Weighing of subjective qualities in T14 law school admission

Graduate School Law School
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<p>His LSAT was probably low too. </p>

<p>I ask because I’m trying to decide whether or not I should dedicate the next five months to intensive LSAT prep. </p>

<p>With a high LSAT, would Georgetown be a possibility? (I’ve done the calculators already. I’d just like some feedback.)</p>

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<p>Thanks for the quick response! I posted above before reading it.</p>

<p>That’s interesting! I’m in a position where I could spend 5+ hours per day on average studying for the LSAT until the June administration. </p>

<p>Should I commit and risk it? </p>

<p>kwu, how confident are you in your wager?</p>

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<p>Yes, you should study extensively for the LSAT. It represents 65-75% of your admission, with GPA taking up the rest.</p>

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<p>common “wisdom” is that Virginia just loves 170+ who ED…you’ll need work experience for Northwestern.</p>

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<p>mke5mke: if you are in school, devote your energy to getting your GPA above a 3.0. Then worry about the LSAT. Yes, you will want and need to ace the LSAT to do well in law school admissions, but you will also need to get your GPA up (if you have not graduated yet). Really, really move heaven and earth to get those grades up, and try to get your GPA above a 3.0 - it just looks better than a two point something.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the input! </p>

<p>ariesathena: I’m out of school, so that 2.98 is set in stone but I thought it would be seen as a 3.1. Do law schools also consider your non-LSAC GPA? I was thrilled when I learned that they consider all your undergraduate work (and A+). </p>

<p>I understand that it’s a hard question to answer without having taken the LSAT and that the general response on these forums to “Chance me!” threads lacking actual scores seems to be: “Come back after you’ve taken the LSAT and then we’ll talk.” So I appreciate all of your posts.</p>

<p>But I have to admit, I am still very uncertain as to what I should be doing. Should I stop everything and start studying for the LSAT or should I just accept that law school is not for me? </p>

<p>Also, is there data to support the HYPS UG leeway statement?</p>

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<p>SAT scores are not a particularly good indicator of eventual LSAT scores, but I find them pretty accurate within +/- five. I usually divide by 21 and then add 101.</p>

<p>Of course, that works mostly because +/- five is an ENORMOUS RANGE.</p>

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<p>With a 2.98 LSDAS you will need a phenomenal LSAT score to make attending law school worthwhile. By that I mean 170+. Given the decrease in applicants, a 170 score would hopefully either net you decent money at a T30 or entrance into a T14. </p>

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<p>There is no data supporting it because it is nonsense. There is no special undergrad that helps you get into law school. A shiny undergrad might help you do better when searching for a job though.</p>

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<p>“But I have to admit, I am still very uncertain as to what I should be doing. Should I stop everything and start studying for the LSAT or should I just accept that law school is not for me?”</p>

<p>Why are you so desperate to take the June LSAT?</p>

<p>Bigger question: if you are going to be deterred from law school by an expenditure of time to study the LSAT and to apply to numerous schools (which you would need to do as a “splitter” to increase your chances of getting admission and/or money to a good school), then don’t go to law school.</p>

<p>The LSAT makes the SATs look like a joke. Law school makes most undergrad curricula look like a joke (I will note that it was easier than chem-e). Studying for the bar makes studying for law school exams look easy. Being a lawyer is a lot of work and stress.</p>

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<p><a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Law/LawStats.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Law/LawStats.stm&lt;/a&gt;
CLS (2009-2011 Admit Avg.): 171/3.88
HLS (2008-2010 Admit Avg.): 172/3.93
NYU (2009-2011 Admit Avg.): 172/3.87</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/documents/AdmitRatesJan07.pdf[/url]”>http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/documents/AdmitRatesJan07.pdf&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/documents/AdmitRatesMay08.pdf[/url]”>http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/documents/AdmitRatesMay08.pdf&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/content/0809lawdata.pdf[/url]”>http://www.stanford.edu/group/SPLS/content/0809lawdata.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>CLS (2006, 7, 9 Admit Avg.): 171/3.78
HLS (2006, 7, 9 Admit Avg.): 172/3.84
NYU (2006, 7, 9 Admit Avg.): 171/3.76</p>

<p><a href=“http://ucs.yalecollege.yale.edu/sites/default/files/Law_School_Application_Statistics.pdf[/url]”>http://ucs.yalecollege.yale.edu/sites/default/files/Law_School_Application_Statistics.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>CLS (2011): 173/3.73
HLS (2011): 174/3.77
NYU (2011): 173/3.71</p>

<p>–
[UC-Berkeley[/url</a>]
[url=<a href=“http://gradeinflation.com/Stanford.html]Stanford[/url”>Stanford]Stanford[/url</a>]
[url=<a href=“http://gradeinflation.com/yale.html]Yale”>http://gradeinflation.com/yale.html]Yale</a> University](<a href=“http://gradeinflation.com/Ucberkeley.html]UC-Berkeley[/url”>UC-Berkeley)</p>

<p>~3.3 v. ~3.6 avg. UG GPA.</p>

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<p>I have absolutely no idea what you think those numbers demonstrate. They certainly don’t demonstrate any deference to HYSP in law school admissions.</p>