Applying to Law School
Prepare Personal Statement, Resume, Recommendations for Applications
The application process for law school can be intimidating. Here are some tips to help you better understand the process and increase your chances of being accepted.
So now, you have taken the LSAT, decided the schools that you like, and are ready to start the application process. This procedure is serious and requires the proper amount of preparation and effort. Otherwise, admissions officers are not likely to give your application a second look.
How Many Schools Should I Apply to?
Depending on your GPA and your LSAT score, this answer varies. For most applicants, applying to about eight schools is effective. Applying to many more than that can get needlessly expensive, as most schools charge at least $50 in application fees.
Ideally, an applicant wants to apply to two or three safety schools—those schools at which he or she has a very good chance of being accepted. Next, it is a good idea to apply to two or three schools that are “on the line”—those schools at which the student’s GPA and LSAT are close to the median of the previous year’s entering class. And finally, the student should apply to a few “long shot” schools—those schools where the median LSAT and GPA of the previous year’s entering class are above the student’s.
The Boston College Law School Locator is a good tool for determining which schools are in your target range according to your GPA and LSAT score.
What Else do Law Schools Take into Account?
Every law school takes into account several factors beyond an applicant’s GPA and LSAT score. While those factors are important, there are other factors that are significant, such as the applicant’s background, the difficulty of the undergraduate program, the applicant’s grade trends, volunteer work, and the applicant’s personal essay. Above all, each school will evaluate each application individually.
Personal Statement
Most, if not all, law schools require than an applicant submit a personal statement. This is an essay of some pre-determined length that allows the student to write on generally any topic he or she wishes (sometimes a law school will restrict the topics).
This is probably the scariest part of the application process for many students, for basically two reasons:
- the personal statement is generally considered to be the most important part of the application behind GPA and LSAT score; and
- applicants are usually horrified that they must write such an essay, and about themselves no less.
The Law School Personal Statements Advice website is an excellent resource for advice on personal statements. Visit it often and follow its guidelines. It will go a long way toward helping you write an effective statement.
Update Your Resume
Many law schools also require that an applicant submit a resume with his or her application. This is daunting for some applicants, especially those coming right out of college who have limited work experience. Nevertheless, a resume should be polished, professional, and obviously free of errors.
One key ingredient that every applicant should include in a law school resume is a demonstrated ability to solve problems, whether it was in a job, in a class, or in some other area of life. Admissions officers like to see that the applicant knows how to spot a problem, analyze it, and fix it. After all, that is what the student will be doing in law school.
Recommendation Letter
Some schools require that an applicant submit one or possibly two recommendation letters. If only one letter is required, ask a college professor to write it. He or she has seen your work and can testify to your abilities. If a second letter is required, get a boss or other colleague to write it. If you have been a good worker, he or she can testify to your character, which admissions officers love.
Additionally, make sure that the letters do not have typos. Everyone makes mistakes. Your future is riding on these recommendation letters, so make sure that they are error free.
The application process for law school can be intimidating. It is, however, a microcosm of law school itself: it takes time, preparation, and a lot of effort. And once completed, a great application can drastically increase an applicant’s chances of being admitted into the school of choice.
