Self-study
Hi, wondering if I should retest and reapply or start school in the fall. Here are my stats
160 lsat, 3.86 ugpa, 4.0 masters in human rights gpa and currently working with crime victims. First gen student and urm.
I got waitlisted to BC, BU, Columbia, Northeastern, and Brooklyn
I have a scholarship that covers nearly all tuition at a T100 school and I’d like to go into public interest law. I feel like I could do better than this school but I’m not sure if I want to delay law school further. Any advice?
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4 comments
I hear you, @Futurelawyer7916292 - it's been a rough cycle given the national increase in apps combined with schools keep their enrollment numbers in line with past years (ie, far more people competing for the exact same number of seats at law schools).
When I'm talking with clients about this very question (take the money and run vs reapply), I try to get them to think about a few things:
What's going to be different the next time you apply? For example: are you retaking the LSAT, are you applying earlier, are you changing your app strategy (eg, bringing in more safeties), working for a few years to boost your resume, etc. You need to be able to ID what you think you can change because "let's just run it back the same as we did this year" isn't likely to be successful.
Why is X School of Law not acceptable to you? What's good about X School of Law? What I've usually found is that part of the issue is that the applicant has fallen short of their expectations. That mental/psychological toll keeps them - in some cases - from being able to see X School of Law for what it really is and what it can be to them. But since this school admitted you and gave you a good scholarship - it's a OPPORTUNITY - you owe it to yourself to figure out if it's a good fit. And if it's NOT a good fit and you reapply to law schools in the future, how can you use this experience with X School of Law to help you figure out a) your future app strategy and b) what you need to do to achieve success in that future strategy.
Play out the worst case scenarios and see what feels better. Is the worst case scenario "Go to School X for little debt, probably do pretty well academically, but it's lower ranked so my post-grad hiring outcomes are a little more limited, but I'll graduate and be a lawyer in three years" or "Reapply in a year or two ... and end up with the exact same offer from School X ... but at least I tried again!"? I've found that people usually have a pretty visceral reaction to that! Either it's "Ooof, I'd feel silly to reapply and be in the same spot two years down the road" or it's "I'd rest easy at night knowing I gave it one more good shot!"
I hope that helps! I'm guessing you've already pondered these issues over, but I hope this helps frame things for you!
This is total speculation but if I think next cycle will be just as competitive or worse. If I were you, I would ask for the t100 to increase it to full tuition and plan on transferring after 1L.
These are amazing waitlists !!!! I feel like you have a good chance at getting off one of them. Is there any way you can continue to keep contact with admissions officer etc?
@businessgoose I’ve sent locis but what other contact could there be? I’m not really sure how this process goes as I’ve been figuring it out on my own.