Go to school this year v. LSAT for 4th time

[ccraney]

To whoever is so kind to read all of this,

I’m facing a very big decision between going to law school this year or reapplying next cycle, and I would love a PowerScore advisor’s insight.

To give some background, I graduated summa cum laude from UCLA in 2017. I spent this past year studying for the LSAT, applying to law schools, and working various jobs to save money. I applied in middle to late January—with a 4.0 GPA and a 159 LSAT (more details on this below)—and was waitlisted at all but one school (Notre Dame…to which I was I admitted with a small scholarship). Some of the schools I was waitlisted at include UVA, Michigan, UCLA, UC Berkeley (I am in their 1st quartile ranking for the WL), Boston College, Fordham, University of Washington, Georgetown, among a few others. For some of these schools, I believe I was waitlisted mostly because of the timing of my application, and not necessarily because of my numbers. For others, I believe a combination of timing and poor LSAT score explain my WL status.

In regards to the quality of my application, I believe my Personal Statement and extracurricular “softs” were fairly strong—nothing crazy, but still something to be proud of. Actually, the very fact that I am waitlisted at several T14s with below-25th percentile LSAT scores suggests to me that the non-numerical aspects of my application were at least noteworthy.

In regards to the LSAT, it has unfortunately been a different story. I have taken the exam 3 times: Sept. 2017 score of 159, Dec. 2017 score of 159 (Yes, same score again.), and June 2018 score of 162 (I took this most recent one in hopes of upping my ND scholarship and/or getting off of waitlists). Prior to all three of these exams, I studied diligently and was PTing in the mid 160s to low 170s. I took tests in as real conditions as possible—IE: I used the LSAT scantrons, took tests in the local library, did 5 section exams, and utilized a recording of a test proctor found on YouTube. And yet, despite these efforts, I have not been able to execute on actual test day the way that I have done so many times in practice. The pressure of the exam gets to me, and my nerves seem to diminish my confidence. It has been the most challenging academic experience I have encountered thus far—I did not struggle with text anxiety for the SAT or for college exams—and I truly do not know what I can do (that I have not already tried) to overcome it.

With all this being said, I am left with the decision between attending Notre Dame or trying the LSAT for a fourth time in September (and applying next cycle with hopefully a higher score). I do believe that I would do well at Notre Dame should I ultimately go there this August. I visited the school during Admitted Students Day, and really liked the facilities, programs, and people. However, the thought of me not reaching my full LSAT potential (especially with such a strong GPA) is really nagging at me. If I receive a high score—particularly in September when I can submit my application early —I think my overall cycle would pan out much better than it did this past year. I would ideally receive offers from T14 schools, and maybe even some scholarship money as well.

But of course, choosing to wait out another year poses huge risks, the biggest being that I take the September LSAT and still do not get the high score that I get in practice. If such becomes the case—which I am convinced after three disappointing tries at the LSAT that said scenario is a very possible occurrence—I will have to deal with the overwhelming blow of going through another cycle with less-than-ideal circumstances (not to mention the fact that I gave up a decent offer from ND to do so).

I realize this decision is ultimately up to me. However, if anyone has some guidance for me, it would be much appreciated. In terms of leaning towards going to ND in the Fall, I am curious if attending a T14 really is that much more advantageous than attending a T25 (such as ND) for overall career prospects? Particularly when the T25 program has a strong alumni network and programs that I find appealing, is the desire for T14 prestige really worth considering?

And in regards to sitting out another year, what is the overall consensus about taking the LSAT a 4th time? And what can I do to ensure this 4th time is the final time I take it—IE I overcome my test anxiety and perform the way I know I am capable of? Can I use the same personal statement/essays (with maybe a few tweaks)?

Attending a prestigious law school is a dream of mine that I selfishly feel that I have earned. I worked my butt off in undergrad to earn a 4.0, and I likewise have worked tirelessly toward the LSAT (even if my scores don’t indicate such). It is with this sentiment that I think I owe it to myself to wait out another year. But, by the same flip of the coin, I feel my work ethic will enable me to excel and enjoy ND, and that starting law school this year will get me to where I want to go professionally in quicker time.

This is clearly not a decision that I take lightly, and I appreciate any input I can get. Thank you so much!!

[James Finch]

Hi C. Craney,

From your post, I would say that you're actually in a fairly enviable position, despite the difficult choice facing you. The fact that you were waitlisted at top schools and even accepted at Notre Dame is an excellent sign, so I would be confident that an early application and even the moderately higher LSAT score would help get you accepted at more schools. So the key factors I would be considering in your place would be money, time considerations, and desired location to practice law.

Law school is an expensive endeavor that is only becoming more expensive. And as you're probably already aware, student loan debt has the twin drawbacks of a high interest rate (6.8% annually) and is unable to be discharged in bankruptcy, so once taken on, it's your burden forever. With that in mind, the opportunity to work another year and save money as well as possibly have a shot at scholarships or at least lower-tuition schools has to be weighed against the time cost of one extra year working as an attorney and the inevitable annual tuition increase. Also don't forget to factor in living costs; northern Indiana is much cheaper to live in than coastal California, for example.

When considering another year off, you should also consider your position in life. I'm going to assume you're not overly burdened with debt from UCLA, which means that now may be one of the last times that you'll be free of the obligations of work, debt and family. So if you have a bucket list of things to do while still young, this upcoming year could be an opportunity to do at least some of them.

The last major factor I would consider is whether you have a place you desire to live after law school. While not imperative to receiving job offers anywhere, especially if you matriculate to a T14 school, it is helpful to study in the same jurisdiction as you want to work both to cultivate personal relationships and understand the legal market in that area as well as have a headstart in learning at least some of the law for that jurisdiction needed for the bar examine/legal practice. This is especially true of California, so if you want to practice here I'd recommend staying in-state, especially given the difficulty of its bar exam and the very different results between applicants who attended California schools and those coming in from out-of-state.

Hope this helps!