I am 36 years old and elected military over college. Now I am kicking myself in the butt everyday because I want to be an attorney. Is there anyway to get into law school without going through the time of getting an undergrad?
2007-01-07 04:57:02 · 7 answers · asked by Dustin T 2 in Education & Reference ➔ Higher Education (University +)
Unfortunately, no.
There may be one or two law schools that don't require a Bachelor's but, if so, I haven't heard of them. All the top-tiers and presumably all the second-tiers require that you hold a Bachelor's from an accreditted undergraduate institution in order to be eligible to apply for law school.
And thank you for your military service.
2007-01-07 05:13:34 · answer #1 · answered by Target Acquired 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hey Leilo, You will have a very hard time gaining admission to a good law school with such a low GPA, unfortunately. Undergrad GPA is something around 40% of the decision at law schools (with LSAT making up the vast majority of the rest of the decision). If you still want to go for it, you'll need to study and earn a very strong score on the LSAT. If you end up with a solid score, you'll be what is called a 'splitter'; someone with one high number and one low number. It's very hard to predict how you'll do during the application season as a splitter, though there are some schools that are more amenable to it. Despite what another poster said, TopLawSchools is a great resource for anecdotal evidence, especially for splitters. You might want to poke around there and see what others in your situation have to say. Whatever the case, though, it's going to be a tough sell. On top of doing well on the LSAT, you also might want to take a few years off and work an interesting job. There are several law schools that view that as a strong factor in your favor, and it also might mitigate some fears created by your low GPA (mainly, that you aren't a hard worker - I doubt it's true, but a low GPA and high LSAT creates that presumption). Good luck!
2016-05-23 03:27:56 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I looked into this myself a year ago and I want to say there are two states that do not require a formal degree to be admitted to the bar. Maybe Washington State, CA, TX or Alaska??? I don't remember, but it seemed out west.
You do have to work under an attorney for some period of time and do some other type of work. You still need to pass the bar and would not be able to practice in a state with stricter regulations.
If you are really serious about it, go to the largest local law library (Your state's supreme court law library is perfect) and ask the reference clerk for the rules and regulations on bar admittance in all the states. There is very likely a reference manual they have that details all of this because there are similar books on mortgage broker registration, etc., for all of the states. That, if your google search proves fruitless.
2007-01-07 05:53:11 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Unfortuntately, there are no law schools that accept students without an undergraduate degree. Both the Law School Admissions Test and law school are pretty intense and assume everyone has a basic knowledge level. Besides, it is pretty competitive to get into law school these days. I have included some web pages that might interest you.
2007-01-07 05:31:40 · answer #4 · answered by dawncs 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am a prelaw student myself, and if there was a way I would deffinately take that option, but so far I have not found one law school that is recognized that will let you do it. So I am going to say no to your question, but there may be one somewhere that I have not looked into yet.
2007-01-07 05:13:15 · answer #5 · answered by johnbutlertriofan51 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I found some good info here.
2007-01-07 22:32:36 · answer #6 · answered by bill b 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not seriously, maybe like internet degrees.
2007-01-07 05:09:47 · answer #7 · answered by lesaint770 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋