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GPA questions

msirchiamsirchia Member
in Law School Admissions 50 karma

I graduated from undergrad over 10 years ago. However my UGPA is low due to me being young and partying for 4 years straight. I would be attending law school with the sole focus of exploring opportunities within entertainment law as the industry is where I have been working within for the past 8 years.

Will my GPA be given as much weight as it would have right out of college?
Will it prevent me from getting into law school?

I will shoot for a high LSAt as well as have LOR from very prominent people in the music industry.

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Comments

  • Return On InferenceReturn On Inference Alum Member
    503 karma

    Unfortunately, I do think that the low GPA will be a hindrance to you when applying to law schools. As frustrating as it is, LSAC counts your undergrad GPA against you no matter how long ago it was.

    That said, there are still great opportunities for people with low GPAs who can score high LSATs, so I'd highly encourage you to study hard and try to get the best LSAT score you can. Look up splitter success stories for motivation! Haha

  • OhnoeshalpmeOhnoeshalpme Alum Member ⭐
    edited April 2018 2531 karma

    The simple answer to your question is yes. Your GPA is just as relevant now as it was 10 years ago. Law schools seem to care more about their ranking than almost anything else. Given that GPA is usually one of the largest determiners of said rankings, you have to realize that, to the school, you are (at first) just a set of numbers.

    That being said, I think that every situation like yours is going to depend on your academic goals and your career goals. What range of schools do you want to go to? How low is your GPA? What salary are you shooting for once you graduate? How much debt are you willing to take on? How much risk in paying back that debt are you willing to assume? Do you want to work in Big Law for entertainment or a smaller local firm?

    I think you should be answering all of these questions for yourself first. Law school data is easily accessible on the internet. I'd recommend looking at the acceptance statistics for students with your GPA and expected LSAT range so that you can get a better sense of the type of school you'd be aiming for.

  • msirchiamsirchia Member
    50 karma

    Thank you for the insight.

    I will be in the NY market and as much as I'd love to say yes to NYU and Columbia I believe I would have an easier time getting a date with Rihanna(Still a dream of mine, don't tell my wife).

    My schools goals are St. Johns, Cardozo, Brooklyn, NYLS and Fordham.

    I have enough of a base with my network to help facilitate decent opportunity outside of law school. I think a midsize firm would be great ad if BigLaw presented itself I would explore that option. I just can't imagine theres any risk worth incurring six figure debt if the outcome isn't 7 figure payout. Hence I would be open to Brooklyn, Cardozo and NYLS if theres money there, assuming a higher LSAT will attract Scholarship money.

    Is there an overwhelming low placement out of these schools?

    I heard recently it pays to be top 5-10% at a lower school as it does to be top 40% at NYU or Columbia. Having said that would any of the above schools (sans Fordham as I know they are top 35) be doable to get into?

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