Working!

<p>I work 40 hours a week and go to school full time. My GPA is only a 2.7, but I'm only in my second year of college. I really want to go to law school but I'm worried that my lack of campus activites will harm my chances. I'm working on my GPA right now. Does anyone have any tips on how to better my chances of getting into law school?</p>

<p>Campus activities aren't going to be a problem if you're working. The 2.7 will be.</p>

<p>I strongly agree with bluedevilmike. If you're working full time, I can only assume that you're doing it to help pay for college. You're already spending far more time on "extracurricular" activities than most other college students do, so to worry your resume won't look that impressive is unnecessary. However, while I don't know what sort of law school you're aiming for, a 2.7 really won't cut it for anything above Tier 4 schools. If there's ANY way for you to cut back on work or otherwise find a way to boost that GPA, do it.</p>

<p>I feel for you because you 1) have to work full time (I am assuming to pay for school) and 2) because your GPA is low and will most likely keep you out of a decent law school.</p>

<p>My advice to you is to cut back on work and dedicate yourself to school. This advice is coming from a first generation college student who pays for his own tuition and expenses. I go to a state school and grants pay for half my schooling and the rest is loans. I work about 30 hours a week and the loans are worth it to me so I can have a good GPA. This philosophy isn't for everyone, but what good is $0 debt after graduating from college if your grades only get you into a tier 4 law school, which, in turn, limits your employment prospects and starting salary.</p>

<p>Dedicate yourself to school now, while there is still time to raise your GPA, and get into a law school that will give you some great opportunities.</p>

<p><em>Devo</em> is correct.</p>

<p>If you need to work to pay for school, perhaps adjust your lifestyle so you can work less. Maybe move to a cheaper apartment/move back home, find more roommates, etc. so you can work less hours.</p>

<p>It is better to graduate with a higher GPA and get into a better law school with some college debt than to graduate with a low GPA and go to a tier 4 law school and no debt.</p>

<p>There is also some research that going to a Tier 4 law school (cost and benefit analysis) is NOT worth it. If a Tier 4 is the only option, I would not recommend going to law school at all as employment prospects are dire.</p>

<p>Of course you still have the LSAT, which is the most important factor for admissions. But you can't really prepare for that if you have no time for school.</p>

<p>Also, campus activities aren't really that important, but the GPA is the second most important thing. Law schools are numbers oriented and even though they should factor in the fact that you work full-time, they won't really take that into consideration much.</p>