Warning
Info
What are "softs" and how are they classified?
LSAT score and GPA are "hard" data. Softs refer to everything in your application that isn't "hard" data.
Softs are inherently unquantifiable. That's why they're called softs.
The tiers below are very rough guidelines for putting a number on something that really can't be quantified. Don't take the tiers too seriously when comparing yourself to other applicants on LSData. Holistically valuing softs is the admissions committee's job.
The soft tier system is copied from an old reddit post by /u/whistleridge.
@adcoms - is this information out of date? Email us at admissions@lsd.law and tell us how we can improve!
Soft tiers
Please do not consider under represented minority (URM) status when classifying your soft tier.
Tier 1 (extremely rare)
- High decorations for valor (Congressional Medal of Honor, DSC/Navy Cross, Silver Star)
- Rhodes Scholarship
- Started multimillion-dollar company/innovative service that is household name
- C-level executive in publicly traded/Fortune 500 company
- Professional athlete/college athlete who was a lock for professional except for injury
- Widely published author/heavily cited academic
- Prior high expertise in field (surgeon who invented technique, etc.)
Tier 2 (rare)
- Decorated military service (Purple Heart, Bronze Star)
- Fulbright/other prestigious scholarship
- NCAA athlete in standout position, e.g. household basketball name, led water polo team to 3 titles, etc.
- Overcome extraordinary physical/mental handicap (ALS, blind & deaf, etc.)
- High level (director, etc.) position in prior employment
- Prior demonstrations of high expertise (patents, etc.)
Tier 3 (uncommon)
- Commissioned military service
- Prestigious undergraduate scholarships and/or research awards
- NCAA athlete
- Overcame extraordinary adversity (childhood poverty, physical/mental handicap, etc.)
- Published academic
- Peace Corps/Americorps/other public service
- Prior employment in legal field or otherwise pertinent area (engineer for IP, etc.)
- Disadvantaged status: LGBTQ+, first in family to attend college, single working parent, etc.
Tier 4 (common)
- Any military service
- Legal internships
- Congressional internships
- President/officer of clubs/frat/etc.
- School newspaper/yearbook/etc.
- Honors societies