The law school application process, much like applying for college is daunting but over the last few months of going through it myself, hearing and experiencing my friends and classmates go through it and now that I am on the other side of the hump, I feel like I can share my experience and some tips and tricks for those who are still or will be going through it in the upcoming months.
Today is the official first deposit day for all law schools so at this time of year the majority of applicants have completed the application process, and some may already know where they will be attending in the fall. But for others today is also the application deadline so some people are applying today after a second LSAT exam score has come in.
So let’s go back to the moment you got your LSAT score and were satisfied with how you did. And don’t be discouraged if you had to take it more than once, I did, as do most people.
Once you know your score and have made the decision to keep it, use the Law School Admission Council (LSAC)’s Find A School Guide, here you can search schools by region, LSAT score, and GPA so it makes it really easy. You can also see where your score falls in the median ranges of each criteria for each school and can sort the search by this or by name.
Go adding the schools you like to your list on their website. Include a variety: favorites, where you have the best chance of being accepted, reaches, and safety schools.
Now research each school and create an excel spreadsheet for this. Include columns for GPA and LSAT medians, ranges, and where you fall per school. Also add cost of tuition, cost of living in each city/town where the school is located, average debt after graduation, average salary after graduation, graduation rate, bar passage rate, employment rate and more.
As a checklist for myself, I included the number of letters of recommendation I needed for each school, how many pages/word limits for personal statements, any special prompts required per school, and any additional essays needed. Also be sure to include any resume requirements as these differ. DEADLINES too! Please don’t forget those, some schools will have earlier dates for financial aid consideration so be sure to follow their deadlines.
Now that you have your excel outline, research and plug in. I used US News and World Reports, the school’s individual websites, 509 disclosure reports, LawSchoolI and other websites to help me compile all this information.
At this point you probably have over 20 schools on your list, and while great, that’s a lot of schools and will cost wayyy too much money so begin to narrow your list down.
This is the tricky part, because you love all the schools and they’re all amazing in their own ways but they’re not all the school for you. So my tip, and I think this is the best way to do it personally, is look at the programs each school offers. Do they line up with what you’re interested in pursuing in law school? In your career?
Look at clinical programs, externship/internship programs, study abroad, research, etc. If a certain school doesn’t have a program you like or really want remove it from your list. Or if that program isn’t notable maybe flag it for further review later.
Next factor in location. Weather, cost of living, nearby cities for jobs, would you live there after law school. This is very important because law school is intense but you still want to enjoy being in your 20s and that means you want to be in a city/town that has offerings for your tastes. And you may, and most likely will stay in the area for a few years out of school so make sure you’d be ok with living there. And don’t leave out reciprocity. Look at what states reciprocate bar exams. Each state is different in their rules on this so research and be informed. Look at the reciprocation requirements if you want to practice in multiple jurisdictions or your end goal is to move back home, to LA, NYC or Miami, etc.
Now reevaluate your school list, remove whichever schools don’t fit into your values, wants, and needs. Maybe add a few schools you’ve learned some more about, that happens.
Go to law school fairs, forums and visit schools if you can. Stick to the local ones for now, and visit the farther ones once you’ve been admitted.
Once you have a solid 10-15 schools on your list, begin applying. I filled out all the data entry portions first and as I read the instructions page on each application I began working on personal statements, resumes, and any additional essays I needed.
Save multiple drafts of each and label accordingly, especially if a certain school requires something in particular.
Pro tip: create a file on your computer for each school and save accordingly.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE have someone review your work. For errors, and advice on enhancements. I asked an older sorority sister who was a recent law school graduate and her help was invaluable. If you don’t have a similar resource, ask a teacher, mentor, advisor, or see if your university or college has a faculty member who can assist you. Mine did, and they were available to recent graduates as well.
Once you have all your documents in order, do a final swipe through your school list and begin applying.
If you can get fee waivers I highly recommend that you use them. Any schools you met at fairs, forums or visits will provide you one so take it. This waives the application fee if applicable but not the record fee which is $45 dollars per school, so it will add up, and fast.
Be sure to review your applications, and have a second opinion if you can, before you press submit because once it’s in it’s in and now you wait.
Don’t be afraid to apply to more schools after the initial round, because the more you put out there the better your chance of acceptance to more than one and you never know what financial aid package you can earn from the random school you applied to.
I hope this post helps you or a friend out if you are or will be applying to law school, and if there are ever any questions or you want more info on a certain step, don’t be afraid to reach out!
And my final piece of advice, and my personal favorite, once you’re done, take a step back and relax. Take a hot bath, eat a gallon of ice cream and binge watch your favorite tv show on Netflix. Good luck!
Thanks for reading!
xo Kayla