In early summer, we shared with you our advice about identifying the types of people you should select to be your recommenders.  Today we’d like to describe the  qualities your recommenders should have, as this will help you select the professors, TAs and employers who will most effectively promote your candidacy in letters of recommendation and the LOR service that LSAC introduced this year.

Most importantly, recommenders should be able to speak to your record of academic success and intellectual ability, as well as your critical thinking skills and written and oral communication abilities.  These are the top attributes that law schools are interested in learning about through . . . → Continue Reading

Conducting thorough research on law schools is an essential step in formulating a list of target schools and crafting a convincing personal statement and/or supplementary essay(s). Surfing the web and speaking with friends and mentors are great starting points in identifying programs of interest. However, to really get a feel for a school and determine whether it’s a good fit for their goals and personality, applicants need to dig deeper and gain some firsthand experience with the program and the people. Visiting the campus is a great way to gather this kind of information, and it can also be advantageous in the application process.  It’s best to visit when school is in session so you can gain an opinion about the . . . → Continue Reading

In today’s admissions tip we’d like to address the topic of state residency, which applies to applicants who are interested in public law schools.  Because public law schools are funded by the state, there are a few significant differences from private law schools, and therefore obtaining state residency can have several benefits for law school applicants and students.

1) Admissions Boost. For some public law schools, a certain number of seats in each class are reserved for in-state residents.  Therefore, applying to the public law school in your current state, or gaining residency in the state where your desired law school is located, can give applicants an admissions boost.

2) Reduced Tuition. Most public law schools offer different tuition costs for in-state . . . → Continue Reading

Several law schools offer applicants the option to enroll in an Early Decision (ED) program.  Although this is similar to undergraduate ED programs with which law school applicants may be familiar, today we’d like to take some time to discuss law school ED to help applicants decide whether or not this option is right for them.

Through law school ED programs candidates submit their applicants before the regular decision deadline, typically have their applicants reviewed earlier than regular decision applicants, and are quickly given an admission decision – admitted, denied, waitlisted, or moved in to the regular decision pool.  These admissions decisions are usually administered by mid-February, giving applicants the opportunity to apply . . . → Continue Reading

In general, law school applicants tend to be drawn to well-known first-tier programs – and, more likely than not, choose to attend the most well-reputed program to which they are accepted. According to a recent post on the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, however, making a decision based solely on this information is often ill-advised.

The blog post backs its claim by citing a paper recently published by UCLA law professor Richard Sander and Brooklyn law professor Jane Yakowitz. The two professors are currently in the midst of a project whose objective is to determine the true value of affirmative action by examining preferences regarding law school. According to the paper cited by the WSJ, law school graduates seeking employment . . . → Continue Reading

Working on the law school application can be an overwhelming endeavor, so today we’d like to share some simple guidelines to make the process of writing your personal statement and supplemental essays as easy as possible.  We offer the following advice to help law school candidates craft essays that succinctly yet effectively demonstrate the strengths of their candidacies.  Showcasing one’s strong writing skills is an important step in creating an overall impressive application for law school admissions committees.

1.  Emphasize Action. A common pitfall for many applicants is lapsing into the passive voice, constructing sentences about how some unseen force or agent acted upon something or someone else (e.g. “we were required to” or “the project was completed”) rather than putting . . . → Continue Reading

While we’ve previously devoted time to offer advice on addressing weaknesses in one’s academic record, today we wanted to explore the other side of the issue: the strengths that lie in your undergraduate record.

1. The undergraduate GPA is one of the two most important elements of the law school application, alongside the LSAT score.  Therefore an impressive college GPA is crucial to be competitive at the leading law schools – the average GPA of students at Harvard, Yale, and Stanford was 3.8, while students at Columbia, Penn, NYU, and Chicago had an average GPA of 3.6.

2. The undergraduate institution attended can have a positive impact on a student’s chance of admission.  For example, students who went to college at . . . → Continue Reading

As we announced earlier this summer, Asha Rangappa, Yale Law School’s Associate Dean of Admissions, will be posting periodic updates and application tips to the blog to help next year’s applicants as they embark on the application process. This week, Asha kicked off her “Personal Statement Boot Camp,” a series of posts that will help applicants avoid making common personal statement mistakes frequently seen by the Yale Law Admissions Committee.

According to Asha, one of the biggest missteps she sees in personal statements is a candidate’s decision to use an anecdote that highlights his or her passion for arguing. As Asha explains, a personal statement of this nature usually depicts the applicant getting in an argument (or, as she jousts, . . . → Continue Reading

Today we want to offer some basic tips on a critical variable in the law school admissions equation: recommender selection.  When choosing your recommenders, remember that it can be seen as a test of judgment – therefore, you should pick recommenders with whom you have a positive relationship, since, if they like and respect you, their letters are likely to be much more positive and persuasive.  Doing so will confirm your ability to make sound judgments and decisions.

First, most law schools request that you provide recommendations from current or former professors.  It is therefore important to choose professors who know you well and will speak positively about your academic abilities and progress.  If you are several years out of school, it’s . . . → Continue Reading

Continuing our series of admissions tips geared towards those individuals who are just beginning to think about their law school applications, we wanted to offer some advice on factors to consider with respect to a school’s facilities and location. Whether speaking with current students or touring the campus for oneself, it’s helpful to approach these information-gathering experiences with as clear a sense of what matters to you as possible. Here are a few broad categories to consider:

1) Facilities – Are state of the art classrooms and impressive new architecture a priority for you? Would you prefer a school that is headquartered in a single building to one spread over a larger campus? What about wireless access and use of technology in . . . → Continue Reading

Last week we discussed the merits of applying early in the law school rolling admissions process.  However, today we’d like to take the time to discuss the advantages of applying closer to the deadline.

Submitting application materials later in the process can be beneficial for some law school candidates, as doing so gives them time to build credentials that will positively transform their applications.  For example, some applicants need the fall and early winter months to complete a major project at work or school that will have impressive results: stating that you are “in the process” of a major deal or project is . . . → Continue Reading