LSAT Blogs

You’ve all been working hard on completing and submitting your applications.  Now what?

I’ve mentioned in previous entries that once you apply to a law school, the Admissions Office sets up a file for your application material and requests your LSAT score, letters of recommendation and transcripts from the Law Schools Admission Council (LSAC).  As you are already aware, you can check your LSAC account to confirm that your letters of recommendation and transcripts have been received.   But you’re not done yet.  You also need to view your account to make sure that each law school to which you applied has requested your material.

I’ve had clients ask me what to do when, for example, they’ve applied to seven schools, and all but one has yet to make the request.  Call the Admissions Office, ask to speak to an Admissions Officer, and say something like: "I submitted my application on [whatever date].  In reviewing my LSAC account, I noticed that a number of the law schools have requested my material.  Is there any other information you need from me at this time in order to do so?"

Once you have verified that a school has put in this request, I suggest waiting about two weeks and then calling the Admissions Office to confirm that your application is complete and has gone to the Admissions Committee.

It generally takes a minimum of six to eight weeks for the Admissions Committee to make a decision on your application.  If it has been six weeks and you haven’t heard any news, it’s ok to call the Admissions Office to check upon the status of your application by saying, "I sent in my application on [whatever date] and haven’t yet received a decision.  Do you have an idea as to how much longer it may take?" 

Your responsibility doesn’t end once you apply to law school.  I encourage you to take a proactive role in ensuring that your application advances through the admissions process.

September test scores are out.  Some of my clients do not feel that their scores are indicative of their true ability, and we’re discussing the pros/cons of retaking it on December 5th.  Check out my July 20th post "Thinking about retaking the LSAT?" where I address the topic.

What they are more concerned about, however, is whether the December administration will put them at a disadvantage because it is late in the admissions cycle.  I’ll address that today.

When law schools indicate a deadline date of February 1, March 1, March 15, etc., they understand that the December LSAT is a popular one, and they know that many qualified applicants will come out of that test.  Yes, spots will have already been filled, but spots are still open, too.

To get the competitive edge, you want to make sure that your application is in that first batch that are completed once the scores become available.  Let me explain.

Remember, you can apply to law school at any time.  You do not need to have taken the LSAT.  Your letters of recommendation and transcripts do not need to have been received by LSAC.  You can apply as soon as you’ve completed the application, and written your personal statement, addendum (if needed) and resume.  Once the Admissions Office receives this material, it will request your LSAT score, transcripts and letters of recommendation from LSAC. 

Here is the key…LSAC will send out this information to the law schools to which you applied only when all of the material - LSAT score, transripts and letters of recommendation - has been received.

If you choose to take the LSAT in December, your goal should be to submit your application beforehand or soon afterwards.  If you haven’t already done so, make sure to ask your recommenders to write your letters now.  And, submit the transcript request form to your registrar now if you haven’t yet done so.  You want to ensure that this material is received by LSAC as soon as possible.

A number of Admissions Offices close the week between Christmas and New Year’s.  Faculty are away on vacation.  It’s a very quiet time. By submitting your application before or soon after you take the test, you give the Admissions Office time to request your material from LSAC so that once your score becomes available, LSAC will mail out your packet, the Admissions Office will receive and file it, and your application will be considered complete and go to the Admissions Committee for review come the first of the year when everything picks up again. 

"What about transferring to another law school after my first year?" It is a very common question posed by my clients.

The Admissions Committee is required to bring in a first-year entering class of a certain size determined by administration) in order to meet budget projections. On the other hand, there is no class size requirement for transfer students. If ten transfer applicants qualify for admission, then the ten will be accepted. If no transfer applicants qualify for admission, then none will be accepted.

The Committee is looking to accept applicants who will enhance its student body; therefore, it is essential to earn strong grades at your current institution. Generally, a transfer applicant must provide the following material to be considered:

» Application

» Letter(s) of recommendation, at least one being from a first-year law school professor

» Certification letter from the law school confirming that you are in good standing and able to continue legal studies there should you choose to do so

» Official LSDAS report

» Final transcripts from all schools attended

» Transcript of first-year law school grades

» Personal statement. Be sure to include your reason for wishing to transfer.

» Application fee

Because it might take awhile for your first-year grades to become available, it is possible that your transfer application will not be reviewed until July. Some schools may allow you to submit copies of your grade reports – or some other documentation indicating your grades – until your official transcript becomes available.

Each law school’s Admissions Committee has set its own transfer application process, such as number of letters of recommendation to submit. Be sure to call each school to learn its specific requirements.

I’m going to take a brief break from discussing the personal statement to reiterate an entry I wrote about a month before the June LSAT administration. Only this time I’m addressing those of you taking the September LSAT.

I know you’re eager to submit your application as soon as possible. For the next few weeks, however, I encourage you to concentrate all of your efforts on the LSAT rather than thinking about what to write for your personal essay(s), or what schools you should apply to.

Consider: What if the time you spent working on your statement could have resulted in your scoring one point higher on the LSAT? What difference can one point make? The difference between being accepted…or not. Everyone is on the bubble somewhere. Said differently, everyone is competitive for a certain range of schools. But what’s also true is that the next level of schools can be brought into reach with a more competitive LSAT score or a more polished, introspective and engaging personal statement.

Encouraging you to spend the next few weeks focusing on improving your LSAT score is said not to discount the importance of well written personal statements and addendums (when necessary), rock solid recommendations and the various other components of the law school application. All these are critical pieces of your overall application, but you’ll be best served to devote your post-LSAT time to these aspects. It is much more advantageous for you to use the time now to earn a higher LSAT score than it is to be the first person to apply to a school. Click here to learn more about our LSAT prep options.

If you haven’t already done so, you should submit your transcripts to the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) as well as select your recommenders and ask them to write your letters. It doesn’t take too much time, and you’ll be advancing the application process while preparing for the LSAT.

Good luck!

There are generally two types of personal statements. I call the first one a general or "open topic" essay. The application may limit you to formatting or space requirements (no more than two pages double-spaced, or no more than 500 words, no smaller than 11 pt. font) but does not limit you to a specific topic. You can write about anything you wish.

The second type of essay may ask specific questions such as: Why do you want to go to law school? Why do you want to go to this law school? What kind of challenges have you overcome, how have your overcome them, and how has that shaped you into the person you are today? What three words best describe you? What do you consider your greatest achievements and disappointments in life?

Even if you’re crafting a general statement, the above questions are important ones to consider. It’s a very logical question to ask an applicant why he/she wishes to attend law school, and why mine? You could be applying to an MBA program. Why did you choose law? I do want to know if you’ve faced any challenges and how you’ve overcome them. What did you learn from the experience? Your answers show me your character.

In the following blog entries, I will:
→ Pose additional questions and suggest themes for you to consider when writing your essay
→ Suggest possible ideas as to how to format your essay
→ Discuss potential essay pitfalls

I would say that as consultants, we devote the most time in helping our clients write the personal statement. As I tell my clients, I want you to get frustrated but not so frustrated that you’re ready to throw your computer out of the window. You have the more challenging job: you have to take your life and condense it into three pages double-spaced, or 500 words. I get the easy part; I get to read it. And as I wrote in my previous entry, I looked forward to reading every one.

And now we begin to address the personal statement, which is my favorite part of the application. It is through the personal statement that I felt like I got to know you the person, hence, why it is called the personal statement.

My biggest frustration was the applicant who wrote something like: "I’ve always wanted to go to law school. It’s a very prestigious profession, and I want to make the world a better place. To do that I need to be able to change/create policy, and to do that I need a law degree." What’s wrong with these words? Anyone can write them, so in reality, it is a missed opportunity to set yourself apart from all of your fellow applicants.

I look at the personal statement as very valuable real estate. The Admissions Committee is giving you the chance to sell yourself. What makes you special and different than any other applicant? Why should the law school accept you? Few law schools offer official interviews; therefore, it is those pieces of paper in your file that represent who you are. You need to brag about yourself without sounding like you’re bragging about yourself. This can be a challenge for a lot of us because we were taught not to brag.

You are unique. It’s in your hands to tell me how.

While each law school’s application form is pretty straight forward, I would like to point out a few things.

Some law schools start accepting applications on September 1, others on October 15, or somewhere in between. You’ll find that information on each school’s website. As I mentioned in an earlier entry, you’ll be applying through the LSAC website, and it’s possible that the schools haven’t yet made available their applications for the Fall 2010 Entering Class. That’s ok. In the meantime, check out each school’s website because you may be able to find the Fall 2009 application, which will give you an idea as to the information you’ll need to provide.

There’s a question that asks you to indicate what area(s) of law you may be interested in. Don’t worry; there’s no right or wrong answer. But if you check the box – or write on the blank line – that you’re interested in estate law, as an Admissions Office reading your application, I’m going to wonder where they interest came from. Do you have work, life, academic or volunteer experience in this/these areas? If so, make sure you comment on it in your personal statement. Your experience will add richness to the classroom discussion; be proud of it.

Remember, even if a school’s application is not yet posted, you can still be working on all of the other pieces of your package (your transcripts, letters of recommendation and personal statement) so that completing the actual form is your last step before submitting all of your material.

You may be curious as to how the application process works, so here goes…

I view the application process as containing five different pieces:

• The application form itself
• Undergraduate GPA
• LSAT score
• Letters of recommendation
• Personal statement

Over the course of the next few blogs, I will address each piece individually. In the meantime, I feel it is important for you to understand the overarching sequence of the process.

You will need to submit your transcript(s) and letters of recommendation to LSAC. It is your responsibility to make sure that LSAC receives both, and the good news is that you have the ability to track their receipt online on the LSAC website. And, obviously, LSAC will have your LSAT score(s) on file.

Even if all of this information is in, the law school doesn’t know that you are applying until you submit the actual application form. After you complete the online application and before you hit the "send" button, upload your personal statement, resume (if you have one) and addendum (if you’ve written one – the purpose of which I will discuss in a later blog) as attachments.

Once you click "send", your application will be forwarded to that respective law school. When the Admissions Office receives your application, it will set up an internal file and request your LSAT score, transcript(s) and letters of recommendation from LSAC. Only when all of the material is received by the Admission Office will your application be considered "complete" and be forwarded on to the Admissions Committee for review.