I’d also personally recommend against doing a STEM major just to qualify for the patent bar. Again there is typically a lot of GPA risk involved, and unless you have a lot of familiarity with patent practice, it is very hard to know in advance you will actually prefer it as a practice area.
Indeed, I happen to have the credits for the patent bar, and occasionally do cases where patents are involved, but I have never bothered with the patent bar. I think most former STEM majors who become lawyers end up in a similar situation.
There are many great schools for history and if law is in your future, you want to save up.
The where undergrad likely doesn’t impact the where for law - hence Harvard has 147 colleges represented in its class, UVA similar #s, etc., Yale 170 in the last five years - a who’s who of schools not on anyone’s radar like Canisius, Fairleigh Dickinson, Youngstown State, and U of everything from Arkansas to Wyoming. A great LSAT is a necessity of course. And GPA.
Find the right school for you and ensure you can afford 7 years, not four.
Haha, I think Yale and Harvard are a bit above my punching bag. Maybe if I had a better SAT…
I really like UVA’s campus and look forward to applying there. Right now, I’m totally zoned in on Duke, Georgetown, and UNC. In my view, I’d take any of those three (preferably in that order…) over any other college - with Ivy’s excluded.
Of course I don’t know what other criteria you are using, but William & Mary has been mentioned several times and they are great for History & Poli Sci.
Then Penn would be another great reach. And finally George Washington would be a good less reachy option.
So the only real problem with that is what do you do if you don’t get into any of those? Duke and Georgetown are very reachy, and then while UNC is probably going to work out since you are applying in-state, what if it doesn’t?
So I think it really pays to have some great alternatives. I definitely don’t think you need to add more reaches that don’t make much sense for you, and maybe none at all is the best answer (like I’d personally swap Penn for Cornell, Georgia Tech, or Vanderbilt, but none of the above would also be fine). But it seems to me like finding some suitable alternatives to UNC in case you don’t get into a reach and don’t get into UNC is a very good idea, just in case.
I would ignore rankings for history - not sure where you’re getting that information, but rankings for humanities and social science departments generally refer to their grad programs. Rankings for undergrad programs are generally meaningless. Obviously, there’s some overlap between grad and undergrad programs, but rankings for grad programs aren’t going to say much about your potential undergrad experience. Look at faculty and course lists, research opportunities, and other resources for undergrad (like study abroad). See if departments have general fields that interest you. Beyond that, look at what the school as a whole has to offer.
Why not choose an engineering major at UNCC in that case, and add other NC publics with ABET-accredited engineering majors (ECU, NC A&T, WCU)? Note that many who go into aerospace do so from a mechanical engineering or other engineering background, since specific aerospace engineering majors are less common.
While UNC Chapel Hill is a reach for most, I’d be pretty darn surprised if you didn’t get in. Will your school nominate you for Morehead Cain? Obviously that is a crapshoot, but you definitely have a great profile for it. I also think ED for Duke wouldn’t be a surprise. They like their very strong public school kids from NC (was told this by their head of admissions). Apply for the Robertson scholarship too.
I would add William and Mary to your list. They also have a competitive scholarship you may get considered for.
That’s great but find others that you can assuredly get into and afford. Unless UNCC is that school - then you are good.
Can you afford all three + law school for three years without loans?
If not, forget the ilk of the school and find the one that allows you seven years debt free. The top law schools don’t seem to care based on the the # of schools they admit from.
Thank you so much for the info and feedback! It’s good to hear some more positive news after stressing out.
I’ve looked into William and Mary and I think it’s a good fit for me. I’ll definitely reach out to them. I’ve also considered George Washington University for a bit, but if I didn’t get into Georgetown and went to George Washington it would be a bit awkward for me.
Possibly, I’m still on the fence as it is about doing patent law. I’d also like to go out of state for college preferably, ECU, UNCG, UNCW, etc. are not really appealing to me for what they offer considering I want opportunities to be able to enter into poli-sci, which is why a DC school would be on my radar.
First off, it’s easy to go OOS - and with your stats, very inexpensively with many schools giving you auto merit. Many fine schools in fact.
Secondly, many schools offer a DC semester. Mine goes to College of Charleston and last Fall, did the DC semester (through U of SC) Honors and worked at a think tank. In the row of houses they live were students from many, many schools.
Colleges all over the country have Poli Sci as a major - and there are opportunities all over. DC does not have a monopoly on this at all.
UNC doesn’t consider legacy for in state applicants. If you want to check in how many kids get in from your county/school district, here is an interactive tool provided by UNC system:
@tsbna44@nmknh thanks for both of your help. I appreciate the input
I looked at my school @nmknh, we had around a 38% acceptance rate. Pretty surprising, I thought it would be higher.
Also, one more question since you two have been very active on my post:
Does the major you apply for change your chances of being admitted? For example, do STEM majors have lower acceptance rates than History majors, per say? And if so, how much of a difference does it make?
Depends on the school. Some you don’t even declare a major til later. Others absolutely.
I would apply for the major I want over the school. You want to study what you want to study. Someone who wants to be an engineer, as an example (short of biomed) shouldn’t choose UNC. But someone who wants history, of course, UNC.
Again, going to UNC or let’s throw out Arkansas as a name just for comparison purposes that you likely see as beneath - likely not going to make a difference in which law school you go to. Want to go to Harvard - you’ll find both there - same with other top schools. And then of course, law schools throughout the rankings.
Good luck.
Here’s what UNC itself says:
How does my intended major affect my application?
At Carolina, you’ll begin your studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, where you’ll explore your interests, build on your strengths, and develop your skills for citizenship, leadership, lifelong learning, and the careers of the future. Our Ideas in Action curriculum will prepare you to think critically, work collaboratively, solve problems, take risks, and be resilient. By the end of your second year, you’ll declare your major(s) and minor(s), or apply to the programs that require an application including Computer Science, Biomedical Engineering, and majors housed in the professional schools.
On the application for admission, we ask about your academic interests so that if you choose to enroll at Carolina, we can connect you directly with advisors and resources that reflect your interests. Your selections won’t affect your admission in any way.
I know they didn’t when my daughter applied, and quite frankly I would have been surprised if that policy had changed; but I just didn’t want to state something that was incorrect.
You may be pleased to learn that William & Mary has a Washington Center… basically serves as a one-building campus in DC. Check it out on their website! You can do a semester or summers in DC along with internships (the sky is the limit for those… some are congressional, some with NGOs, some even at law firms).
My daughter is a very happy History/English honors double-major at William & Mary. She is a Monroe Scholar, which means she is eligible for funding for a summer of research…for which I think you’d be very competitive.
Also, you’re probably aware, but Colonial Williamsburg is literally steps away from the W&M campus. All students have free passes to visit CW at any time. Just a stroll away you can do your reading under a tree in the Governor’s Mansion garden or chat with a reinactor. William & Mary itself is a piece of history, being the second-oldest institution of higher learning in the US.
And, if you dig in a bit you’ll find kids who submit test scores are far more likely to get in. About 75% of all kids in state who submit scores get in. And yours are strong.
Once again TY all for your help. I really appreciate you all helping out a random stranger. A couple more questions that have risen up…
In terms of Duke, would I be a competitive candidate? Or is Duke simply up to chance, even if its someone of my caliber or higher?
And for Georgetown, does anyone know if you have to submit all AP Testing scores? I’ve heard yes some places, but on their website it says they just ‘recommend’ it.