For context, I visited a couple of schools prior to actually applying. To be honest, most school visits look very similar. Check in to the admissions office, someone gives you a tour of the building (since you are going during the summer, it may be a admissions staff person), you sit in on a class (may not apply if classes are out), and then a few minutes with an admissions officer. They are usually pretty relaxed. However, definitely be "on point" with you and your branding. For me, luckily my first visit was to a school a bit lower on my list and I kinda fumbled my way through the experience. My focus was on "self-promotion" and questions about how to mitigate shortcomings in my application. My next visit (the afternoon of the same day) was much better and I let the school try to "sell itself" to me which worked out better. [I was eventually accepted to both so neither technique appeared to hurt me.] After that, the rest of my school visits were all largely very similar in structure and feeling.

As far as questions, I would ask what you genuinely want to know. Things I found important during visits:

a. Student questions - Why X, are your peers supportive, how is the town, how far from campus do you live / what are your accommodations like (i.e. undergrad central or quieter/small family oriented), how easy is it to get your desired clinic experience, how is the student support staff (administration / career services, etc), what did you do last summer (for 2L/3Ls)

b. Class visit - no questions, but I really tried to get a vibe of the students, were they chatting / joking prior to the class starting. What was the student / professor interaction like, I always thanked the professor after the class which usually sparked conversation organically.

c. Admission questions - [these tended to be the least productive interactions because I had done my research and did not have substantive questions for the admissions people] What are X school's strengths, where do the majority of students find employment, any school specific application formatting questions.

The important thing for these visits to for you to get a feel for the school and its culture and to present the admissions people with "your best self". Be genuine and thank everyone you interact with. Good luck!

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I would also make sure you incorporate review of identified weak spots after your BR. My cycle looked something like PT, thorough BR, check 7Sage analytics to determine 1-2 highest priority weaknesses, return to CC and problem sets to work on those 1-2 weak points, and only after improvement, PT again. I believe that the return to CC / redo problem sets is a step some people leave out. Good luck.

FWIW, I initially bought the Ultimate version. After finishing the CC and starting on PT, BR, drill, rinse, repeat, I actually ended up spending more total money buying additional PTs (specifically for the explanations). If your have the means, the Ultimate+ is worth it.

There are multiple online predictors that can give you an idea of your shot. One of them lives here on 7Sage and is as good as any of the others.

FWIW and n=1. Here is a list of schools that offered a 163/2.73 applicant admission this cycle: UC-Irvine, UC-Hastings, U. San Diego, Pepperdine, Iowa, Illinois - Urbana Champaign, Missouri.

Good luck.

I'll be 47 at orientation and will sit for the bar at 50. I'm retired military and have always held an interest in the law. So for me, once I transitioned and spent time with the family, law school seemed a natural choice. It aligns with my continuing desire to serve others.

Thanks for this! Was BL a goal going into law school? If not, what led you to that outcome?

n=1. As a military retiree, I chose not to do this. I felt the risk of appearing "tone deaf" was too real to pull this off in a positive manner. My resume was 2 pages of military experience and the opening scene of my PS was a military experience. I felt comfortable assuming an intelligent admissions reader could connect the dots to this point without me having to beat them over the head with it.

YMMV. Good luck!

The Notre Dame jump over Boston University is what I wanted to personally emphasize. I would never choose a school solely on rankings! BU and Notre Dame offered me scholarships. Comparing both schools has me weighing a lot of factors. For example, does it make sense for me to pack up and move to Indiana when I live 4 hours from Boston and have lived there already? I've always had the philosophy you go to the best school that gives you the most money. Although I really like Notre Dame, I had trouble rationalizing a huge move. Especially when technically BU was considered to be a better school, especially in the Northeast. The slight shift in rankings cast a different light on how I had been favoring BU over Notre Dame, mostly because of rankings. It had me questioning which was the better school and the better school for me. It just helped me see both schools in a different light and intensified my decision-making process.

I don't mean to be argumentative, but the two bolded statements seem to be in direct contradiction to each other. If ND had not moved over BU, would you still have an issue? What is different about ND and BU today (besides the numbers on an internet page / magazine) as opposed to two weeks ago? Shouldn't every other part of your analysis about location and moving stay the same? If it does, why are you doubting your previous leanings?

FWIW:

I started at one of the "middle" levels of 7Sage. The actual instruction (CC - Core Curriculum) is the same across all levels. Its a program of lessons and videos, very top notch (imho). What each additional upgrade in level gets you is access to more PTs and practice sets. Everyone is different, but what I found invaluable was the question by question, section by section review / analysis available in the PTs. After totaling up my entire contribution to 7Sage (original package plus additional PTs), I would have come out cheaper by starting with the highest level (Ultimate plus) because of all of the additional PTs I eventually purchased to gain access to the question / answer analysis.

Everyone's means are different. However, if you look at this course as an investment in your future acceptances and scholarship potential (gained by higher LSAT scores), I believe a student with time to study should purchase the highest level they can.

Good luck.

All of this is my personal opinion so treat it accordingly:

The changes you listed are so minor as to be completely irrelevant. If you had listed a school that was -10/-15, then maybe a consideration of the underlying cause might be called for; but even then, these rankings are just one data point. I would hope that much more consideration goes into an applicant's decision (such as employment outcomes, placement within the legal market segment (BL, government, PI, etc) desired, organizational / student body match, specialization and experiential learning opportunities, location/location/location) than 1 to 2 places on a ranking chart that changes every.single.year.

The new rankings are not impacting my decision at all. My top choice went -2. They are the exact same school, with the exact same philosophy, with the exact same students, the exact same professors, the exact same employment outcomes, and the exact same location / market served as they were yesterday. It remains my top choice.

Good luck making your decision. Chose the school that is best for you, regardless of their current ranking. I guarantee their ranking will change again over the next three years.

I so much would not do this.

It reeks of desperation.

It signals to an admissions office that you are not willing to do basic internet research using the vast array of available resources (ABA 509 reports, LSAC's / 7Sage's predictors, lawschoolnumbers, etc).

There is no way a phone call replaces all of the unique "you" in an application and gives someone anything beyond a statistical analysis of your numbers. Any answer you get is either someone patting you on your head and reassuring you 'its all good' or conversely underestimating the power of your unique soft aspects.

Crush the LSAT. Submit the best application you can. Speaking as someone who got into a school at which the predictors (note 2) gave me a 4-14% chance of getting in, trust the process and shoot your shots. Some assessment from whatever random person in an admissions office picks up the phone holds almost no value to you.

I've asked each school who they wanted me to send scholarship questions to. Different people for different organizations (director of admissions, director of financial aid, etc). Once I identify who to talk to, I send an email outlining my request / question. YMMV.

IMHO, The story above does not help you in any way. You have a 169. An admissions reader will count you as a 169. Don't worry about anything else. If they ask, "Why the drop", give them a response in the vein of, "My practice test average indicated I could score higher than my 169, so I took the test again." Leave it at that.

If debt is an issue (and it should be for everyone), I'd hold out and try to bump it that LSAT up a few more point. n=1: I have a 2.73 / 163. 25 years of military service. Every decision received this cycle has been acceptance (7 of 8 applications, last one went under review ~2 weeks ago). T1 and T2 schools. Here's the crux. While I have been admitted, I've received scholarships at only 3 of the 7 schools. 1 almost full ride, 1 ~70%, and 1 50% offer. I've also received no scholarship at 3 schools where my LSAT was at and above 75%. Scholarship indexing is real and schools definitely do it. You can overcome your GPA in getting accepted. Overcoming it and getting scholarships is a different story.

TL;DR: Overcoming a sub 3 GPA for admissions is possible. Getting scholarship money with sub 3 GPA is significantly different.

Good luck.

If schools don't ask, I would not provide anything. However, if they do, a simple "I knew I was capable of scoring higher, so I took the test again" should be more than enough.

Wait, you are saying making up grandiose stories on your law school application is a bad thing? Ummmmmm......

(didn't vote)

If you are dead-set on Cali, I would go with one of the California schools. Your personal goals and debt aversion should be the major factors into which school you take. However, I would definitely visit all of the schools (Cali and otherwise) if you can (most will provide some travel stipend) and see for yourself their culture.

Echoing what others have said in the most gentle and supportive manner, please please please do not let your BF be the deciding factor in this decision. Go to the school that best supports your goals, regardless where that is. If your relationship is meant to survive, then you will both do what it takes to make it happen. FWIW, I lived on the opposite side of the planet (literally) from my wife for two years. It sucked, but we made it work.

Good luck! You definitely have a suitcase full of first-world problems.

It sounds to me like you have a good handle on the demands of marathon training. As an 0L, I'm approaching any time demands "not class related" during my first year with caution since 1L grades have such an over-sized impact on everything else; however, maintaining physical fitness is one of the things I'm prioritizing, for both physical and mental health reasons. I think you are going to be the one that has to determine your level of time commitment to training and recovery and balance that with your definition of success during your 1L year.

I think joining a running group could be an excellent way to network, both within your class and in the community at large.

While I've never done law school, I'm pretty experienced with long distance endurance events (6 Ironman triathlons, multiple marathons and ultra-marathons). I think you need to be careful that you find a healthy balance. I actually had to stop serious training during my LSAT studies because I found that my mental energy / focus was not ideal. Note - for me "stop serious training" meant going from 60-70 miles per week (mpw) running to ~35 mpw. In the endurance world, more is always better (its not, but people think it is). I would recommend finding an sustainable level of exercise that keeps you fit, but don't commit to qualifying for Boston unless you have an experience base and know how your body responds.

TL;DR - a reasonable daily exercise routine is great, over-committing to a new endurance sport during 1L probably less than ideal.

Good luck. Pictures of you at the finish line or it didn't happen!

Know that you are not alone. I am 46 and am applying in the current cycle with a 2.73 LSAC GPA (from 1998, after 2 attempts at college) and a 163 LSAT. I've been accepted to multiple strong regional T1 and T2 schools, some ranked as high as the low 20's. You need to demonstrate in your application that you have grown and are not the same student that you were back then. I also tried to visit each school in person prior to submitting my application or receiving a decision so they would have a real person in mind when they read my package. In my opinion, in-person visits are key to get schools to overlook not-shiny aspects of our applications.

Full transparency, if you have a good story, the issue is not getting accepted but receiving merit scholarship consideration. Schools are definitely willing to let you in with a good LSAT; however many calculate scholarships based on an index score combining your GPA and LSAT. The math hurts those of us fighting sub 3 GPAs. My advice is to apply widely and make sure some of your choices include schools that give >90% of their applicants scholarships.

re: educational anachronisms - I'm still waiting for the guy to walk up to me on the street, hand me a piece of chalk, and tell me to diagram a sentence on the sidewalk. Talk about a useless skill set.

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/diagrams2/one_pager2.htm

There is not much that makes me feel old, but threads with significant discussion of learning to type is one of them. I guess everyone did not take typing in high school, on actual type writers. Long live the 80s!

A look at the school's ABA 509 report will give an idea of how "loose" a school is with scholarships. You can then compare their GPA / LSAT data with their historical scholarship allocation. Its a rough estimate, but you can get an idea of what percentage of their students receive what amount of scholarships. One would suspect that those at the high end of their GPA / LSAT range would receive at the high end of their scholarship allocation.

There are no "guarantees" because budgets and priorities change over time; however, you can tease out general trends using these data points.