Reply to Everyone I ever met who went to Harvard Law School graduated from a college I've never heard of.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It doesn’t matter where you go to undergrad as long as you get a 4.0, a high lsat, do all the meaningless “intern” jobs you can that fill your resume (better to stuff envelopes for a Senator than have a job in their eyes - one of the ways the rich are privileged in this process), and apply in November. [/quote]

But for most people who only got into those mediocre schools to begin with, they won't get a high LSAT. And a 4.0 GPA from Elon with a high LSAT still won't get you even into UVA law, much less Harvard. Trust me. I have a friend who boasts about her DD's 4.0 from Elon and she'll be wasting her money on a mediocre law school next year. A 3.2 from a top 30 will trump a 4.0 from an average college every time. [/quote]

This is a completely wrong take.

Your GPA matters for HLS but the name of your undergrad institution does not.  A 3.2 from a top 30 will not get you very far, much less HLS, unless you are several years out of undergrad and have a 95%ile test score or you have some kind of amazingly prestigious and relevant work experience.

And your undergrad institution has zero impact on a GRE, GMAT or LSAT score (except to the extent that competitive schools tend to rely on high SAT/ACT scores to weed out applicants, so the entering population is predisposed to have naturally good test-taking   qualities).  Good test scores can be taught and practiced - even at the 95%ile. You need to know how to study and some people will need more time and practice to get there.

Your friend with a DC at Elon may yet have the last laugh, snooty PP, if the Elon student does LSAT prep and has good recs and a relevant pitch for why X law school.

Love, 
a long time test prep tutor and parent of an HLS student[/quote]

I guess I was unclear. The Elon student already applied to 8 mediocre schools and two "top" ones. Guess which ones she was rejected from.[/quote]
What was the Elon student's LSAT? (That is the reason they would not get into a top law school, not the undergrad being Elon.)

Over and over again, attorneys post in this forum about the relative unimportance of undergrad institution for top law school admission. Over and over again, high school seniors (and possibly their parents) post here trying to convince families otherwise - they are simply incorrect. GPA and LSAT are key. URM status is important. Work experience after college helps. Undergrad institution does not have special significance.[/quote]

And one thing these posters never mention is that you have to apply in November. They have rolling admissions so no matter how amazing your stats are, their classes are just full by February so your odds are significantly decreased with every passing month.  And then there’s no point in applying next year because they already rejected or waitlisted you once. They don’t say “oh, but it was just because our class was full.” They say “what’s have you done lately? Nothing different. Pass again” [/quote]

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