Hi everyone!

I was waitlisted at my 'dream' university this cycle. While I received a 156 LSAT score on my most recent exam, I'm below the school's median LSAT score.

I saw a few older posts on this subject, but does anyone think that in this specific cycle it would be worth it to retake to improve my LSAT score in order to help my chances of getting off the waitlist (and/or, of increasing scholarship at a school I've already gotten into)? I realize this cycle is uber competitive generally.

I was PT'ing 160-164 before my last exam, though felt I did poorly because I had to take my exam at an early morning time (7 am). I know I can do better - it is just a question for me of whether taking it again would make any demonstrable difference in the application process.

(And if so - should I let this school know I'm retaking the exam?)

I would highly appreciate any feedback from the two schools. Hastings is less expensive than LLS and I am getting more financial aid. But I’ve always been told to look into the bar pass rate for each school. I get so confused on what the actual number or percentage is because the schools says something different than monthly reports from ABA. Does anyone know what the bar passage rate for these schools are or how to correctly interpret the percentages online? I feel like both schools are in the city and offer a lot of job opportunities. But I am so confused on how to pick a school. Any help or feedback would be highly appreciated!!!

I am just beginning the brainstorm for my personal statement.

I want to write about a traumatic event from my childhood. Essentially when I was 7, my grandmother was killed in a hit and run accident. The person was never identified or convicted. My grandmother was an illegal immigrant from Mexico living in Chicago.

The reason I want to write about this topic is because it has shaped me out in every way, to be the person I am today. It forced me at young age to feel that sense of betrayal, anger and discrimination. Which as a young adult, those feelings drove me to study an undergraduate degree in International Business (focus in diversity and inclusion) because I never wanted anyone to feel what my family felt. Additionally, the situation has been a driver in my pursuit to study law because I always felt a sense of injustice with the situation.

I realize this entire explanation is very vague, and I am just beginning to truly piece the emotions with how they relate to my choices later in life but I am confident they are connected. I'm just wondering, before I really dive in, is this too personal? Is this not the route a personal statement is supposed to take?

I studied my undergrad degree for 3.5 years and graduated in Dec 2018. I have been in the workforce and at the same company for 2 years this April. So I am very open to any advice about applying to schools, studying and writing essays since I am a bit removed from the academic setting.

thank you!

Hello everyone,

I applied to the University of Illinois about a month ago, shortly before the deadline. I have not heard back yet. On their website, it says their first deposit is due on April 19. I don't really know what this means. Even though I have not heard of a decision, could/should I pay this deposit?

Hi everyone!

I can't believe I am almost done with my 1L year. I remember the days where I felt like 7Sage was my digital home, so as 1L comes to a close, I wanted to hop on here from "the other side" to share where I am.

I remember when I was here on 7Sage, I felt like everyone was posting their 170+ journey and strategy and sharing their journeys from a subpar LSAT to a T14 school. I have so much respect for everyone who shared those stories, but I felt isolated because I could not connect with their journey and it gave me a bit of anxiety of whether I could be successful.

Since I feel like I don't fit the mold of someone who is heading into Big Law, I wanted to share my story.

Here are my stats:

When they say they look at the holistic candidate profile, I feel like they mean it. My stats are not stellar compared to the average associate at my firm, but I have extensive corporate client services experience working (successfully) in a fast paced environment very similar to a law firm environment. Managing clients is a good chunk of your work as a lawyer in a Big Law firm. I also have stayed very engaged and involved in my community and corporate culture all throughout my life. My GPA is not at the top by any means, but I'm also doing Zoom school while caring for my two children during this pandemic, so I think overall, the hiring committee saw that I have the soft skills to succeed as a lawyer in an intense environment, because I have a proven track record of doing so.

For those who are interested in the nitty gritty, I'll leave some more specific details about my journey below. And of course, feel free to ask me anything!

Choice of Law School

I did not get into my "top choice" school, but this school is absolutely the right choice for me. So when the admissions roll on, don't fret no matter how disappointed you may feel. My stats are considerably higher than my peers, so I ended up getting a 70% merit scholarship. I cannot stress enough how much in hindsight this was such a wise move for me... I felt strongly that if I let my waitlist schools know that I would go no matter what with 0 financial aid, I would have a very, very good shot at getting in. However, I decided not to do that. To not have the burden of tuition hanging over my head gave me the freedom to consider ALL options. So many of my friends who came in for public interest are quickly pivoting to other career paths because it's not a financially sustainable choice for them. Also, I don't know how else to say this, without sounding arrogant, but my stats had indicated that my scholastic abilities were at least above average. I went to a top 5 undergrad, and I can definitively say that A's seem more attainable for me here than they did at my undergrad (this is NOT to say that law school is easy... it is challenging for sure!) Simply put, I would not have the grades I have now if I had gone to my top choice, much higher ranked school, especially because I have a family and I am not in a life stage where I can devote 100% of my time into caring for myself and my studies.

Network, Network, Network

Most Big Law firms hire one 1L summer associate through their diversity programs. I learned about this opportunity by attending a variety of virtual events and speaking with various attorneys. When time came for my interviews with the firm I am heading to, I had probably had 15+ 1:1 Zoom calls with both attorneys and recruiters that I was extremely comfortable talking about my resume and also being myself in an interview setting. Be proactive about reaching out to attorneys and recruiters for informational interviews and ask them to connect you to someone else (if it makes sense). Law firms keep a file on you and take note of which events you attended, who you have spoken with etc. Even though the 1L opportunity may not be open to all students since they tend to be diversity based, I know several upperclass students who received offers before OCI started because they networked successfully (5-10). For those who may not be familiar, OCI stands for on-campus interviews and it's the formal recruiting event for those interested in Big Law summer associateships.

Pivoting to Big Law

I did not set out to go to law school to get into Big Law. In fact, I applied to every public interest scholarship opportunity and thought I was going to become a prosecutor and particularly interested in criminal justice reform. I'm going into law school 10 years out of college, this was a very deliberate decision for me. So what changed? I attended a lot of career events at school and quickly learned that public interest did not necessarily align with my personal goals. I ultimately pivoted to Big Law because I realized that law firms are NOT like Suits (and it occurred to me that I had a very stigmatized impression of Big Law). The firms I developed interest in have very robust pro bono programs integrated into their practices, and I realized that I could make potentially a bigger impact by bringing my firm's name value and resources to causes and organizations I care about.

There is an entire world beyond admissions, and I want to break the stigma that in order to get into a top Big Law firm, you need to go to a T14 school. My school has about 50 summer associates heading to a variety of highly ranked Big Law firms; essentially almost everyone who wanted to go into Big Law got in. Our school has maintained amazing relationships with major firms, and our career director recently told us at a Big Law overview event that even though our school ranking trails behind other schools, we absolutely have a shot and a seat at the table. My school is located in a major Big Law hub, which I think helps. It's not always about the T14 or T20 or T50 (lol)... it's really about how much opportunity you create for yourself!

Hello all, I applied for about 10 schools back in January and beginning of February as I was thinking I needed to get on it. I only applied to schools where I was at their median LSAT or better. My GPA is over the 75th. I am in Canada, so not sure if that makes a difference. I have only received 3 acceptances so far, and 1 rejection from a school that I was WAY over there medians (it was my 1st choice school so pretty disappointed)....is anyone else waiting for months without hearing back from the law schools they applied to? I have checked with a few schools and they replied back that they are still reviewing applications....but wondering if this experience is unique to me, or are others waiting 8+ weeks to hear back.

And...has anyone had any luck on appealing and renegotiating scholarships this year?

So I am highly considering UCI law due to generous scholarship and their overall ABA reports. Originally, I was on the fence about the school because it's relatively new... However, it does seem like they have been performing well overall especially for being such a young law school. I will admit that their recent drop in rankings is concerning to me. Are there any current UCI students I can talk to here or can shed some light on their drop in rankings? I know rankings aren't everything but I am curious as to why they dropped so much. Of course, any and all opinions are welcome whether you go to UCI or not. Just need some help deciding and getting some overall insight since it's seems like a top contender for me right now. I am still waiting to hear back from a couple more schools and am currently trying to get off a waitlist at another school, but definitely considering UCI. I would love to get some details on their overall law school system and administration as well. Thanks!

For context, I am not big law or bust. Not PI either. I'm interested in IP/Patent law or healthcare/ medical malpractice law so far (still fluid. Figured I would find out what I like in law school). Graduated with a science degree and also plan on practicing in CA

I feel like I am spinning my wheels here, but a minor traffic violation aka my speeding ticket doesn't need to be reported with this statement: "Have you ever been convicted of any offense, excluding minor traffic and parking violations, or is any such charge now pending against you?"

Hey everyone,

I took the November lsat. I went through the whole application process and have some solid options for fall 2021. I am wondering if anyone has any advice on picking a school. Deposits are due April 15 so time is winding down :’) I received a full ride to a “lower ranked” school and substantial scholarship at some sorta higher ranked schools (nothing T1 the LSAT wouldn’t allow it:’)))) I am on the wait list for my top school (T2) which I knew would be a reach anyway due to my lsat being below their median.

I know more goes into this decision than rankings (I hate them!!!) I wasn’t really able to visit many places due to COVID - a lot of schools are still virtual or hybrid or just not doing in person tours. Hard to get a feel of where I could see myself for 3 years. I have been looking at employment outcomes and bar passage rates and where alumni are located. I’ve lived in Pennsylvania my whole life and I am perfectly happy living here and practicing law here. I’m not aiming for BigLaw - I really don’t see the point in selling my life away to be knees deep in debt at a job I hate?!?

Would you take the full ride to the lower ranked school? Or would you pay 100K + more for your top choice if lifted from the waitlist? My top choice is in PA, my full ride school is in Ohio. I am confident I can find employment in PA even though I went to school in Ohio. I have professional connections here (I took off some time to work full time before applying to law school).

I guess I really just want to know if anyone has any thoughts - this decision is huge I know. The financial freedom that comes with not paying any tuition is extremely appealing. I have worked and saved and I may not take out a loan for living. Debt free for grad school?!? Ahhhhh!!!!

Thanks in advance

Hi all! I plan on taking the June 2021 LSAT for the first time and hoping I won't need to take it again. I've been out of undergrad for 3 years, and I was curious to know, when should I start asking for LOR? I plan on diversifying my recs with a professor, senator, judge, and past employer (post grad). I want to respect the time of the people I ask, but also, I'm nervous about asking too early and not getting the score I wanted and prolonging me going. I'm also very interested in applying early so that I can potentially secure an early admissions spot.

TL;DR - How far away from the application cycle should you start asking for letters of rec and how long are they generally still "good" for?

A

Hello! I applied February 1st to two law schools and haven't heard back from them. Should I be worried or am I just overthinking? Has COVID affected the admissions process and the length of time it takes to hear back from the schools? Anything would help calm my anxiety down!!

So I recently got waitlisted at Northwestern (honestly shocked because I fully expected an auto reject lmao) and was wondering if it’s worth a shot to try and get off the waitlist by doing their Kira interview and extra written responses. In addition, if I do this, when should I send a LOCI to NU? Is there hope getting off the waitlist? I always saw WLs as soft rejections and never really thought much about them, but I really do like NU and it’s the one WL that I feel is worth trying for right now. But I have to admit that seeing some of the crazy waitlists (U mich for example), I wonder if there’s actually any hope lol I am still waiting to hear back from 6 schools so things may change, but any advice for getting off the WL is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

So I just had a law school interview today, and I'd like to send a thank you note, but I can't find the interviewer's email address. Should I send a thank you to the general admissions office and address my interviewer by name? Or should I write something like "Dear Admissions Office" ? Any insight would be appreciated!

Deciding between two schools

SMU and FSU

I would rather prefer Texas but FSU would cost me about 65k less over three years ... when you add interest it comes out to more ... but SMU grads make on average a lot more money coming out

FSU cost of attendance ( $47000 on average per year)

SMU cost of attendance ($ 69,000 per year)

Hi folks,

I am currently preparing for my law school applications this fall/winter and dealing with the Letter of Recommendation part.

So far, I decided to apply for JD/MBA programs, and already found 2 recommenders from my professional environment with whom I've closely worked with in projects. Both know me well personally, we have an excellent relationship and I am sure that I will get excellent LORs from them. I also informed them regarding the fact that they should adjust the law-school-LORs so that there is a focus on my academic abilities (analytical, writing, reading skills etc.).

However, I found out that law schools generally prefer academic over professional recommendation letters. E.g. Harvard requires at least one academic LOR, and Yale explicitly states that they strongly prefer academic over professional LORs (even if applicant has been several years out of school).

Although it's only 1.5 years since I graduated, I don't feel very comfortable with having an academic source as my recommender. I have a Master's degree in engineering from a top US university, but that's precisely where I found out that I did not like this profession at all. It was a time where I suffered from a lot of anxiety, did not really participate in class and really struggled to keep pace in group projects. Therefore, I feel that, if any professor or instructor will be willing to provide me with a LOR, it will not be a very impressive one (and, worst case, it will have negative formulations and hurt my chances of being admitted).

Regarding my undergrad professors: it's been 2.5 years since my graduation, and it was a European mass university where students don't really get a chance to know their professors personally. I also had a very bad relationship with my thesis supervisor back then. Therefore, I don't think a recommender from undergrad would be helpful at all.

Do you think I should stick with my current recommenders from my professional environment for both JD and MBA part? Or should I also try to add at least one academic recommender to the JD part of my application, although it will probably be not an excellent one?

Deleted

If you had to choose between auwcl( no scholarship) v. Syracuse law half scholarship. Which school you choose and why ?

Does LSAC include Master's degree GPA?

Or does it only calculate Bachelor's degree GPA?

https://blog.spiveyconsulting.com/understanding-and-implications-of-the-new-usnwr-law-school-rankings-methodology/

First, 3% weight will be applied to the average amount of graduate debt incurred by students in the previous year’s graduating class. Only students who have taken on law school debt will be counted in this metric. Higher average debt will hurt; lower average debt will help.

Second, 2% weight will be applied to the proportion of a school’s graduating class who incurred law school debt. Again, higher proportions will hurt; lower proportions will help.

To make room for these new factors, U.S. News has reduced the weighting of two categories. The “Selectivity” factors have been reduced from 25% weight to 21%. Median test scores will now count for 11.25% of rankings, median GPA will count for 8.75%, and acceptance rate will count for 1%.

The Faculty Resources metric has been reduced from 15% weight to 14%.

Some data to play with from LST: https://data.lawschooltransparency.com/costs/debt/?scope=schools

School Avg Loan % of students

Yale University $134,763 70%

Stanford University $147,385 62%

Harvard University $169,968 69%

Columbia University $172,656 65%

University of Chicago $168,429 64%

New York University $168,745 64%

Pennsylvania $167,993 64%

University of Virginia $162,395 63%

Berkeley $154,203 67%

Northwestern $135,597 65%

University of Michigan $126,425 72%

Duke University $143,774 68%

Cornell University $154,195 66%

Georgetown $166,164 66%

UCLA $126,164 69%

Texas $109,189 60%

WUSTL $101,283 65%

USC $131,938 69%

Vanderbilt $121,684 70%

Spivey predictions before the new methodology was announced: https://blog.spiveyconsulting.com/2022-usnwr-law-school-rankings-predictions/

(1) Yale

(2) Stanford

(3) Harvard

(4) Columbia

(4) Chicago

(6) New York University

(7) Penn

(8) University of Virginia

(9) University of California- Berkeley

(9) Northwestern

(11) University of Michigan

(11) Duke

(13) Cornell

(13) Georgetown

(15) University of California- Los Angeles

(16) Washington University in St. Louis

(17) University of Texas- Austin

(17) Vanderbilt

(17) University of Southern California

I'm thinking Chicago edges out CLS, the current 3 way split at 9 breaks up. Just outside maybe WUSTL bumps UT. All in good fun... I think rankings come out on the 30th. Also I am apparently incapable of formatting in markdown.

When submitting applications, after paying for the law school report & checking out, is it submitted instantaneously or does it take a few days to process? Trying to meet an April 1st deadline for a certain school and wanted to know if I can submit on April 1st or if I have to do it days before, leaving time for processing. Thank you in advance.

Hi everyone !

Have any of you ever tried scholarship negations. What is a polite way to ask for more money ?

Is it rude to ask for more money ?

It’s time to make a decision and I’m so torn. Is it better to make a decision for school based on overall rank or the specialty rank?

@"Lucas Carter" where are you? Tell me everything!

5 down, 9 to go... 2 A's, 3 R's, and a WL. If anyone else was crazy enough to apply late in this wild cycle, there's hope!

Hi everyone!

My ex-TA says he's willing to write a very strong letter of recommendation for me but he asked me to find out whether it will carry any weight since he's not teaching anymore. I was in his discussion section 2 years ago.

He has a Ph.D from Yale and spent a lot of time with me in college. He knows me well and likes me a lot.

I personally think his letter will work great but just wondering what others might think.

Related: I want to submit 4 LORs, all from my undergrad (2 from professors 2 from teaching assistants).

Do I HAVE to include a letter from my work supervisor if I had been out of college for 2 years?

Please share your thoughts! Much appreciated!