Hi,

I attended a top Australian law school which was apparently one of the top 10 law schools worldwide if you can believe QS rankings.

Unfortunately I stuffed up my law degree through a combination of late-diagnosed depression, poor study habits and attitudes, work distractions...etc and graduated with fairly low overall average (probably B- to C+ GPA equivalent). I've heard that the top schools are very grades conscious. It also doesn't help that there is reportedly quite a bit of grade inflation in the top U.S schools.

I was wondering if there's even the remotest possibility of me being admitted to a T-14 American law school for an LLM down the track once I've accumulated some work experience. Is there anything I can do to improve my profile to become a competitive applicant (further study...etc)? Thanks.

Publication in a reputable legal journal is a good start.

Hi advocatus123,

I attended a Malaysian law school which is not even rated in the world ranking. My grades were not that fantastic either. I applied to T-14 American law schools that do not require class rank and safe to say that I have been offered a place in one of the law schools, so far.

There are two reasons why this is possible;

1. I made my applications via LSAC and thus submitted my bachelor's degree transcript for accreditation purposes. Only they can rate you based on the institution and the country that you attended for your law degree. Fear not, as coming from Malaysia with my not-so-fantastic-grades I was rated average with a positive remark. The potential law schools that you want to apply will only see this indication whether they want to read your profile or not. I believe Australian law schools have better standing than Malaysia. So give it a try!

2. A strong Personal Statement. Grades (and experience too) are not the only considerations of the committee of the law school you are applying to; your personal statement should give them a reason to look past your grades. I am not sure about the others, but I researched online about getting admitted to American institutions - personal statements can be your savior. If your grades are already fantastic together with a strong personal statement - they may consider you in :)

All in all, if you think your grades are not that good enough - please ensure that everything else is good. For example; strong personal statement, high TOEFL marks and maybe some work experience. These are what I ensured in my applications. Others may advise differently.

All the best!