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Applying in 2020 or 2021 cycle?

x1amp9898x1amp9898 Member
edited October 2020 in General 203 karma

Hello, I wanted to ask for advice about applying in the 2020 or 2021 cycle. I graduated college with a chemistry degree (interested in patent law) and a 3.77 GPA, and had originally planned to take a gap year before law school. However, I am not great at standardized tests, and will be lucky to hit a 155 on the November test. I know that applications for this year are up significantly due to COVID, and that there were a lot of deferrals from last year as well. Should I still apply this cycle, or would it be best for admission/scholarships to apply earlier in the next cycle (which would be my second gap yer)? Thanks so much, and any advice is appreciated.

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Comments

  • noonawoonnoonawoon Alum Member ⭐
    3481 karma

    We can't say for sure that apps for the total cycle are up significantly, they just seem to be front-loaded for now in that a lot of people have submitted early. I would defer a year if I were you because 155 is going to make admissions and scholarships difficult. I don't know what your goals are, but a 3.77 is great and a ~155 will bring down your prospects. You can always start working on essays and getting LORs now and prepare them so you can submit early next cycle.

  • VerdantZephyrVerdantZephyr Member ⭐
    2054 karma

    @x1amp9898 said:
    Hello, I wanted to ask for advice about applying in the 2020 or 2021 cycle.

    I would mostly agree with @noonawoon but it is very dependent upon your goals. If you do not care about a T50 program you could potentially apply this year and get a scholarship, or at least see what comes up. There are certainly some schools outside the T50 that are very strong in their communities or regions and could still get you a job. If you did not get in with scholarship aid you could still defer.

    With that said, with a 3.77 you would be a great candidate at T50 or even T25-30 if you could improve that LSAT up into the 160's. Even an upper 150's score would likely open a lot of doors and, while it probably would not get you a full ride, could get you into the top 30 or so programs. Ultimately it is up to you. The first thing is, identify which camp you fall into, are you sold on a specific region or city to practice in? Then you would have a much narrower pool of schools. Maybe there are not any in the T50 there anyway. Figure out what you want and what you are okay with, because just like going down in rank or loosing scholarship money is a sacrifice some people are okay with/not okay with waiting a year also falls into that bucket.

    For me, I want a program that will help me get experience in my chosen field of law and will also help me get out into the field. I am also unwilling to pay for the majority of law school costs. If I have to wait another year to make that happen that is what I will do. I am absolutely going to try to start next year, but it is contingent upon those two things.

  • EagerestBeaverEagerestBeaver Alum Member
    703 karma

    I agree with the advice above and offer one other perspective. Even if you do better than the 155 you are aiming for, you are running thin on time. Assuming the score comes in November, if your app is not complete by Mid-December, you will be putting yourself at a disadvantage because scholarships and acceptances will already be going out at many schools. If your app is complete and you are waiting for the score, you could consider it, but this is not the type of thing you rush.

    I also agree with advice above that a 155 will be tough for significant scholarships, and it would likely be worth the years wait if you could improve that score.

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