SL2College

• Which law schools should I apply to?
 
This is the first question many prospective applicants face. Choosing which law schools to apply to is a difficult process since there are over 200 ABA-approved law schools in the U.S, as well as many non-ABA-approved ones, and you need to choose the schools which are best suited to your interests and abilities and give you the best future prospects.
 
Most students start with a quick look at the “rankings” published annually by agencies such as U.S. News, World, the Law School 100, or Justice Brennan’s Law School Rankings. These rankings all list the top 'X' number of law schools and can be a useful start in getting an idea of where schools stand relative to one another. However, each ranking agency uses different criteria and you should never use the rankings alone as a means of deciding where to apply. The same rule of thumb applied at the undergraduate level works here as well: pick some “dream” schools where you’d love to go but where admission is extremely competitive and perhaps a bit of a “reach” for you, some “fit” schools where their published admission statistics match your scores and grades, and some “safety” schools where you are confident that you are a strong candidate and will almost certainly be admitted.
 
The best source for evaluating where you stand relative to the school’s profile is to look at the “admission profile grids” published by each law school. This lists the undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA) and LSAT score achieved by the 25th and 75th percentile of admitted students in the previous year’s entering J.D. class. This should give you a good idea of where you stand since scores and grades are a key factor of admission. The Boston College Law School Locator (available at http://bc.edu/offices/careers/gradschool/law/lawlocator.html#the25) offers an easy-to-read chart of the 25th-75th percentile LSAT and GPA ranges. Bear in mind though, that numbers are only one aspect of the application.
 
You should email admissions offices, request to be put in touch with current students, and if possible visit the school before you choose where to apply. Important factors to consider when choosing schools are the strength of their program in your area of interest, job prospects after graduation, financial aid, and geographic location. Do plenty of research beforehand—you’ll be spending three years of your life at this place! Most students choose to apply to between 8-10 schools; but foreign students (non-U.S citizens or non-permanent residents) are often advised to apply to 12-15 since chances for admission are tougher since only 2-5 places are reserved in each J.D. class for foreign students.
 
 
 
• What do law schools look for in applicants?
 
You may hear that law schools use numerical cut-offs for GPA’s and LSAT scores and that you shouldn’t bother applying to schools where you fall below these numbers. While it is true that law schools ARE very interested in how you performed at the undergraduate level and on the standardized LSAT, and it is true that these “numbers” are more important for admission to graduate professional schools than for undergraduate admission (some law school advisors say that upto 60% of the admissions decision is based on scores, others place it at 50-50), it is NOT true that this is the only factor considered.
 
Some schools have unofficial “cut-off” scores; but they are a minority. All law schools (even those with cut-offs) do look at the “total applicant”, and evaluate your personal statement and recommendations with care. In the case of an applicant, with scores lower than average for a school, an outstanding personal statement that is passionate and focused may tip the balance in the applicant’s favor. Likewise a low undergraduate GPA might be offset by an explanation or professor evaluation that explains how the applicant consistently took tougher or higher level courses while in college, resulting in less than stellar grades, but reflecting a genuine curiosity for learning.
 
Furthermore, law schools place less weight on scores for non-traditional applicants, i.e. those who have been out of college for more than 3-5 years. It’s logical to expect that standardized test scores may be lower for someone who hasn’t taken a test in years and college grades are not representative of one’s maturity or knowledge 5 years out of college. Work experience is considered more than numerical scores in the case of these applicants.
 
The summary of all this is that you should aim to get the best grades possible at the undergraduate level (without taking only intro or “gut” classes since law schools look for rigour in academic programs), aim to get the best score possible at the LSAT, get great recommendations from people who know your academic work well, and finally to write a killer personal statement.
 
•    When should I apply? What is the admissions cycle timeline?  
 
There are four “parts” to the law school admissions “season”. The first part runs September to February. Most applicants take the LSAT in June, October or December and then spend September-February filling in application forms, writing the personal statement and making arrangements to submit transcripts and recommendation letters. Most law schools have deadlines in mid-January, with some having a February 1st deadline. Once you decide on a list of schools, note down the deadlines for all required submissions. Apply early in the admissions cycle!
 
Most law schools have a rolling admissions process (i.e. where they evaluate and make decisions on applications in the order received). This means that the earlier you apply, the higher the number of available spots in the law school class. To illustrate: If the entering class is 200 and you apply early, you will be applying when most of those 200 spots are avilable. Alternatively, if you apply a few days before the deadline, the number of spots still open might have dropped to about 25 or so. Applying early can give a solid applicant, who might not be considered exceptional, a better chance in the admissions cycle. Applying early can also make you eligible for early decision/early admission programs, and it can be a great relief to know you got accepted to law school earlier in the process. Early application also gives you a chance to submit additional application materials if the school makes request.  
 
“Part two” of law schools admissions is the submission of applications for financial aid. These need to be submitted by March, usually by March 15, and may need to be submitted before you receive an application decision from some schools. “Part three” is notification of the admissions decision - which is either 'admit', 'defer', 'wait-list', or 'reject'. This happens on a rolling basis, as and when the law school is able to evaluate your application. Most applicants receive a decision by April. “Part four” is when you receive notice of your financial aid award, if any. This happens sometime after March, usually before May. After this you need to weigh your offers of admission and respond to the schools, informing the school of your choice that you will matriculate (i.e. enroll) at their institution and letting the other schools know that you are declining their offers of admission.  
 
 
•    What about early admission programs, should I apply to those?
 
Early admission is different from “applying early” as discussed above. “Applying early” simply means that you submit your application well before the deadline. “Early admission” means that you are applying as part of a formal programme whereby you will be notified whether you were admitted or not well in advance of the “official” notification date. These early admission programs may be called different names such as early-action, early-decision etc. but they all essentially mean that you will get a decision on your application earlier than the regular notification.  
 
The benefit of applying for early admission is two-fold. First, applying for early admission indicates to the university that you are very interested in their school (which, in the case of a solid candidate, may tip the balance slightly in your favour). Second, successful early admission means that you will have the relief of knowing that you have been admitted into at least one university of your choice.  
 
Be aware however, that there are two types of early admission programs—binding (referred to usually as "early decision") and non-binding (referred to usually as "early action"). The binding program requires that you enroll at the school if you are accepted. This is great if you know for certain that you want to go to a particular school. If like most applicants you have no set preference of schools and expect to be choosing between schools and financial aid awards (which are announced later), a binding early admission programme is not for you. Make sure you research the nature of the early admission programme at each law school before applying.  
 
 
•    I’m considering a joint degree programme (e.g. J.D/M.B.A or J.D/M.Sc/ M.A/Ph.D), is this a good idea?  
 
Many students toy with the idea of a joint degree, and foreign students are particularly prone to falling victim to 'more-degrees-the-better' syndrome. Resist the mass hysteria and evaluate yourself and your career goals carefully before deciding to apply to joint degree programs.  
 
Joint degree programs can be a great investment for people with specialized and highly developed interests in particular fields. Note that the key words in that last sentence are “investment” and “specialized and highly developed interests”. A joint graduate degree is a VERY significant investment of time and money. Often, the marginal benefits of a joint degree are only worth to people who are already active in an interdisciplinary field that is served by both degrees. Hence, most people who successfully pursue joint degrees are people who have already had considerable work experience in a specialized field. Also bear in mind that you will need to apply and be accepted separately to both programs. The good news about that is you don’t need to apply to both programs simultaneously. So if, after the first year of law school, you decide you DO want to apply for that M.B.A., that’s entirely possible.  
 
Moral of the story: If you want to get a joint graduate degree, don’t rush it. Take time to think about the costs and benefits. You’ll be glad you waited.  
 
   
•    Any other tips for admission?
 
Pay close attention to how the parts of your application are coming together. The law school application has many parts (described in Part 1 of this article) and not all of them are under your direct control. Even after you send in your application and personal statement, the law schools and LSAC still need to receive your official transcript from your undergraduate college as well as your recommendations in order to evaluate your application.  
 
Give your undergraduate registrar’s office and your recommenders stamped envelopes addressed to the schools you’re applying to so that they could simply write the recommendations, make copies, and drop them in the post. If you’re worried about sending it by regular mail, you can ask recommenders to give you sealed envelopes (with their signature across the back flap) so that you can mail them by registered post to LSAC or the law schools. If you choose to do this, check with the law schools first - some schools insist on having the recommendations mailed to them directly by the recommenders. In this case, remind your recommenders of the deadlines a week or so before the deadlines. In the end, you are responsible for making sure that your complete application is filed in a timely manner.  
 
Congratulations on choosing a school to enroll in!