Categories: LSAT Prep, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
Tags: February LSAT, February LSAT; LSAT Prep
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FREE PODCAST tomorrow (Wednesday, January 4th) where I’ll be interviewing Nathan Fox of Fox Test Prep, a UC Hastings Law Grad and author of Cheating the LSAT, about everything you need to do in the next month to be ready for the February LSAT. Listen in and find out how to win Nathan’s LSAT Prep books!
If you’ve never listened to one of my Blog Talk Radio shows, you are in the minority: the free podcasts are almost as popular as the Law School Expert blog!
All you have to do is listen live tomorrow online by going to Ann Levine – Blog Talk Radio at noon PST/3 pm EST – and if you listen live, you can use the chat room to ask questions and I try to incorporate your questions into the show. The show is 30 minutes. If you can’t make it live, you’ll be able to listen to it anytime, and even download it from iTunes if you’d like at absolutely no charge. And you can leave questions as comments here and I’ll try to get you answers during the podcast.
P.S. December LSAT scores will be out any minute now so if you’re contemplating a February re-take don’t miss the LSAT Tips in this Podcast!
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, LSAT; Rolling Admissions, Rolling Admissions, Starting in January
Tags: applying to law school in December, applying to law school in January, law school application, law school application timeline
16 Comments »
For those of you who just took the LSAT, or those of you who have simply been procrastinating, here is a plan to help you move through the application process as speedily as possible without freaking out that you are late in the game.
December 5,6,7: Brainstorm ideas for your personal statement. Review the following resources before getting started:
December 8,9: Make sure all letters of rec are received by LSAC or in the mail. Same with transcripts.
December 10 – 16 Fine tune your personal statement draft. This may include using the services of a law school admission consultant, but if not then be sure to at least have someone proofread it before you submit it. December 17-19 Revisit your resume.
December 20-23 – If you are going to need an addendum to explain a moral character infraction or undergraduate GPA or other episode, work on it now. Here is Chapter 9 of The Law School Admission Game, which covers how to explain weaknesses in a way that doesn’t open up a can of worms. If you plan to write an LSAT addendum, you should wait until you have your December score. Otherwise you don’t know how to spin your argument.
Late December/early January – when LSAT scores come out, come up with your schools list and create a spreadsheet of each school, the essay prompt(s) and requirements, and start working your way down them. I generally recommend doing the easier ones (those without optional or secondary essays) first. Aim to do 2 applications per day. Again, make sure to proofread them – especially the first one you fill out – so that errors don’t sneak in and ruin all of your hard work on everything else.
I’m happy to take questions!
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Admission Trends, Low LSAT, LSAT, LSAT Prep, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
Tags: December LSAT, Low LSAT, LSAT Scores, October LSAT score
26 Comments »
LSAT scores came out. Let the panic begin. Right now you’re exhausted, scouring the Internet for anything, ready to grasp the smallest, least credible piece of advice that tells you that your very low LSAT score WILL get you into the school of your dreams.
What is my advice? Sleep on it. Then, when you wake up, read these posts:
Before You Re-take the LSAT
The Post-LSAT Blues (by me, but on USNews.com)
Should You Re-Take the LSAT in December? (by me)
Should You Re-Take the LSAT in December (by MSS blog)
But to answer the easy questions:
1. NO – December is NOT too late to apply for Fall 2012 admission. Why? Because you will still be able to submit apps in early January. Because you’re better off having a higher LSAT score and applying in January than applying now with a lower LSAT score. Because applications are down 10% and this can only help you.
2. NO – You can’t significantly improve your practice exam scores in 5 weeks. If you suck at standardized tests, you’re not going to be able to teach yourself the test. To get a different result, you need to take different actions.
Happy to take questions! And would love your feedback on the new book, The Law School Decision Game:A Playbook for Prospective Lawyers.
Ann
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Personal Statement, Law School Resume Tips, Letters of Rec, LSAT, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
20 Comments »
If you just took today’s LSAT, congratulations on being done. For the next 24 hours make no major decisions and avoid reading any forums or talking to anyone who also took today’s test. You have 6 days to decide whether to cancel your LSAT score and there are no bonus points for rushing to cancel today. Take a deep breath and relax. I always talk to a lot of people who panic on LSAT day, only to feel just fine about their performance the next day. That rarely happens in reverse. However, definitely cancel your LSAT score if any of these things happened to you.
When you wake up tomorrow, decide to be productive. Here are 3 easy things to do this week to move your application process forward:
1. Get out your resume and resolve to polish it up. See this US News post I wrote last year and listen to Chapter 6 of the audio version of The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert.
2. Make sure your LORs are in process – being sent to LSAC or already there.
3. Work on your personal statement. Here are some helpful posts about law school personal statement writing and this one about concluding your personal statement.
Lastly, if you end up being disappointed by your score, is it OK to take the December LSAT and apply in early January? YES. Absolutely. It’s ok.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend and, as always, I’m happy to answer your questions.
Categories: Advice, Application Timeline, Law School Admission Deadlines, LSAT, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
19 Comments »
It’s September. What on earth should you be doing? Obviously, if you aren’t taking the LSAT in the future and you are keeping a past score, now is the time to get your Letters of Rec, personal statement, resume, addenda, applications, optional essays underway. If you haven’t started, what are you waiting for?
If you are taking the October LSAT,the next four weeks are all about that – put everything else to the side except perhaps requesting transcripts and letters of rec. Also, read this post about my top 3 LSAT tips to know if you’re going to be ready to take the test and this Countdown to the October LSAT post. If you’re not happy with your LSAT practice performance, read this post about Not Hitting Your Goal LSAT score.
If you are heading to a LSAC Forum or recruiting event at a law school, here’s a post with tips about what to ask the law school representatives when you see them. The most important thing is to keep their contact info so you haven’t someone to follow up with throughout the application cycle.
If you’re considering taking the December LSAT, that’s perfectly ok. Just read this post first so you undertand admission cycle timing. Just start working on your application materials now so you can really concentrate on the LSAT for most of October and November.
I hope everyone has a great Labor Day Weekend!
Categories: Application Timeline, LSAT, LSAT Prep, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
1 Comment »
There have been a number of postings this week about when to take the LSAT. We talk about this at length in The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert.
The last day to change your test date for the June 2011 LSAT is May 13th. If you’re not close to where you need to be by this date, then put the test off into October. October is not too late – even for schools where you might apply Early Decision or under Early Notification programs. You will have your October LSAT scores by October 26th, which is plenty of time to fire off applications with early deadlines of November 1 and November 15th.
Here are some posts about application timelines:
Which LSAT to take?
http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/which-lsat-should-i-take/
Application process per Power Score
http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/how-does-the-law-school-admissions-process-work/
Lawschoolexpert timeline:
http://www.lawschoolexpert.com/blog/application-timeline/get-your-act-together/
http://www.lawschoolexpert.com/blog/application-timeline/5-things-fall-2009-applicants-can-do-right-now/
Podcasts:
http://www.insidersecrets.com/getting-into-law-school/
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/ann-levine/2010/06/17/the-law-school-application-timeline-getting-started
Categories: LSAT, LSAT Prep, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
Tags: LSAT, LSAT Prep, October LSAT
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Breathe deeply. LSAT day will arrive no matter what you do. A lot of your success in the next 5 days is mind over matter. Will you let the LSAT get to you, or are you excited to prove what you can do and show off all of your hard work preparing for it?
Here’s a helpful article by my friends at BlueprintPrep about what to do this week to prepare for the LSAT.
Here’s a link to one of my favorite Law School Expert Blog Talk Radio Shows about Last Minute Tips for LSAT Takers. You can listen to it online or download it from iTunes under Blog Talk Radio Feed – Ann Levine (or something like that).
In my law school admission consulting business, October is the month when most people sign up to work with me. So don’t feel you’re behind the curve. Do what you need to do on the LSAT this week, and if you’re considering working with me I’m here to talk when you’re ready. I’ll move you along very quickly. With an October LSAT score, there is still time to apply in early-mid November which is plenty of time to take advantage of rolling admissions. See my website for more information. I look forward to hearing from you.
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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,
