well here, and hopefully get a 4.0 at a very acredited institution (UF) will balance that out?</p>
<p>I want to practice law, that i am sure of. Political science, more specifically law, is one of the most interesting subjects to study. History is great because it tells us stories of the past, but political science is special because it deals with how we govern ourselves now. I think law is an especially attractive field because effective law is the hallmark of a sucesfull society and, i wont kid myself, the monetary aspects of the profession are very appealing. As far as Harvard goes, any aspiring lawyer would like to go there, and while i feel the same way (Harvard is considered one of the best schools for a reason) i have another motivation for trying to go there. It has always been my dream to carry on my fathers legacy of going to that school. It is the best school in the country, and it is my dream, above all else, to take my dad out for a drink and show him my acceptance letter. This may be childish, or immature, and god knows he has told me to go to school where i want, to live for myself and not for others, but for a man who has had such an impact on my life, my dream is to give him something to be proud of, and though it may not be his goal, Harvard is mine. </p>
<p>Anyways MSU dad, thanks for the response, and could you possibly give me any insight into my second post?</p>
<p>There have been many debates on this forum about whether getting a master's helps. IMO, it doesn't help at all, especially when it's in something as garden variety as poli sci. The exception is if you manage to get both a bachelor's and a master's simultaneously within 4 years. </p>
<p>Many people see the number of people who go to law school who do have master's degrees and think that it helps. But a LOT of those people are people who went to grad school in top Ph.D. programs and dropped out of them with master's degrees, who had the undergrad gpa in the first place. (In other words, if someone is in the Ph.D. program in philosophy at Princeton, I'm going to take a wild guess that he had good undergrad grades.) For example, I know someone who was first in his class at a college in the AWS group who then went to a top Ph.D. program. He found he wasn't cut out for the academic life, so he quit with a master's and went to law school. I think, given the same LSAT score, he would have gotten into a top law school without a master's. Other folks with master's are those who studied abroad as Rhodes, Marshall, Fullbright, Gates, yada, yada fellowships. </p>
<p>TFA is very good experience. A few law schools even have special scholarships for TFA types. (I believe UChicago does, but check that.) </p>
<p>I don't think WVU will "hold you back." On the flip side, I don't think U of Florida will help you all that much.</p>
<p>I'm not an expert--and don't pretend to be. So, you might want to have a chat with your pre-law adviser.</p>
<p>You can make more money selling cars than in law, so don't do it for the money.</p>
<p>What makes you say Harvard is "best"?</p>
<p>What is your reason for thinking that Univ of Florida is superior to WVU? </p>
<p>The study of political science and the practice of law bear next-to-nothing in common.</p>
<p>Do you know what a lawyer does every day, and is that what you want to do? Perhaps you should volunteer at a law office for a few weeks to check it out.</p>