Science going into law school?

Originally Posted by dagman1

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The most sage advice you'll ever get is to go to the best school you can possibly get admitted to. I cannot emphasize this enough. I'm not here to debate whether that's justified or not. It's just the way it is. The competition for associate positions (at firms of all sizes and jobs of all pay scales) is fierce. At the moment, there is an oversupply of law students and a huge pool of laid off lawyers looking for work.

Originally Posted by rjakapeanut

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this is bad advice. you shouldn't simply go to the best school you can get into. there are a ton of factors that could lead a reasonable man to a lower ranked school for various reasons.
Actually, it is good advice. If someone is looking to be the most attractive candidate upon graduation, all things being equal (which is really to say costs being equal), one should always go to the best ranked school to which they are admitted. None of the other "factors," i.e. how good their IP program might be, or how well-regarded their writing program is, or how "diverse" they are, etc. will positively affect a graduate's attractiveness to employers. Most top employers really only care about (i) grades, (ii) school prestige, and (iii) law review/moot court, much in the same way law schools only care about (i) gpa, and (ii) LSAT scores in terms of admissions criteria. To say that an employer will look beyond your school's US News ranking to see how well-regarded they are in terms of some meaningless factor, i.e. diversity, is like saying law schools care about where you did your undergrad. They won't, and they don't. So, at the end of the day, if you're looking to be the most desirable candidate upon graduation (actually, you'll be looking to be the best candidate during the fall of your 2L year), go to the best school you get into, and get the best grades that you can.

i mean you're right if that's your intention. all i'm saying is it isn't always the best idea to automatically go to the best school that accepts you. there are factors that could potentially make going to another school more attractive. maybe a situation where less debt would be incurred, the law school is located in a region you are set on practicing in etc. etc.

but yeah we're kind of arguing two different things here.

How did you get started in RA? Did u need any experience prior to RA or did u go for the certificate?

Originally Posted by JohnGalt

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I work in regulatory affairs - feel free to ask if you have specific questions.

Originally Posted by Kyoung05

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Actually, it is good advice. If someone is looking to be the most attractive candidate upon graduation, all things being equal (which is really to say costs being equal), one should always go to the best ranked school to which they are admitted. None of the other "factors," i.e. how good their IP program might be, or how well-regarded their writing program is, or how "diverse" they are, etc. will positively affect a graduate's attractiveness to employers. Most top employers really only care about (i) grades, (ii) school prestige, and (iii) law review/moot court, much in the same way law schools only care about (i) gpa, and (ii) LSAT scores in terms of admissions criteria. To say that an employer will look beyond your school's US News ranking to see how well-regarded they are in terms of some meaningless factor, i.e. diversity, is like saying law schools care about where you did your undergrad. They won't, and they don't.

So, at the end of the day, if you're looking to be the most desirable candidate upon graduation (actually, you'll be looking to be the best candidate during the fall of your 2L year), go to the best school you get into, and get the best grades that you can.

Originally Posted by rjakapeanut

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i mean you're right if that's your intention. all i'm saying is it isn't always the best idea to automatically go to the best school that accepts you. there are factors that could potentially make going to another school more attractive. maybe a situation where less debt would be incurred, the law school is located in a region you are set on practicing in etc. etc.

there are other factors

and costs are never equal so it's a dumb statement

You might be able to find work as a patent agent. As a patent agent, you would prepare patent applications and handle the paperwork to get them issued as patents. Some firms will also pay for law school while you work as a patent agent, in addition to a high five-figure/low six-figure salary. However, on the bio/pharma side, they might require a Ph.D.


PM me if you want to know specifics.

Originally Posted by JChance

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How did you get started in RA? Did u need any experience prior to RA or did u go for the certificate?

Sorry for the delay in response.

I ended up in RA quite by chance, so rather than discuss my history, I think it would be more beneficial to tell you what I have seen regarding new people entering the field. I've been in RA for close to 10 years, have my RAC and work for an F500. My experience is mostly with devices.

RA is very difficult to get into without some sort of experience. Positions may stay open for a year or more despite hundreds of applicants. Very few companies are looking to bring in people with scientific backgrounds who are interested in RA without submission experience. With that being said, taking a scientific position with a company for a year or two can give you insight into their business processes and products and give you a leg up when applying as an internal applicant for an RA position.

If you don't want to do that, as you probably know, many universities (e.g. Hopkins, USC, Northwestern) are now offering MS programs in RA and that is one route to take. At the very least, you gain familiarity with how things work and, most importantly, establish relationships in industry.

I agree with the advice to go to the best school you get into, with some caveats. First of all, if you're talking about schools in the same "micro-tiers" in the T14 (HYS, CCN, etc.), then circumstances and individual school qualities matter more than rank. Even going down a micro-tier can make sense. The exit opportunities will be quantitatively similar.

Second, once you get down to schools that are unheard of outside their regions, I don't think U.S. News rankings matter a smidgen. At that point, cost and regional reputation should be determining factors.

As to the OP's original question: if you want to do public service, do it for your own satisfaction, not to get into law school. Law school admissions is 97% about two numbers: your GPA and your LSAT score. Maybe 2% depends on where you went to undergrad. Your job experience or service to the community will affect your chances as much as whether the guy reading your application woke up with a cold.

Originally Posted by mafoofan

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Your job experience or service to the community will affect your chances as much as whether the guy reading your application woke up with a cold.

HAHAHAHAHA, thanks for the advice, I'll definitely take the LSAT more seriously.

Originally Posted by JChance

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HAHAHAHAHA, thanks for the advice, I'll definitely take the LSAT more seriously.

The LSAT is absolutely the most important factor. Two or three points can be worth more than .10 of GPA. Just study the statistics in U.S. News.

^ + 1 to Foo.

Like I said. Logic Games book. Right now!!!!!!

It's a hassle but ever consider a 2 year PostBac?

http://nyu.lawschoolnumbers.com/appl...order=desc&p=4 There is a certain range of numbers where an applicant is basically an auto-admit. However, near the bottom of the range there are tons of applicants with the exact same LSAT and similar GPA's where other factors will come into play. In the link above you can look at current NYU applicants with scores of 170 and 169 (169 is the 25th percentile). There are a good number of people accepted, some rejected and others who are pending and will be waitlisted at this point. I was around the 75th percentile for the LSAT and GPA for Berkeley and was rejected. Obviously plenty of others got in with similar numbers: http://berkeley.lawschoolnumbers.com...order=desc&p=3 I had internships and fellowships during undergrad, but I think my undergrad institution was a factor in some of my applications even though I had a strong GPA. Putting things into perspective a typical school will have over 5000 applicants for around 300 spots. They will make around 1000 offers and wait list a ton of people. UCLA is a school where I know they weigh factors outside of GPA and LSAT much more heavily than other schools. Anyway, the LSAT is the only thing that you have control over that will make a huge difference in your application so that's the only thing you should worry about. Like mafoo said, two or three points will make the entire difference of how much money they offer you and what schools you get into.

Originally Posted by butabi

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I will never attend law school, but i still love reading about it and i find it very fascinating. You guys who're attending LS, please tell me more!
Google video search "paper chase."

Law school is pretty awful. Like everything else in the law, its a rite of passage to be suffered through because those before you did so.