Chance me? (CPA, super low gpa)

[thetaxguy]

Hello, 

Just wondering if anybody would like to comment on my chances of getting into law school in Toronto/ Vancouver. 
 

Background: tax manager at an international accounting firm with my CPA designation

GPA: 2.8, very steady across all 4 years (no excuses, just slacked off really bad 😞 ) 

haven't taken the LSAT yet but I’m guessing I could get 160-170 with some practice. Would like to know if I have a realistic chance to get into a good law school with 160-170 before putting in the effort to study.

Any inputs appreciated, thanks!

 

Edited July 24, 2022 by thetaxguy

[CleanHands]

So you have a terrible GPA and no LSAT score (not even a diagnostic or practice scores)...

What do you expect or want anyone to tell you?

Edited July 24, 2022 by CleanHands

[Ryn]

29 minutes ago, thetaxguy said:

GPA: 2.8, very steady across all 4 years (no excuses, just slacked off really bad 😞 ) 

How long ago was this? If you’re a decade out of school and have good work experience and get a good score on the LSAT, then I can see a 2.8 mattering much less at this stage. 

[scooter]

40 minutes ago, thetaxguy said:

haven't taken the LSAT yet but I’m guessing I could get 160-170 with some practice. Would like to know if I have a realistic chance to get into a good law school with 160-170 before putting in the effort to study.

 

There is a huge difference between 160 and 170. The scores are 80th percentile vs 97th percentile, roughly

 

[LMP]

2 hours ago, thetaxguy said:

Hello, 

Just wondering if anybody would like to comment on my chances of getting into law school in Toronto/ Vancouver. 
 

Background: tax manager at an international accounting firm with my CPA designation

GPA: 2.8, very steady across all 4 years (no excuses, just slacked off really bad 😞 ) 

haven't taken the LSAT yet but I’m guessing I could get 160-170 with some practice. Would like to know if I have a realistic chance to get into a good law school with 160-170 before putting in the effort to study.

Any inputs appreciated, thanks!

 

Do you think everyone else just, doesn't try? Why do you think a 170 is so elusive? Because people are lazy and don't study? 

C'mon, if you wanna discuss your odds without so much as a diagnostic at least apply some common sense. 

Yes, it is absolutely possible for you to score a high enough score to at least partially allievate the damage your GPA does. But it doesn't do you any good to stroll in with an inflated expectations. 

[Piffle]

2 hours ago, scooter said:

There is a huge difference between 160 and 170. The scores are 80th percentile vs 97th percentile, roughly

I really want to underscore just how wide a range 160-170 is.

Everyone from Barack Obama to Ruth Bader Ginsburg had to take the LSAT. A 170 can concievably get someone admitted to Harvard (where they attended), whereas a 160 can get someone into, say, Queen's (where I'm attending). 

Edited July 25, 2022 by Piffle
*170 is 25th percentile for Harvard, and 160 is the median for Queen's, which can get you admitted respectively, assuming the rest of the application is also competitive

[luckycharm]

3 hours ago, thetaxguy said:

Hello, 

Just wondering if anybody would like to comment on my chances of getting into law school in Toronto/ Vancouver. 
 

Background: tax manager at an international accounting firm with my CPA designation

GPA: 2.8, very steady across all 4 years (no excuses, just slacked off really bad 😞 ) 

haven't taken the LSAT yet but I’m guessing I could get 160-170 with some practice. Would like to know if I have a realistic chance to get into a good law school with 160-170 before putting in the effort to study.

Any inputs appreciated, thanks!

 

Your opportunity cost will be extremely high. Any particular reason why do you want to pursue law school now?

[Philosophy]

The difference between a 160 calibre student and a 170 calibre student (in terms of purely LSAT performance) is probably equal to the difference between a 100+ point NHL superstar versus a 40-point third line grinder. 

[Ice]

Realistic chance: Probably close to 0 (at least for Toronto and Vancouver)

Your GPA being what it is pretty much forces you into getting a 95%+ percentile LSAT score which is statistically unlikely to happen. I'll echo what other shave said about the opportunity cost likely not being worth. Just move on.

[CleanHands]

Just now, Ice said:

Your GPA being what it is pretty much forces you into getting a 95%+ percentile LSAT score which is statistically unlikely to happen. I'll echo what other shave said about the opportunity cost likely not being worth. Just move on.

Eh, I thought the OP asking the question he did at the stage he did was dumb. But I don't necessarily agree with this either.

@thetaxguy- Write this LSAT under realistic, timed conditions as a diagnostic: https://cache.careers360.mobi/media/uploads/froala_editor/files/LSAT-practice-set.pdf

Maybe you are one of those people who can effortlessly get a 99th percentile LSAT. Maybe you are so lacking in natural aptitude for the LSAT that it will be readily apparent what an uphill climb this would be. Either way, you'll have a sense of this after investing just a few hours into finding out. Only after you do that will it be worth having the conversation that you created this thread looking for.

(Note: there have been some format changes to the LSAT I believe, and I haven't kept up with them. I'm open to correction but I think the above is still valid as a diagnostic for testing similar types of questions at least.)

[goodisgood]

If you're a mature student it will help. I had a similar gpa (2.9x), grinded to a 169 (I would have 100% scored 170+ on my LSAT if a completely avoidable incident that was not my fault did not occur during the last section of my test), and got into a few schools, all of which place in the OCIs and government positions (not entirely sure what you mean by good school). 

Considering my GPA was garbage and the first time I did the LSAT after six months of bad studying I only got a 161 or something... I don't consider myself gifted or able to effortlessly get a high LSAT score, I just followed a better study strategy for six months and found a good study buddy. If you're like me and lost most of your points in LG (which you can only find out by doing a proper, timed diagnostic) that's a good sign because most people see the most improvements on that section. 

Edited July 25, 2022 by goodisgood
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