A natural and somewhat obvious question arises once scores come out: what's next?The answer to that question largely depends on which of two, or possibly three, categories best describes your situation. Let's examine the scenarios below and discuss what might qualify you for each, and the appropriate actions to take moving forward (one of which inspired my picture choice for this post). 1. Retake The disappointing reality for a lot of people is that the LSAT they just took is not their last LSAT. That's okay. Take it again.The key at this point is that you use the months remaining to … [Read more...]
ABA On Track to Drop LSAT Requirement: What Happens Now?
This article was co-written with Mike Spivey of Spivey Consulting. What happened? On Friday, May 11th an ABA council approved a proposal that formally removes the requirement that the LSAT be used for admissions purposes at every ABA-approved law school. In its place is broader language that allows schools to skip using an admissions test entirely if they so choose. Is it final? No, but it’s very close. The next step is for the full ABA House of Delegates to review the changes in August. They can suggest further changes and send it back for revision, but at this point the issue has been … [Read more...]
Finals and the LSAT: When is the Ideal Time to Take the Test?
In May, many of you may find yourselves either in the midst of Finals Week or having just finished your finals. With the extra stress and time constraints that accompany such a time, you have probably seen your best laid plans for consistent LSAT preparation wane at the very least over the past couple of weeks or have even seen it become nonexistent.This is not an uncommon problem. Most (but certainly not all) LSAT takers are undergraduate students at the time they sit for their LSAT. And, most of these students are on a semester system in terms of scheduling. This places the June LSAT,, … [Read more...]
How Should Freshmen and Sophomores in College Prepare for the LSAT?
There's an adage, a truism in its self-evidence really, that it's never too early to start studying for the LSAT. So compelling and pervasive is this advice that high school seniors often ask how to start their law school journey. Most probably agree with me that it’s a bit premature to start seriously investing energy into hardcore LSAT prep. But, college freshman and sophomores are near enough to test day that it warrants some legitimate consideration.In light of this, here is a comprehensive set of recommendations for those in the early stages of their college careers. This should make … [Read more...]
The Surge Continues: Surprising Trends For 2018’s Law School Applicants
There has been much discussion regarding the state of flux we find ourselves in with respect to the number of LSAT administrations and law school applications. After five years of declining numbers (2010-2015) followed by two years of anemic growth (2015-2017), LSAT administrations are up significantly throughout the 2017-2018 cycle. Following another big test in February, total administered LSAT’s were up 18.1% over last year. That’s the largest year over year jump since 2001-2002.This numerical explosion is even more shocking considering the head winds blowing against these LSAT numbers. … [Read more...]
Law Schools With Late Admissions Deadlines
We recently posted a list of law schools in the Top 50 that accept the June LSAT. A number of students wanted to also see the full list of all schools with late admissions deadlines ("late" in this case means a hard deadline of March 31st or later). Because we called every single law school on this list to confirm our data, this took a while to produce! But, we can now present you with a complete and accurate list of law schools with late 2018 admissions deadlines.This post was updated 4/6/18. In our table, the following categories are used: Rank: The rank for each school was drawn … [Read more...]
How to Write the Best Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI)
A LOCI is a Letter of Continued Interest. Usually, you send this to inform a school of your interest in attending despite being waitlisted or put on hold. It also offers an opportunity to update the school on new developments in your application. Are you putting together your LOCI? Here’s a breakdown of everything you need to know. Why Send a LOCI? If you are waitlisted or held, a school typically wants to make sure you still want to attend their institution. A LOCI is your opportunity to convey your interest despite not receiving an immediate acceptance letter. Will the LOCI Make a … [Read more...]
Non-Traditional Law School Applicants: Old Folks Rule!
When I took the LSAT for the first time, I was 31 years old, 8 years out of college, married, with a 2-year-old son, working full-time at a large non-profit institution, had a mortgage, and was the primary breadwinner in the household. I was, in other words, a “non-traditional” applicant.Does this sound like you?I was nervous about the process. Would any law school be interested in an “old guy” like me? Who would I ask for letters of recommendation, when I couldn’t expect my old professors to remember me very well? My GPA was…let’s say “unimpressive,” but by this time I was more mature … [Read more...]
How to Choose the Best LSAT Prep Option
March typically signifies the end of the previous year’s testing and application cycle. It also indicates the start of most test taker’s prep for the upcoming fall admission. That isn’t to suggest that schools won’t take a summer test for a start later this year, though. There are a lot of great schools that accept scores from “late” test administrations. However, for the majority of future applicants the coming months mark the start of their LSAT journeys. This time of year, there are two common questions students are asking."How do I begin to prepare?" "How do I pick the best prep … [Read more...]
Struggling with the September LSAT? Is December Too Late?
One of the most common questions we receive is whether applying early with a September LSAT score is a better strategy than taking the December LSAT and then applying with what would likely be a better score (since December allows you more than two extra months of studying). Many students think the advantage of applying early is so great that it is better to just take the September LSAT even if that test doesn't produce their best LSAT score. But that is not the case at all, so let's talk about what to do if you either don't feel great about the upcoming September LSAT or if you take September … [Read more...]
Writing Your Personal Statement, Part 10, Don’t Be Afraid
Well, we've reached the conclusion of this 10-part series on the law school personal statement--and now I get to talk about my favorite topic when it comes to this ever-important element of your law school application: FEAR.Whether we like to admit it or not, a huge component of applying to law school is fear. Students come to me with a great variety of things that scare them, among them:Taking the LSAT Studying for the LSAT Asking for recommendations Choosing the right law school Whether their GPA is high enough What their chances of acceptance areAnd yes: … [Read more...]
Writing Your Personal Statement, Part 6: Step Away
The most important part of writing a personal statement is, funnily enough, sitting down and actually writing it. However, the second most important part is not writing.Yup, you heard right: As important as writing your personal statement is, the one thing you can do to make your writing stronger is taking a step back once you have completed a draft, and giving your writing (and your brain) some time to settle down. Why is that? Distance is good. By giving yourself at least a day between writing and revisions, you are letting your brain reset itself. This will let you see grammatical and … [Read more...]
Writing Your Personal Statement, Part 7: Edit
Once you've written your first draft and you've had a chance to step away from it for at least day, it's time to edit. Typically, you will follow this write-step away-edit process a few times through a few drafts until you're fully satisfied with your essay and the way you've told your story.Now, saying you're going to edit your essay is the easy part. The hard part is figuring out exactly how to edit and what you should be looking for. Whenever I'm editing an essay, these are the seven areas to which I pay attention. Spelling The spellchecker on your word processing software will be a … [Read more...]
Writing Your Personal Statement, Part 8: Involve Others
If you're anything like me, the last thing you want to do when you're writing something (be it an essay, a short story, a novel, or a grocery list) is show it to someone else and have them critique it. After all, you've put a little bit of yourself into this piece of writing (well, maybe not if it's a grocery list), and the one thing you don't want to hear is criticism, even if it is constructive.However, when it comes to your personal statement, having others read it before you consider it finalized is probably one of most important things you can do.Why? Because, eventually, other … [Read more...]