Hi all,

Just went onto OLSAS (for those who don't know, it's the Canadian system where you submit law school applications in Ontario) because I heard that the calculation they make for your GPA went up.

...... It says I have a 3.48 GPA. I've heard that OLSAS can bring down people's GPA, but I graduated my university "With Distinction" which meant that I had an overall 80%+ average over my four years at uni. According to the OLSAS chart, that should warrant a 3.7 GPA. (I am in column #3 - https://www.ouac.on.ca/guide/olsas-conversion-table/)

I'm pretty nervous because I relied on having that GPA as a strong part of my application, as I know I won't be getting a super competitive score on the LSAT. I've already messaged OLSAS but they haven't gotten back to me yet.

Has anyone had experience with this? Is this the GPA that Canadian law schools use to consider your application, or do they still calculate it themselves/look at your transcript?

Does anything have a good understanding of how purchasing CAS works? When I try to purchase it, it says it expires in January. Is this a one-time buy or is there a reason it says it expires?

UGGGH...

I feel so blank currently. I know what topic I want to write about, and I have currently wrote two copies of this PS but they're basic criteria of what I have to say in 500 words or less. I'm also not applying to a top rated school. I'm from WV so I'm staying close to home for school so I will be applying to surrounding areas. I am new to writing these, and no lie, I am quiet discouraged about this. I have the basic admissions course, but I really don't want to pay anymore towards upgrading because money is not something I want to "throw around" right now. I would love somebody to read my first go around at this, but I also don't want them to be like "Uh this is terrible. Just stop now."

Soooooo.. I need some help but not discouragement. If this makes sense.

currently fake laughing to calm my nerves

If anybody has any advice, that would be great. If anybody wants to read it and be opened minded, that would be great also. lol

I have a very specific question. When an app status goes from complete to under review, does this necessarily mean that literally an adcom officer has opened up my file and is looking/has evaluated it OR does it simply mean that it's now on the queue and ready for review by adcom? I asked a few schools and it's really confusing because the admissions office staff either didn't sound too sure about their answers or sometimes two different people in the office gave me conflicting information.

Has anyone had an issue with printing our the preview of their application? When I print from Firefox, some of the text from my personal statement comes out in a different font. When I print from chrome, there's no problem.

I called LSAC tech support but they don't have a solution. I don't want law schools to print my app and have it coming out looking funky. I verified all formatting was correct and re-uploaded in PDF format instead of .docx. Same result. Chrome is fine, Firefox is not. No difference whether I use Mac or PC.

Hi everyone! I've been lurking for a while but this is my first time posting. I realized tonight as I was about to submit an application that I hadn't actually paid for CAS (which explained why I wasn't getting promotional emails unlike all of my friends). I panicked and just paid for it, but based on my understanding my application won't be read until CAS does its magic. Is that true? If it is, there's no reason for me to submit now, since I might as well work on my personal statement in the meantime. Does anyone have a sense for how long it takes during this time of the year, since I imagine they must be incredibly backed up?

Thanks!

Need advice from people who have done it!

Hello everyone,

I am currently filling out a law school application form and there is a section that asks me, "Do you believe your LSAT score accurately represents your past performance or future promise?" If you bubble in "No," it gives you 1000 characters to explain yourself, and I believe this serves as the addendum because there is no section where you can upload a file to serve as an addendum.

I also understand that you should not write an addendum if you do not have a REALLY good reason other than wishing you had done better. At the end of the day, I did not get my desired score despite all my hard work. However, in my heart, I do not believe my LSAT score accurately represents my ability to succeed in law school. I feel like I should not write an addendum because I don't have a really good reason other than I underperformed.

Therefore, my question is:

Do you guys suggest I write within the 1000 characters given or should I just press "No?" If I press "No," will law schools see that and view it negatively (believing that I believe it accurately represents my ability to succeed)? I don't want to press "No" with a score below their median and have it hurt me or have them think negatively of me.

Thank you for reading this and for the replies I hope to get.

Wondering if I should/need to include an addendum for a wive range of LSAT scores. I took to LSAT back in 2015 and scored miserably due to testing anxiety to the test and not doing well on standardized testing in general, as opposed to taking a normal test for a class in college. I knew I should have cancelled my score but ultimately (and stupidly) decided not to. One year later in 2016 I took it again and scored 15 points higher. I just took the December test hoping to improve even further. Would an addendum be necessary/helpful to address this or would it draw unneeded attention to it?

Any kind of feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Hello all,

Would anyone be willing to give an addendum that I've drafted a quick read through? I chose to write one briefly explaining my age as it is well below the average age of those entering law school. I'm not sure if an "addendum trade" is a thing but I'd be happy to take a look at someone else's in exchange for their thoughts on mine.

Thanks!

I am getting ready to write my personal statement and I'm considering touching on the fact that I worked while on the wrong visa (illegally) while abroad for years (and years). I was then detained and deported (deported light, not technically deported but visa cancelled, kicked out of the country and only the most minimum restrictions on returning). This is after my passport was withheld from me for a month while the company was being investigated. In the end, the company negotiated some 'fines' and I really got the worst of it, largely because my visa had expired during the period it was being held by the police. I was able to return shortly thereafter.

My question is whether or not my willful acceptance of working in that legal grey, although admittedly a dark grey, area should preclude me from addressing the topic?

I've weaved my disability into my personal statement pretty well, but I just wanted to know if I should write a diversity statement as well. I'm not sure what I could discuss that isn't already included in my PS.

What's going to give me the best chance of standing out and getting extra funding? Thanks!

Looking for some feedback on my personal statement.

I'm also willing to trade statements if you would like me to review yours. I'm a former journalist, so I have some nice writing experience and good eye for typos.

DM if you're interested.

Yale is a real long shot for me, as I'm sure it is for many of us, but I'm trying to have my application ready to go the instant I receive my December LSAT score. Just in case I pull a 175 or something :) Anyway, Yale asks for addenda describing extracurricular activity during college, including paid employment, and post-college activities. Both specify to include this info separately from a resume. Obviously a lot of that information is already included in my standard resume that I've used for other schools. Should I include my resume as is, leading to redundancies, or cut out such redundant info from my resume? Most of my significant work experience came during or since college, and I'm sure I'm not alone in this. I'm afraid cutting all this will make my resume look pretty pathetic...?

I'm currently working on my resume and had a few questions that I hope someone could answer:

My resume is currently 2 pages, is this fine? Currently the sections I have are: Education, Work Experience, Volunteer Experience and Languages.

I worked all throughout college, so should I include all of the jobs? My freshman/sophomore year I was working as a sales associate and manager at different stores, and then during my sophomore year I was able to secure an office job which I stayed in until graduating college. Should I include the sales associate and manager position?

I wrote a thesis in college, should I include a brief abstract of it?

Any rules regarding type of font, size of font and margins?

And lastly, I've read that we should include a Personal Interests section. Is this true?

Thanks guys!

Is anyone else worried about the passage of the PROSPER ACT? it these new regulations are put into effect student loans will be capped at 28500 per year. How can anyone pay their law school tuition if PROSPER passes since that number is way below even part time tuition at many law schools?

http://prawfsblawg.blogs.com/prawfsblawg/2017/12/a-looming-asteroid-for-law-schools.html

https://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/student-loan-ranger/articles/2017-12-13/potential-effects-of-prosper-act-on-student-loans

I applied to Duke via the priority track invite and just found out that I'm now on their priority reserve. Is this any different than their waitlist? Feeling pretty crappy right now....

I wrote a Why Duke essay, too.

Anyone else on Duke PR with PT application?

I discovered that I made an error on my PS essay. Has anyone ever tried sending in a revised essay? How do schools take those kinds of requests?

Did anyone else get this email, inviting them to apply for the scholarship? My numbers arent above the 50 percentile so I was presuming that this was a mass email.

I was wondering is it mandatory to update my transcript on lsac. I sent in my original transcript at the beginning of the semester. Do I need to send in another one after the semester ends and all the grades are in as well? My main concern is timing, because I want to send my apps in as soon as I get my December score. There’s no significant change in my GPA. maybe by like .01 points.

My PS already touches upon most of my diversity factors (immigrant, minority, first-generation college graduate) so I'm a bit lost on what to write for my diversity statement so that I don't sound repetitive. I have two ideas but not sure if they really work well:

My Catholic upbringing/faith and studying at Jesuit university and how this has shaped my values/outlook

Being raised by a single mother and having to work throughout all of high school and college to help support myself and how this taught me to be independent

Thoughts on whether these topics could make good diversity statements? Thank you!

I applied ED to University of Texas, and I received notice today that my application is being held for consideration with the regular decision pool. Not sure what this means for my prospects overall. Is there anything I can do at this stage to increase my chance of admission? LOCI are recommended for those waitlisted; are they appropriate for this situation? If so, should I wait until February or March when they are whittling applicants down?

For background, I am in-state, non-traditional age, LSAT 163, and GPA 3.59 (not great but from a top liberal arts undergrad - now completely regretting the multiple semesters of Mandarin I insisted on taking in spite of the fact it was shredding my GPA!).

Thanks for any insights!

I am working on applying in the first week of January. I have done some work on my resume but I was wondering if the 7sage community knew of the best resources to help? Best of luck to you all!

Don’t know too much about them— how much of an admit guarantee does the priority track invite portend?

Does anyone know any current students or alumni at Duke or Berkeley? As the all-wise David Busis once said, I should "leverage my virtual network" and asking 7Sagers! Thank you all.