Does it look bad if

Comments

• 2 Likes

  FixedDice Member

  May 2018 edited May 2018 1804 karma

  They told me that sitting out 2 years looks bad to admission teams

  ????????

  and that I should just go to the local school (that’s not that great and crazy expensive) and then just transfer to get started.

  ????????

  They also said it’s easier to get into where I really want to go if you transfer with strong 1L grades.

  I'm sure transferring for those with outstanding 1L grades is easy, but I don't know whether transferring with strong 1L grades is easier than just being outright admitted. That is, assuming you can actually come out with strong 1L grades.

  See the following link for some 7Sagers' opinions on transferring: https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/15964/should-you-go-to-a-law-school-you-dont-want-or-should-you-try-the-lsat-again
• FixedDice Member

  May 2018 1804 karma

  This is rather intriguing. This is the first time I heard someone recommend transferring - which is unusual, especially since 0Ls, law students, attorneys, and even some admission personnel advice against going to a local or lower-ranked institution in hopes of transferring.
• 10 Likes

  Tom_Tango Alum Member

  May 2018 902 karma

  You got trolled hard
• 2 Likes

  FixedDice Member

  May 2018 edited May 2018 1804 karma

  Pardon me, but is there any chance you might have pissed them off? Barring some circumstances - e.g. you attend Yale (in which case the part about transferring being easier actually makes sense), your roommates already had their employments lined up so their choices of law school didn't matter much - that sounds like the only reasonable explanation.

  I hope they weren't kidding. That's just messed up.
• 1 Like

  Tim Hortons Alum Member

  May 2018 edited May 2018 389 karma

  Last time I checked, the average age of incoming law school students is 25 or 26 within the Canadian context. So, I can only assume that there's a sizable proportion that didn't enter law school directly after undergrad, when the average age of graduation is 22-23. If this isn't enough, I know too many people who've taken 2-3 years off before applying and subsequently getting accepted to law schools. They had competitive averages and decent resumes/extracurricular track-records to match.

  So, don't sweat it, honestly. Just keep your head in the game. And find new roommates.
• 3 Likes

  Leah M B Alum Member ⭐

  May 2018 8392 karma

  Um... that's crazy. That's possibly the worst advice ever haha. The average age of incoming 1Ls is 25-26. Many, many people take time off in between. Many schools and employers prefer that so you have some prior work experience. And paying a ton of money to go to a local school and then try to transfer is just wrong all across the board. Transferring isn't easy. Overpaying for a not great school is terrible. All of that is just wrong. Yikes.
• Ohnoeshalpme Alum Member ⭐

  May 2018 2531 karma

  Your friends sound jaded or they are downright misinformed
• beezmoof Alum Member

  May 2018 555 karma

  Keep doing you, don't doubt your plan and ignore your friend
• FutureSportsLawyer Alum Member

  May 2018 109 karma

  @FixedDice said:
  Pardon me, but is there any chance you might have pissed them off? Barring some circumstances - e.g. you attend Yale (in which case the part about transferring being easier actually makes sense), your roommates already had their employments lined up so their choices of law school didn't matter much - that sounds like the only reasonable explanation.

  I hope they weren't kidding. That's just messed up.

  No, they recommended that strategy because it's what they did to get into the better university, which is where I attended for undergrad and one of the places i want to go. I should've included that in the first post.
• FixedDice Member

  May 2018 edited May 2018 1804 karma

  @FutureSportsLawyer said:
  No, they recommended that strategy because it's what they did to get into the better university, which is where I attended for undergrad and one of the places i want to go. I should've included that in the first post.

  You may not believe me, but that's actually another possibility I thought of; I didn't type it out because I was being lazy.

  My input still stands. Transferring is based on huge assumptions and comes with huge risks. Your roommates happen to be two of the select few whose gamble actually paid off. For every success, chances are there is at least one failure story.
• 1 Like

  LindsMitch Alum Member

  May 2018 589 karma

  This is terrible advice. Law schools definitely don't discriminate against those who "sat out" for a couple of years, especially if you were working or doing something during that time.

  The idea of transferring stresses me out. Like having to go through ANOTHER application process in the midst of 1L sounds awful.

  You do you, don't listen to these guys.
• m.c lshopeful Alum Member

  May 2018 614 karma

  Yeah, it actually is a boost to your application to have had a year or two off if you used it to gain work experience or other valuable experience. Heck, UMich is sending out e-mails this year to some of its KJD (students who are trying to go straight from kindergarten to their JD without a break) asking if they would like to defer for a year to get work experience because their incoming class will be comprised of about 85% of people who took time off and have work experience.

  I am questioning other parts of their advice as well but other 7sagers seemed to cover that pretty well.
• FutureSportsLawyer Alum Member

  May 2018 109 karma

  @LindsMitch said:
  This is terrible advice. Law schools definitely don't discriminate against those who "sat out" for a couple of years, especially if you were working or doing something during that time.

  The idea of transferring stresses me out. Like having to go through ANOTHER application process in the midst of 1L sounds awful.

  You do you, don't listen to these guys.

  I’m just stressing out because that means I’ll be starting school at 24 instead of 22 like I planned. And I feel like I just start and get it over with, but at the same time, I want to go to a good school and stay there for all 3 years. Thank you for your advice! I feel a little bit better about my decision.
• LindsMitch Alum Member

  May 2018 589 karma

  @FutureSportsLawyer I can definitely relate. My original plan was law school right out of college or maximum one year in between. When I begin, I will have been out four full years, so starting at 26. Making that mental transition from thinking I needed to hurry up took some time...that first year out of college, when I came to the realization I would actually be delaying another year, I had a few months of constantly thinking about how old I would be when I finished law school, what that meant for my life, whether it was a bad thing, all of that jazz. And then I just settled into the idea and have really tried to take advantage of the time in-between. I think it has made me a more well-rounded applicant, I feel more committed to wanting to go to law school than ever before, I've narrowed my interests, gained work/life experience, and honestly had a really great time.

  Try to view this time off of school as an opportunity for growth, no matter what it is you are doing. I would almost guarantee it will make your law school experience, when you do go, a better one.
• 2 Likes

  Paul Caint Alum Member ⭐

  May 2018 3521 karma

  I'd say your friends are really wrong.

  Get the highest LSAT score you can and apply to your dream school directly. Don't aim to do any of this roundabout transfer stuff.