What law schools do JAGs go to and what LSAT did they require to get in?

2015-06-16T16:07:36-04:00

I've been looking into possibly applying for law school and becoming a Judge Advocate and I wanted to see if there were any JAGs on here, and what school they attend and also their LSAT score.

Response by LTC Yinon Weiss made Jun 16 at 2015 5:10 PM

2015-06-16T17:10:24-04:00

Great question. In addition, if you're looking to connect with specific JAGs, we have around 600 of them in the Army JAG group, and about 100 of them in the Navy:

https://www.rallypoint.com/specialties/27a-judge-advocate/primary

https://www.rallypoint.com/specialties/250x-judge-advocate-general-s-corps-officer/followers

Find Judge Advocate (27A)'s on RallyPoint

Connect with other 27As. Share you knowledge and get the career advice you need from others with your experience.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 17 at 2015 9:10 AM

2015-06-17T09:10:09-04:00

Not a JAG, just a law student. I go to Catholic University's law school. 160 LSAT is a good dividing line between good enough and better than good. My advice is to apply as early as possible in the season. Seats get filled up fast. Be bold, too. Make sure you have a safe school, but your military experience may get you in to a school even if your academics are borderline.

Response by Lt Col Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 17 at 2015 2:14 PM

2015-06-17T14:14:51-04:00

Devin,

I am an Air Force JAG. I went to Albany Law School in New York and had an LSAT of 162. To be honest though, I am not sure if LSAT score is a good metric for comparison, at least with regard to JAG admissions in the Air Force. Our admissions people repeat over and over its the "total person concept." I know that seems a bit cliched, but I've known JAGS in the Air Force and Army who have come from all sorts of law schools across the tiers. Even in the past years when applications were way up (like less than 1% acceptance rate up), I met new young JAGs from across the law school spectrum.

An important consideration for you might be how you can leverage your military service in some way while going to law school. Most branches have programs that will pay for service members to go to law school (FLEP) (highly competitive) and programs that will allow you to take an academic leave of absence to go to law school (ELP), thereby continuing to accrue time in grade (still competitive, but a bit easier to get).

At least for the Air Force, you can check out those programs here: http://www.airforce.com/jag/entry_programs/active_duty_military

AF JAG Recruiting Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/USAFJAG?fref=pb&hc_location=profile_browser

Also if you have more questions specific to the Air Force JAG Corps, let me know. If I can't answer it for you, I can put you in touch with the Chief of JAG Recruiting, she's a buddy of mine.

Good luck!

-Graham

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 17 at 2015 3:45 PM

2015-06-17T15:45:23-04:00

It's true. There isn't just one school that is a big JAG feeder. The Navy has LEP (law education program) for those that are already naval officers to get the Navy to pay.

Check out http://www.jag.navy.mil
I would also suggest exploring a summer internship program in the service(s) that you are interested in. It helps you a) figure out if you like it, b) meet future colleagues, and c) possibly get a few letters of recommendation and interview if you do a good job.

The Official Web Site of The United States Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps (U.S. Navy JAG)

The Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps provides solutions, from a military perspective, to legal issues involving military operations, organization, and personnel, wherever and whenever such solutions are required, with primary focus on operations, accountability, Sailor legal readiness, and Navy legal readiness.

Response by LTC Deirdre Brou made Jun 17 at 2015 5:22 PM

2015-06-17T17:22:09-04:00

I do not think LSAT score is considered, but I think grades, as well as involvement in extracurricular activities, such as law review, moot court, legal interest groups, etc. are important. If you can provide a letter of recommendation or two from a military leader for whom you have worked (the more senior, the better), that could also help. You may also want to consider an internship in law school with one of the services or volunteering with a legal assistance office at a military post, if there is one near you. I know that legal assistance offices can accept volunteer attorneys, but I am not sure about volunteer quasi-paralegal work from a law student. It is worth asking, though, if your law school is located near a military base. As far as schools go, I would go with the best you can get into. There are no JA feeder schools, but when I was in law school, William and Mary had a large number of funded legal education students and seemed to produced a large number of JAs. One of their professors was a former JA and wrote quite a bit on military criminal justice issues. Good luck.

Response by LTC Peter Hartman made Jun 17 at 2015 7:50 PM

2015-06-17T19:50:19-04:00

Army JAG. I went to Tulane Law School and had an LSAT of 161. Very high undergrad GPA too. Each service pays for a select number of current officers to go to law school as well, although it is a very small number. Back in the day, if selected, the military would pay for any law school you were accepted too. Current budgets don't allow that and there are a few select cheaper schools that many of these funded legal education officers go to. But getting paid as a captain in law school isn't a bad deal if you can get it.

Response by CDR Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 18 at 2015 5:55 AM

2015-06-18T05:55:56-04:00

As a current Navy JAG who transitioned through the law education program (SECNAVINST 1320.7G) I can tell you that your law school and LSAT score are indeed factors in the selection process, but not determinative of selection. As a general rule, the better your law school and higher your GPA, the better your chances of selection. But other factors, such as leadership and volunteer opportunities (e.g. establishing a local charity) would help overcome a lower LSAT. Direct accession program has been highly competitive over the last 5-7 years with overall selection rate hovering around 5% of total applicants.

For the LEP program (instruction above), which you would likely attempt, selection rate is slightly better, historically around 10-20%. Basically do the best you can at your command, strive for 5.0 Fitreps, get the EP block and apply for the transition.

For what it's worth, I went to UF and scored a 158.

Response by CPT(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 18 at 2015 6:32 AM

2015-06-18T06:32:19-04:00

It really is the total person concept. Guard I think being a little easier to get into than Active duty because you actually interview with the person making the higher decision, vs. a junior JA who makes a recommendation to his superiors. But still acceptance rate ways are way down since the 08 economic downturn. BUT the military is not about all grades like BIG LAW is. I have seen people from the worst tier 4 schools to Harvard and Yale, from newbie grades to well seasoned attorneys and everything in between become JAs. The Service branch really wants to see what else you bring to the table. Good luck.

Response by LCDR Jay Farrell made Jun 22 at 2015 7:44 PM

2015-06-22T19:44:41-04:00

Went to Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, OR, I believe the LSAT were scored differently in my day (started law school 1984). Definitely the determinative factors for being accepted into the Navy JAGC for me was prior active service and my affiliation with the Naval Air Reserve at time of acceptance during my 3rd year of law school. That experience enabled me have an overseas assignment as my initial tour (Naples, IT) and overcome solid but not exceptionally high law school GPA. The main thing is to go after it, don't wait around hoping you get the right qualifications. It's better to turn down something that you were accepted to, rather than never knowing if you would have that opportunity by not trying. Do the best you can and go for it either way, if you want it.

Response by CPT Bill Murphy made Jun 23 at 2015 2:53 PM

2015-06-23T14:53:51-04:00

I was already an attorney at USDOJ when I decided to go into the Army Reserve, and then wound up on active duty as a JAG officer—all back in the late 1990s. I don't remember my LSAT but it was high, like maybe top 5% or around there. Law school was UCONN. As mentioned, I did this entirely backward. I should have joined the military first rather than pay for law school myself; good lessons learned for my next life! During my time in, I only knew a handful of JAGs who attended Ivy League or top 10 schools. Take a look at the senior leaders and you'll see some diversity. LTG Darpino (Army TJAG) went to Rutgers, although her predecessor LTG Chipman went to Stanford. On the Navy side, Admiral DeRenzi went to GWU, and her predecessor Admiral Houck went to Michigan.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 12 at 2015 3:23 PM

2015-08-12T15:23:00-04:00

For any professional post baccalaureate education there are minimums, but there is way more that goes into it. For example many medical schools list their "minimum" GPA, science GPA, and MCAT scores. As school that says you have to have a 3.0 and a 30 on the MCAT doesn't accept very many people who have those stats. That same school's average acceptance is probably more like a 3.7 GPA and a 34 MCAT. Law schools work much the same way. A lower score in one category (GPA, LSAT, etc) can be made up for by very good performance in another. One of the best redeeming things many professional schools look for now more than previously is life experience and performance, with many very heavily admiring military service. You would still need to meet the minimums, but realize that just meeting them won't work.

If you graduate from law school you have a good shot at getting in as a JAG. Getting in to and graduating from law school however is hugely dependent on personal aspects of your life, your career, your education, and your test scores.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 22 at 2017 11:31 PM

2017-04-22T23:31:28-04:00

I was selected for the Active Duty Army JAG during my 3rd year at the the Whittier Law School in 2016. I do not think that LSAT score is important for the JAG (at least for the Army JAG) as my score was relatively low = 149. However, my law school GPA was relatively high, which probably made up for that.

Otherwise, I think it is very important to have some volunteer experience on your resume. For example, I had volunteered for about 2 years for the police department.