Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL Forum

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seaomf

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Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by seaomf » Thu Mar 09, 2017 10:39 pm

Due to sleeplessness and performance anxiety the day of the test, my LSAT as it stands is a crappy 159. However, I only studied for three weeks and was PTing at 163-165 (under strict conditions). I have just over 12 weeks until the June LSAT, and I'm confident that the potential for a 170+ is there.

The biggest weakness in my app is the CAS-adjusted GPA. 2.1. I was naive and uninformed. I met with an advisor only once in all my five years of undergrad; I literally had no idea my retakes would come back to haunt me. There was one semester wherein I became ill and stopped attending classes (tuition was applied towards the following semester but there are still 5 Fs on my transcript). All of my other shitty grades and retakes were in required entry-level science classes, and in Spanish. Fuck Spanish. Needless to say, I plan on writing the addendum of addenda.

As far as soft factors are concerned, I was a political and legal philosophy major. I have three As and a B in four grad-level philosophy seminars. I won a departmental award for a paper I wrote in a grad-level seminar on contemporary political and legal philosophy. Two profs from the department (and possibly the department chair) are writing my LORs. Of less relevance, I held various leadership positions in a student outreach group I was involved in.

Oh, and I haven't done much research into how much it'll help, but I'm in the process of gathering evidence to prove that I'm 1/16 Sioux.

From what I've read, the applicant pool is small this year (more applications but fewer applicants). All the schools listed in the title of this post are officially accepting super late applications, and rumor has it that schools with earlier deadlines and rolling admissions policies are waiting until after the June LSAT to tap into their WLs.

I'm well-aware of all the cons of applying super late in a given cycle so there's no need to reiterate them. Honestly, I would rather gamble on a TTT - or blow my brains out for that matter - than spend another whole year waiting tables. Can a 170+ and my soft factors compensate for my GPA and get me in somewhere halfway-decent this cycle? Preferably somewhere that positions me as a competitive applicant for a PD job upon bar passage.

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Platopus

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Re: Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by Platopus » Fri Mar 10, 2017 12:52 am

seaomf wrote: I'm well-aware of all the cons of applying super late in a given cycle so there's no need to reiterate them. Honestly, I would rather gamble on a TTT - or blow my brains out for that matter - than spend another whole year waiting tables. Can a 170+ and my soft factors compensate for my GPA and get me in somewhere halfway-decent this cycle? Preferably somewhere that positions me as a competitive applicant for a PD job upon bar passage.
But how will you feel when you have a mountain of debt from a TTT and are still waiting tables because you couldn't find a legal job. Retake, it's the only hope you have for a decent shot at a school worth attending. Even if a 170 doesn't open the doors to any schools, a TTT might throw some $$$ for a 170+ LSAT. Also, the next LSAT administration isn't until June, so even if you do retake to a 170+ you'll be sitting out this cycle anyway.

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chargers21

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Re: Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by chargers21 » Fri Mar 10, 2017 1:05 am

Platopus wrote:
seaomf wrote: I'm well-aware of all the cons of applying super late in a given cycle so there's no need to reiterate them. Honestly, I would rather gamble on a TTT - or blow my brains out for that matter - than spend another whole year waiting tables. Can a 170+ and my soft factors compensate for my GPA and get me in somewhere halfway-decent this cycle? Preferably somewhere that positions me as a competitive applicant for a PD job upon bar passage.
But how will you feel when you have a mountain of debt from a TTT and are still waiting tables because you couldn't find a legal job. Retake, it's the only hope you have for a decent shot at a school worth attending. Even if a 170 doesn't open the doors to any schools, a TTT might throw some $$$ for a 170+ LSAT. Also, the next LSAT administration isn't until June, so even if you do retake to a 170+ you'll be sitting out this cycle anyway.
OP only has a 159 and is already retaking. But yes, the June test will be late and they should wait until next cycle

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cavalier1138

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Re: Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by cavalier1138 » Fri Mar 10, 2017 7:22 am

Just to make sure you heard the message, OP: you cannot apply anywhere this cycle that will accept you with a June score. Places that do that are not law schools. They are scams.

If you get the score you want, you need to apply very early in the cycle to stand a chance at overcoming that GPA.

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A. Nony Mouse

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Re: Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by A. Nony Mouse » Fri Mar 10, 2017 7:42 am

seaomf wrote:Preferably somewhere that positions me as a competitive applicant for a PD job upon bar passage.
There are some exceptions, but generally PD positions are less prestige-focused than a lot of other legal jobs. You'd be able to get a PD position out of any of the schools you list, presuming you get good experience during law school (and probably are willing to apply broadly). Obviously nothing is guaranteed, but my understanding is that none of those schools will present barriers to getting a PD gig.

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floatie

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Re: Applying super late with a 170+, 2.1 CAS-adjusted, decent "soft" factors; looking at OSU, UNC, IU Bloomington, WUSTL

Post by floatie » Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:57 am

seaomf wrote: Honestly, I would rather gamble on a TTT - or blow my brains out for that matter - than spend another whole year waiting tables. Can a 170+ and my soft factors compensate for my GPA and get me in somewhere halfway-decent this cycle? Preferably somewhere that positions me as a competitive applicant for a PD job upon bar passage.
THIS CYCLE IS OVER, OP. Also, don't count your eggs before they're hatched- getting a 170+ isn't an easy feat, especially for someone who claims that their last poor test was due to anxiety. Address the anxiety and retake with the intention of starting law school in Fall 2018.

If the idea of going to a TTT at what would almost certainly be sticker price is better than your current job, you need to find a new job and you need to REALLY rethink your motivation for going to law school. Because right now it sounds like you want to go to any law school that will take you in order to escape your current situation, which is a horrible reason to take on a mortgage's worth of debt for terrible job prospects. I was a philosophy major too - trust me, places other than Starbucks will hire us.

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