@danielznelson160 said:

Someone from University of Michigan was telling me that his tuition was practically paid for by student teaching. Not sure how much his tuition was or how much he was making (or if the university just deducts).

What did he teach? How does this work? Sorry I don't know much about it

@tristandesinor505 @kvbusbee198

This is ATL's methodology:

EMPLOYMENT SCORE (30%)

We only counted full-time, long-term jobs requiring bar passage (excluding solos and school-funded positions). Look, we know that there are some great non-lawyer jobs out there for which a J.D. is an “advantage.” It's not as if these jobs don't count, it's that they can't be compared in a meaningful way. The definition of "J.D. Advantage" changes from year to year and is based on a self-reported metric that defies independent third-party verification. One school's apples is another school's oranges, but we're not going to count lemons.

QUALITY JOBS SCORE (30%)

This measures the schools’ success at placing students on career paths that best enable them to pay off their student debts. We’ve combined placement with the country’s largest and best-paying law firms and the percentage of graduates embarking on federal judicial clerkships. These clerkships typically lead to a broader and enhanced range of employment opportunities.

EDUCATION COST (15%)

Solid data on individual law student educational debt is hard to come by. Published averages exist, but the crucial number, the amount of non-dischargeable government funded or guaranteed educational loan debt, is not available. So as a proxy for indebtedness, we’ve scored schools based on total cost. Data courtesy of Law School Transparency.

SCOTUS CLERK & FEDERAL JUDGESHIP SCORES (5% EACH)

Though obviously applicable to very different stages of legal careers, these two categories represent the pinnacles of the profession. For the purposes of these rankings, we simply looked at a school's graduates as a percentage of (1) all U.S. Supreme Court clerks (since 2010) and (2) currently sitting Article III judges. Both scores are adjusted for the size of the school. Obviously, we are aware that for the vast majority of students, Supreme Court clerkships or the federal bench are simply not prospects. But for the students who do want to be judges and academics, this outcome represents a useful separating factor for the most elite schools. Some schools put you in robes, others can't.

ATL ALUMNI RATING (5%)

This is the only non-public component of our rankings. Our ATL Insider Survey asks students and alumni to rate their schools in terms of academics, financial aid advising, career services advising, social life, and clinical training. For the purposes of the ATL Top 50, we only counted the alumni ratings, as that was more in keeping with our “outcomes only” approach.

DEBT-PER-JOB RATIO (10%)

A comparison between the indebtedness of a school’s graduates to the number of actual legal jobs they obtain.

US News Methodology:

25.00% - Peer Assessment Score

15.00% - Assessment Score by Lawyers/Judges

14.00% - Employment Rate 9 mos. After Graduation

12.50% - Median LSAT Scores

10.00% - Median UGPA

9.75% - Average instruction, library, and supporting services

4.00% - Employment Rate at Graduation

3.00% - Student/Faculty Ratio

2.50% - Acceptance Rate

2.00% - Bar Passage Rate

1.50% - Financial Aid

.75% - Library Resources

This a big reason I use Above the Law. US News worries about things that don't make a difference. I think the main reason people go to law school is to get a stable job, ATL values employment outcomes the most so I believe its the most valid ranking site.

@gregoryalexanderdevine723

Thanks man!

Register for CRS on LSAC and you should get some. I got some by visiting the schools. I'm also receiving waivers because I volunteered through Americorps. UNC will literally give you one if you ask.

@uhinberg359

Thanks for the response. Just wanna point out that your numbers are a little off

LST has Washington and Lee's 2017 employment score at 76.8%, the number you mentioned (55.6%) is from 2013. Washington and Lee has a made some noise over the last few years. Plus I live and want to work in VA so its one of my top choices.

Just wanted to point that out. I've talked with a ton of lawyers and at the end of the day what I got from them was "go to a T-14 or decently ranked state school and kill it." I believe being at least the top 1/3rd of your class (which I know isn't easy) can help your employment prospects at any school.

I appreciate the advice everyone! Im fine with constructive criticism. I honestly think 7sage's discussions are much more productive than many TLS forums. I know the T-14 comes with a lot of benefits, but i'm confident that I'll get into some T50 schools, which is honestly not as horrible as people make it sound. Thanks for your input and no hard feelings! LOL

@akikookmt881

Thanks for your input. I will test this cycle and see if its worth it to retake, but im going to apply this cycle. I've written a strong PS and DS both of which are unique. I'll look into GT. Any other schools that you recommend?

.

Does anyone know how to check how I did on individual sections?

Just posted. Good luck guys!

@ashleeesherman327

Same boat man. I think it should be out by 8 but idk at this point. Sometime tonight i guess

@meghannfloyd1259

If your score improves dramatically then just write an addendum. Give a good reason and they won't care. They only have to report the highest score.

Just checking: will the score be in the email or will I have to login??

GREEEEYYYY!!!

@gregoryalexanderdevine723 ?

@davidbusis895

but don't you think it would give me some sort of advantage. It would be something I could do for the school (to show im more than a student that gets good grades)

Thanks everyone. Any advice on how to tell colleges that I want to coach their debate teams? @davidbusis895

@shanedrider779

Thanks. That makes sense

Can someone explain what a -10 curve means. Like a sample score breakdown. Thanks

Thanks for the advice everyone!