Hastings LEOP Program: What are my chances?

[LEOPHopeful]

I have a 2.72 GPA and 163 LSAT. I've worked in a well-known Bay Area law firm for the last two years. Hastings definitely knows my firm, since we recruit heavily from Hastings. I was diagnosed ADHD my sophomore year and have lots of documentation/extensive testing. Before my sophomore year, I had two Fs and 4 Ws. Does my GPA kill my chances of getting in?

[Maintain FL 350]

I don't know if you're GPA kills your chances, per se, but it definitely reduces your chances. I know someone who was accepted into LEOP with a 3.5/160. For Hastings the 160 was relatively low, and they had a very impressive public interest background.

Your LSAT is good, but still only average for Hastings. Your GPA, however, is below their 25%. Working for well-known firm is good, but those kinds of soft factors won't usually make up for lower numbers. Those attributes usually only matter in tie-breaker situations. Although law schools love to say that they look at the whole package, admission is primarily based on the numbers.

You might want to take a look at USF, Santa Clara, maybe GGU. You'd almost certainly get into at least two, and might even get some scholarship offers from GGU. I used to live in SF and I understand the attraction of Hastings, but you've got an uphill battle.

[livinglegend]

I can also tell you being a lawyer in the Bay Area Santa Clara, USF, Hastings, McGeorge, GGU, and UC Davis are more or less the same in the eyes of most SF employers. They are all fine schools with a lot of successful alumni, but they defeinetly take a back seat to Stanford and Boalt not to mention plenty of Harvard & Yale people move to S.F. Then there are people from UCLA & USC just a few hours away as well. A degree from Hastings won't make thing easy write now I have an intern from Hastings and one from GGU working for me they are both great and I really don't care where either one went to school. So I would really recommend getting out of any of these schools with as little debt as possible. If any of the non Top 10 law schools offer you a lot of scholarship money take it employers here will not care that much if you went to the 48th opposed to the 78th best school.

Also if you are not from the Bay Area one thing to know about Hastings is that it is in the worst part of San Francisco. People get shot every few weeks blocks from the campus if you can't handle crackheads being all around you don't go there. During the day it is as bad since the courthouse and City Hall are right there, but if you ever plan on studying late, taking a night class, or living in the Tower 1L make sure you know what you are getting into.

As for the actual question you might get in, but a 2.72 might keep you out. As the above poster mentioned if you want to be in San Francisco look at all the schools they mentioned and don't forget UC Davis & McGeorge really are not that far away either. Good luck.