Law school admission deans place a lot of emphasis on "numbers", and, because law schools typically do not conduct interviews, the personal statement serves as the applicant’s "interview".   Considering how competitive these factors make the admission process, it’s critical that each applicant think strategically about what schools to apply to.  A common mistake occurs when an applicant builds the school list just by consulting school ranking lists, such as those found on-line or in magazines.  So much advertising ad publicity is given to rankings and marketing, it’s often difficult to separate fact from the PR sound bites. Even if you think you’ve identified the real story about a particular school - meaning you’ve dug around and gotten its bar passage and job placement rate at nine months post-graduation, these things aren’t the whole story.  Too often, law school applicants set their sights too narrowly when building their schools list.

Be flexible:
The more specific you are about where you’re willing to attend law school, the more you will limit your options. Often great applicants will limit themselves to a single metropolitan area when choosing a law school.  Some applicants get hung up on a specific geographic location- say they only want to be in New York City, or Boston, or DC, or California. While it’s certainly reasonable to keep geography in mind when thinking about where you eventually want to set up practice, you should still think broadly enough to give yourself real chances of securing an admission offer. There are many very fine law schools throughout the US. Take the time to investigate a range of great schools.

Know yourself:  what kind of law school setting is important to you?
As you’re already finding, the law school application process is highly competitive.  In turn, law students, in general, can be seen as also highly competitive. That said, there are varying degrees of competitiveness in law school. Some schools will place more emphasis on competition; indeed, in some schools, competition is nurtured mainly by the law students themselves, even though the administration might prefer the setting to be more congenial.  If you know you prefer a more collaborative, team-based environment, then look for a law school that has more of that "feel". Talk to admissions people; talk to faculty. But most important of all, reach out to current students and recent alumni to get their feedback about what kind of learning environment a school offers.  Maybe you thrive on competition; if so, you want to be sure this is valued at the school.  Know yourself and what you want, and get to know as much as you can about the schools you’re considering.

Find and use available resources:
The American Bar Association has a great resource available through the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) web site. There, you can access school-specific information, including details about GPA and admission test scores for recently admitted classes at ABA-approved law schools. Check this out at http://officialguide.lsac.org/ One of the really cool features on this site is a link where you can enter your GPA and LSAT score and do a search to see how your numbers compare to those of recently admitted students at specific schools.  You can compare your numbers to the median, 25th and 75th percentiles of a recent entering class. This search feature will help you build your schools list. You can also access information about each school, to learn more about its educational mission and philosophy, and application and financial aid deadlines, etc. So plug in your numbers and get started on building a list of schools where it your numbers will give you a pretty good competitive edge.

Connect with your Prelaw Advisor at your institution:
Your advisor at your undergraduate institution probably has a copy of the Law School Book of Lists, which is made available to prelaw advisors through their professional advisor organization.  This book provides lots of helpful information to advisors (and which they can share with their applicants) about specific academic and clinical programs at law schools. So, for example, if you have an interest in communications law, or maybe intellectual property law, this book will help you find law schools that have dedicated programs of study in these areas. Additionally, it has information about different student groups and other resources.

The bottom line:
Okay…you’ve done your homework, explored law school web sites, talked to admissions people, networked with current students and alumni, and you think you’ve got a pretty good idea of what the schools are like.  It’s time to put this all together. Use the LSAC UGPA calculator to start building your lists. What’s your dream school? What are some schools where your numbers make admission a pretty "safe bet"? Finally, what’s your "bottom line" school – i.e. one that will provide you a good, solid law school experience?  That is, if the only admission offer you end up getting I from your "bottom line" school, would you accept it?  Remember, as much as this application process is about you, it’s also about the competition.  Especially in a recession, when the job market is particularly tight, more college graduates will apply to professional and graduate school.  Think holistically and creatively as you work on building your law school list. In the end, you should have a list that includes one or two "dream", or "reach", schools; some "safety" schools; and a couple or few "real safety" schools.

Next week:

How am I going to pay for law school?

It’s time to talk dollars…you’ve worked hard to submit your admissions application.  Now it’s time to concentrate on your financial aid application.  There are two categories of financial aid: scholarships and loans. 

Scholarships are "free money" that you do not need to repay.  Some schools may require you to submit forms to be considered for scholarships; other will not.  Be sure to verify the process for every school to which you’re applying.  For many schools, you will not need to apply for scholarships.  Once you are accepted to that law school, the Admissions Committee automatically reviews your application for scholarship potential.  Generally, scholarships are merit based.  Scholarship amounts vary from school to school. 

I suggest that you research other scholarship avenues such as your church or synagogue, and organizations including the Hellenic Bar Association, the Justinian Society of Lawyers, the Hispanic Lawyers Association, the Decalogue Society of Lawyers, and the American Bar Association, just to name a few.  Check out each school’s website as it may include a listing of other potential sources.  Search online for foundations that may provide scholarship support, as well as websites providing scholarship opportunities.  It will take effort on your part and will be worth it. 

Applying for loans is a much more intensive process.  I strongly recommend applying for financial aid right after the first of the year.  Do not, and I repeat, do not wait to be accepted to a law school before applying for financial aid.  Your goal should be to complete your financial aid application before you’ve been accepted so that you will receive a financial aid award letter before your first deposit is required.  If you wait to apply for financial aid, you may need to place your first deposit without knowing your financial aid status. 

The first step is to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly known as the FAFSA, to the U.S. Department of Education.  I encourage you to submit the FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1.  FAFSA applications can be found at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.  You can also pick up a hard copy of the FAFSA in the law school’s Financial Aid Office.

Some schools may require an additional form called the Need Access Form which can be found at http://www.needaccess.org. 

Each law school’s website has a section on Financial Aid with complete instructions in applying for aid.  The financial aid process varies from school to school; do not assume the process at one school is the same for another. 

Also review the Law School Admission Council website (www.lsac.org).  Click on "Financing Law School" on the home page.

Start now…and good luck.

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.