Trying Again Next Cycle?

[Will Hunting]

I have a 3.43 GPA, Master's degree in Accounting, and a 169 LSAT score.  I have a job lined up with PricewaterhouseCoopers to work in M&A if I do not attend law school this fall. I'm currently on 8 waitlists and have yet to hear from UT-Austin, UCLA, and UPenn.  My waitlisted schools include Michigan, Duke, UVa, Cornell, USC and Vandy.  I honestly can't believe I've been waitlisted so much, but I did not go complete until early January due to my December LSAT retake.  Should I sit out this year and re-apply next year to these schools with a year of work experience under my belt?  When I hear that I'm waitlisted, I'm basically counting those as rejections at the moment.  I have a Dean's scholarship to SMU and acceptances to GWU and BU.  Thanks for your help!

[LuvHurtz]

I have a 3.43 GPA, Master's degree in Accounting, and a 169 LSAT score.  I have a job lined up with PricewaterhouseCoopers to work in M&A if I do not attend law school this fall. I'm currently on 8 waitlists and have yet to hear from UT-Austin, UCLA, and UPenn.  My waitlisted schools include Michigan, Duke, UVa, Cornell, USC and Vandy.  I honestly can't believe I've been waitlisted so much, but I did not go complete until early January due to my December LSAT retake.  Should I sit out this year and re-apply next year to these schools with a year of work experience under my belt?  When I hear that I'm waitlisted, I'm basically counting those as rejections at the moment.  I have a Dean's scholarship to SMU and acceptances to GWU and BU.  Thanks for your help!

Would anything really be that different about your app other than the fact that you have a year of work experience? Your problem I think may actually be your GPA. Have you considered re-taking the LSAT if you decided to re-apply? I don't really think your results will be that different unless you re-take. If you have serious T-14 motivations I say you re-take the LSAT and go ahead and re-apply. But personally I love GWU and I think it's a great school. I would just go to GW.

[Will Hunting]

I think I've topped out on my LSAT score.  Honestly, the only things that would change between this year and next would be a year of WE, a new Personal Statement, and timing of my applications.  I do have aspirations for T-14.  Portability, IMO, is a must for the line of work I want to pursue.  I thought my GPA/LSAT would get me in to schools in the teens and maybe, maybe in to a T-10.  I'm not sure if I overestimated myself or what, but I'm hoping/wishing that it was my application timing that put me on those waitlists instead of low GPA.   

[Edna St. Vincent Millay]

If you want to work at PWC and/or if you'll kick yourself for attending GW or BU when you feel that you would be better served by a different school, then I think you should re-apply. Work on your personal statement, too, as it's not all LSAT and GPA at the top schools (contrary, perhaps, to popular opinion).

The work experience will give you a better shot at Northwestern, at least.

I think applying earlier with your high LSAT (a 169 is good!), strengthening your essays, and having some new WE will only help. I think applying late screwed you over.

Explain to GW and BU that you're withdrawing to pursue a career opportunity that you don't want to pass up--hopefully they won't hold it against you, and will accept you again next year. Then you'll be in at least the same position.

You probably already know what you really want to do. Just do it.

[LuvHurtz]

If you want to work at PWC and/or if you'll kick yourself for attending GW or BU when you feel that you would be better served by a different school, then I think you should re-apply. Work on your personal statement, too, as it's not all LSAT and GPA at the top schools (contrary, perhaps, to popular opinion).

The work experience will give you a better shot at Northwestern, at least.

I think applying earlier with your high LSAT (a 169 is good!), strengthening your essays, and having some new WE will only help. I think applying late screwed you over.

Explain to GW and BU that you're withdrawing to pursue a career opportunity that you don't want to pass up--hopefully they won't hold it against you, and will accept you again next year. Then you'll be in at least the same position.

You probably already know what you really want to do. Just do it.

I agree with this advice. I also wonder if you decided to re-apply, would GW or BC allow you to make a non-commitment deferral so that just in case you don't get in where you want, you still have the option of attending one of those schools next fall and don't have to pay the application fee next cycle. I don't know...this may just be a dumb idea.

I think a 169 is a great LSAT score also (I would love to have it ) and getting apps out early could make a difference. Since you already have everything taken care of, if I were you, I would have them out mid-late September if possible.

[Will Hunting]

Thanks for the advice guys.  I definitely hadn't thought about asking for a non-commit deferral for GWU or BU.  I certainly hope it's not a dumb idea because it sounded like a good idea to me!

[Edna St. Vincent Millay]

Thanks for the advice guys.  I definitely hadn't thought about asking for a non-commit deferral for GWU or BU.  I certainly hope it's not a dumb idea because it sounded like a good idea to me!

i agree! i wonder if they'll do it?

[queencruella]

Thanks for the advice guys.  I definitely hadn't thought about asking for a non-commit deferral for GWU or BU.  I certainly hope it's not a dumb idea because it sounded like a good idea to me!

The one thing to consider about reapplying is that most schools do not change their decisions about you unless something has changed significantly. Getting a year of work experience is not going to put you into that category. January is really not "late" in the overall scheme of things and I don't think you'll have much better luck by applying earlier with essentially the same stats.

[Nickledime85]

If I were you, I would definitely reapply next cycle. With experience under your belt, and the ability to apply much earlier, I don't think many of these schools would wait list you. You'd have much better admission chances, IMO, and way more time to visit the ones you got into.

[LuvHurtz]

If I were you, I would definitely reapply next cycle. With experience under your belt, and the ability to apply much earlier, I don't think many of these schools would wait list you. You'd have much better admission chances, IMO, and way more time to visit the ones you got into.

I agree with this. I'm such an optimist. Even though nothing is going to change about your numbers there is still a chance that you can change those waitlists into acceptances with a new PS and by letting the school where you applied before know you are really motivated to be a student there and your reasons why. It may not work everywhere...but all you really need is one. And I think you'll always wonder what would have happened had you tried.