Advice for Law School Applicants



Well, now that Gray Day has come and gone, many applicants are one step closer to submitting applications. This can be extremely scary as well extremely exciting. Here are some final tips I have for applicants:

Apply early- Ideally, get applications in by Thanksgiving Break. If that's a stretch, aim for winter break. The earlier your application gets in, the better your chances of getting in (especially if the school is a stretch school) and receiving a higher scholarship.

Proofread your applications- I've mentioned this before, and I will mention this again: Proofread. Proofread your personal statement, any paragraphs you have written, your resume, etc. Proofread everything you submit. In the legal world, a misplaced comma in a contract can change the outcome for your client. Even though you aren't a lawyer yet, you want to become one, so make sure that you proofread your application.

Answer your phone- Alright, this may seem pretty weird, but many schools will call you with an offer of acceptance, as well as your scholarship offer. Sometimes, schools will call you requesting more information on your application or to schedule a phone interview. You definitely don't want to miss these calls, as they are pretty exciting.

Be patient- Once you submit your application, you might hear from the school within a week or two or it may be as long as a few months. The length of time between when you submit your application and when you hear back from them does not mean anything. I repeat, THIS DOES NOT MEAN ANYTHING. It may be that the school doesn't start looking at applications until a certain date or that they don't send out decisions until a certain date. It could mean that they have a lot of applications to read through and just haven't gotten to yours yet. Don't worry! I did not hear back from my number 1 school (which I now go to, by the way!) until December. In fact, it was one of the last schools I heard back from.

Find a mentor- The Director of Admissions of the law school at my undergrad was an amazing resource for me. She helped me through the application process, the waiting process, and finally, the deciding process. She knew so much more than I ever will, and I even asked her if she thought the school I was about to commit to be was a good fit. She said it was, but if she hadn't, I would've gone somewhere else. I encourage you to find someone who has law school knowledge, whether it is a pre-law advisor or someone who works at a law school. She made the process much easier for me, and I recommend finding someone to guide you through the process.

Well, these are my tips for law school applicants! Some of them are obvious, others are not. I hope this helps make the application process a little easier and a little less stressful. For those of you who have gone through the process, what are some of your tips? Leave them in the comments!


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