Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Any tips for getting into a top tier school?
Freerepublic ^ | 1/7/2011 | Oshkalaboomboom

Posted on 01/07/2011 2:34:07 PM PST by Oshkalaboomboom

My son is in his last semester at Georgia Tech. He scored in the 99th percentile on his LSAT and his GMAT and he wants to go to law school with a possible double major in business (he said that would take him 1 extra year). He is obviously intelligent and motivated.

Unfortunately he's reached a point where intelligence and motivation doesn't count for much. He's trying to get into a top-tier school and it seems like if you don't have a parent who graduated before you or some incredibly good connections the odds are stacked against you no matter how well qualified you are.

Have any of you who have beat the odds and made it into a graduate program at one of the elite schools any tips to share on how he can increase his chances of getting accepted? Is it the way you write your application letter, or if you can find a judge to clerk for, or some internship that will make you stand out? I don't have money or connections, all I can do is pray for his success. Last I heard he was applying to Stanford, Duke and Emory. TIA for any advice.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Chit/Chat; Education; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: business; college; law; vanity
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-70 next last

1 posted on 01/07/2011 2:34:10 PM PST by Oshkalaboomboom
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Check

Race: BLACK

on all college applications.

______________________________________

Seriesly. I wonder if schmoozing your local congress critter still works?


2 posted on 01/07/2011 2:36:49 PM PST by Responsibility2nd (Yes, as a matter of fact, what you do in your bedroom IS my business.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom
I don't have any such advice on how to get into such schools.

But, keep in mind, there are what schools think are the top schools, and there are what employers think are the top schools. One tip is to find out which schools the firm(s) he wants to work for usually hire from and apply there.

Good luck.

3 posted on 01/07/2011 2:40:25 PM PST by !1776!
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Find out how many years the scores are generally accepted as “fresh,” and then have your son consider taking that much time “off from school,” i.e., in the real world. I realize this may seem an unconventional suggestion, but graduate/ professional schools LOVE applicants who have not simply gone right from college and have seen the non-Ivory-Tower world a bit.


4 posted on 01/07/2011 2:40:51 PM PST by pogo101
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

A sack full of money?


5 posted on 01/07/2011 2:41:03 PM PST by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

My son has the same aspirations and I am trying to convince him to ANYTHING but law school. Few jobs, outrageously expensive. Unless he wants to be a politician ...

Its ALL about knowing some judge, law partner, etc. Very rigged game.

One of my best friends is a non-practicing attorney. Hated the work, decided to become a chef.

Overcrowded field, the scramble to be a partner is brutal. And lawyers deserve the reputations they have for cold-hearted, ruthless thugs.


6 posted on 01/07/2011 2:41:09 PM PST by Squidster
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom
Get your passport. None of the US schools really qualify anymore.
7 posted on 01/07/2011 2:42:44 PM PST by MrEdd (Heck? Geewhiz Cripes, thats the place where people who don't believe in Gosh think they aint going.8)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Apply at as many schools as possible. It’s a numbers game sometimes.


8 posted on 01/07/2011 2:42:44 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (Please donate to FreeRepublic, sanity in a world gone mad!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

See, “No Wonder We’re Failing: Our Power Elites’ Sole Expertise Is Being Privileged” posted on the site today.


9 posted on 01/07/2011 2:44:20 PM PST by Constitutions Grandchild
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Dear Oshkalaboomboom,
This is to inform you that after careful review of our tribal database, and after cross-referencing national Native Peoples databases, we have determined that your son is indeed of Timcua heritage and lineage.
Sincerely,
Jimmy “Pine Pitch and 3M5200 Canoe” Golux
Membership Director
Timcua Native Peoples Association


10 posted on 01/07/2011 2:44:57 PM PST by golux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$


11 posted on 01/07/2011 2:46:46 PM PST by umgud
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom
He scored in the 99th percentile on his LSAT and his GMAT

Something to show that he's using his gift of intelligence. Grades, reference letters from employers or others (charity work, etc.).

12 posted on 01/07/2011 2:47:16 PM PST by Cementjungle
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

LSAT counts counts twice as much as his college grades.

Apply Apply Apply!


13 posted on 01/07/2011 2:48:16 PM PST by Clint N. Suhks (YOU BETCHA!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Stanford is a fine school.
I felt smarter just wandering the campus.

Good luck to your Son.


14 posted on 01/07/2011 2:50:43 PM PST by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

My son went to Yale.

He wasn’t his high school’s valedictorian, but the guy who was didn’t even get into an Ivy League school.

He got great SAT scores, but the Ivy League only ranks that around 7th or 8th on the list of what’s important to them.

Volunteer work. Extra-school activities. AP credits. It’s the above-and-beyond stuff that those schools look for. A well-roundedness, so to speak.

Grades alone won’t get it done.

And also, we checked off Disabled, American Indian, Chinese, Midget and Black on the application.

(Only kidding about that last part.)

((Or am I?))


15 posted on 01/07/2011 2:50:43 PM PST by ObamaMustGo2012 (Obama Must Go In 2012)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

You didn’t mention what his grades were. Georgia Tech can be used to get into top tier with both grades and LSAT.


16 posted on 01/07/2011 2:53:02 PM PST by Dr. Sivana (There is no salvation in politics.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Clint N. Suhks

Just as an anecdote,

My wife passed her LSATs with flying colors. She got excellent grades in college.

Her father, a partner in a law firm, talked her out of going to law school. He said the profession was oversaturated and really going downhill fast. He was a very upstanding man and hated to see a once proud profession turned into a bunch of ambulance chasers.

That was 25 years ago.


17 posted on 01/07/2011 2:53:44 PM PST by shelterguy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

Give some thought to getting into a 2nd tier school that might offer him a full scholarship. They look for students with high LSAT marks so they can average them into their median acceptance standards.


18 posted on 01/07/2011 2:54:25 PM PST by CaptainK (...please make it stop. Shake a can of pennies at it.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

“Unfortunately he’s reached a point where intelligence and motivation doesn’t count for much. He’s trying to get into a top-tier school and it seems like if you don’t have a parent who graduated before you or some incredibly good connections the odds are stacked against you no matter how well qualified you are.”

I am not sure about the source of your information. I do not know much about law school admissions but I doubt that your assertion is true. Here is my assessment. Both law and business schools look beyond test scores and grades somewhat. They want some level of community involvement, leadership, and other intangible characteristics. Your son is well positioned with his high grades and test scores. If he also has some intangible characteristics, he will be very competitive. The reputation of his undergraduate school and program is also a factor but his high test scores will alleviate doubts if there are any. Top business schools (especially MBA programs) look heavily at work experience. They generally want students with perhaps 5 years of work experience.

Both business and law schools practice racial preferences. If your son’s qualifications were somewhat lower, he would perhaps be victimized by double standards in admission.

Applying to the very top schools is competitive so it is difficult to say if your son will be admitted. I doubt that connections will be the reason for non admission, however.

Your son may want to consider doctoral programs. A law degree will enable him to apply for law school teaching positions. The market is not great for most areas of business professors with the exception of accounting. In most other areas, business doctoral graduates are having a hard time finding jobs.


19 posted on 01/07/2011 2:56:31 PM PST by businessprofessor
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oshkalaboomboom

He needs to have massive volunteer work to show he is interested in the community, and not just money. No matter if he plans on making money in the future, for now, his time is his coin.

Best advice I have, and I’m working with my daughter for med schools. Same thing, different school.


20 posted on 01/07/2011 2:56:34 PM PST by SoftballMominVA
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-70 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson