3.3/164 accepted nowhere

[ThanksAlot]

I applied to all my schools late, about 2 weeks before deadline. I thought my numbers were enough to get in somewhere decent. I was rejected by UCLA, USC, Boalt (all understandable)........ but also by Loyola LA, Hastings, and Illinois-Champagne. If i wait to re-apply for class of 2013, and apply early (turn in apps first week they are accepted), would I get in to at least one of those above schools? Is turning in an application early REALLY that important?

['blueskies]

Apparently...

Schools accept people on a rolling basis, they don't wait until the deadline and then look at the applicant pool as a whole. So there are many more spots at the beginning of the cycle, and very few at the end.

[Moe Zhust]

Apply early next time.

Retake the LSAT.  (This is the least important of the three)

And apply to some safety schools.  If you're looking at Hastings then apply to USF, which is a great school.  (I'm biased)  Look beyond the rankings. 

[Jamie Stringer]

Who knows?  Maybe they'd have taken you but you have a crappy PS?  None of us can really speak to all the other pieces of your application.  One of my friends (God love him) applied to schools this year with good numbers but his PS was not very good.  As a result, he ended up being dinged at schools where people with his numbers are usually legit for acceptance plus scholarship. 

[FortheDefense]

I applied to all my schools late, about 2 weeks before deadline. I thought my numbers were enough to get in somewhere decent. I was rejected by UCLA, USC, Boalt (all understandable)........ but also by Loyola LA, Hastings, and Illinois-Champagne. If i wait to re-apply for class of 2013, and apply early (turn in apps first week they are accepted), would I get in to at least one of those above schools? Is turning in an application early REALLY that important?

I'd also consider the importance of which school I got into. I'd love to have those numbers you have. If being accepted into a top school is important, re apply, otherwise I am sure there are some great schools that will still accept you. Some have extended their deadline til May 15th.

[upgrade]

Retake the LSAT.  (This is the least important of the three)

This is probably the most important if you are trying to get into a school like Illinois.  A school probably doesn't think you are serious about law school by throwing a late application, which likely hurt your chances, but that wouldn't make them pass if you had a stronger LSAT score to make up for the GPA.  I was sitting with a 164/3.35, retook the LSAT in February, got a 166, applied very late to Illinois and got a scholarship offer.  I don't think I would have even been admitted without the 166.

Loyola doesn't make sense, but now you have plenty of time to prepare for an LSAT retake.

[The Harvard Guy]

Turning an application in early is VERY IMPORTANT.  If you apply earlier to all those schools, I guarantee you that you will get in somewhere.

[Jamie Stringer]

Turning an application in early is VERY IMPORTANT.  If you apply earlier to all those schools, I guarantee you that you will get in somewhere.

O RLY?

With what will you back up that guarantee?  Money?

[iahurricane]

Apparently...

Schools accept people on a rolling basis, they don't wait until the deadline and then look at the applicant pool as a whole. So there are many more spots at the beginning of the cycle, and very few at the end.

I applied in late February and got into every school I applied to, some with scholarships. I also had lower numbers than the guy, maybe he is lacking in other areas of the application.

['blueskies]

I said it's important, not impossible.  Especially if your numbers would make the schools you're applying to a bit of a reach, it becomes more important.  But yes, this person clearly could have other things wrong with his application, but if s/he applied earlier when there were more spots it could have helped.