How will top law schools view me?

Dillonkitch
Tue, 06 Dec 2016 03:49:52 +0000

Hi everyone, I’m new to this forum so bear with me. I’m stressing out a little because the time to apply to law school is fast approaching for me. I’m worried that a mistake I made a few years ago will cost me a shot at any respectable law school. In my freshman year, I had a lot of personal issues going on that made school take the backseat. My GPA suffered, as I received a D average for that semester. The next semester, I was a little smarter, and withdrew from my courses because I realized that I could not properly dedicate the time for school. After 3 semesters had passed, the school allowed me to come back fresh, with a new GPA. The only catch is that the grades are still visible on the transcript. Does this mean law schools can hold this against me even though I started fresh? Otherwise, I now have an overall GPA of a 3.9, I’m enrolled in my school’s honors program, I’m involved with many clubs involving leadership and pre-law, I’ve had several internships with local law firms, and I am heavily involved with community service. I got a 170 on the LSAT, which I was pretty proud of. I guess my overall question is this: Will that first year kill any chances I had? Even with the grades not being calculated into my GPA? Could a strong personal statement explaining how it happened help? Thank you!