Anyone in law school? How was the application process? I've finished one app and have 4 others in process.

And how is it going?

12/7/2005 1:40:33 PM

What schools?

I'm doing them.... again.. but now I can actually afford to go!! I finished all but 1 (I'm applying to 5 places)..

12/7/2005 1:44:04 PM

I finished my app to Ole Miss. I'm applying to UNC, FSU, Charleston, and KU.

This is the order I'll go if I'm accepted to all: UNC, Ole Miss, FSU, Charleston, KU

afford to go? I'll probably never be able to afford it... thank you loan program.

12/7/2005 2:18:36 PM

Yea well I want to go to schools exclusively in the northeast so I needed to save up some to cover comfortable cost of living (I'm rather picky when it comes to where I'll live)..

Good luck with UNC. I had a 3.1 GPA and a 165 average (160 first time; 170 second) LSAT score. I got DENIED..

** although at the time I had NO job experience so that may have hurt a bit. Now I'd wager I'd get in there but I'm not sure..

oh and if you want to know what Law School is like workload wise shoot Wolfpack2K a PM. He answered a few of my questions a while back..

[Edited on December 7, 2005 at 2:25 PM. Reason : d]

12/7/2005 2:21:38 PM

Shit, don't know about my chances with UNC.

I have a 3.5 and will have worked a year and a half of systems engineering work by the time I go next August. My LSAT, taken once, was 154.

You got denied with a 170... holy shit.

I'm banking on my engineering degree/experience to get met here. But Ole Miss will accept me. They're median LSAT is 154 and they have a good patent law program for ex-engineers such as myself. Plus, my GPA is .4 points above the median.

12/7/2005 2:25:31 PM

they average them. At the time I applied to UNC I may have not even had my second score -- this was over a year ago. I got a 160 the first time so that might be what they were looking at.

I didn't even know they averaged the two when I applied but if you do take the LSAT twice be aware almost ALL schools average them... and in fact I astounded people on TWW after being denied from UNC w/ those numbers but that is b/c I thought I had a 170 but that wasn't the case (so I say 165 now...)

Anyway good luck with all the apps. I know applying is VERY time consuming..

[Edited on December 7, 2005 at 2:28 PM. Reason : ff]

12/7/2005 2:27:22 PM

I decided not to take it again. 154 isn't that great, I know. But I hated that test. I never want to take it again. if I get denied from all of my schools, then I'll retake it. But I like my chances of getting into 1 of my 5 without having to take it again.

We'll see. Before I started my LSAT studying, I was like "UVA is definitely where I'm going." Afterwards, I was like... hmm... Maybe Mississippi isn't all that bad. In all seriousness, Ole Miss is very nice. Oxford, MS has a Charleston-like feel to it. So I could definitely find myself a home there.

12/7/2005 2:30:32 PM

I'm sure you'll be fine. I was in a MUCH easier major then you to and my GPA still was much lower.

http://officialguide.lsac.org/search/cgi-bin/results.asp?PageNo=7

For peace of mind you can look here. Click on the first link. Then click on Search Now. Click on the school you want. Then click on the 'Law School Description' button and scroll all the way down. Most schools have a grid in which you can compare your numbers with those who applied.. It is really useful to determine where you have a good chance to get in..

[Edited on December 7, 2005 at 2:33 PM. Reason : ff]

12/7/2005 2:33:05 PM

I graduated last year from UGA Law. Great school, I'd highly recommend it! One of the best college towns in the country - if not the best - and a strong alumni base in Atlanta (which I don't have to tell you is huge) and lots of other places. And your first year, you are guaranteed at least one professor who clerked for a United States Supreme Court Justice.

(I had a 3.37 and 166, and got into UGA Law with a 75% scholarship - I think it is getting more and more difficult though)

[Edited on December 7, 2005 at 4:06 PM. Reason : add]

12/7/2005 4:05:53 PM

I just finished (as of 1pm) my first semester at Campbell. Its not too bad until November. Exams are hte most evil thing you will go through and are like five lsats.

Get your applications in asap.

patent law is huge. Campbell has never had anyone start out below $125,000 after passing the patent bar. I am kicking myself for not having done a science major in undergrad.

12/7/2005 4:26:41 PM

haha, hell I might go back to undergrad and do a science major so I can do the patent bar

12/7/2005 4:29:25 PM

that's my plan... I saw those salaries and I'm like... DAMN... gotta go do that...

12/7/2005 4:31:40 PM

I just graduated from Washington U in St. Louis. It's a great law school and accepts an NCSU student or 2 every year. I'm working at a business firm here in NC, one of the largest in the state and country. If you have any questions I'd be glad to answer them.

12/7/2005 9:21:59 PM

BTW, before you sit for the Patent Bar (yes, they have to take a second bar exam), talk to someone who does it. I have worked with several patent attorneys, and while they all seem to enjoy what they do, it is only for a very specific type of person. Your job is to only prosecute patents. It is tedious work and there is very little contact with others.

12/7/2005 9:25:03 PM

a patent lawyer i'm going to be doing some research with, bills up to $400/hr

12/7/2005 10:01:22 PM

I bill 275.

12/7/2005 10:33:01 PM

i'm currently looking at about 7 schools

i'm applying to 15

3.0 undergrad, took lsat once, did horrible. took them this past saturday, think i did better.

i'm not looking so much for the name and rep so much as the quality of faculty, the faculty/student ratio, the area its in (i prefer nature) and the uniqueness of the program.

i'm excited, but i still need to gather letters of recommendation and work on the applications some more.

12/7/2005 10:47:12 PM

It's taken my professors a good 2 months to get my letters in. I would get those forms out now.

12/8/2005 4:52:20 AM

That's odd. Mine showed up through into LSAC like 2 weeks after I gave the forms. Although I'm still waiting on one from work...

12/8/2005 8:35:36 AM

My professors are sitting a little on it. I've got one in. I wanted to get one in from work, but I didn't want that held against me in case I don't get into college...

I've got a good job. No need to mess that up if I'm not going to law school.

12/8/2005 10:56:47 AM

Good Luck to all of you!

I am in the middle of exams as a 1L and it blows big donkey balls, but it is exciting as hell! For the first time in my life I actually feel like I am learning something will matter!

Getting apps in, and letters from teachers is a pain in the ass, but it will all work out, and be worth it.

12/8/2005 12:31:18 PM

yeah i'm getting ready to apply again. got a pretty low lsat score when i took it almost 3 years ago (which i think is the cut off for them to average your scores). my low score is what hurt me the most because i have a 3.5 gpa but they put so much more weight on your lsat. when i went to the law school fairs at state most said the schools place 75% of their decision on your test score and only 25% on your entire undergraduate gpa. i took that test way to lightly the first time so i'm taking it again in february, hopefully with this prep course i'm taking (and the fact that i started practicing it earlier than 2 weeks before the test) i'll do much better.

12/8/2005 2:09:15 PM

2L at Wake Forest...

applying sucks
reading sucks
exams suck
mega debt sucks

passing the bar? hopefully it's totally worth it.

12/9/2005 2:36:40 AM

Yeah, you survive your first year only to be murdered the second year.

Our crim law exam was evil. She made a list of things in class that we would not be tested on. Some how, they showed up on the test. She also told us one day after busting a student on AIM, that she had sent 8 people to Death Row, that she could flunk a few law students.

She bought us a keg after the semester was over. All is forgiven till I get my grades.

12/11/2005 11:04:24 AM

I'm scared.... i don't wanna go to law school anymore.

12/11/2005 2:22:36 PM

Quote :

"she had sent 8 people to Death Row, that she could flunk a few law students. "

*winces*!!!

12/11/2005 3:21:13 PM

Hahahhaaha that's awesome.


It seems like being a patent attorney just for the money is a bad idea unless you're really into it.

12/11/2005 3:36:05 PM

Well I hate engineering. I'm tired of doing it (all one year I've done it). So I figured I could do law and it would be a complete change.

We'll see if they accept me. If they accept me, then there's reason enough to believe that they believe that I could handle it... or I could be one of the ones that they fail on purpose so they don't have a 100% pass rating and look phony.

12/11/2005 9:45:15 PM

We did basic patent/copyright/trademark law in property. It was actually really interesting and a lot of fun.

12/12/2005 1:30:07 PM

When do you start hearing back after applying? I know UNC does early accepts in December, but when do they begin sending out letters of rejection for UNC and/or any other law school?


And do they tell you why you were rejected, if you are rejected?

12/12/2005 3:03:24 PM

I applied in January and heard in March. They emailed me when my admission was deferred. You will not find out why you were not admitted and the letter from UNC is kinda smug.

I knew about Campbell two weeks after my interview.

12/12/2005 6:26:27 PM

Quote :

"We did basic patent/copyright/trademark law in property. It was actually really interesting and a lot of fun."

Take my word for it, its a whole different thing when you are actually practicing. IP litigation can be fun but patent prosecution is as dry as it comes.

12/13/2005 11:19:03 PM

Exactly how much do law schools weight the LSAT in admissions? Looking at the ABA guides I see TONS of people with like 2.25-2.50 GPAs with 160-164 LSATs getting into schools that kids with 3.7 and 150 LSATs aren't getting into.

It seems looking at these charts that kids who have crappy UGPA and good LSATs almost luck out if they are a good test taker. Which is good for me but it almost makes me feel bad. I was a school fuck up my first 2 years at State yet I have a MUCH better shot at Tier II schools b/c I test well then kids who busted their asses for a 3.7 UGPA all 4 years. Kind of sketchy if you ask me but I'm not complaining!

12/14/2005 9:40:21 AM

the LSAT is definitely gonna matter more b/c it tests your reasoning skills. Plus a judge I know had her undergraduate degree in dance theatre from ECU...her GPA means shit in regards to law school; LSAT was where it mattered.

[Edited on December 14, 2005 at 11:19 AM. Reason : ]

12/14/2005 11:16:50 AM

<--- fucked then.

I got a 3.5 in engineering... and a 153 on the LSAT. If I get in, looks like I'm not getting much in the form of money.

12/14/2005 2:18:09 PM

You'll DEFINITELY get in at Charleston. UNC is VERY hard to get into obviously.

Ole Miss numbers show that 30 of 34 people who had your numbers got in so you should get in there. FSU doesn't look so good though.. Is there any reason you didn't look at Campbell? Just out of curiosity?

[Edited on December 14, 2005 at 2:39 PM. Reason : f]

12/14/2005 2:36:55 PM

Not thrilled about Buies Creek... I want a half way decent place to live.

Carolina, obviously my top choice. My Ole Miss is a close second. I really wouldn't mind going there. I really need to forget law school for another year and redo the lsat... but I really don't want to take that test again...

12/14/2005 3:34:03 PM

^Buies Creek isn't that bad I went to law school at Campbell though and lived off Tryon Rd. and commuted down, which took about 35 minutes. Commuting isn't for everyone, but it can be a good option.

I work at a larger firm in Raleigh and really like practicing law, despite the sometimes long hours. If anyone has any questions, let me know.

12/14/2005 8:30:06 PM

i'm thinking about doing the law school thing when i get out of the USMC

mainly as a springboard into politics

if i can circumvent the law school process by knowing the right people in the biz or something, then all the better

12/14/2005 11:11:37 PM

^ A J.D. will never treat you badly though.

12/15/2005 9:55:40 AM

http://www.tuckermax.com/archives/entries/my_real_life_law_school_application_essay.phtml#631

12/15/2005 1:36:43 PM

^ i read that before i wrote my law school apps

funny shit, but when you have an econ degree from U of Chicago and a 170+ on the LSAT i am sure it does not matter what you write on the essay

I also read in one of his stories, that after the first semester he never bought a book, and spent a major part of one semester in Cancun (maybe stayed for an extended spring break) funny shit anyways!

12/15/2005 8:05:20 PM

DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

12/20/2005 7:44:44 AM

How was it?

12/20/2005 9:20:45 AM

^ just remember taking the lsat again can hurt your chances. they average the tests together and everyone i talked to at the law school fair said that unless you think you are going to do significantly better, you shouldn't retake it. this however doesn't apply if you're waiting the 3 years for your previous score to drop off like i am. after that, your old score is no longer considered. like an idiot i signed up for it two weeks in advance my junior year thinking i could take it again like the SAT and just have them look at my better score. i really messed up there...

12/20/2005 12:57:53 PM

^ehhh, that's not entirely true

plus, the LSAT discourages more people than it inspires. if your score is lower, don't let it keep you from applying to schools unless you want to go to a top 10 school... but a low score for a top ten school is like 168... which is fine to get into a uppermidrange or midrange place.

12/20/2005 9:02:31 PM

Quote :

"this however doesn't apply if you're waiting the 3 years for your previous score to drop off like i am"

It's 5 years.

12/20/2005 10:20:58 PM

Yep. 5.

If you scored in the 130s the first time around and then turned in a 175 the next time, I really do think that an Admissions Board would seriously consider your application, even with the 130.

12/21/2005 8:18:01 AM

^ 5 years is just how long the lsac keeps them. many law schools however want more updated scores, and the ones i remember talking to about it said within 3 years. which makes sense, a score from 5 years ago probably isn't going to be heavily weighted with a score from the current year.

12/21/2005 10:56:40 AM

MOST schools only use scores from the last 3 like you said. A handful I've come across will use the 5-year period though.

12/21/2005 10:59:22 AM