Schulich School of Law (Dalhousie University)

I had the same issue and re-emailed them my documents in reply to my original email with the PDF attached. They said that my documents hadn't been attached to my file so it was good to have reached out. My portal was updated. I was just accepted under the discretionary category on friday. Good luck!

Accepted Friday! 162 highest LSAT and 80 UBC scale after drops. Good LORs, good academic background and softs. Have already accepted the offer!

Accepted Friday! 162 highest LSAT and 80 UBC scale after drops -- applied discretionary. Good LORs, good academic background and softs.

I don’t know what the timelines are for the exams nowadays, but for what it’s worth everyone I know who studied for the second exam in advance of the first exam felt it was, at best, a waste of time (and at worst, harmful). Keep in mind the PR section is identical, and so won’t need to be re-read as part of your second exam prep.

Amazing 🙂 I am so glad it's useful!! Honestly, right now I am just googling stuff and finding random stuff. My goal is mostly to practice navigating the materials and getting familiar with using the DToC so the questions don't necessarily have to reflect the exam right away. I plan to purchase a few full practice exams but I am currently on the hunt so if you find good sources please let me know! I had this question too! So, my plan right now is that I will do day 1-16 (1 practice exam) and then stop and study the solicitor materials until around May 28th after which I will return to practice exams for the Barrister (day 17-20). Because of the timelines, I don't feel like I have much of a choice but to study both in somewhat of an overlapping way. So, right now I plan to make it through reading the Barrister materials by May 13 and then I will re-evaluate my study schedule to see how I feel about actually doing exams and such!

This is good to know! I’m trying to hear as much as possible about the quality of education and how prepared one feels for the practice of law at either Schools before I make my decision! It’s also helpful to hear how the upper years and profs are so supportive!

As I said, good attitude! Scooter is also correct here - unlike American schools, which tend (or at least tended back in my day) to look at your whole GPA, Canadian schools have various ways of slicing and dicing your GPA. Some only consider some of your best grades; some consider all of your grades, but via a holistic process that will contextualize a difficult year or two. You didn't say much about the specifics of your grades (nor am I asking), but if your problem looks like "a bad year or two", that can be overcome - really pretty easily, assuming you have the skills to do well in the rest of your degree. I suspect you're going to be fine. Best of luck, and keep us posted through your journey.

I honestly can’t tell you how much I appreciate this response! 🙂 You’ve given me a lot to consider but also the bit of hope I really needed. I understand your point about illness- I guess I’m now starting to feel some anxiety because I know with my health issues my degree will take me longer than my peers if I also want the grades for law school, but funnily enough the only thing that refocuses me is the idea of practicing law at some point in my future, and I don’t want this to hold me back. I’m trying to be careful about that “magical thinking” which is kind of why I came here, to get some realistic advice and get my mindset corrected. It gives me a lot of hope knowing that you were in a similar situation and truly succeeded through a path I hadn’t considered before, so thank you so much for sharing. I think if I put in twice as many hours (which is probably what I should’ve been doing already) then I can really have a shot. I know it sounds naive and silly, but I dont think I realized just how much effort would be required? not that I see that as a bad thing but more like “okay! a real challenge!”, since throughout high school- until first year of uni, I never had to do a lot of heavy duty work to get good grades (which is why my psychiatrist believes it took so long for my parents & I to identify my underlying issues). Now that the opportunity for that level of effort presents itself and I’ve got the support I need, I’m ready to try my best and see where that takes me 🙂

Messages from the governor-in-council from Ottawa take two weeks by messenger to reach us, that is if they are not routed by highwaymen and anti-federalists in the Alberta plains.

I'm wondering the same thing, there are so many options.

I just want to add onto this. I finished 1L with a whopping 2.4 GPA. I worked harder after that and ended 2L with a 3.0 and will finish 3L somewhere between 3.2-3.5. I didn't magically become biglaw/hyper-competitive material, but I did get legal jobs every summer, some competitive clinics, and have articles lined up in my city of choice. While you should obviously try to avoid a repeat of my 1L year, as it did close certain doors for me, don't count yourself out of opportunities or give up because of setbacks. For any incoming 1Ls, you'll probably struggle less than I did at the beginning, but even if you do, you're not doomed.

I would rather work in the public service with UBC-level debts than Oz-level debts.

UNB has been around 100+ years longer than TRU. Their alumni network is going to be a lot more established and diverse. The professors are great and very accessible, and the current dean is very committed to growth while keeping the small collegial atmosphere. Also the student body is quite great and upper years are very supportive if you take the time to get to know them. The school is small enough to get to know everyone and have all the profs know you by name.

I think the only person who can make this decision is you. Or, call a potential mentor in the field you want to work. Ontario is my home and I don't know anyone here who would pass up the opportunity to attend Os if they got in. That said, those people didn't get in, so you're already better than us! The world is YOUR oyster. Do what YOU feel is best for you.

Many schools look at a GPA number that is not your overall cumulative GPA - best two years, last two years, best three years, etc. Many students have a bad first year of undergrad, then make improvements and get into law school. If you do well in the remainder of your undergrad then that first year will carry less weight in the admissions process.