St. Thomas University school of law?

Question

I have been admited to the St. Thomas University school of law summer conditional program in Miami Gardens, FL. Has anyone done this before? Is this really competitive? What can I expect?

Answer 1

The first year at any law school is really competitive. According to the attrition rates at St. Thomas (see LSAC.org), nearly 30% of all 1Ls leave during or soon after their first year. This percentage appears to me as alarmingly high. But the good news is that if you make through the first year, it is pretty much all downhill and the competition for grades is usually over. For your first year of school kiss your life, family, friends, and fun goodbye. The only people who will understand you are your fellow 1Ls. But it is all worth it in the end.

Answer 2

I would encourage you to look elsewhere. If you don't have the GPA and LSAT to get into a better school, you do not belong in law school. St Thomas is not well-respected. It is expensive (your $5000 scholarship won't get you too far when tuition alone is over $30,000/year) and honestly, it's unlikely you'll get a job when you graduate. Unless you can go to school without ANY loans at all or you have a guaranteed job upon graduation, this is certainly not a smart financial decision. You may not care about making smart financial decisions at this point and that's fine, but you need to understand what you're getting yourself into. The bar passage rate is also below the Florida average. Considering that St Thomas isn't even the top school in Miami, I suspect you'll have a difficult time finding a job - if you manage to pass the bar to begin with. I really, really encourage you to do your research and look elsewhere. St Thomas is representative of the worst kind of law school in US.

Answer 3

US News ranks St. Thomas Law School as a fourth tier law school -- this is the lowest tier, and means that it will be much less competitive than other law schools. Only 61% of the schools graduates pass the bar on the first attempt -- so you may need to do some extra work to get the right kind of education.