LSAT Blogs

As I’ve mentioned in earlier entries, the Admissions Committee takes into consideration every element when reviewing your application: LSAT, undergraduate and graduate GPA and transcripts, letters of recommendation, resume, work experience, life experience, personal statement and addendum (should you have needed to write one). 

I tell my clients right up front that I cannot and will not guarantee that they will be accepted to a specific law school, nor will I guarantee that they won’t be accepted to a specific school.  I do not have the advantage of serving on the Admissions Committee and being able to read your application along with the other thousands that have been received for the upcoming year. 

In researching law schools, you noticed that each school indicates a range of LSAT scores and a range of GPAs for accepted students.  This range covers the 25th – 75th percentiles, which means the school also accepts above the range and below the range:

• Should your LSAT and GPA fall way above both ranges, I’d say that you have a very, very strong chance of being accepted.  As your consultant, I would not guarantee your acceptance because maybe there is something else going on in your application that I’m not aware of, something you haven’t shared with me.  However, the odds are very much in your favor.
• Should your LSAT and GPA fall way below both ranges, as your consultant, I would tell you that it’s going to be an uphill challenge to get in.  However, maybe there’s some other aspect of your file that you haven’t shared with me that particularly attracts the attention of the Admissions Committee.
• Should your LSAT and GPA fall solidly within the middle or near the top end of the ranges, once again, you have a solid chance of being accepted.
• Should your LSAT and/or GPA fall at the lower end or just below the 25th percentile, then the Admissions Committee looks for some other aspect of your application to help compensate for the lower LSAT/GPA.  If one isn’t as competitive, they look for the other to be more competitive. 

Which brings me to the three decisions awarded by the Admissions Committee:

• Acceptance
• Denial
• Deferral or waitlisted.  The Admissions Committee has fully reviewed your application and determined that there are some aspects of your application that are exactly what they’re looking for, and yet, there are other aspects that are not quite as competitive.   They are unable to accept you at this time, but they also do not wish to turn you away.  As a result, you could be waitlisted or receive a defer decision – both of which mean that a final &yes& or &no& will be determined at a later date, possibly in two weeks, in a month, or two months from now.

As you are learning, applying to law school is very much a hurry-up-and-wait process.  You exert much effort in a short amount of time to take the LSAT, request your letters of recommendation, craft your personal essay, and submit your application.  Now comes the hard part…calling upon your patience as you wait to learn one of the three decisions above.

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. 

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.

Test Day is right around the corner! This is when tensions get high and the pressure of taking the exam can start to take its toll on test takers. That stress, however, can only impede your final preparations. That being said, here are a few don’ts to avoid as game day approaches.

1. Don’t take a full-length exam every day from now until the day before the test.

This leaves less time for a more analytical approach to studying. Simply taking exams and looking at the scores will do little to improve your performance. Instead, you need to spend time reviewing each test you take to understand what you did wrong and what you need to do to get better. Without that understanding, your score is unlikely to get better on the next test.

Even if you do review your test every day, that’s still about six or more hours of studying in one day. That can get exhausting and potentially lead to burnout. Plus, it leaves little or no time to focus on practicing on any specific concepts that troubled you on the exam. If you know what’s giving you trouble and you don’t take the time to work on it, then it’s probably going to give you trouble on the next exam, too.

You can’t always assume that problems will just fix themselves from one test to the next. That’s why you need to take an extra day or two between tests to work on concepts individually – whether it be specific question types or improving pacing within one particular section.

2. Don’t work on only the most challenging questions.

The more challenging the questions, the more likely you are to get those questions wrong. Sure, it’s great when you get those questions right. However, getting them wrong is still frustrating – even if they are more difficult. And, if you get too many wrong, you lose sight of what’s important – all the questions you would get right.

You have to remember that your score is dependent on getting questions right, not just getting hard questions right. If you focus only on the stuff giving you trouble, you’ll have a hard time building momentum and you’re more likely to enter the test discouraged about your weaknesses rather than encouraged by all the progress you’ve made. Spend some time reviewing your strengths and make sure that you end your studying on a positive note. Nobody wants to go into Test Day having blown the last question in practice.

3. Don’t study hard the day before the test.

It’s okay to take some time early in the day to get in some last minute review or work on a few strengths to give yourself a confidence boost. However, by the time dinner is done, the books should be hidden and all you should be worried about is making sure you have everything you need for day ahead – your pencils, your admissions ticket, directions, etc. Don’t let the day before the test be stressful in any way, shape or form. Relax. You’ve put in a lot of hard work. Let it all pay off with a great score the next day.

Good luck to everyone taking the exam. And, on behalf of all Kaplan instructors, please e-mail us after you’ve taken the exam and when you get your scores back. We really look forward to hearing from all of you.

Are you considering taking a year or two off before applying to law school? Whether you plan to travel (I’m jealous already), or work, or both, I encourage you to do it, or at least be sure to look into it.

As you may be aware, as part of the application process, law schools ask that you submit a personal statement. I guarantee that the person you are two years from now who sits down to write this statement will not be the same person who would compose it in six months. You will have more life experience, depth, insight and maturity…all characteristics that law schools are looking for. Additionally, maybe today you are thinking about concentrating in corporate law, but after traveling around the world for a year, you may instead wish to study international law.

I am by no means suggesting that you must delay applying to school, but if you are thinking about it, please don’t rule it out.

Having said all that, I would recommend preparing for and taking the LSAT when you feel you have ample time to dedicate yourself to it. Scores are good for up to 5 years at many schools. One option is to prepare now while you’re already in "study mode." Then, whenever you do decide to apply, you can jump right into the rest of the application process: school selection, essay writing, identifying strong recommenders, etc. A second option is to wait until you’re ready to start the process because you may be more directed at that time, which could result in your earning a higher test score. If you find you need guidance with the more subjective aspects of your application, you may consider working with an admissions consultant. Kaplan’s admissions consultants include former admissions officers (like yours truly), advisors and experts who can help you successfully navigate the law school admissions process.

You’re in luck. There are a plethora of opportunities available to help you explore potential law schools. Yes, you can read about the schools in publications and online, but I believe that the best way to really get to know a law school is to visit it, or at least speak with representatives from there. Two of the most valuable alternatives are listed below. Please, please, please take advantage of these valuable resources.

Law School Admission Council (LSAC) Law School Forums
The Law School Admission Council offers Law School Forums in nine cities around the country, and the good news is that admission is free. The majority of the law schools send representatives, and you have the wonderful opportunity to talk face-to-face with them and ask any and all questions you may have. If you live in New York, and you wish to look at schools in California, Florida, Texas and Washington, you can accomplish this without getting on an airplane. While you’re at the Forum, be sure to check out the LSAC-sponsored workshops on such topics as financial aid, the admissions process and the LSAT. For complete information about locations, dates, workshops and registration, see the LSAC website: www.lsac.org.

Law Schools Visits
Law schools provide a number of options to make it easy for you to visit the school, e.g., attending open houses and information sessions, taking guided tours and sitting in on first-year classes. Once again, visiting a law school provides you with a chance to speak directly with Admissions and Financial Aid Officers, faculty and students. Is the law school located on a campus or in the middle of the city? Near public transportation? Is it a modern or traditional facility? Are the people you pass in the hallway friendly and welcoming, or cold and aloof? Most likely you’ll need to make an appointment ahead of time, so be sure to look on each school’s website for full details.

You are going to be investing a lot of time and money pursuing your law school education. Do the utmost to ensure that the school is the right fit. We want you to enjoy the ride.

Anyone out there taking the June LSAT?  I’ve written this blog entry just for you.

Maybe you’re in school preparing for finals.  Maybe your company downsized and you’re now accountable not just for your own responsibilities but also for those of your former colleague(s).  What about spending time with your families and friends?  And maybe you want some time for yourself.  On top of all that, you’re studying for that test called the LSAT.

I know you’re eager to start assembling your admissions application and get the process rolling.  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.

You’ll have plenty of time after the test to work on your essay(s), research schools and complete each law school’s online application.  Some law schools begin accepting applications on September 1.  Others may not even make their applications available until September 15.  Be sure to check each law school’s website for further information.

First, allow me to congratulate you on your law school acceptance(s). The good news is that you are definitely attending law school come Fall 2009; the question now is, where? With first deposit deadlines quickly approaching, you’ll want to make sure you have all the information you need to make informed decisions. Below are the steps you should take before choosing where to put down a deposit:

1. If you have been accepted to School A and are still waiting to hear from School B (and you prefer to attend School B), you should know that you can call School B’s Admissions Office, request to speak to an Admissions Officer, and ask the following question: I’ve been accepted to another law school and am required to put down a first deposit on {whatever} date. I prefer to attend {name of School B) but haven’t yet received a decision. Do you have an idea as to when I might receive one?
2. If you have received your financial aid package from School A and not from School B, call School B’s Financial Aid Office and ask: I’ve been accepted to another law school and have already received my financial aid package from that school. However, I haven’t yet received my financial aid package from School B. Do you have an idea as to when I will? Is there any other information you need from me to complete my financial aid file?
3. If you’ve received a scholarship from School A, prefer to attend School B and have not yet been awarded a scholarship from School B, call School B’s Admissions Office, request to speak with an Admissions Officer and ask: I’ve received a scholarship from School A but School B is my first choice. Can you tell me whether I am being considered for a scholarship?

In all three cases, the #1 rule is to be polite. It is perfectly acceptable to call the Admissions and Financial Aid Offices to ask any questions you may have, but take care to avoid coming across as entitled. While you may not always hear the answers you wish, you can feel good that you took the steps possible to help land your desired outcome.