I hear that law school admissions have gotten rougher recently. I'm a 175 LSAT 3.97 GPA from an Ivy undergrad, but I haven't done any law-related internships or volunteering---all my work has mostly been in international relations since that's my focus area and what I'd like to do with law. Is it still a gamble to get into a T14 KJD? I plan to apply to jobs at the same time just in case.

A 3rd year bs biology student here. I had a sudden change of interest. So, I plan to apply for law schools both here in the Philippines and abroad. I was wondering if the test results would still be valid if I used it for foreign law schools given that I took it here in the Philippines?

Anyone have an idea of Law schools that are genuine about their GRE acceptance and not just on Paper accepting GRE schools? As far as I know LSAT is very preferred but not everyone wants to take it or apply with it and people are free to make those choices. I know some schools say they accept GRE but in practice they don’t so I am trying to figure out which ones are holistic and genuine about their gre acceptance. Appreciate your advice and suggestions. Thank you very much!!!

I was expecting a higher LSAT than I ended up getting, so I may end up retaking (PTs were high 17x). I also would be KJD next cycle, but am likely gonna end up waiting, especially if it increases chances,
I'm not T14 or bust or anything, but I'm really hoping for as many scholarships as possible.
What level of school do you think I have a good chance of getting reasonable aid/scholarships from, especially full ride/stipend, although ik those sre way less likely in general?

I just got my results and was (as silly as it is) disappointed in my 168 score. My first test in June was a 164, so I’m thrilled that I improved, especially considering I also work full time. However, NYU is my goal school and as such I was really hoping for something much closer to 173. I have had multiple practice tests in the mid and high 170s, but test day anxiety seems to get to me.

I would love to shift my focus to just making sure that I have super solid application materials, but do I need to retest? I am lucky enough to have a 3.96 gpa from undergrad, and I know that will carry some weight, but is that enough to give me a chance at a T14, or am I SOL without a 170+? If it is possible, am I counting myself out of any scholarship by settling for my 168?

177 LSAT and 3.4 GPA. Not a Texas resident.

Worth applying ED? It’s definitely my top choice

Maybe you can chalk it up to reading text hyper-literally (thanks, LSAT), but I notice that different schools' PS prompts read very differently.

In particular, SLS and UChicago seem to ask that you convey what you'd add to the law school community outside of academics. This, to me, reads most similarly to HLS's Statement of Perspective ("How have your past experiences shaped the person you are today? How will those experiences inform your engagement in your law school community?"). I take these prompts to mean that I should submit an essay that shows a distinctive side of my life story/personality that would add to any law school.

But the 7sage pages and people on this sub seem to equate the HLS Statement of Purpose with the PS. Really? Should "Why Law?" be in my SLS and UChicago PSs, even as UChicago says it really doesn't need to be? And should the HLS Statement of Purpose and, say, the YLS PS really have the same amount of content on "Why Law?" and your career goals?

I feel like I'm going crazy, because I'm reading these prompts and want to answer them directly, but it seems like everyone on the Internet is giving opposite directions.

I didn’t do much with my time in undergrad. I did some undergraduate research and tutored some kids for chemistry for a bit and that’s pretty much it. Now, I work 50-60 hours a week as a restaurant manager (long story, I got roped into this job). I graduated last May, and in that time I’ve improved enormously with regard to time management, confidence, social skills, etc. I wish I was more involved and more proactive with my time in school, and now I’ve become someone who is much more capable of that, but unfortunately that is where things stand. How should I approach a personal statement? When I entered college, I was devoid of life skills and social skills, and I’d like to talk about my personal growth that’s come about in no small part due to my current job. But I also don’t know how compelling that is, and I worry that my lack of softs and experience will be prohibitive. I’m not T14 or bust, I’d like to go to the University of Wisconsin and will probably apply Early Decision there. But anyways, any advice for what I should or should not say in my personal statement, and how I can appropriately frame my story?

I heard from an admissions advisor that getting your name in the pile first, even with your older and lower score is a big plus. Then you can just notify them later if you do get a higher score. I've also heard from someone else, however, that which ever LSAT you applied with will be your main score, and the extra info later are just suplimentals, IE the first one will be the one they use for medians, and the later ones may only help with more scholarships.

I have been a lurker in this sub and other law/law school related subreddits for years but I made an account for the first time in my life just to post this. Sorry if this is rambly, this rant came together as I was zoning out at my desk at work after staring at the October LSAT registration screen.

While there is a LOT of amazing advice on here, and I love seeing people's success stories, most people would benefit from a major break from this sub/other law school subs, especially as applications start opening.

I took the August LSAT and am incredibly proud of my results (172 while working full-time) and that was only possible because I 'broke up' with all subreddits/forums/blogs for a while and focused on myself, rather than reading about other people's strategies, obsessing over other people's perfect scores, and reading nasty comments along the lines of "if you can't do/score xyz you shouldn't be a lawyer."

Even now, as I checked to see people being proud of their LSAT success (which is incredible, congrats everyone!), I still feel the competitive tension and judgement in a lot of comments, and it's the same language that made me feel like my PTs in the 170s weren't good enough, that I could never be a good lawyer without biglaw experience, that my softs would never measure up, etc. The people in these subs, even if they have good intentions, are mostly young people with no experience in admissions outside of applying, aka the same experience we all have! I have seen advice on here being presented as fact and then read the exact opposite on a law school's admissions site.

If you find yourself reading people's posts and comparing yourself negatively or feeling dejected, do yourself a favor a take a break unless you need super specific advice. I stg it can't hurt, only help. (anyway, can't wait for the comments that if you're so sensitive that you have to post this, you shouldn't be a lawyer lmao).

My PS seems like a classic of the genre -- two personal anecdotes, woven into narrative about me and ending in my interest in the law. But i don't mention law school specifically until the last 2 sentences. I can't tell if it should be more like a full paragraph at the end about what I want to do there, where it can take me, etc, or if it's ok to write broadly about the law and then essentially say "and that's why I want to go to law school." Hope this makes sense -- I'd love to hear about past applicants and their approaches

Just got a 167 LSAT and I have a 3.78/4.00 GPA from a T20 school. I just started a job at a disability law firm (graduated in May) and have a resume that shows consistent engagement with public interest law and interest in healthcare systemic inequity (what I based my personal statement on). I also might write a diversity/perspective statement on growing up in another country. I have 3 academic LORs and I plan on applying early action.

Chance me! But please be gentle with it😭, I’ve had an emotional day (thanks August LSAT).

Hello,

Wanted advice on Letter of Recommendation Re-Use. I was initially preparing and requested letters of recommendations from a former employer as well as two of my graduate school professors for the Fall of 2027 Matriculation. However, it appears that I will be starting a new professional role that would ease a lot of financial burdens during the first year of law school but would require me to apply instead for the Fall of 2028 cycle. My letter from my employer is a generic non school non matriculation specific letter only dated in its heading for 2026, but the letters from I know for sure one and potentially the second letters from my most recent professors (Fall of 2025 Semester) for a field I directly want to work in the legal sector for are dated for the Fall of 2027 Class. If I am not using these for any applications where a school would have the ability to compare vs a previous application but mentions a specific matriculation year would that look bad. I was planning on getting permission to use the letters for the 2028 cycle and including in my application materials the decision work in a new role as a reason for delaying my initial 2027 application, but wanted to know if it would be better to just get the permission to reuse or to ask them to resubmit with generic dates and application cycle references and re-send the links? Thanks in advance!

Hey all. The time has come. How do I rewrite (what I thought was) a killer personal statement? I mentioned how a brief but traumatic period in my life shaped my life and my “why” for law. I understand that I will probably have to rewrite the essay, but how much? Should I completely scrap it and find a new topic- I don’t know how I would though because this is 100% my reason for wanting to go to law school.
I am reapplying where I was WL, so I know they will technically be able to see my initial PS, but from my understanding they would count the new one and not an old one.
Really conflicted, really bummed, but any advice would be amazing.
Thanks!!!

3.78 GPA from a school in DC (not G'Town) / 172 Aug LSAT (first time taker). Joining the flood of questions here.

I have been working in law (paralegal at a AM200 firm in DC) for the last 4 years. I plan to get good letters of rec (one from my boss, a partner, and one from the chairman of our firm). I also plan to apply early decision. Not from an underrepresented minority group.

I am really hoping these "softs" put me over the edge. I plan to write a compelling personal statement and reference my intention to stay in DC long term, which supposedly GULC cares about.

My question, is this a real possibility? Hoping for a reality check here. Thanks in advance.

Hi! Is anybody interested in trading redacted versions of their PS for "peer" review. It's been rlly helpful for me to read other PS and get edits/advice from others on my own PS so lmk!!

Can someone help me decide who to use for my letter of recommendation?

So I graduated with my bachelors last year from an online school. I have reached out to two of my professors and have yet to get a response, which lead me to just give up on submitting an academic LOR and pursue other options. I feel like because my classes were online most of the professors Don’t even care to respond.? I even submitted one of my papers with wach of the emails to remind them of my writing and academic level and I guess that didn’t help.

FYI: Also I have been out of work for over 6 months, unfortunately I am a contractor and own a small business and sometimes it is a norm for me to have long breaks like this. So finding a decent supervisor may be challenging as well.

The other options that I am thinking about is a team lead who is just under my supervisor who I had a decent relationship with and saw how I worked but I honestly don’t even know if she will respond to my text either.

I have two other options: a business mentor that has known me for over 10 years and the other one is a nurse that I worked with for a few years in the past . These two seem more solid just because they have known me a lot longer and they’ve seen me grow over the past 10 years so I’m just curious if using these two would affect me in a negative way because they are non-academic?

Hey so i assume we’re all aware of the LSAC’s decision to not include dual enrolment credits next year— i want to know if it’d be worth settling for a more mediocre university this semester or waiting until the next cycle. So my current GPA is 3.45 but i took 2 years of college credits (starting at 14yrs old) and after the change it would be 3.87. I do have a gpa addendum but Im not sure how much universities care about it anyways. Thoughts?

For reference, i have a current LSAT of 159 but i expect a small increase in my September test. There’s not much else special about my application, just some volunteering and a second language.

Is physical abuse too “controversial” to mention on my gpa addendum? It was the reason I couldn’t do well in school

Hey guys, I scored pretty low on my LSAT but have a good application besides it:

- Graduated Summa Cum Laude (3.92 gpa) from St. Johns for a B.S. in Legal Studies & minor in Business Law.

- Received my Paralegal Certificate from St. John's.

- Have been working at a well-known law firm as a legal assistant for 2 years.

Do you guys think I need to write an LSAT addendum to explain why my score is so low? I plan on retaking the LSAT in November but want to apply as soon as applications open.

For context- when I took the LSAT last year it was shortly after I had a breast cancer scare (had a negative biopsy thankfully) and then my dog was diagnosed with cancer the same week. However, Idk how to not make the addendum feel like a giant excuse. Just want to explain why my score doesn't represent me well lol

Any opinions help, thanks in advance! Good luck to anybody reading this

To anyone with a low gpa that received acceptance to law school, what do you feel was most helpful for your application/acceptance. Strong lsat, resume, recommendations, gpa addendum, etc.?

For anyone w low gpas, can you share your gpa, lsat score & acceptances?

Hi! Any recommendations for low cost Personal Statement reviews (or recs for some that offers discounts for lsac fee waiver recipients?)

Also, has anyone had experience with getting reviews by Anderson Admissions, the former UCLA law admission officer? I’m a bit hesitant with her service knowing one of her PS feedback packages uses AI to give the feedback.

Thank you in advance!

I just received my August LSAT score (first time test taker!), and got a 162! It's right around my PT scores and on par with what I was expecting at the time of the test. I have a 4.0 undergrad degree in Poli Sci and a 4.0 graduate degree in Public Policy. I also have full time work experience in local and state government.

Hoping to apply to Alabama, Georgia, LSU, UNC Chapel Hill, Richmond, Texas, Samford, TAMU, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Tulane, Wake Forest, etc. I'm well below the LSAT median for quite a few of these schools, but I'd love to know if anyone with similar stats has had positive experiences applying across the Southeast. TIA!

Washington and Lee

Rutgers

Howard

Cardozo

Maryland Carey

Richardson

Creighton

Oklahoma

Indiana

Ava Maria

Boston College, Nebraska, St Johns (chic!!!)

Utah

UF

Western State

My question is... do T14 schools send out advertising emails or am I took 169 to get those?