How To Get Into the Best Law Schools?

August 12, 2010 By Law Library Leave a Comment

Are you searching for best law schools in USA? You should know very well about the facilities available in the colleges of law. You can even seek the help of Internet to find out about the accredited law colleges. Since the internet came around, things have been so much easier for us whatever information we are searching. The web has also made life easier for potential students because all they have to do is to enter a keyword and in a matter of seconds they will have the information they searched for served on a ‘silver platter’.

Many websites may help you to find your dream college at your fingertips by clicking the mouse. You only have to do a search and a list of actual colleges will appear. By visiting these schools your questions will be answered regarding the law colleges.

What should look for?
You should research on the colleges you have selected for your graduate program especially the graduates from which college earn the most, when law colleges have the best first-time bar passage rate and also what are the strength and weakness of the particular law school.

Types of law schools
The types of law schools include private and public law schools. The common private schools are Loyola Law School, Michigan State University, Ave Maria school of law, Emory University, etc.,

The Public Law school includes University of Toledo, University of Iowa, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, University of Virginia, University of Pittsburgh, etc.,

Both Private and public schools offer educational loan to their students as these University authorities know very well that they’ll easily make enough after their degree program to settle down their loans.

Tips to get admissions
LSAT scores and grade-point average (GPA) are the major criterion in law school admissions. If you intend to get admission in top most law college, then you should have a high number on both.

Last year 50% of the students with GPAs between 3.68 and 3.92 and LSAT score between 170 and 176 got admission in the University of Wisconsin- Madison. Some of the Law colleges with best record admit the students with little work experience also. So do remember to show experience. If you’re interest in corporate practice, you ought to talk about time spent in an investment bank, while one with an eye on public-interest law could tout the year working with Peace Corps.

Before getting admitted a particular law school, just make a call to a career center to get information that which law school offers best students to the corporate law firms in the campus interview and plan accordingly.

All the Best!!!

Filed Under Law Schools Tagged With Best, Into, Schools

Law School Personal Statement Samples Why you Should Never Even Read Them

July 31, 2010 By Law Library Leave a Comment

OK, I understand that applying to law school can be a frightening proposition and that you are looking for all the help you can get – and that’s why you are scouring the internet and the book stores for law school personal statement samples.

Well stop it.

You don’t need samples to show you how to write your law school personal statement. Each and every application you are completing tells you exactly what you need to know. The school has defined the rules, including how long the law school personal statement should be, what topics should be addressed, and frequently what topics should be avoided.

But, many ask, shouldn’t I look at what others have done to give me an idea of how to do it? While this is often good advice – and is something I frequently do in my law practice – I fervently believe that it is something that should be avoided when it comes to the law school personal statement.

The main reason you should avoid reading law school personal statement samples is that they all look the same, and you run the very real risk of looking the same if you follow those samples. In every area of life the great reward go to the outstanding people – not the good, or even excellent performers. To be outstanding, you need to do things differently than every one else.

The problem is that everyone is scared to death of screwing up their law school application by not giving the admissions committee what they expect. This kind of thinking probably won’t hurt you, because 99% of the law school personal statements they review are exactly the same. Such thinking will definitely, however, not help you because you cannot be outstanding if you look like everyone else.

Let’s face it, if you are shooting for the moon and trying to get into a law school that is not going to accept you based on your grades and LSAT scores alone, then turning in a bland personal statement isn’t going to do anything for you. You need to do something to set yourself apart, and the personal statement is one of the few areas you have an opportunity to do that.

I’m not recommending that you be crazy and violate the rules set down by the school, but I am recommending that you use those rules as your boundaries and fashion something truly personal, and different. By avoiding the same samples that every one else is reading you stand a better chance of falling in with the sheeple you are competing with.

Your goal is to get into a good law school and its my job to help you achieve that goal. One of the most important pieces of advice I can give is to encourage you to stand out, so make that personal statement yours and not someone elses.

This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any ezine, newsletter, blog or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.

My long time friend and mentor H. Jefferson, Jr. is an expert on on law school admission, having applied to and been admitted by 11 of the top law schools in the United States. To learn more about the the techniques and strategies you can use to get into the law school of your choice, visit lawschoolacademics.blogspot.com

Filed Under Law Schools Tagged With Even, Never, Personal, Read, Samples, School, Should, Statement, Them

Becoming a Law Student? What to Expect from a Law School Education!

July 20, 2010 By Law Library Leave a Comment

It seems that many people dream of one day becoming a high profile lawyer, setting lofty goals for themselves as they move forward through school. However, without knowledge of how to get into law school and what to expect while there, those dreams can never become a reality. Where does an aspiring law student start? To whom should you turn for more information?

The best place to start your path to law school is by speaking with a prelaw advisor. Your advisor can be found at your undergraduate institution and would be happy to help you determine whether or not you are a candidate, where you should apply, and what course you should follow to achieve your goal.

Law school is not for everyone. Critical thinking and writing abilities are required, as well as a feeling for the humanities (social sciences, natural sciences, art, and other things affecting human experience). An education in logical reasoning, written and oral expression, and critical analysis provide a good basis for acceptance to law school, regardless of your major. Excellent performance and rigorous course schedules are very important in providing an acceptable educational history to a law school.

Law school will equip you to analyze legal issues and stay abreast of the continuously changing laws and policies. A lawyer must be able to think on his or her feet and adjust to the evolving legal environment in which they must function. Lawyers must be able to provide useful and intelligent counsel to individuals regarding the law and its functionality. Clear speaking and writing abilities are also a must. Law school will prepare you for all of the aspects of being a lawyer, as well as teaching the arts of persuasion and negotiation, which also become a large part of a law career.

There is no specific curriculum that a law school follows; they do vary from school to school. However, most states require a lawyer to have graduated from an American Bar Association approved law school in order to earn admission into the bar. These schools provide the basic information and training necessary to take and pass the bar exam. Typically, states require a law student to attend the law school institution for at least three years full time or four years part time. Most law schools, though providing training for different sorts of legal professions, gear their curriculum toward training a lawyer, though some have special programs that gear the learning experience toward a combination of law and other topics, such as business, science, technology, or public administration.

Many law schools will start out their first year students with subjects such as civil procedure, contracts, criminal law and procedure, constitutional law, property law, legal writing, and tort. Eventually, in their goal of training a lawyer, the schools will place students in internships, which are used toward academic credits. Others emphasize using the governmental and legal resources of the community for training purposes.

There are many questions involved in preparing for law school, and this article only touches on some of the basics. Again, the best place to start you off on a successful career path in law is with a prelaw advisor, who can assist you in clearing up any matters not addressed here.

Filed Under Law Schools Tagged With Becoming, Education, Expect, From, School, Student

The Law School Admissions Process

July 8, 2010 By Law Library Leave a Comment

Individuals from all different career and college backgrounds make their way into law schools. The best method for preparing to become a lawyer is to gain a broad range of basic skills. There really is no set major for pre-law undergraduate work. From English to philosophy and science to art, people with all sorts of backgrounds are considered for entrance into law school. So since there is no set degree requirement, what are law school admission counselors looking for?

Law school admissions counselors typically look for individuals with excellent analytical and problem solving skills. For those still getting their undergraduate degrees, it would be wise to seek out a pre-law advisor to help you select your coursework. In addition to analytical skills, law schools also look for individuals with excellent communication skills (both writing and oral communication). Critical reading and researching are also important skills to master and be able to prove.

While there is no specialized path for undergraduates seeking to become lawyers, it is important to maintain a high grade point average. Most graduate programs only accept students with a 3.0 GPA or higher and law school is not exception.

The higher your GPA, the better off you’ll be (but rest assured that you can still go to law school without a 4.0 or even a 3.5 GPA). In addition to your GPA, extracurricular activities are also a plus. Any activities that show leadership or problem solving skills will only be a beneficial.

Selecting the right law school
When you decide to seek admittance to law school (which can be during your senior year in college or after you’ve taken a break from college altogether), you will need to narrow down your options. Typically, the following factors play a large role in deciding where to attend law school; location, cost, areas of specialty, financial aid, and prestige of the institute.

You will also need to take into consideration your strengths and weaknesses. Since there are costs to apply to law school, you also need to factor in your background (i.e. your GPA, LSAT scores and letters of recommendations). Unfortunately, if you barely earned a 3.0, scored poorly on the LSAT, and lack the experiences that a law school admissions counselor would look favorably upon, then you probably don’t want to only apply to top tier Ivy League schools. If you do, then you may find that you aren’t accepted into any law school come the next school year.

LSAT
The LSAT is the law school admissions test. All law schools approved by the ABA require LSAT scores for admissions. This exam does not cover any legal topics. Instead, it tests you on reading comprehension, analytical reasoning and logical reasoning. Law schools want to make sure you possess excellent analytical and problem solving skills and the LSAT sets out to do just that.

Scores for the LSAT range from 120 to 180 (with 180 being the highest). The average LSAT score falls around 150. The higher you can score on the LSAT; the better off you will be (although if you have strengths in other areas, you can still get into law school with a lower LSAT score).

Admissions
While admissions requirements vary from law school program to law school program, it is common for the requirements to include the following; undergraduate GPA, LSAT scores, letters of recommendation and a personal statement.

You will need to provide official transcripts and LSAT scores to show your qualifications. Usually, you will submit these to the LSDAS (the law school data assembly service). The LSDAS streamlines admissions for most all law schools in the country. You will also need to submit your letters of recommendation and the personal statement to the LSDAS.

When selecting people to write a letter of recommendation for you consider asking those who know your abilities to solve problems and realize your potential to become a lawyer. College professors and employers are excellent choices.

The personal statement should essentially let the law school admissions counselor know why you want to be a lawyer and inform them of your qualifications. You would want to stress any qualifications that relate to becoming a lawyer. For example, work as an intern in a law firm would be important to showcase (as are countless other examples).

Tie in your experiences with your desire to go to law school. Be sure to write your essay concisely, keeping in mind grammatical rules. However, there is no reason to write in legalese. Just write naturally and personably.

Remember that law schools accept people from all sorts of backgrounds. If you have an interest in pursuing a law degree, then you should start pursuing it today.

Filed Under Law Schools Tagged With Admissions, Process, School

Law School Rankings the Biggest Bunch of Bunk Since Un-sliced Bread

June 14, 2010 By Law Library Leave a Comment

Although I understand that this can be very difficult to do, you must view the popular published law school rankings, skeptically. These rankings are not only untrustworthy, but mislead students into thinking they need to attend a highly ranked school or they will be second rate lawyers do to their “substandard” law school education. This is simply not true.

What is true, in my opinion unfortunately, is that going to a highly ranked law school can have an enormous financial (note: NOT educational) impact on your early legal career. That is why I wrote Covert Tactics for Getting Into the Law School of Your Choice. As I explain in that book, however, even if you do not attend a highly ranked law school, you are not absolutely doomed to suffer professionally and financially for the rest of your life. Indeed, many times you may be well-served, both educationally and financially, by attending a lower ranked law school.

But back to law school rankings. In addition to a number of studies suggesting that the data underlying the rankings is inaccurate, due to schools trying to misrepresent the true data in order to achieve a higher ranking, it is impossible for any ranking to consider all of the relevant factors, which may vary from individual to individual.

Also problematic is the fact that most of the ranking are based, at least in part, on the subjective opinions of individuals at the various schools. Of course, such subjective opinions are likely to simply reinforce the historical opinions regarding the “top tier” law schools. Indeed, if you look at these rankings historically, you will find that they really haven’t changed much over the years.

The reason that it is important that you understand the invalidity of the rankings is that you should understand that the quality of your legal education is likely to be nearly as good, and in some respects may be better, at the University of Idaho as opposed to Harvard.

Depending on who you are, you may be much better off, for a variety of reasons, attending even a very low ranked school. This may be the case even if you have the opportunity to attend a higher-ranked school.

For example, if your intent is to establish a small town practice in rural South Dakota immediately after law school, it may be unwise to attend Stanford Law School over the University of South Dakota School of Law.

Why? Let me give you three good reasons, though there are likely many more. First, you are not going to be particularly highly paid in rural South Dakota, regardless of where you attended law school. As a Stanford Law graduate you are likely to either be saddled with a high debt load or have spent a significant amount of your savings getting through school. Although few law schools are cheap, you should carefully consider whether it is worth spending and extra $100,000 to have a fancy name on your wall.

Second, as a small-town practitioner, you are going to be very reliant on relationships with other attorneys, the business community, and potential clients in general. Spending three years in Palo Alto, far away from the center of your future universe, will do very little to develop those relationships, so law school rankings are virtually meaningless.

Finally, the education isn’t going to be much better at Stanford than at USD. Believe me, in writing this I have prepared myself for the inevitable barrage of criticism that will inevitably be hurled my way. I say this with confidence, however, because I know lawyers from a wide variety of law schools and find a relatively equal distribution of idiots among alumni from top 50 and bottom 50 schools. It really depends on what you are willing to put into it – not what they give you.

There are even some law schools not approved by the American Bar Association that may be worth considering in limited situations. Depending on what you want to do, and the particular laws of the jurisdiction where you intend to practice, a non-ABA accredited school may be a worthwhile choice.

At the end of the day, you need to make a wise choice that you will be happy with for the rest of your life. Don’t put a school on your list just because it is a highly-ranked law school or fits a formula or because you think it will look good on your resume.

Even if we find a cure for cancer in the next decade, you are not likely to live much more than 90 years on this earth. Don’t spend 3.5% of it in the wrong place.

This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any ezine, newsletter, blog or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.

My Friend H. Jefferson, Jr. is an expert on on law school admission, having applied to and been admitted by 11 of the top law schools in the United States. To learn more about the the techniques and strategies you can use to get into the law school of your choice, visit lawschoolacademics.blogspot.com,

.

Filed Under Law Schools Tagged With Biggest, Bread, Bunch, Bunk, Rankings, School, Since, Unsliced
« Older Posts