Work Experience Post Graduation needed?

[mattm]

Hello,

I was wondering, in order to be considered for admission at a top school, is work experience after graduation needed instead of applying straight to law school?

I am currently a senior undergrad and and i looked at some of the class profile data at schools such as Harvard and Penn and it seems that 78% and 68% have had at least one year out of college before entering.

I was wondering reasons people decide to take a gap year, is it financial reasons, to get experience in the world, have more time to decide if law schools is for them, or focus on the LSAT harder if they have time now if they do not have school demands.?

I was wondering if I would be at a disadvantage applying straight from undergrad to law school given that I already have a 25% GPA for the top law schools, but I feel capable of getting a very strong LSAT, ( If gong straight from undergrad to law school would put me at a disadvantage , i may consider taking a gap year or two)

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Matt,

You ask a good question. If this was business school, there would be no question you'd need work experience before applying. One reason for this is that part of the preparation for getting an MBA is work experience: you can learn about business on the job. With law, it's difficult to obtain that same type of experience, and there aren't enough positions to make that experience available to everyone. So, law school has always taken the approach of educating students from the ground floor and up (and they take some pride in this, with a special emphasis on teaching people how to "think like a lawyer").

In the admissions arena, this has long meant that many students can apply to law school right out of college, and there's no penalty in doing so (and lots of people are still going this route). So, it's not necessary to have this experience in order to successfully apply. That doesn't mean it can't be helpful, though.

When you look at a student from an admissions standpoint, think about the entire profile—the more things you have that are positive, the better. If we take two candidates who are identical in all respects except that one has some solid/impressive work experience and the other doesn't, usually that work experience person looks a bit better. However, that's a real simplification of the situation. A lot depends on other factors. For example, if both aren't good candidates, neither will get in. Or, if they are both above the numbers, they probably both get in. That extra bit of experience usually comes into play on the edges, or in really tight admission pools (like Harvard).

Also, the type of experience that you have makes a difference. One thing I know from working with a substantial number of Harvard/Yale/Stanford students is that they are all pretty awesome. They tend to have great numbers and great essays/recs and great work experience when it's in play. They are high achievers and usually just damn impressive, and they start charities and get jobs at Google and so forth. In other words, their work experience is often well above average in terms of quality. This doesn't mean that working a regular office job is bad, it just won't look quite as good as someone else's work experience.

Last, you ask about motivation for taking that time off. I've seen people do it for every reason under the sun, from needing some time away from school to financial reasons, to wanting to decide if law school is for them. It's usually very specific to their situation, and everyone is different in why they make the choice. Unless you tell law schools why you took the time off, they won't know why you did it, so they don't assign any positive or negative value simply to the fact of you taking time off. It's what you do with that time that counts.

You won't be at a disadvantage in applying straight out of school, and if you post numbers in the top quarter, you'll be competitive. If you can marry those numbers with some solid and deep ECs in college and smart, sharp essay, you should be good.

Please let me know if that helps, or if you have any further questions. Thanks!

[mattm]

Thanks it did help!

I was also wondering, while the LSAT is a very important piece of the application, do you think it may be a reasonable idea to focus on the GPA first and LSAT second if you are at a 25% GPA for a certain school?

I am at a 3.55 which puts me at the bottom 25% for many of the T14 schools and I am confident with prep I can get the high LSAT scored needed for those programs...i consider my undergrad institution challenging as good grades are harder to come by

Would It be worth the investment to focus on the grades first since once I graduate in May I cannot increase the GPA any further even if it means delaying law school and the LSAT?

I feel like an applicant with a 3.6 /172 or a 3.65 /172 ....would look a bit better than a 3.55 /172....but I wanted to know if the returns would be minimal by doing this or if it would be a reasonable strategy ?

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Matt,

Sorry I didn't respond sooner, but I've been out of town this week at a conference.

I agree with your idea in general. At the top schools, you obviously need numbers as high as possible, but your GPA is harder to change, and once it is set ins tone you can't change it, I'd do whatever you need to do to grind out the highest possible GPA. If that means setting the LSAT aside for a bit, that's ok. Just make sure that when you do go to take the LSAT that you do as well as you possibly can (in other words, don't shortchange the time yous pend on the LSAT).

The one thing about your LSAT that is really important is that it is the only universal measuring stick that law schools have for all applicants. GPAs and course difficulty change from school to school, but the LSAT is the same for all students. So, when it comes down to it, if two students were identical in all other ways, the higher LSAT score student will be the one getting in first.

It's a tough balancing act, but if you have the time for both, nail down that GPA first then focus in on the LSAT.

Good luck!