Aliarrow

Thanks for the replies! My undergrad major was psychology, I've taken several political science courses and enjoyed them all (especially comparative politics). To clarify about research experience: It seems like most of the people in my research labs who were serious about PhD programs were working on an actual senior thesis and running their own research lab. I wanted to, but I didn't ask the professor I worked for about it until late/mid Junior year, when she said it was likely too late. So I just feel like it would be a disadvantage to not have actually run my own research project. My greatest interests are comparative politics or social psychology to be exact. One thing about law school I thought could be helpful though was that one school I'm looking at (BU) has a clinic program in which law students draft actual legislation for developing African nations, which might give me a bit of a boost if I go the political science route. And I plan on working several years after law school in a (hopefully) somewhat successful career so it doesn't give the appearance I'm just running from law. This might sound silly, but one of my biggest concerns is me letters or recommendation. I have great recommenders, with whom I've researched, however I feel embarrassed asking for graduate school letters after already having them submit law school recommendations for me. It makes me worried that I give off an appearance that I don't know what I want to do and that I'm not serious about this. The truth isn't that I'm so much 'aimless' or unsure, it's just that there truly are several things I'm passionate about and want to do. I enjoy law, psychology, and political science all pretty equally (maybe political science a little more). I graduated in December and have been working as a legal assistant. I enjoy the field even though I realize it is different than I initially imagined, and I want to do it for a while since it would serve me well in my long term goals and ambitions; I just can't realistically see myself sticking around in law until I retire (and the vast majority don't seem to, it's a field with a very high turnover rate).

I'm new here so I apologize if any of this has been asked before, but - I've always been interested in grad school- particularly for Psych/Poli Sci, however I don't feel I have a substantial amount of research experience to qualify me for entrance to a decent PhD program, plus I want some real world experience before I'm trapped in Academia, so I've decided to pursue law school (since luckily for me, admissions are almost entirely Objective). I'll be attending a top 30 program (or Top 14 if I get into one I've been waitlisted at). I'm going to try my hardest to get on some type of Journal so I'll have research experience and the opportunity to write a note (a student written journal publication), and clerk for a Judge after graduation if possible. If I do all of this would I have a decent shot into a top grad program? Particularly if I find a professor whose research interests intersect with law (shouldn't be too hard to find in Psych/Poli Sci). My main concern is that my Undergrad GPA is 3.5 (3.8 upper level/major), which seems a bit low for PhDs (but from quick glance at this board GPAs dont seem nearly as important for grad school as it is for law school). I do have 3 semesters of experience as a research assistant as well. Or is this whole path completely retarded and I should just aim for a Masters program to get research experience that could lead to a decent PhD program?