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Advice Please and Thank You
FutureSportsLawyer
Alum Member
I really need some advice because I’m completely lost and on the struggle bus. So I have taken the LSAT twice and got the exact same score both times. My score is way to low to apply to any schools I’m relatively interested in. I’m in the middle of my year off but I feel like I might be in for another. I want to go ahead and apply to a school that I know I can get into and then transfer but I don’t want to risk not getting into my dream school UT. I also want to be able to get a decent scholarship going into law school versus getting a ridiculous amount of student loans. At the same time, i just turned 23 and feel way too old to not be in school and progressing. What do you guys think about transferring? Am I over thinking this whole situation? Could someone give me another perspective or some advice please?
Comments
First, I don't think 23 is "too old". There's never an age limit on your dreams. I don't think transferring would be beneficial because the likelihood of you getting into your dream school at that point becomes slimmer. If it's possible, taking another year off may be to your benefit if you choose to retake. There's no point settling for something that won't benefit you. You mentioned that you've taken the LSAT twice with the same score. Is there something you would attribute it to?
Don't attend a law school with plans on transferring. You never can predict your grades and many transfers end up paying sticker and missing out on OCI, networking, and journal opportunities. Many lower ranked schools also make it hard to transfer. It's just not a prudent plan going forward.
Keep studying until you can get a score good enough to get you into the school you want at a good price. If you can't, maybe law school isn't the right path forward for you. But if you keep going and don't give up I have faith you can get the score you need!
Also, 23 isn't too old at all, lol. You got plenty of time to figure things out
I'm 25 and won't enter school till 26....you ain't old haha. You got plenty of time!
I'm 30 and not applying for at least another year. Definitely not too old. Have you started studying with 7Sage? I suggest taking a year to really learn the test and applying to UT. Don't rush it. It's worth the time and totally doable.
I would strongly suggest to keep on studying until you get a score that's in your preferred law schools percentile range. Another incentive for you is that a better LSAT score means better scholarship opportunities. Also, keep in mind that IF you were to transfer after 1L, some schools don't give financial aid to transfers.
23 is not too old, but I understand where you're coming from. If you do decide to take another year off, look at it positively. You have more time to study, spice up your resume by traveling or internships/jobs.
You can do it!
I'm 32. I understand the pressure to go straight to school but the year you'll spend to improve your LSAT will be worth $ - it's not a wasted year. Furthermore, it'll give you an opportunity to take up a sport, hobby, volunteer, or find work that will help you improve yourself and therefore your application. Don't give it any more thought. The people in your life will appreciate the wisdom and patience in your decision. Good luck.
I wouldn’t settle just yet. You have plenty of time. I would keep studying at least until the end of your year and then make the decision to either take another year for studying or just go to the lower ranked school, if the price isn’t outrageous. I understand having your dreams so i wouldn’t just totally write off law school if i can’t get a full ride. I would never pile on an excessive amount of debt unnecessarily though so I would def continue to study as long as it takes. Idk how I feel about banking on transferring, it’s just too unpredictable.
What these guys said ^^
Also, was your test score significantly below your PT average? If not, then take the time to really learn the lsat material and strategies and wait to retake until youre ready. If it was, then maybe you need to find a way to better deal with pressure, timing, or whatever made test day different than a PT.
Good luck!
Ok, here is my professional and solid advice.
1- Sign up for 7sage ULTIMATE +
2- Do the Core Curriculum
3- Go watch Can't Get Right's post CC Webinar
4- Netflix and Chill (No need to get amped up about UT right now)
5- Finish the CC
6- Do all the drills
7- Sign up for a BR group and take the test in June...2019.
You can do this, but it sounds like you need to take a bit of a vacation and reset the brain. Resetting the brain does wonders, especially since you've put yourself under tremendous stress to do well. Take a step back before you can go forward.
^what others said! I’m going to be 30 (or older) when I am in law school, and I’m soooooo glad I’m not wasting my precious early 20s in law school. I learned so many things about myself and the world and how I wanted to be in the world during those years. I don’t think I would have learned any of those things in the grueling, insular law school environment.
I'll echo all the others and say 23 isn't too old. However, I'd suggest to get a job, travel (if you have money) and then get back into study mode for the LSAT in a year. Or, work for 5+ years (or whatever Mature Student category is in that school) - you'll have work and life experience that the schools might look favourably upon.
I guess I just hate the thought of wasting more time than I would like. I have no Idea why my score was the same. I felt so much better about it this time around. My PTs were higher than my LSAT so I guess I just choked again.
I considered transferring because it worked for both of my roommates who are in law school now, recommended it. I’ve just been thinking about and I just don’t want to risk it, especially seeing the school I’m talking about is ranked so much lower than UT. Also I really don’t understand why I’ve had people tell me that law school might not be for me just because I’m struggling with the LSAT. I’m not sure if I’m missing something but I had an advisor say the same thing. I’m just trying to find a direction, not give up entirely.
?I never think about the year off positively, so thank you for that. I also didn’t think about schools not offering scholarships or aid when you transfer. Wow there’s so much I need to talk with my family about now. Thank you for bringing all of that to my attention!
@FutureSportsLawyer
Wise choice not to risk it re: transferring.
Well, just to be clear, I said if* you can't get a score that gets you into the school of your choice with a good scholarship, then maybe* law school isn't the right path forward for you. So I mean like if you're planning on giving up and applying now, rethink that choice. Why? Law school is prohibitively expensive, 50% of those who attend law school never end up practicing, and what law school you attend is the greatest factor that will influence whether you're the 50% percent that eventually practices law. So I'm of the belief that without a high LSAT, law school isn't worth it for most. But like you said, it just seems like you're struggling, which is perfectly normal.
Going forward I think you should focus on retaking to ensure you get the LSAT score you need!
When you got the same score on both your takes, were they far off from your target score? What were your PTs going into test day?
Also, contrary to popular belief, it does matter to some extent what law school you attend right?
Very much so.
Going to a law school planning on transferring or planning on being in the Top 10 percent or even higher in the class is almost always a bad strategy. It is really hard to predict how anyone will do at law school. Even at a lower ranked law school you are not competing against the average college student nor wil the students be motivated the same as in undergrad.
Instead, you will be competing against the tiny minority of college students who applied to law school and got into your school. They will be driven to do as well as they possibly can however much studying that takes because they are graded on a curve against eachother and where they place in the class will be the main determinant of their final employment outcome. Additionally, many of these people will be looking at hundereds of thousands of dollars in debt after law school so they have a good reason to want the best job that they can get.
So you can go into law school, do everything right, study as much as practically possible, perhaps even study in the right way, and lose out to someone doing the exact same things who is slightly better at it than you or just slightly luckier, someone like your roommates.
So you have a decision to make. You have the following 3 options.
Give up on law school for now. It isn't going anywhere and you could work for a few years and get valuable experience and then return to studying the LSAT before reapplying.
Give up on the LSAT and apply now. Go to a school ranked well below UT. Your employment outcome will to some degree be shaky and based on your performance in law school overall and your first year and semester especially. You could transfer or not, but getting a desirable outcome is going to take grades that are better than you can reasonably expect no matter how dedicated a law student you are.
Study for and retake the LSAT. I can personally attest to the fact that it is possible to improve from being unable to finish to virtually perfect on the logic games section through foolproofing using the free logic games explanations 7 sage puts out. Others can attest to having had similar improvements on the other sections. It won't be easy to improve on a test not meant to be improved on, but the path is basically cleared by those who have gone before us. Once you have this desired score, you can apply to and be accepted at your dream school or one you have not even dreamed of. At this school you should be able to obtain your desired job with median grades. But, you won't settle for median grades. Instead you wll do the best that you possibly can. That might be around median or maybe you will defy the odds and do exceptionally well. Your reward will be a job to help you service your debt or actually earn money depending on whether you managed to snag a scholarship to said dream school.
I think that despite the additional work, option 3 is unambiguously better than option 2. How they each compare to option 1 depends on how badly you want to be a lawyer and what your other career options are.