Does College Major Really Matter In Getting Accepted to Law School?

[WeteTiseceF]

Hi everyone. Well let me start out by saying that i really enjoy reading what everyone else posts. It has helped me to get a better knowledge of what law school is like. My question is this, right now i am a Criminal Justice major, i am a junior and only have about 12 units of CJ classes done, would majoring in Political Science be a better major for law school?

I really enjoy both subjects but right now i am getting all A's in CJ and i don't know what to expect from Poli Sci, what is that major like i.e. tests? writing? etc. Thank you so much.

[GuandaTup]

Just my opinion, but I have found that the major makes little difference. Your GPA and LSAT makes all the difference. Disregard most of the crap the schools put out about looking at everything. When it really comes down to it, the only time your major will make a difference is if you are borderline. From what I have seen the school pretty much have an upper range, where you are automatically in, a low range, where you are automatically not in, and a middle range where they may look at some of the other stuff. Even then, I think that they generally look at your GPA and LSAT compared to other middle range students that year. The secret it to get a good GPA, and work your butt off on the LSAT.

As for which of those two majors will be better, I am not sure.

[Woophahpoelay]

I graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice and I can confidently say that I got accepted into the schools I was 'numerically' entitled to get into. I don't think being a CJ major caused my rejection at any school. If you're getting straight A's in CJ classes that shows you have a natural affinity towards the criminal sphere of law and schools will like that. What it basically comes down to is the LSAT. Do well in that and you can write your own ticket to the law school of your choice. They say they stress LSAT to GPA around 60-40 but we all know thats not the case. Keep getting the straight A's in ur CJ classes and do reasonably well on the LSAT and I'm sure you will do just fine. I hope I was of help to you, but if you need any more assistance dont hesitate to post in the forums.

[Viktor Svarovskiy]

Your college major is not the focus of your application process. It is definitely your UGPA and LSAT score. Then if you make the median or above (of your LSAT and UGPA compared to that school) of the school you wsh to attend, then and only then the comittee or director of admissions will take inot account your undergrad major and university attended. My advice to you is finish up w/ your CJ degree and study hard for the LSAT. Just remember you want your application to stand out among the thousands that come in, so a more unique major (as opposed to usual i.e. Political Science) will stand out more.

[Nazyaccoche]

The LSAT is most important.

This is an examination every law-school applicant must take, which is graded uniformly across all applicants. Scores on the LSAT range from a low of 120 to a high of 180. In other words, a person can take the LSAT and get all the questions wrong, but still receives a score of 120. Another person getting all the questions right receives a 180.

In theory, the LSAT is a consistent measure for an admissions officer to compare all 7,000 applicants with each other.

Indeed, look at how much Fordham relies on the LSAT. The information below represents the LSAT scores for those applicants to Fordham recently who had a 3.5 GPA or better. In other words, these are the most promising applicants in terms of their academic performance in college.

LSAT Score Percent Admitted

168-180 100%

164-167 99%

160-163 71%

156-159 15%

148-155 12%

120-147 4%

These statistics clearly reveal how important the LSAT is to law-school admissions.