US Law Schools - Access Category?

notwilliamwallace

Hi All,

I will be writing my LSAT in September and, hopefully, will be applying to law schools shortly afterwards to start law school in Fall 2017.

Some context: I suffer from a chronic illness that has impacted my grades in undergrad. I had more hospitalizations/ER visits than I had semesters in all of my undergrad program. However, as I learned to cope with my illness, my grades improved. All in all, I ended up with a 3.23 CGPA and a 3.5 in my last two years. I also worked at 3 of the largest banks while finishing undergrad as an intern (In Canada, we call them co-op programs, which are tough to get in and stay in). After finishing undergrad, I have worked in various capacities in finance, marketing, and branding at some of the largest Canadian and Multinational companies. I am currently working in strategy for a large packaged goods company. I also volunteer in my free time with various charities and have recently been asked to join the Community Advisory Council at the busiest hospital in Canada after I stood up for the rights of some patients whose care was being mis managed. All in all, I have had some great experiences during and after undergrad.

I have talked to all law schools in Canada, who have advised me to apply in their "Access Category". Basically, they have spaces reserved for people who have had to deal with extraordinary situations which has impacted their undergrad performance. I will need to fill a separate section in the application reserved for people applying in the access category. I will also need to provide documentation as proof. I will still need to be competitive to get into law schools, however, they will consider my condition before judging my undergrad performance.

I was wondering if the US law schools have any similar categories? Any help would be great and appreciated.

Thanks for your time. Hope you have a great weekend.

Sprinkles

I've never heard of this from US law schools, and I've seen the applications for when I intended to apply for the 2016 cycle. If anything, this would be addressed in the addendum.

Sprinkles

@notwilliamwallace said:
co-op programs, which are tough to get in and stay in

nice nice nice

Sprinkles

@notwilliamwallace said:
I also volunteer in my free time with various charities and have recently been asked to join the Community Advisory Council at the busiest hospital in Canada after I stood up for the rights of some patients whose care was being mis managed

badass!

Pacifico

Doesn't exist in the US unfortunately. But you can address it in your GPA addendum or some optional essays.