How do law schools decide whom to admit?
Each law school has its own admission standards, but for all law schools two things stand out as the most important: LSAT scores and undergraduate grades. The higher the LSAT score and the GPA, the better chance for admission and the better chance for admission to a prestigious law school. LSAT scores range from 120-180 with the average score being 150. Chances of acceptance to any law school drop considerably with an LSAT score below 150. Chances of acceptance to any law school drop considerably if the undergraduate GPA is more than slightly below 3.0. For a second-tier law school – a good quality law school, but not one ranked in the top 20, you should have a GPA in the neighborhood of a 3.5 and an LSAT of about 160. For a top 20 law school, you will need a GPA in the neighborhood of a 3.75 and an LSAT in the mid-160s. Remember that for students going directly to law school from undergraduate school, your GPA will be based on 3.5 years of college work. Law schools will make their adm
The way law schools decide whom to admit is not a mystery. There are variations that make each law school’s admissions process unique, but there also are common practices that make it possible to describe law school admissions generally.The process begins with the school’s decision about the size of the first-year class. If a law school decides it wants 500 first-year students, it must admit many more than 500 in order to achieve that entering class target because not all of those who are admitted will actually enroll. The best law schools receive many more applications than seats available in their first-year class. All law schools must decide how to select the best students from among the typically thousands of applicants. The problem is complicated by the fact that people who want to attend law school listen to their pre-law advisors who tell them to apply to several law schools, and strong candidates are typically admitted to several law schools. Therefore, a law school cannot assu
