This is going to be a little thread about my law school apps, for no other reason than I feel like sharing. So I have a GPA of 2.14 and an LSAT of 170. I don’t fit any standard profile, so my advisor and I decided to shotgun as many apps as I could afford. Here is my list of schools (in alphabetical order):
Arizona State (53)
Case Western Reserve (57)
Columbia (4)
George Mason (38 *Up from 50ish last year, they are new)
U. Illinois (27)
Indiana U. (40)
U. Iowa (25)
U. Kansas (65)
Northwestern (11)
U. Virginia (9)
Washburn (Tier 3, this was an extreme safety)
Washington and Lee (26)
Washington U. St. Louis (22)
William and Mary (30)
University of Wisconsin (32)
Cardozo (late addition) (54)
So far I have gotten denied at Northwestern (No surprise, just applied because of fee waiver), and I have gotten acceptances at Arizona State, University of Indiana, and Washington St. Louis.
The most annoying thing so far was that the Indiana letter came VERY early, and in a small envelope, so I figured it was just a “Thanks for applying, we’ll keep in touch”. I ripped it open, took a glance, and did the classic double take. I’d already called three people before I realized there was a second letter in there – one awarding me an $18,000 scholarship for “Academic Merit” (As if). So, I’m in, now I just get to wait for the rest.
It’s been 10 years since I graduated Law School and I don’t recall any of the rankings stuff. Would you mind posting the US News rankings of those schools and then your ultimate result from them? I’d sorta like to see how that all plays out - which schools at what ranks pay more attention to GPA and which pay more attention to LSAT.
I’m just curious :). The stereotype would be that the mid range schools, say rank 50 to 20ish would pay a lot of attention to LSAT and the top 20 schools would be more about grades. Course all my info is 10 years out of date.
I went to USC (the one in Southern California, not South Carolina). I never read “1L” or saw “The Paper Chase,” but being a 1L was not as bad as people made it out to be when I told them I was going to law school. It’s a lot of work. It can be nerve-wracking getting questioned in class if your professor follows the traditional “Socratic method” approach. There’s a lot of pressure with exams, since (at least at my school) your entire grade is the result of one, or perhaps two, tests. I think it’s a lot easier if you took some time off to have a real job between undergrad and law school–it puts class into much better perspective. The people who went straight through really thought looking smart in class was very important, because class was all they had ever known. The people who had had a job understood that class is for learning and it doesn’t make any difference whether you look like a superstar or a dolt–all that matters is getting a good exam grade (so you can get the job you want) and learning the material (so you can do the job you want).
I went to Boston University. Never read “1L,” saw the Paper Chase after my first year and thought it pretty funny. Rywill’s post pretty well nails it. It’s a lot more work than undergraduate school, exams are stressful, but the Paper Chase image is rather exaggerated (surprise, surprise).
I should add that I spent several years teaching at a law school so I have the perspective from the other side, so to speak. What you’ll probably notice is that the work load doesn’t seem so large at first. When the first-year research/paper course kicks in, the work load suddenly seems to double. And, at many schools anyway, it’s that paper course with the least amount of credit hours that seems to require the most work. Natch.
It’s great that you got an acceptance so early in the game. Really takes a lot of the anxiety out of the process. Good luck!
What Rywill and Jason said. I went to the University of Texas for law school, and their experience squares with mine.
UT, and most law schools, have blind-graded exams, so your prof has no idea whose test he’s grading, so don’t worry if you don’t look like a genius under Socratic questioning (though you should prepare and take it seriously; it is designed to teach you a thing or two, after all). Socratic questioning can be stomach-churning, but it (usually) isn’t anywhere close to Paper Chase-type cruelty.
Just wondering: do you ever have anything intelligent to say? Or are you just an incredibly ignorant and annoying jackass?[/quote]
Don’t go meta Ryan - don’t do it! Make fun of his dick (it’s small).
Just wondering: do you ever have anything intelligent to say? Or are you just an incredibly ignorant and annoying jackass?[/quote]
Don’t go meta Ryan - don’t do it! Make fun of his dick (it’s small).[/quote]
Just wondering: do you ever have anything intelligent to say? Or are you just an incredibly ignorant and annoying jackass?[/quote]
Don’t go meta Ryan - don’t do it! Make fun of his dick (it’s small).[/quote]
I won’t ask how you know this.[/quote]
A simple deduction. I should imagine Bill asked himself if a man with a 3 foot cock and nothing to prove would have made the lawyer comment. All things being equal I would conclude he came up with an answer in the negative. This is of course all conjecture and I may be leading the witness. Bill?
Just wondering: do you ever have anything intelligent to say? Or are you just an incredibly ignorant and annoying jackass?[/quote]
Don’t go meta Ryan - don’t do it! Make fun of his dick (it’s small).[/quote]
I won’t ask how you know this.[/quote]
A simple deduction. I should imagine Bill asked himself if a man with a 3 foot cock and nothing to prove would have made the lawyer comment. All things being equal I would conclude he came up with an answer in the negative. This is of course all conjecture and I may be leading the witness. Bill?[/quote]
So you’re implying that anything less than 3 feet is small?
