Categories: Advice, Application Timeline, Law School Location; Law School Rankings, Low LSAT, LSAT, LSAT Prep
Tags: LSAT, LSAT Prep courses, LSAT tutor
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JB left this comment on my old blog and I wanted to share it in a separate post here so everyone could benefit from the response:
Thank you Ann! I decided to take your advice and wait. (about the February LSAT)
I keep on having problems with the argument section in the practice exams, Im not sure how you are supposed to study for those kinds of questions. I also am having some trouble with the RC part of the exam. Is there anything that you can recommend that might help me study for these sections of the test better?
Thanks,
JB
First, this is a good decision. I’m glad you’re going to dedicate yourself to going through the law school application process the right way rather than the “get it over with” way. Here are some resources on LSAT Preparation:
Integrated Learning LSAT Blog
Manhattan LSAT Tutor
Test Prep NY
Also, here’s a link to a previous LawSchoolExpert post on LSAT Advice and here’s one on LSAT Prep Courses.
Categories: Law School Location; Law School Rankings
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So, this week I experienced a “first” since opening lawschoolexpert and becoming a law school admission consultant.
A client, we’ll call him Sam, hired me in July 2005. He wanted a top 25 Law School and was pretty much unwilling to budge from that no matter what I said to enlighten him about other possibilities. He got into one, but part time, so decided to wait a year and retake the LSAT. In 2006, he got into the same school but full time and chose that school over others closer to his home that offered him generous scholarships. And, today, he is a first semester 1L at the “top” school.
So this is where it gets interesting.
I got a phone call this week.
“Ann!” (I knew immediately who it was by the way, but asked just to be sure). “Do you remember 2 years ago you said to me, “US News’ Top 25 isn’t necessarily [Sam's] Top 25?”
That part I didn’t remember, but it sounds like something I would say.
“Well, I’m here full time at this ‘top’ law school and I’m calling to say you were right and I’m withdrawing. I called [my hometown] law school and they said they’d still offer me the scholarship if I apply for Fall 2008. That’s my new strategy! I don’t want to be in debt to impress everyone else with what law school I went to. I finally woke up!”
So, I was pretty proud of him. I was excited he called to share his news with me. And I was happy with the change I noticed in him. Sam’s decision wouldn’t be right for everyone, but considering his goals, ties to home, and absolutely hatred of the idea of taking on any debt whatsoever, he felt this was the right option for him.
P.S. Sorry I didn’t post very much this week. I was bogged down in personal statements and applications before November 1st early decision/early action deadlines. I work hard to turn things around in 24 hours for my clients. I apologize to my blog readers for the delay.
P.P.S. Thank you to all of my readers – I started this blog in July and -3 months later- I have 5,000 readers each month!!! Thank you also for all of your e-mails and comments. I’ve enjoyed getting to know (and helping) so many of you!
Categories: Advice, Law School Location, Law School Location; Law School Rankings, Law School Rankings
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Thanks to Brian Leiter for posting a link to this article in the WSJ. Here is more support for why you shouldn’t shoose law schools based on rankings alone, and a list of factors you should consider when deciding where to apply and where to attend.
I’m thrilled this issue is garnering publicity at this crucial point in the law school application season. Remember, the idea when choosing where to apply is to keep your options open so you have decisions to make in the spring/summer.
Categories: Law School Location; Law School Rankings
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Worth reading this week:
For humor about a very special Yale Law School graduate
And for a great perspective on the recent “how to pick a law school” debate concerning debt and future income, please see the letter to the editor for preLaw Magazine. I was very impressed with this article. In addition to stressing location as being important, Jack Crittenden talks about picking a law school with reaonable tuition. I’m sure he would agree with me about findnig a law school where you are competitive for scholarships as well.
Also in preLaw magazine this week is a good article about Thomas Cooley law school. The law school makes the case that they give people a shot and they do make it sound very noble. I was actually surprised to learn that in 2006, 185 Cooley students transferred to other law schools. That’s incredibly promising; it means that other ABA schools repect Cooley enough to admit students who do well there.
Categories: Law School Location; Law School Rankings
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Please check out another great posting on the Location vs. Rankings topic http://www.lukegilman.com/blawg/2007/08/02/how-to-choose-a-law-school-2/
And another great resource http://nancyrapoport.blogspot.com/search/label/rankings
Thanks to everyone who is speaking out on this to educate applicants about what’s important to consider in the law school selection process.
Categories: Law School Location; Law School Rankings
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I just had the pleasure of finding another blogger who agrees about the importance of location in picking a law school: http://rubyredslipper.blogspot.com/2007/07/tips-on-choosing-law-school-1-location.html
I love her comments about the unimportance of rankings in making this decision. It’s so important to get the word out that people feel this way and I hope you’ll send lots of people to her article on it, and also to my posts about rankings and location.
Categories: Law School Location; Law School Rankings
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New to blogging and completely happy with some of the information I’m finding on the blogosphere for law school applicants! One law school admission committee member wrote this 2 years ago, and I’m only discovering it now but it’s still valid. She has four suggestions for committee members too caught up in the “rankings versus interesting candidate” conundrum, including not counting “old” GPAs and only counting the last 2 years of recent GPAs. Here’s the link:
You’ll see my comment (#19) suggesting Regional Rankings – West Coast, East Coast, Mid West, Southwest and Southeast. After all, Alabama attorneys and judges probably rank Cumberland a lot higher than UC Davis, and for good reason. But California lawyers would be crazy to do the opposite…. Another great reason to recycle your copy of US News and go with your gut when picking law schools. (Can you tell I’m on this tangent this week?)
Ann K. Levine, Esq., former director of law school admissions for two ABA approved law schools, is a law school admission consultant and owner of Law School Expert,
