The Ultimate Guide To Law School Application
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-Pick the Right Schools- Glaring Mistake #3: Picking the Wrong Schools
If you want to maximize your chances of attending good law school, you must apply to the right list of law schools. This seemingly simple advice is ignored by almost every single pre-law student.
Ask most pre-law students where they want to go to law school and they'll simply allude to the US News World Report as well as a few local schools: "Well, I'll shoot for the best possible school on the Top 14, and then...I dunno...maybe USC as a safety school or something?" First off, no school on the on the US News World Report's top 25 is a "safety school." |
More importantly, picking your grad school education based PURELY on rank is just about THE dumbest thing you can possibly do (for more reasons than one).
Ranking is important, but it shouldn't be the ONLY factor in finalizing your list of schools. Just as it was true for your college applications, it is also true for your law school applications - you want a well thought out mix of schools on your list. There's no guarantee (no matter how high your GPA or LSAT) that you'll get into the top schools, so it's always wise to apply to several schools (not just one). On the other hand, a "reach" school might accept you (you just never know), so it make sense to have a couple of them on your list as well.
How do you know which schools are right for you? While whole books could be written on the subject (and many of them have), it really boils down to one word:
Ranking is important, but it shouldn't be the ONLY factor in finalizing your list of schools. Just as it was true for your college applications, it is also true for your law school applications - you want a well thought out mix of schools on your list. There's no guarantee (no matter how high your GPA or LSAT) that you'll get into the top schools, so it's always wise to apply to several schools (not just one). On the other hand, a "reach" school might accept you (you just never know), so it make sense to have a couple of them on your list as well.
How do you know which schools are right for you? While whole books could be written on the subject (and many of them have), it really boils down to one word:
Research
The more you learn about a school, the better an idea you’ll have of whether or not it’s the right fit for you. Look into each school’s:
- Academic strengths
- Clinical opportunities
- Special extracurricular programs
- Professors
- Class size
- Student life and atmosphere
- Demographics and diversity
- Location and nearby geographic opportunities
- Job placement rate
- Relationship with other departments at the University
These will give you a much better idea of what the school is actually like. They are way better than relying purely on what rank is attached to the school. Just because a school is ranked in the top 14 (a.k.a. T14) in the US News World Report doesn't mean you're going to love it, be happy, and do well.
For example, you will have GLARINGLY different impressions of Columbia and Virginia – they’re both T14 schools, but the vibe and experience is totally different, and thus probably "best fits" for entirely different types of people.
The more time and effort that you spend researching and selecting the appropriate schools, the happier you’ll be over the next three years of your life. Moreover, you’ll enjoy learning more and grades will be better for future job prospects.
For example, you will have GLARINGLY different impressions of Columbia and Virginia – they’re both T14 schools, but the vibe and experience is totally different, and thus probably "best fits" for entirely different types of people.
The more time and effort that you spend researching and selecting the appropriate schools, the happier you’ll be over the next three years of your life. Moreover, you’ll enjoy learning more and grades will be better for future job prospects.
“Yeah, yeah, who cares about happiness – I just want to get into a top-ten school, put in my tim,e and become the best f***in lawyer I can be!” |
Well, even if you don’t think that law school should serve a higher purpose than showing off your pedigree to the world, you’re forgetting something else:
The friends you make IN law school matter. And because everyone and everything is ranked and graded on a curve in law school, you'll have a really hard time making friends unless you're happy and you truly love the people you're in law school with.
Let's say you become a law school hermit and live in the library to focus exclusively on your studies because you just don't care about happiness or making friends in law school. And let's say you do really well in law school and land your first job entirely based on your own merit/grades.
Good for you!
But how about your next job? If you're a typical lawyer, you WILL change firms/positions/careers. And when you do, your best references and advocates will be your law school friends. No joke. As my tort professor once said to our class: "You think you're reading and working your tail-off for me? NO! It's the people sitting next to you whom you want to impress. If they think you're lazy, they won't ever want to work with you or be a part of what you do."
Happiness matters and friendships matter, tremendously.
The friends you make IN law school matter. And because everyone and everything is ranked and graded on a curve in law school, you'll have a really hard time making friends unless you're happy and you truly love the people you're in law school with.
Let's say you become a law school hermit and live in the library to focus exclusively on your studies because you just don't care about happiness or making friends in law school. And let's say you do really well in law school and land your first job entirely based on your own merit/grades.
Good for you!
But how about your next job? If you're a typical lawyer, you WILL change firms/positions/careers. And when you do, your best references and advocates will be your law school friends. No joke. As my tort professor once said to our class: "You think you're reading and working your tail-off for me? NO! It's the people sitting next to you whom you want to impress. If they think you're lazy, they won't ever want to work with you or be a part of what you do."
Happiness matters and friendships matter, tremendously.
Different Types of School for Different Types of Students!
Most law school use the case method, wherein students are taught to focus on previous case law to deduce principles and/or legal doctrines. Invented by Christopher Columbus Langdell, Dean of Harvard Law School from 1870 to 1895, the case method is a hallmark of modern legal education.
Although practically every single law school in the nation uses the case method, it's a grave mistake to think that you're getting the same legal education at every institute. Like any human organization, despite using similar body of curricula, law schools are drastically different from campus to campus. Think of siblings that come from the same root - no two siblings are identical; each has his or her own unique identity.
Just think about how different some of the most prestigious schools in the country are from one another. Some of them are more start-up and tech friendly (Stanford); some schools have a crap load of course offerings (Harvard and Georgetown); and some schools are heavily influenced by behavioral economics (U Chicago). Each school has a unique identity, thus not all schools are going to be a perfect fit for you.
I went to the University of Chicago Law School, which, according to the US News World Report, is ranked #4*. It's ranked higher than another preeminent Chicago law school, namely Northwestern University School of Law, which is ranked #12*. I had a decent time at UChicago, where fun comes to die. However, I would have been a whole lot happier at Northwestern. UChicago was a little too much about the academic life of the mind. I'm an extreme extrovert. I thrive on socializing and mingling with people. I would have enjoyed a more active, fun, and people focused environment. Northwestern was definitely more about the people than UChicago. Here's a case in point. During my 2L year, I was the president of UChicago's Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA). I believe we had somewhere in the ball park of $6000 to spend for the entire year. Invite a few speakers and host a few lunches, and that money is gone in a blip. You know how much Northwestern's APALSA had for spending? $70,000.
Do your research. Talk to current law students. Visit schools both virtually and in-person. You'll have an a-ha moment.
Although practically every single law school in the nation uses the case method, it's a grave mistake to think that you're getting the same legal education at every institute. Like any human organization, despite using similar body of curricula, law schools are drastically different from campus to campus. Think of siblings that come from the same root - no two siblings are identical; each has his or her own unique identity.
Just think about how different some of the most prestigious schools in the country are from one another. Some of them are more start-up and tech friendly (Stanford); some schools have a crap load of course offerings (Harvard and Georgetown); and some schools are heavily influenced by behavioral economics (U Chicago). Each school has a unique identity, thus not all schools are going to be a perfect fit for you.
I went to the University of Chicago Law School, which, according to the US News World Report, is ranked #4*. It's ranked higher than another preeminent Chicago law school, namely Northwestern University School of Law, which is ranked #12*. I had a decent time at UChicago, where fun comes to die. However, I would have been a whole lot happier at Northwestern. UChicago was a little too much about the academic life of the mind. I'm an extreme extrovert. I thrive on socializing and mingling with people. I would have enjoyed a more active, fun, and people focused environment. Northwestern was definitely more about the people than UChicago. Here's a case in point. During my 2L year, I was the president of UChicago's Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA). I believe we had somewhere in the ball park of $6000 to spend for the entire year. Invite a few speakers and host a few lunches, and that money is gone in a blip. You know how much Northwestern's APALSA had for spending? $70,000.
Do your research. Talk to current law students. Visit schools both virtually and in-person. You'll have an a-ha moment.
*Note: the law school rankings are from US News World Report's 2016 edition.