Hi! Prospective law school student. Need 30-ish credits to graduate within 6 months.

[CaughtInTheRye12]

I’m looking for some guidance and advice for planning out the completion of my degree. I’m an old forum member from 15 years ago or so. Currently applied to TESU but I’ve been out of the CBE game since about 2010 and their graduation requirements have drastically changed since then. I have 40 FEMA credits that are apparently useless nowadays. That set me back about 30 or so elective credits from earning a quick Liberal Studies degree at TESU. I’m open to any and all options. I would like to raise my GPA if possible but it’s not absolutely necessary.

Las Vegas Nevada USA
Age 42:
Bachelor of Liberal Studies or any BA/BS that is quicker and more affordable. My goal is admission into a 3-year ABA approved ONLINE law school JD program so the BA/BS degree concentration does not matter at all.:
Current Regional Accredited Credits:

College of Southern Nevada

Total Credits: #27

ANT 101, Intro to Cultural Anth, 3, B

AOJ 102, Intro Criminal Justice, 3, B-

ENGL 101, Intro to Writing CC, 3, D

SPAN 211, Second Year Spanish I, 3, B+

SPAN 301, Advanced Spanish, 3, D

GOG 110, Physical Geography, 3, D

GOG 211, Meteorology Climatology, 3, B-

GOG 230, World Geography, 3, B

MUS 212, History of Rock Music, 3, A


Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits:

ACE CREDITS:

ALEKS COURSES

Total Credits: #27

Course name, credits, grade

ALEK-0001, Beginning Algebra, 3, CR

ALEK-0002, Intermediate Algebra, 3, CR

ALEK-0003, College Algebra, 3, CR

ALEK-0004, Col Algebra w/ Trig, 3, CR

ALEK-0005, Pre Calculus, 3, CR

ALEK-0006, Trigonometry, 3, CR

ALEK-0007, Intro To Statistics, 3, CR

ALEK-0008, Business Statistics, 3, CR

ALEK-0009, Stats For Behave Sciences, 3, CR


Course name, credits, grade

ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) Spanish

ACTF-0005, 12 credits, CR


CLEP Exams:

College Spanish Levels I and II, 12, CR

Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, 6, CR

English Comp w/ Essay, 6, CR


DANTES/DSST Exams:

Personal Finance, 3, CR

Environment and Humanity, 3, CR

Technical Writing, 3, CR

Here’s To Your Health, 3, CR

Substance Abuse, 3, CR

Human Cultural Geography, 3, CR


Any certifications or military experience? Nevada & Utah Supreme Court Certified Interpreter (Spanish).

GPA 2.75
LSAT 148 (Taken in 2009 without studying whatsoever. Have a private LSAT tutor now. Retesting in April 2024)

Budget: As cheap as possible. I have been accepted for financial aid. Hopefully less than $8,000. I have a max of $10K in financial aid coming my way in a few weeks. I'd like to go the cheapest route possible, but will consider spending more for easy and fast.  
Commitments: None really. I work from home on my own schedule. I will begin studying full-time for the LSAT soon though.
Dedicated time to study: I can study as much as is needed during the week or weekends as long as my schedule is free. I estimate at least 3 hours every weekday and on the weekends, maybe 6 hours, total would be roughly 15+12=27 hours or slightly more.
Timeline: Finishing the courses required for the degree as fast as possible would be ideal. I would like to finish within 6 months or less so as to allow me to begin law school in August 2024. Tuition assistance/reimbursement:Not applicable.

I am a professional voice actor and self-employed. I’m also an excellent test taker and prefer testing out over long-term commitments to a class. I have ADHD and take Rx medication for it which helps me to slip into an almost “manic”, hyper-focused mode for weeks at a time. This is what allowed me to earn 80+ credits during a nine month period in 2008-2009 when I used to frequent this forum a lot. I have a sort of photographic-esque memory and can recall just about anything that I’ve read before or seen (i.e. textbooks, movies but not audiobooks). I hate “busy work” that has little to nothing to do with the course. However, I have also earned 27 math credits via ALEKS self-paced courses and I hate and suck at math Lol So I’m not ruling out UMPI and their YourPace courses at all. I have a gift for, but generally dislike, writing.


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Sorry about the jumbled coding above. I tried to copy/paste the template as best as I could but it still came out trashy Lol Mods feel free to edit my post so it looks more presentable. Thanks! -Jake


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[SweetSecret]

Admittedly, I am out of date on information of what is happening at the undergrad schools. However, considering you are interested in law you might want to consider getting credits through LawShelf. They have some transfer guides linked from:
https://lawshelf.com/partnersview

[freeloader]

I am sure others will help with a degree plan to get you finished as quickly as practicable, but it seems to me that UMPI, or another program that will involve you completing coursework for grades as opposed to testing out, would make more sense for you. Assuming you want to go to an ABA accredited law school, you likely need at least a 3.0 to have your application seriously considered. Earning 30+ credits and doing well (say 3.5 or better) would give you such a GPA. While I understand that TESU or another Big 3 might appeal to your learning preference, I don’t think it would serve you as well in the long run.

[fmsoa]

I am sure others will help with a degree plan to get you finished as quickly as practicable, but it seems to me that UMPI, or another program that will involve you completing coursework for grades as opposed to testing out, would make more sense for you. Assuming you want to go to an ABA accredited law school, you likely need at least a 3.0 to have your application seriously considered. Earning 30+ credits and doing well (say 3.5 or better) would give you such a GPA. While I understand that TESU or another Big 3 might appeal to your learning preference, I don’t think it would serve you as well in the long run.

Echo that. The median GPA for even mediocre law schools (rankings in the 150-160ish) is about 3.3 and LSAT about 153-155. To achieve that you need at least 50 graded hours with average GPA of around 3.75. Check-box degrees are fast but may not work in your case

[CaughtInTheRye12]

I am sure others will help with a degree plan to get you finished as quickly as practicable, but it seems to me that UMPI, or another program that will involve you completing coursework for grades as opposed to testing out, would make more sense for you. Assuming you want to go to an ABA accredited law school, you likely need at least a 3.0 to have your application seriously considered. Earning 30+ credits and doing well (say 3.5 or better) would give you such a GPA. While I understand that TESU or another Big 3 might appeal to your learning preference, I don’t think it would serve you as well in the long run.

Echo that. The median GPA for even mediocre law schools (rankings in the 150-160ish) is about 3.3 and LSAT about 153-155. To achieve that you need at least 50 graded hours with average GPA of around 3.75. Check-box degrees are fast but may not work in your case

I’m aware of LSAC’s recommendations for GPA and graded credits. However, this plan of mine is 15 years in the making and my entire family are attorneys. I’m simply looking to be accepted into any ABA approved online 3 year JD program so I can join the family business (law firm). The GPA recommendations mean very little compared to LSAT scores, especially for non traditional adult student applicants like myself. I’ve got that covered already with the LSAT prep tutor. With all due respect, i don’t need advice on how to get into law school, I need advice on completing an undergraduate degree. The rest can be overcome by a killer LSAT score, letters of recommendation and application essays. I’m not looking at any prestigious law schools, nor am I looking to win any scholarships. Only admission to ABA accredited online JD programs at schools like Southwestern, Mitchel Hamline, St. Mary’s, etc. Thank you for your input.


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Admittedly, I am out of date on information of what is happening at the undergrad schools. However, considering you are interested in law you might want to consider getting credits through LawShelf. They have some transfer guides linked from:
https://lawshelf.com/partnersview

I’ll check this out, thank you!


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I am sure others will help with a degree plan to get you finished as quickly as practicable, but it seems to me that UMPI, or another program that will involve you completing coursework for grades as opposed to testing out, would make more sense for you. Assuming you want to go to an ABA accredited law school, you likely need at least a 3.0 to have your application seriously considered. Earning 30+ credits and doing well (say 3.5 or better) would give you such a GPA. While I understand that TESU or another Big 3 might appeal to your learning preference, I don’t think it would serve you as well in the long run.

Right? I already have 27 graded RA credits with a 2.75 GPA. LSAC requires a minimum of 60 graded credits in order to take your GPA into consideration. When submitting your transcripts to LSAC CAS, It is generally considered to be better to have a poor cumulative GPA and LESS THAN 60 RA credits then to have a poor cumulative GPA and meet the 60 credit threshold. UMPI is looking more and more like my best option. Now I just need some advice on mapping out a degree from UMPI! Thanks


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I am sure others will help with a degree plan to get you finished as quickly as practicable, but it seems to me that UMPI, or another program that will involve you completing coursework for grades as opposed to testing out, would make more sense for you. Assuming you want to go to an ABA accredited law school, you likely need at least a 3.0 to have your application seriously considered. Earning 30+ credits and doing well (say 3.5 or better) would give you such a GPA. While I understand that TESU or another Big 3 might appeal to your learning preference, I don’t think it would serve you as well in the long run.

Echo that. The median GPA for even mediocre law schools (rankings in the 150-160ish) is about 3.3 and LSAT about 153-155. To achieve that you need at least 50 graded hours with average GPA of around 3.75. Check-box degrees are fast but may not work in your case

Again, I don’t want to come off as rude but, I’m not looking for advice on how to get into law school. I’m looking for undergraduate degree completion advice, planning and mapping. I appreciate your and the others’ input regarding law school admissions data, but it is not a factor in my personal scenario.


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[LevelUP]

UMPI is one of our best options for students who want to attend law school since all they give out is B's or A's, so your GPA is almost always a 3.5 or better. It's also CBE, and per course, it is one of the cheapest compared to other graded course options.

[CaughtInTheRye12]

UMPI is one of our best options for students who want to attend law school since all they give out is B's or A's, so your GPA is almost always a 3.5 or better. It's also CBE, and per course, it is one of the cheapest compared to other graded course options.

Really? All they give out is B and A grades? That’s pretty amazing! Is that the same for their YourPace courses or their normal online courses only? And from what little I’ve read about YourPace, the entire course is based on just one final essay, right?


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[TINASAM]

You want an online 3 year ABA law school, but the very very few of those that there are will still want a higher GPA and LSAT. You'll need to really get a lot of graded A's to boost that score.

Good luck on this endeavor.

[LevelUP]

UMPI is one of our best options for students who want to attend law school since all they give out is B's or A's, so your GPA is almost always a 3.5 or better. It's also CBE, and per course, it is one of the cheapest compared to other graded course options.

Really? All they give out is B and A grades? That’s pretty amazing! Is that the same for their YourPace courses or their normal online courses only? And from what little I’ve read about YourPace, the entire course is based on just one final essay, right?


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Yes, the A/B only grades are for the YourPace CBE program.

There were a few exam courses though they got rid of most of those. Almost all courses are based on a final essay which first you turn in a draft to get professor feedback, then make any corrections if necessary before turning in the final draft.

If you follow Ashkir's advice to a T, then it's pretty easy to earn mostly A's.
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...s-YOURPace

[CaughtInTheRye12]

UMPI is one of our best options for students who want to attend law school since all they give out is B's or A's, so your GPA is almost always a 3.5 or better. It's also CBE, and per course, it is one of the cheapest compared to other graded course options.

Really? All they give out is B and A grades? That’s pretty amazing! Is that the same for their YourPace courses or their normal online courses only? And from what little I’ve read about YourPace, the entire course is based on just one final essay, right?


Sent from my iPhone using DegreeForum.net

Yes, the A/B only grades are for the YourPace CBE program.

There were a few exam courses though they got rid of most of those. Almost all courses are based on a final essay which first you turn in a draft to get professor feedback, then make any corrections if necessary before turning in the final draft.

If you follow Ashkir's advice to a T, then it's pretty easy to earn mostly A's.
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...s-YOURPace

Excellent. I just applied at UMPI and added them to my FAFSA online form. Given the credits that I have listed above, do you have any idea, or know where I can find advice on which BA or BS program to apply to transfer into? Should I stay enrolled at TESU for the sake of perhaps a higher financial aid award, but then use TESU’s financial aid award to fund my YourPace session(s) and graduation fees at UMPI? I don’t have much money saved up at all to throw at my academic plan, so I am almost 100% dependent on federal financial aid. Thanks


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Admittedly, I am out of date on information of what is happening at the undergrad schools. However, considering you are interested in law you might want to consider getting credits through LawShelf. They have some transfer guides linked from:
https://lawshelf.com/partnersview

Wow, if I didn’t have so many credits earned already then the BBA from LawShelf and the National Paralegal College would seem like a great plan for me. I’ve worked in a law firm on and off since I was 12 years old and have even worked in the capacity of paralegal/legal assistant (Nevada didn’t require paralegals to be certified). I am also a Supreme Court Certified Spanish Interpreter and Translator with 1000 hours of courtroom experience in both civil litigation and criminal procedure. If the LawShelf courses are graded, then it still might be worth taking a courses from them. Thanks for the tip!


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