Hi,
So for context, I'm in my 30s, I graduated in 2014 with a not so stellar GPA because of a lot of family and mental health issues. Later on in life I did get my paralegal certificate and I've been a paralegal ever since so I have a ton of legal and work experience. I tried applying to law school before but it seems like some of the top schools really wanted some academic references which I obviously don't have like 10 years after graduating. So I kind of rehauled my education. I got a second bachelors and I am getting a masters degree right now.
My second bachelors GPA is amazing, close to 4.0. Will law schools care about this? Will it get reported in CAS/LSAC?
Will they care about my masters if I do well?
I am hoping to get strong professor LORs AND one from my law firm.
I am aiming to prove that I AM GOOD at academics now, and when I was 18-22 I had a lot going on and it's representative of who I am NOW. What's the best way to flash these neon lights to law schools to make them notice without just filtering me out based on the number in CAS/LSAC?
Also, obviously aiming for whatever highest score the LSAT Goddess is going to bestow upon me!
4 comments
You may be able to mention something in your personal statement that shows the growth into your current position.
Those are some good questions, @mrinaliniv92!
1) Law schools will care about your second BA degree. Yay! But your second BA (nor your Masters) will factor into your LSAC GPA. Boo!
The only marks that get factored into that LSAC GPA are the courses you took towards your first BA. Sorry about that but at least you know!
2) No one is filtered based on stats. Admissions officers are going to read every application. They know that stats are important. But they also know that there are people with high stats whom they won't admit (because of a bad resume, poor written pieces, etc) and people with low stats whom they will admit (because of a great resume, great written pieces, etc). But admissions officers don't know what's going to happen in an application until they actually read it. So your goal here isn't to flash neon lights. Rather, it's to explain why you want to be a lawyer, how that interest has been shaped by your paralegal experience, why you went back and got another BA (I'd find that really curious if I were an admissions officer) and how your MA works into your plans.
Good luck with everything!
@JacobBaska thank you for the advice! What do you mean by “I’d find that really curious” regarding my second BA?
@mrinaliniv92 I don't mean anything negative! Just that it's not common to see someone go back to school to get a second Bachelors degree. So I would just be interested to learn why you went back to school!