Thanks so much to Wei Wang for asking me such great, thought-provoking and relevant questions today on BlogTalkRadio. (CLICK TO LISTEN to our 15 minute segment)
For those who missed the interview about my law school admission guidebook, Wei asked me questions about:
1. Prepping for the LSAT as a full time occupation versus studying while working full time.
2. Pursuing a joint degree, such as a JD/MBA.
3. What to do if you’re taking a year off from school and you can’t find a professional job.
4. Choosing what to write about in your law school personal statement.
Please check out our upcoming BlogTalkRadio segments and feel free to ask questions and to invite your friends to listen in.
9 Responses
Hi Ann,
I graduated from an accredited foreign university that doesn’t do the GPA system. My grades were not very good and I suspect any computed GPA will be plain awful. LSAT score is 171 and I have my MBA in Finance with Honours. I’m over 30, married, female and a URM – African American.
How much could my UG transcript affect me? What do you think are my chances of getting into a T1 school?
You sound like you have a lot going for you – if your application is strong, you’ll be happy with your results. That LSAT score is great!
Thank you so much, Ann!
I have already learned so much from your blog.
Great site.
Anne,
I was accepted into GW’s part-time program, which is where I wanted to go, and planned to work full-time. However, due to a terminal medical issue in my family, I am deferring for a year. In the mean time, to be closer to my family, I am going to apply in this next cycle to Chapel Hill’s full-time program. I’ve previously lived in NC (including owning a house) and have family (parents and aunt & uncle) there.
Chapel Hill requires that only 25-30% of it’s admitted students be from their out-of-state applicant pool, with the rest of their approximately 250 student class coming from in-state. My numbers are competitive for the school (LSAT is at their 75th and GPA is between 50th and 75th), but I want to present as strong an argument as possible for letting me in, including my ties to the state and that I plan to stay in NC after graduation. Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks.
Absolutely – and letting them know the reasons you want to be there will be vital. This is a bigger question than can be answered in the scope of a blog comment but my book addresses a lot of ways you can get these ideas across. You obviously did something right to get into GW so your numbers are strong. Emphasizing local ties and making personal connections – both are vital. Good luck!
My son is entering his senior year at college and has been involved in the Student Senate; he currently is deputy pro tempore, the #3 position. He has an opportunity to run for pro tempore, the #2 position, and is confident he could win. However, he’s torn between studying for the LSAT and focusing on his grades. He also has a part-time job. So my question is, how important would this position be on his resume in terms of law school admission?
If it’s a choice between studying for LSAT and school and student senate leadership, I choose LSAT and grades. But, if he can do both then that’s good too!
Ann,
Wonderful website and a wealth of knowledge here. If I may, I have a question of my own.
I applied to some Tier 4 law schools in my area for Fall 2009 admission and did not fare well at all, most likely due to my 144 LSAT score. Other than that, I carry a 3.92 UGPA and I felt the rest of my application was extremely strong, particularly my targeted LOR’s and my personal statement.
I retook the June 2009 after taking a commercial prep course and, while I am currently awaiting my score, I am pretty confident I did quite a bit better, at least enough to make me competitive for fall 2010 at the schools I’m seeking, specifically part time at Suffolk and NESL in Boston.
My question is that, since I will be reapplying to the same schools, hopefully with a much better LSAT, should I revamp my complete application with new LOR’s and a new personal statement? I would think my previous one would be very hard to top (it focuses on my military and public service expirience), but how do admissions personnel take to possibly reading the same personal statement and the exact same LOR’s on a subsequent year?
Thank you for any advice you may provide, and again for the wonderful and informative blog.
Obie
Obie, thanks for the comments. Glad the blog is helpful. I hope your June LSAT score is improved. I do believe you should revamp your materials; it’s lazy otherwise. Think of this as a chance to share something new and different with the law school.