Unique case

[lionheart122000]

hello


i am Egyptian guy and i want to apply to any law school in Canada and that's about my case so you can tell me if it works for me or not ... i will immigrate to Canada soon and i carry civil law Baccalaureate from Cairo university in Egypt , and i am working as a lawyer in Egypt since almost 6 years, and of course i cant qualify my legal education in The National Committee on Accreditation because my Baccalaureate is not in common law...the problem is that my GPA is 63% ..and as i have read that the GPA should be not less than 3.5 to be accepted in JD program in any law school there ,...also i want to tell u that i am Christian and we are religious minority in Egypt and there is discrimination and persecution against us in every thing even in education so do you think that would be considered to understand my low GPA ?... i want to apply as special access applicant so do i have any chance if i will get high score in LSAT ?and would they consider that i have been working as a lawyer in Egypt for 4 years?... or should i study any courses there to get higher GPA then apply to law school ?...i hope my long message will not bother you , i know my case is unique and i hope to get advice from you...thanks a lot..

p.s
i contacted many law schools in canada and they told me i can apply but they wouldnt tell me if i have big chance or not..

Mina

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Mina,

Thanks for the message. On the phone, law schools will only tell you if you are eligible for admission, not what your chances are to be accepted. Here, we will try to give you a better a sense, but to do that we usually need as many details as possible

From what you've said, I don't see any reason you couldn't apply to law school in Canada and be accepted. The 63% GPA is a bit of a problem, but if you have a credible reason that your grades were generally lower, then the law school might be convinced to put less emphasis on those grades. Applying under special access suggests that you think the issues you encountered while in school were significant enough to disrupt your education. If you can make a convincing case, I believe they would lower emphasis on your GPA.

At the same time, to allay any concerns over your academic abilities, you will need to produce a solid LSAT score so the school will be able to see that your GPA is not indicative of your abilities.

Your legal experience ion Egypt will indeed be considered, in part because it shows that you are truly interested in the law. Also, it gives you a background with the law that is different from the other candidates they see, and that's a big plus. You can bring a different perspective to discussions, and so forth, and law schools value diversity of opinion.

Overall, you definitely have a reasonable chance. Make sure you write a good explanation for your Special Access applications, and study hard for the LSAT and try to get the best possible score. Doing those two things will more than likely gain you admission to one or more law schools.

Please let me know if this helped. Thanks and good luck!

[lionheart122000]

Hi Mina,

Thanks for the message. On the phone, law schools will only tell you if you are eligible for admission, not what your chances are to be accepted. Here, we will try to give you a better a sense, but to do that we usually need as many details as possible

From what you've said, I don't see any reason you couldn't apply to law school in Canada and be accepted. The 63% GPA is a bit of a problem, but if you have a credible reason that your grades were generally lower, then the law school might be convinced to put less emphasis on those grades. Applying under special access suggests that you think the issues you encountered while in school were significant enough to disrupt your education. If you can make a convincing case, I believe they would lower emphasis on your GPA.

At the same time, to allay any concerns over your academic abilities, you will need to produce a solid LSAT score so the school will be able to see that your GPA is not indicative of your abilities.

Your legal experience ion Egypt will indeed be considered, in part because it shows that you are truly interested in the law. Also, it gives you a background with the law that is different than the other candidates they see, and that's a big plus. You can bring a different perspective to discussions, and so forth, and law schools value diversity of opinion.

Overall, you definitely have a reasonable chance. Make sure you write a good explanation for your Special Access applications, and study hard for the LSAT and try to get the best possible score. Doing those two things will more than likely gain you admission to one or more law schools.

Please let me know if this helped. Thanks and good luck!

Hi Dave

Thanks for the quick answer . i have a few questions :
1- how i can make a convincing case to prove that they usually don't like to give high grades to the Christian Egyptian to stop them from having any academic post ? , of course they will not give me paper here to say this .

2- I think that God willing i can get a solid score in the LSAT , but what score you think would be enough in my case ?

3- i want to have plan B in case i won't be admitted according my GPA . So if i will obtain any 2 years program in any college as paralegal program (2 years program ) , would my high GPA in any 2 years program improve my ex GPA ? i mean would it be counted ? or i will have to obtain 3 years undergraduate degree ?

Thanks a lot for the help Dave

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Mina,

Let's me see if I can help you out here:

1. This just requires explaining the situation in Egypt, and the cultural factors in play. Assume that the admissions committee members have no knowledge of what is going, and lay out the story of what has happened to you and your grades. Consider this a good test of your ability to make a persuasive case

2. This is very tough to say, especially with the special access in play. The rule with LSAT scores is always the higher the better, but I'd imagine you'd need something in the 160s to feel that you had a few for-sure admits in your group of schools.

3. The focus in law admissions in North America is on your undergraduate GPA, which, as I understand, you have already completed. Graduate and additional degree GPAs are examined, but they do not hold nearly the same weight as your undergraduate GPA. If you took an additional degree because you wanted it and could use it, that would be of value. I would strongly advise against pursuing an additional degree to "change" your GPA because it won't have that effect.

I hope that helps. Thanks!

[lionheart122000]

Hi Mina,

Let's me see if I can help you out here:

1. This just requires explaining the situation in Egypt, and the cultural factors in play. Assume that the admissions committee members have no knowledge of what is going, and lay out the story of what has happened to you and your grades. Consider this a good test of your ability to make a persuasive case

2. This is very tough to say, especially with the special access in play. The rule with LSAT scores is always the higher the better, but I'd imagine you'd need something in the 160s to feel that you had a few for-sure admits in your group of schools.

3. The focus in law admissions in North America is on your undergraduate GPA, which, as I understand, you have already completed. Graduate and additional degree GPAs are examined, but they do not hold nearly the same weight as your undergraduate GPA. If you took an additional degree because you wanted it and could use it, that would be of value. I would strongly advise against pursuing an additional degree to "change" your GPA because it won't have that effect.

I hope that helps. Thanks!

Hi Dave
Thanks again for the help , your answers are clear and awesome
my last question here is , if i want to improve my Egyptian undergraduate GPA , the only way will be is to obtain another undergraduate degree there in Canada with high GPA ? , or you advise me with another thing to do to improve my GPA ?
Thanks
Mina

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Mina,

Assuming your Egyptian undergrad degree is complete, then your undergrad GPA is locked in. While there may be some differences in the way international grades are handled, getting another degree in Canada wouldn't "replace" your Egyptian GPA. And, do you want to do that anyway? Isn't your lower GPA tied to your religious situation there, and in that sense is part of the special access case you intend to make?

Even if you could replace your Egyptian GPA, there's no way you could justify four more years of school simply to make that change. The price--in both time and money--would simply be too high. But that's my opinion

Thanks!