I just got into Alabama on a full ride scholarship, and I am very much looking at that as one of my top choices for school. I’ve fallen in love with the campus, the culture, and the people. My family members that work in such places as the NIH have told me that what truly matters is the grad school, and so I should go to Alabama and get my amazing college experience while I can. The only thing that’s holding me back right now, is the fact that I want to get into a top law school. I intend on going to a state school for undergrad to save as much money as possible, as I don’t believe I will get into my prestigious reach schools or even be able to afford them. I saw on the UA site that they claim their grads get into top schools like Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Vanderbilt, etc. but they do not give any numbers or stats–these could very well be strange cases, although I doubt they are. It is very important to me to get into a top law school, though, so I suppose my question is–how often do UA grads get into top law schools? Can I justify going to a “lower-ranked” (although not really) school by getting into a great law school? Are there any numbers or personal experiences to validate this?
Thank you for appeasing my fears and answering my questions in advance :).
The top 14 ranked by USNWR are the considered the most prestigious. Alabama is outside this tier, and it is worth the big bucks to attend a higher ranked law school if attended. Attending a higher ranked law school affords better opportunities. Law is very prestige-centric. I’m not familiar with law school admissions though.
I’m not sure how UA is perceived regionally in law. Probably pretty well.
@Longsx3 's DD just went thru the law school app process and is now in law school. She was accepted to several big name law schools, but I don’t remember the list…all with merit offers.
@momreads 's son is at UVA Law with a full tuition scholarship.
What will matter for law school admissions will be your LSAT score and your undergrad GPA, in that order. Law school admissions are very numbers driven. If your LSAT score is high, top tier law schools don’t care where you went to college. Get good grades at Bama and a high LSAT score, and you should have no trouble being admitted to top 20 law schools like UVA and Emory, for example. Get an exceptional LSAT score and Harvard or Yale will be glad to take you.
My son is at UVA Law. He is a Dillard scholar – receives full tuition and fees. He also got into Georgetown. GABaseballMom is right. Get top LSAT scores and grades, and you will be in a position to land a spot in the top 14 schools. My son has a fraternity brother who is at Yale – he had a 178 on the LSAT. He also knows others at other top law schools. Bama currently has five or six at UVA Law.