The February LSAT

Around this time of year, some law school applicants ponder the question -- do I wait to complete my application and re-take the February LSAT or do I go ahead and submit a weaker score and get my application read earlier in the process?

On the one hand, if you take the LSAT multiple times, many law schools weigh most heavily your highest score and there are schools that will still consider your application with a February LSAT score. Rob Schwartz, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at UCLA Law tells us “many schools today will put a lot of emphasis on the high LSAT and we do that here at UCLA -- meaning if somebody takes it multiple times, we’ll put a lot of weight on the higher score. Many schools will accept the December administration of the LSAT and some schools will even accept the February administration of the LSAT, even in the year in which you are applying -- and we’re one of those schools."

On the other hand, we've also heard over and over again that the best strategy is to get the earliest possible consideration of your application. Andy Cornblatt, Dean of Admissions at Georgetown University Law Center, explains that "most law schools have rolling admissions and that means the sooner you apply, the better your chances are of being admitted." He tells us that "when" you apply is critical and communicates an important message to the admissions committee. “Someone who is on top of their game and who is applying early and who is in the mix sooner rather than later. That communicates to us someone who is organized and someone who is really interested."

In weighing your best option, keep in mind that, while some schools do "accept" February LSAT scores, this means your application necessarily will be considered later in the rolling admissions cycle -- most likely in March. By then, law schools will have already accepted many applicants and will have placed lots of others on the waiting list. Your February score will have to be good -- really good -- to earn you a spot in that school's class. In short, your application will have to show qualifications above and beyond those already on the waiting list. So, while some schools do accept the February LSAT, only the most qualified applicants are likely to get in at that point.

Bottom line? Unless you think you're going to have time to really prepare and nail that February exam, it might be better to complete your application and submit it with your current score(s). If you do elect to re-take, make sure you prepare and have a reasonable degree of confidence your score will improve enough to make it worth risking the delay in completing your application.

For more tips on the best application strategies, tune in to hear our podcast "Law School Application Strategy: What You Can Do Now To Get Accepted."

Law School Application Timeline: Early is Good; Stronger is Better

Law school applicants often wonder when the best time is to submit their law school application. The timeline question focuses often on strategy and choices. In an earlier post "Best Time to Submit Law School Applications," we discussed that, since most law schools have rolling admissions, those inside admissions offices say it is best to get your application in "early," and "early" means between Thanksgiving and New Years. But is it better to get your application completed in this time frame or should you re-take the LSAT, polish that Personal Statement, or include the latest awards or achievements? What about applicants for part-time programs? Do the same strategies apply there?

We spoke today with Anne M. Richard, Associate Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid at George Washington University Law School. She tells us "early is good, but stronger is better." Dean Richard and the Admissions Committee at GW Law consider thousands of law school applications each year. And while it makes sense to get a strong application in early, she recommends that you take the time you need to make sure your application reflects the strongest, best case for admission that you can possibly make, rather than just rush to get it in now. If a little time might give you the chance to strengthen certain aspects of your application, it's worth taking that time to give yourself and your application the best chance possible with the admissions committee.

What about applicants to part-time law school programs? Does the same timeline strategy apply to law school applicants applying to part-time programs? Dean Richard tells us, "yes" and explains that, since most law schools consider part-time applications at the same time in the admissions process as applications for full-time programs, the same advice holds here as well -- "early is good, but stronger is better."

Tune in to our show, “Law School Application Strategy: What You Can Do Now To Help You Get Accepted” to hear more from Dean Richard on how to make your law school application stand out!

Letters of Recommendation: Another Part of Your Law School Application That’s In Your Hands!

Putting the finishing touches on your law school application? Just starting to think about what you will need when you do apply? You’ll want to make sure you give some thought to those letters of recommendation that the admissions committee will look at. In our show, “Law School Personal Statements and Letters of Recommendation,” we hear from deans at top law schools about how admissions committees evaluate recommendation letters and we get some tips from experts who have successfully guided applicants through the admissions process about the best way to secure stellar letters from your recommenders. We hear that applicants who fail to take advantage of the opportunity to use the recommendation letter to their advantage are missing out.


In this segment, Law School Podcaster Host, Diana Jordan, speaks with UC Berkeley-Boalt Hall Dean of Admissions, Edward Tom and he tells us what the admissions committee wants to see in these letters. “I think all law schools have a 1st choice and that would be people who have taught you at the university level, whether it’s a TA (Teaching Assistant), a GSI (Graduate Student Instructor) or a professor. Those are the very best letters, because we are looking for a 3d party’s candid assessment of your potential to study law. The 2d best sorts of letters will come from colleagues at work, internship supervisors or your supervisor in a job, especially if they can, in their letter, talk about any kind of legal-related, writing-related or research- related experience.”


Vanderbilt University Law School Dean of Admissions, Todd Morton, says there is one thing in particular to keep in mind. “The key to recommendations are not necessarily what’s in them, but that they are from people who know the candidate well, because letters from people who barely know the applicant are usually not very helpful in assessing the kind of attributes [the admissions committee is evaluating].”

Adam Hoff, Director of Admissions, Consulting and Research at Veritas Prep, says that “the biggest mistake people make is that they go for title over the relationship.”

Unsure how you should approach a recommender to make sure you get the letter you really want? Author and Senior Editor at Accepted.com, Paul Bodine gives us a roadmap for the best way to ask a recommender to write a strong, detailed letter. Accepted.com Founder and President, Linda Abraham then details how applicant's can prepare their recommender so they can write a strong and enthusiastic letter.

Emory University Pre-Law Advisor Rodia Vance helps applicants with the timeline and talks about when to give your recommenders the letters to write, so that they have the time they need.

Stay tuned for the full show!

Due Diligence and Reasonable Expectations Before You Apply to Law School!

There’s been a lot of attention focused recently on whether a law school education remains a worthwhile investment, given the ever-increasing rise in law school tuition combined with challenges newly minted law school grads face in today’s job market. Much of the discussion follows the release of a recent LexisNexis survey, revealing that “one fifth (21%) of law school students say that based on the changing legal marketplace, they regret attending law school.” The National Law Journal’s recent article, “Going to Law School? Proceed with Caution” adds to the debate by reporting that “[o]n the Internet and in academic circles, debate is flaring over the value of a juris doctor, and whether the degree is a wise investment for many of the thousands who flock to law schools each year. Law schools have always had detractors, but the rising cost of legal education and the dearth of jobs available to new graduates is prompting more people to urge prospective law students to think twice before they write their first tuition check.”

The irony, of course, is that all this debate seems not to have slowed the stream of applicants to the growing number of ABA-approved U.S. law schools. The National Law Journal noted that “applications to law schools accredited by the American Bar Association increased by 5 percent for this year's incoming class, according to the Law School Admissions Council, and the number of people taking the Law School Admission Test this October shot up by nearly 20 percent.”

So, what’s someone considering law school supposed to make of all this?

We share some words of wisdom from guests on recent Law School Podcaster segments. Their collective message is worth hearing. It’s not all bad, but applicants can no longer head to law school blissfully uninformed about what their career options might be after graduation, while simultaneously taking on enormous debt. Gone are the days when law school is the default graduate degree for those unsure of what it is they want to do or for those seeking a stable, comfortable living. Whether you choose law school, which law school you choose and how much debt you can afford to take on in light of potential job prospects has to be evaluated before you go.

Listen to what recent guests have to say on this topic:

•Johann Lee, Dean of Admissions at Northwestern Law: Those considering law school must “do some due diligence about whether a career in the law and a law school education is really for you and, if that’s what you really want to be doing, there’s a place for you in the profession.” He reminds applicants that “law school is a professional school, it’s very similar to medical school but no one ever goes to medical school without thinking about what it means to be a doctor. Well, a lot of people go to law school without thinking what it means to be an attorney. They don’t go through that particular due diligence. So I think, as an applicant, definitely I’d think about what it means to go to law school.”

•Assistant Dean of Enrollment Services at Fordham School of Law, Stephen Brown: Law school is an investment and you should treat it as such. “It can be a good or bad investment, depending on what you’re looking to do with your life, depending on your choices. So pay attention to this as you would at any other investment. You find people to do more research on cars than law school, so that’s important.”

•Washington University Law School’s Dean of Career Services, Michael Spivey: Applicants should think carefully about what they want to do with a JD before they start signing loan papers. “Do they really want to work for a law firm, for example, or would they be more interested in prosecutorial roles, as prosecutors. The starting salary there is $50,000 a year. That’s the 2008 medium starting salary, but even that has grown 51% since 1996, and some people are much, much happier in litigation roles than they are working for large firms. Judicial clerkships, that’s another position where people, some students really are excited about, and that starts at $50,000. So we try to couple, keeping up on financial burdens. We try to couple how much financial debt they have with what sort of lifestyle they want to lead, whether they want to work for legal services or they want to work for a judge or they want to work what I would call nontraditionally or asymmetrically, and we counsel them what the lifestyle is at a big law firm. Some people love that, some people don’t want to jump on that boat.”

•Jim Leipold, Executive Director of the National Association for Law Placement (NALP): Students should carefully consider the amount of debt they take on and how they will pay off that debt after graduation – even if they do not land the job they might want after graduation: “I think the biggest problem for law students who are graduating right now will be figuring out how to manage their debt, among other things, until such time as they can find a job and enter the economy. So I think careful financial planning is going to be really important.”

•Mark Kantrowitz, Publisher of FinAid.org and Fastweb.com says don’t just sign the stack of papers without knowing what you’re signing. This is important: Be meticulous. “A common problem that I encounter is students who figured that they’d worry about their loans after they graduated and ask them who your loan is with, what are the interest rates, how much did you borrow, and they just don’t know the answers. A mistake in which loan you borrow or how much you borrow can cost you severely after you graduate.”

•Johann Lee, Dean of Admissions at Northwestern Law: Students must combine due diligence with reasonable career expectations. “There was this thought that these huge law firm jobs were just growing on trees right outside the law school, you just go outside and you pick whatever job that you wanted. Now, it’s more like your regular job market. You have to work a little bit at it but still, the opportunities are still available. So in the end, it just means a little more due diligence is involved as a law school applicant but in the end, the careers are still out there. The sky isn’t falling really.”

Check out our full shows “The Current Economic Environment: What It Means for Law School Applicants and Students,” and “”Financing Your JD” to hear more on this topic.