I was wondering what schools I should be looking at with an LSAT score of 162 and a gpa of 3.49. I go to a really good private school, have a lot of decent softs and am not an URM. I definitely was hoping for a school more in the eastern US, but as far west as TX. Preferably in the South. Any suggestions?
My list so far is:
Vanderbilt
UNC
William and Mary
W&L
Alabama
Georgia
OSU
Wake Forest
SMU
Baylor
University of Tennessee
Richmond
Kentucky
Buffalo
Syracuse
Without even plugging in your numbers, I can say that the first half of your list is probably out. Softs, including your undergrad school, won’t help you place above your numbers.
Baylor on down you’re good, but none of those schools are worth attending without a 3/4+ scholarship (the privates) or a decent scholarship and strong desire to practice in the state/region (for example, SUNY Buffalo is good for WNY). You won’t get T1 with these numbers.
Vanderbilt - out
UNC - WL/In
William and Mary - WL/out
W&L - WL/out
Alabama - WL/out
Georgia - WL/out
OSU - WL/In
Wake Forest - In
SMU - In
Baylor - In
University of Tennessee - In
Richmond - In
Kentucky - In $$
Buffalo - In $$
Syracuse -In $$
Never know with the waitlists; I could be wrong on any of them, but that’s how I see it going for you.
You might be able to get a little bit of money out of some of the other schools too, but the bottom three are sure-shots. What state do you live in? (More specifically, where would you be able to get in-state tuition?) You said you prefer the south – why aren’t you considering FSU or UF? You have a good shot at both of those schools. Best of luck.