Categories: Advice, Financing a Legal Education, LSAT, LSAT Prep, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Rankings, Wait lists, waitlist
Tags: LSAT Prep, success stories, US News Rankings, waiting list
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Yes, I miss Glee. But in the meantime, it’s been an exciting few weeks and I want to share a few highlights with you. Here they are, in no particular order:
1. I was interviewed for US News’ article, “As Law School Tuitions Climb, So Does Demand.” It’s worth a read, just don’t get to caught up in the negative comments about law school. You know how I feel about those. But I do hope that the article inspires more of you to consider scholarships over rank, at least to some degree. (The article was even picked up by Above the Law).
2. Speaking of US News…. are you sitting down? This may shock a few of you who’ve been following my blog for a while. I am going to be the Law School blogger for US News. Starting August 1st, I’ll be writing weekly columns on all things related to the law school admission cycle. Pretty exciting stuff. And, yes, I’ll even be sharing my thoughts on rankings : )
3. Another waiting list success story: One of my favorite clients, (ok, they’re pretty much all favorite clients), just found himself at a crossroads. After working on law school applications with me for two years (he wasn’t happy with his LSAT the first time around and decided to wait), he was in his car, followed by a moving truck, on his way to Tulane Law. He was excited about Tulane: great school, nice scholarship, near his girlfriend’s family. Then, he was somewhere near my hometown in Alabama when he got the call – he was pulled from the waiting list at Emory!!! He called me, totally panicked, excited about the opportunity but feeling like this was a major curve. After asking what his girlfriend thought he should do (go to Emory) I told him, “You’re three hours from Atlanta- GO!” Here’s a situation where ranking prevailed - Emory is #20 and Tulane is #45, and he really loved Emory when he visited. I offer this story as encouragement for all of you who are still on wait lists: Fight, fight, fight!!!
4. I’ve been talking to a lot of people who are wondering whether it’s too late to get started studying for the October LSAT. The answer is my favorite of all answers – it depends. Are you working full time and going to school? Then, yes, it’s too much to start fitting LSAT prep into that mix. But if you have time to dedicate, give it a shot! If a month from now, in mid-August, you find you haven’t been able to dedicate yourself to the effort then put it off until December. But if you have time to really start concentrating on it, do it! I told one of my clients this week that, come Monday, I expect her to have a study schedule set up. If you take my advice on this, you won’t have to call me (or ask on the blog) telling me you didn’t prepare adequately for the October LSAT, terrified that December is too late in the game to be competitive.
Ok, that’s about it for today. I had a wonderful week in Maui, and this weekend we’ll be going to my husband’s 20th reunion for high school. I hope your summer is going well!
Categories: Advice, Application Timeline, LSAT Prep, Law Careers, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Location; Law School Rankings, Law School Rankings, Law School Resume Tips, Low LSAT, Uncategorized, Wait lists, waitlist
Tags: applying to law school, insider secrets getting into law school, law school podcast, LSAT Preparation
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I recently did a podcast interview for Insider Secrets : ”Getting Into Law School” - you can listen to it or read the transcript. In it, I discuss how to choose an LSAT prep program, choosing a law school, taking on debt, putting together your applications, resumes, wait lists, low LSAT scores, and about a thousand different things related to law school admission. I’m happy to take questions here and/or entertain your comments and thoughts.
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Admission Trends, Rolling Admissions
Tags: law school discussion forum, top law schools, waiting for law school admission decisions
32 Comments »
I’m hearing from a lot of my law school admission consulting clients today about their aggravation with the waiting game. They’ve applied to law school and they just want me to tell them where they’ll get into law school, to devise a mathematical calculation that proves where they’ll be admitted and where they won’t.
I am happy to spend time talking with these clients and to let them know that there are good days and bad days in this process, that one school’s rejection doesn’t mean that every other school ranked higher will also result in a rejection, to tell people they are strong enough to handle this. One of my most professional, business-oriented clients today told me today that this lack of predictability meant the system was messed up, and since I know he reads this blog (he often quotes my own advice back to me) I wanted to share what I didn’t get to say – or think to say – during our conversation:
The unpredictable nature of getting into law school, the fact that your index alone does not dictate your end result, is the reason to LOVE the system. For those of you with a split – high GPA/low LSAT or low LSAT/high GPA, or just those who apply to reach schools, the fact that there isn’t a numerical calculation that mandates your response means you have a SHOT. It means you get the opportunity to show who you are beyond the numbers, it means the hard work you put into your essays, resume, letters of rec, addenda, etc. have the possibility of paying off.
This is the time of year when people start hearing from law schools, and when you start by hearing a rejection it can be deflating, or at least feel deflating. But remember, this is just a bad day. That’s all it is. Use it as an excuse to treat yourself to a movie or mocha mint latte, but don’t start applying to law schools furiously out of fear. Be confident in the fact that you put serious thought into your schools list and hold tight. Thanks to the Internet and cell phone age, you could hear any minute that you’ve been admitted to law school. Just hang tight. And, when that happens, please do celebrate! Another movie! Another mocha mint latte! Don’t just say, “ok, Next????” or “Where’s my scholarship???”
If you let yourself get psyched out during this process, how will you be strong when you’re a 1L surrounded by competitive people who all seem to be more brilliant, more on top of things, and more likely to succeed than you because they claim to know all the secrets of success? How will you deal with waiting for law school exam grades, job offers, bar examination results? Use this time as your dress rehearsal for those future waiting games. You can do this.
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Personal Statement, Law School Resume Tips
Tags: getting into law school, law school admission tips
15 Comments »
I just returned from a really great couple of days speaking to the Pre-Law Society at San Diego State University and the Phi Alpha Delta chapter at University of California San Diego. Next week, I’ll be headed to NYC to speak to students at Fordham University. The school newspaper there interviewed me about my tips for getting into law school. I wanted to share this with my readers because I think they asked me some really great questions.
Categories: Law School Admission Trends
Tags: competitive cycle for law school applications
2 Comments »
LSAC just released some numbers about LSAT and application trends. Here are the numbers that prove this is going to be a very competitive year for law school admission:
The 2008-09 testing year had 151,398 test takers, an increase of 6.4% over last year. The 2008-09 year was the second highest in the history of the LSAT behind the 152,685 test takers in 1990-91
The June 2009 test had approximately 32,500 test takers, an increase of 12.3% over June 2008. (—-WOW!!!!! – My comment, not LSAC’s!)
(The June 2009 LSAT had new test date change and refund policy updates but we are still speculating that the large number of 20-24 year olds, the general un-employment and the economy played a large part in the increase number of test takers.)
There are approximately 85,069 ABA applicants for the Fall 2009, a 5.2% increase over last year. Those 85,069 applicants produced 562,104 applications, a 6.5% increase over last year. (I’ve personally noticed people applying to more schools in the last year)
Categories: Advice, Joint degree, LSAT Prep, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Personal Statement, Personal Statement Tips
Tags: Blog Talk Radio Show, JD/MBA, Joint degree, LSAT, personal statement
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Thanks so much to Wei Wang for asking me such great, thought-provoking and relevant questions today on BlogTalkRadio. (CLICK TO LISTEN to our 15 minute segment)
For those who missed the interview about my law school admission guidebook, Wei asked me questions about:
1. Prepping for the LSAT as a full time occupation versus studying while working full time.
2. Pursuing a joint degree, such as a JD/MBA.
3. What to do if you’re taking a year off from school and you can’t find a professional job.
4. Choosing what to write about in your law school personal statement.
Please check out our upcoming BlogTalkRadio segments and feel free to ask questions and to invite your friends to listen in.
Categories: Advice, Career, LSAT, LSAT Prep, Law Careers, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Personal Statement, List: Law School Admission Advice Books, Practicing Law, Success Tips in Law School
Tags: blog, Blog Talk Radio Show
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I have three BlogTalkRadio Shows scheduled that should interest readers of the LawSchoolExpert blog:
First, tune in MONDAY at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST for 30-minute interview and Q&A about my law school admission guidebook. The interview is being conducted by the first prospective law school applicant to read the book and promises to touch upon crucial issues relating to law school personal statements, career prospects and more. We will take questions from callers, too!
Upcoming Shows:
On Monday, June 1st at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST I’ll be talking with a panel of LSAT tutors about
“Last Minute Tips for LSAT Takers” in preparation for the June 8, 2009 LSAT administration. (45 minutes)
On Monday June 8th at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST I’ll be interviewing Kevin E. Houchin, Esq., author of “Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law School & Beyond.” For those of you not taking the LSAT on June 8th, but instead preparing to start law school, hearing from Kevin should help you enter your 1L year with your core values in perspective.
If you’re able to listen live, you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions. If you can’t, you’ll be able to hear the interview afterward. Please pass this information along to anyone whom you think might be interested!
Categories: Law Careers, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Location; Law School Rankings, Uncategorized
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Thanks to Wei Wang, the first prospective law school applicant to read my book (“The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert”) for interviewing me this morning on a quick 15-minute BlogTalkRadio show about the book. We discussed the chapter in the book about the LSAT and GPA being “Main Ingredients” in the application process and how law schools evaluate LSAT scores and UGPAs that are “mismatched.” We also discussed the reason for the anticipated increase in applications in the Fall 2010 admission cycle.
We’ll be doing a more in-depth version on Monday at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST. Please tune in. I welcome your questions. In the meantime, take 15 minutes to listen to today’s broadcast. I look forward to your feedback on this – our first BlogTalkRadio program.
Meanwhile, my family has been subjected to a mandatory evacuation order due to the Jesusita fires. We are safe and hiding away in Palm Springs. I appreciate your thoughts for all who are being impacted by these scary and unweildy fires in the Santa Barbara area.
Categories: Advice, Career, Law School Admission Trends, List: Law School Admission Advice Books
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 Now Available for Pre-Order! Finally! The law school admission guidebook I wrote based on my Law School Expert blog is only 2 weeks away from being in my hands (and yours!).
“The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert” is now available for pre-order for its mid-May release. It is available on Amazon.com but SHIPPING IS FREE if you buy it through Law School Expert.
The goal of the book is two-fold: (1) to help you present your best self to the right law schools for you, and (2) to help you make well-reasoned decisions throughout the process from whether to retake the LSAT to negotiating scholarships and deciding whether to send multiple seat deposits.
My intention is that the book will serve as a valuable A-Z resource for law school applicants by providing concrete tips and advice for almost every situation. It’s current – I discuss today’s admission trends and circumstances. It’s really detailed – I tell you exactly what should and shouldn’t be shared in your resume, personal statement, addendum, optional essays, and letters of rec. I talk about the important considerations in choosing a school and how to decide where to apply and where to attend. I go into detail about fee waivers, campaigning off a waiting list, and the risk you take in taking on debt to attend law school.
Basically, I took the issues brought up in my blog and the comments of readers, combined them with the questions asked most often by my law school admission consulting clients, and turned it into a 167 page book. Whether you’re still in college and contemplating law school or in your thirties or forties and feeling lost about how to begin the process, “The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert” may become your new best friend…
I look forward to your feedback about the book – both on the blog and on the amazon site. Become a fan of my book on Facebook for updates and discussions relating to the book.
Categories: Advice, Deferral, Financing a Legal Education, Law School Admission Trends, Re-Applying to Law School, Reapplying to Law School
Tags: interest on student loans, number of February LSAT takers, sallie mae
5 Comments »
There is so much going on in the world of law school applicants right now that I feel compelled to address some of the recent trends. Think of this as a “Super Blog-Post” because it’s going to be long and involved and a little all over the place. I hope it’s also the most worthwhile law school admission related reading you’ve done in a while, and certainly it’s time better spent than reading all the gloating posts on discussion forums from people deciding between Harvard and Stanford.
Topic #1: April Angst
What I like to call “April Angst” is the patent unfairness of having deposit deadlines approaching and still not hearing anything back from many of the schools you applied to. This sucks. It totally sucks. You held up your end of the bargain and applied to law school in a timely fashion and the law schools are not responding accordingly. Be bitter. Be upset. Just don’t do anything rash. This is just par for the course. It happens every year and it happens to everyone. Put in a seat deposit somewhere while keeping an open mind about where you might attend. Don’t sign any leases yet. As schools get deposits back from already-admitted applicants, they will slowly open up spots. Hang in there.
Topic #2. Student Loans.
Please, please, please do your research about the availability of funding options before commiting yourself to an expensive private school in an expensive city. Sallie Mae announced this week that it will be requiring students to pay monthly interest on their loans while in school. This could amount to $500/month, which ain’t peanuts on a student budget when you’re prohibited from working more than 5 hours a week as a full time law student. If this isn’t changing how you choose a law school, then you are probably the person who won’t need any loans in the first place and will simply be writing a check for everything from the get-go. This is a big deal. Don’t underestimate its importance.
Topic #3.Don’t panic.
Right now, many applicants have not heard back from any schools – especially February LSAT takers. Please don’t panic and start thinking about developing a worst case scenario plan. Reapplying for Fall 2010 and/or deferring admission to the one school you’ve heard back from is not necessarily going to be a wise plan this year. Be prepared. Fall 2010 admission is going to be even more competitive than Fall 2009 has been. February LSAT takers were up by 11% and law schools are bracing for a huge influx of applications. Applications will be up overall, applications to top law schools will be WAY up because those schools offer (generally) greater job prospects, and more people will be fighting for scholarships to schools at all levels – thereby increasing the popularity of lower ranked schools. If you get into a decent law school this year and it’s one you can afford, it might be wise to go ahead and start rather than waiting to reapply or defer for Fall 2010 admission.
I will happily address your questions, comments and concerns about this. And, to make sure you don’t miss further updates please subscribe to the blog. Thanks so much!
Categories: Advice, Career, Law Careers, Law School Admission Trends, Law School Location; Law School Rankings, Reasons for Going to Law School, Salary Trends
Tags: law school and the economy
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Two stories of note today for law school applicants/hopefuls in the WSJ:
New loan from Sallie Mae.
Best Defense? Seeking a Haven in Law School
Applications are up as people hide out from the economy in law school. The best schools are becoming even more competitive and this article offers some tips for making yourself more competitive as a law school graduate.
Categories: Law School Admission Trends
2 Comments »
According to this post about the 11.5% increase in February LSAT takers, it looks like Fall 2010 might be a very competitive application year.
Categories: Law School Admission Trends
2 Comments »
Law school applications increase when there are popular law related television shows and when the economy is in a downturn. What better way to duck out of the job market for a few years and increase your chances of a good job when (hopefully) the economy is on an upswing again. This is especially true with regard to top-ranked law schools because people are even more concerned with post-graduation employment than usual. However, I also think it will encourage people to take scholarship offers and attend (relatively cheaper) public schools since loans and cash are problematic at this point.
See Brian Leiter’s post today.
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Ann K. Levine, Esq., former director of law school admissions for two ABA law schools, is a law school admission consultant and owner of Law School Expert,
