CATEGORY - DEADLINES

February 3, 2010

Admissions Tip: Are Your Deadlines Marked On Your Calendar?

The beginning of February brings about the first slew of law school deadlines.  While some have already passed, let’s take a look at the remainder of this month as well as March and April to consider the deadlines spread over the next three months:

February 15: Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Michigan, Northwestern, University of Pennsylvania, Yale
March 1: Boston College, Boston University, Emory, Fordham, Iowa, University of Virginia, Washington and Lee, William and Mary
March 15: Illinois, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt
March 31: George Washington
April 1: Minnesota
April 15: Washington University in St. Louis (recommended deadline is March 1)

While it’s usually best to apply as early as possible, sometimes there is no option but to apply closer to the deadline.  However, because many leading law programs grant admission on a rolling basis, the closer it is to the deadline, the more seats in the incoming class have already been given away.

To maximize your chances of a close to deadline acceptance, demonstrating your interest in the school and submitting thoughtful and error-free written materials will be crucial. Just as applying early is generally taken as a sign of interest in a given program, applicants submitting their materials closer to the deadline need to work extra hard to convince the adcom that they are genuinely interested in the school and are not simply applying as an afterthought because interview invitations didn’t come through from other schools. Demonstrating that you would make a valuable contribution to the community and providing evidence that you have taken steps to engage current students and alumni will work to your advantage.

As always, we’d like to recommend the in-depth Clear Admit Law Guides to those applicants who are targeting the later deadlines and just beginning to investigate certain programs, or are preparing for interviews at their target schools.

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# posted by admin @ 8:00 am in Admissions Tip, Deadlines

January 7, 2010

University of Virginia Law School Does Away with Separate Early Decision Deadline

Virginia Law School has done away with its Early Decision deadline, and now asks all interested applicants to submit completed applications by the regular decision deadline of March 1. Initially, candidates interested in obtaining early admission entrance were asked to submit applications by December 1.

Applicants who would like to demonstrate their commitment to attending the program may choose to apply under the Early Decision option by submitting an early decision agreement to the Office of Admissions. Once admitted to the University of Virginia Law School as an Early Decision applicant, the candidate must withdraw all other law school applications and may not initiate any new applications for admission. Applicants who choose to go this route will be notified of the school’s decision regarding their candidacy no later than 15 days after the application is complete, the early decision agreement has been received and the applicant’s residency status has been determined.

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# posted by admin @ 10:05 am in Deadlines, School: University of Virginia

July 18, 2009

LL.M. Program Highlights and Application Deadlines

In addition to offering students the opportunity to pursue a J.D. degree, most law schools also provide various advanced degrees. One of the most popular is the LL.M., a degree geared toward candidates who already possess a J.D., or their home country’s equivalent. A full-time LL.M. program is generally a year long, and requires that students submit a substantial piece of writing, composed using outside research and containing a sustained argument related to the field of law, in order to graduate and receive a degree.

Various LL.M. programs offer their students different opportunities in terms of areas of specialization, location and class size. Stanford, for instance, asks students to pursue one of two specializations:  Corporate Governance & Practice or Law, Science and Technology. Stanford’s LL.M class is relatively small with an average of 30 total students, 15 in each of these two groups. Stanford’s program is designed exclusively for students who have earned a primary law degree outside of the U.S. Meanwhile, the Harvard LL.M. program, representing a large class of 150 students in a given year, is currently in the process of developing a series of concentrations for its students to pursue, but aims to allow for as much flexibility in its curriculum as possible. Students from foreign nations and with J.D. degrees from accredited U.S. law schools are eligible for admission. The Cambridge LL.M. program, unlike either Stanford or Harvard, is even willing to admit a candidate without a law degree on occasion.

For individuals in the law community seeking a career in academia, now is the time to begin preparing an LL.M. application. In the past, we’ve discussed the upcoming admissions review periods for prospective J.D. candidates. Students pursuing alternative law degrees, such as an LL.M., however, are generally asked to submit applications sooner than those candidates applying for J.D. programs.  Many law school admissions offices are set to begin receiving LL.M. applications by August or September, similar to the time when the J.D. review process begins, but set then set their deadlines for sometime in November or December.  This means the window for LL.M. applicants to gather application materials and apply for financial aid is smaller than that provided for J.D. candidates.

Here’s a glimpse at a few of the already announced LL.M. deadlines:

Yale: November 16, 2009

Harvard: December 1, 2009

Cambridge: December 1, 2009

Chicago: December 15, 2009

Altogether the LL.M. deadlines at other programs, such as NYU, Columbia and Stanford have not yet been updated for the 2009-2010 admissions process, given their previous deadline histories, candidates can be confident that the dates will be set for sometime in November or early December.

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# posted by admin @ 10:03 am in Deadlines, LL.M.

June 8, 2009

LSAT Test Dates 2009-2010

With the 2009-2010 application season quickly approaching, it’s time for law school candidates to begin signing up and preparing for the LSAT. The first official test date, is today, June 8th.  It marks the start of this year’s LSAT schedule.

The official test dates and locations can be found on the LSAC website. Below is a list of the LSAT test dates for the 2009-2010 application season:

Monday, June 8, 2009
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010

The majority of applicants are expected to attend the Saturday test days, as the Monday and Tuesday tests are generally reserved for Sabbath observers.  All scheduled LSAT tests will begin at 8:30 a.m. - the exception being the June 8th test, which will begin a 12:30 p.m.

Generally, it is recommended that applicants take the LSAT before the February test dates, as many of the top schools, including Harvard, Stanford and NYU, require that candidates take the LSAT no later than the December proceeding the year they hope to matriculate. If this is at the case at your target schools, you may want to consider signing up for the September test to ensure that you have a fallback date in the event that you do not perform up to your expectations the first time around.

Once you’ve decided on a test date, it will be time to start preparing – it’s never too early to begin taking practice exams and reading through review books. Doing so will help you get a sense of your current weaknesses, allowing you to devote adequate time addressing them before you sit for the exam. To find sample questions or to purchase practice tests, you may want to visit the LSAC website.

We wish you the best of luck as you begin preparing for this important element of the application process!

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# posted by admin @ 9:17 am in Deadlines, LSAT

May 8, 2009

Application Periods at Leading Law Schools

Below is a list of the early decision deadlines (when applicable) and application review periods for the leading law schools:

Berkeley / Boalt
Application Period: October 1 - February 2

Boston College
Application Period: Mid-September - March 1

Boston University
Application Period: September through March 1

Chicago
Application Period: September 1 - February 1

Columbia
Early Decision Deadline: November 15
Application Period September 1er 15 - February 15

Cornell
Early Decision Deadline: November 1
Application Period: September 1 – February 15.

Duke
Early Decision Deadline: November 1
Application Period: September 1 - February 15

Emory
Application Period: September - March 1.

Fordham
Early Decision Deadline: October 15
Application Period: September 1 – March 1

Harvard
Application Period: September 15 - February 1

Illinois
Early Decision Deadline: November 15
Application Period: September 1 – March 15.

Iowa
Application Period: September 1 – March 1

George Washington
Early Decision Deadline: December 15
Application Period: October 1 – March 31

Georgetown
Application Period: September 25 – February 2

Michigan
Early Decision Deadline: November 15
Application Period: September 1 - February 15.

Minnesota
Early Decision Deadline: December 31
Application Period: September - April 1

New York University
Early Decision Deadline: November 15
Application Period: September - February 1

Northwestern
Early Decision Deadline: December 1
Application Period: October 1 - February 15

Notre Dame
Early Decision Deadline: November 10
Application Period: September 1 – March 15

Stanford
Application Period: September 1 - February 1

UCLA
Early Decision Deadline: November 15
Application Period: September - February 1

University of Pennsylvania
Early Decision Deadline: November 1
Application Period: October 1 - February 15

USC / Gould
Application Period: September 1 - February 1

U Texas-Austin
Early Decision Deadline: November 1
Application Period: September - February 1

U Virginia
Early Decision Deadline: December 1
Application Period: August - March 1

University of Washington
Application Period: October – January 15

Vanderbilt
Application Period: October 1 - March 15.

Washington and Lee
Application Period: September 1 – March 1

Washington University in St. Louis
Application Period: September 1 - April 15 (recommended deadline is March 1)

William and Mary
Application Period: September 1 – March 1

Yale
Application Period: September 1 - February 15

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# posted by admin @ 4:11 pm in Deadlines, School: Berkeley / Boalt, School: Boston College, School: Boston University, School: Chicago, School: Columbia, School: Cornell, School: Duke, School: Emory, School: Fordham, School: George Washington University, School: Georgetown, School: Harvard, School: Illinois, School: Iowa, School: Michigan, School: Minnesota, School: New York University, School: Northwestern, School: Notre Dame, School: Stanford, School: UCLA, School: USC / Gould, School: University of Pennsylvania, School: University of Texas-Austin, School: University of Virginia, School: University of Washington, School: Vanderbilt, School: Washington University in St. Louis, School: Washington and Lee, School: William and Mary, School: Yale