Importance of Undergrad and getting into top law schools

[remiz22]

guys i went to a state school and it was super easy i had an A in every class except the 4 semesters of foreign language i had B's in. my parents both went to top undergraduate schools and have real good jobs so money isn't an issue and i can afford to go to a top private school. i hope to attend a private law school as well. i already took my lsat and i scored a 169 i was just wondering though if you think it will make a difference in helping me get into a top law school if i attend one institution over the other? also harvard's acceptance rate is a 10%, however upenn's wharton's acceptance rate is a 4% it is the most selective undergraduate business school in the country.

I'm not sure that is correct. My understanding is that most Penn students can simply transfer to wharton after completing their freshman year with decent grades. Do you have a link to that 4% number?

As for law school options, a 169 should position you to be in play at some of the lower T14's

[dekocards]

It wont matter where you go.  Just get the highest GPA you can manage at the place you think you will be most happy.  Spend away. 

[mark it 8]

guys i went to a state school and it was super easy i had an A in every class except the 4 semesters of foreign language i had B's in. my parents both went to top undergraduate schools and have real good jobs so money isn't an issue and i can afford to go to a top private school. i hope to attend a private law school as well. i already took my lsat and i scored a 169 i was just wondering though if you think it will make a difference in helping me get into a top law school if i attend one institution over the other? also harvard's acceptance rate is a 10%, however upenn's wharton's acceptance rate is a 4% it is the most selective undergraduate business school in the country.

I'm not sure that is correct. My understanding is that most Penn students can simply transfer to wharton after completing their freshman year with decent grades. Do you have a link to that 4% number?

As for law school options, a 169 should position you to be in play at some of the lower T14's

You need at least a 3.7 to even apply for the transfer, and you probably need at least a 3.8 to be taken seriously. A 3.8 would put you in the top 10-15% of the class.

Also, any Wharton UG statistics are going to be heavily skewed by the high proportion of athletes that they admit. As far as Ivies go, Penn is very serious about its athletics. Wharton is generally the main draw for recruiting athletes from the revenue generating sports. My point being, most students admitted to Wharton UG by virtue of their academic credentials alone can pretty much go anywhere they want for undergrad.

[remiz22]

i hope to attend a private law school as well. i already took my lsat and i scored a 169 i was just wondering though if you think it will make a difference in helping me get into a top law school if i attend one institution over the other? also harvard's acceptance rate is a 10%, however upenn's wharton's acceptance rate is a 4% it is the most selective undergraduate business school in the country.

I knew that 4% number sounded odd. Businessweek had the wharton undergrad admissions rate at 16.1%. Could you please post the link to your 4% number?

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/undergraduate/06profiles/wharton1.htm

[readyfor1l]

i hope to attend a private law school as well. i already took my lsat and i scored a 169 i was just wondering though if you think it will make a difference in helping me get into a top law school if i attend one institution over the other? also harvard's acceptance rate is a 10%, however upenn's wharton's acceptance rate is a 4% it is the most selective undergraduate business school in the country.

I knew that 4% number sounded odd. Businessweek had the wharton undergrad admissions rate at 16.1%. Could you please post the link to your 4% number?

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/undergraduate/06profiles/wharton1.htm



that's the 2006 rate.admissions has become increasingly more competitive  these last 2 years and will continue to do so for the next few years.

[remiz22]

also harvard's acceptance rate is a 10%, however upenn's wharton's acceptance rate is a 4% it is the most selective undergraduate business school in the country.

I knew that 4% number sounded odd. Businessweek had the wharton undergrad admissions rate at 16.1%. Could you please post the link to your 4% number?

that's the 2006 rate.admissions has become increasingly more competitive  these last 2 years and will continue to do so for the next few years.

My mistake. I found the 2007 Businessweek profile and it lists the admissions rate at 13%. Maybe they have it wrong. Could you please post the link to your 4% number?

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/07/undergrad/profiles/wharton1.htm

[JeNeSaisLaw]

Guys from my high school used to transfer from Penn to Wharton undergrad all the time, it was no big deal.

[greenie]

Guys from my high school used to transfer from Penn to Wharton undergrad all the time, it was no big deal.

 

[Ninja1]

Listen, I haven't read through all of this topic or anything, but here's what I know:

1. Your GPA and LSAT are what matter most (like 95% of the admissions process). If you're good on these, you're good to go.

...

This is such a damn shame.  Whether out of ease of evaluating applicants, or whoring to US News, it's really a shame.  Not all 3.8's or 3.0's or even 2.7's are equal.  Further, the difference between a rejection and a scholarship is all too often just 2 or 3 questions on a very peculiar test.

Yes, yes it is. I guess when you have several thousand people applying for several hundred (if even that many) spots at any given school, you have to have some quick and dirty way to reduce the workload. Trash everyone below a certain index, auto admit everyone above a certain index, and let the rest fall where they may. All told, the system seems to work well enough and at least we don't have to do interviews hardly ever (except, is it Northwestern that interviews everyone?) for schools.

[MahlerGrooves]

Just to weigh in, I went to Manhattan School of Music, hardly a prestigious undergrad by most standards (though insanely prestigious in the classical music world).  It didn't hurt me at all.  GPA and LSAT.  Hate to repeat that mantra, but it's true.