Top Law Schools

Just waiting on my June score now....quite anxiously.What can we be doing now to prepare for the upcoming cycle? I've already started working on my PS and ordered my transcripts. How can we hit the ground running to make sure we get our apps in early?

Make your resume. This took longer than I expected because most resumes are designed to get jobs. This one is slightly different.

Some schools will have optional essays that rarely change. If there are schools you'll apply to no matter what your score is, read their applications and start planning how you'll handle the extra essays in case they appear.

Find out if there are weird requirements at some schools you're considering. I almost didn't apply to the school I'm now attending because the recommendation requirements were different, and I hadn't prepared for it.

But hey, it's only a few weeks and you'll know your score. Then you can really get to work.

Exactly. Put together the rest of your application. Grind out your PS and revise it several times over, and make a killer resume with EVERYTHING you've done. Mine was almost 3 full pages. Also, start asking for letters of rec. And send in your transcript to LSAC.

Once you get your score, you'll be ready to start tailoring your applications and hopefully you can apply in September and be done with it.

Thanks guys. Would you advise going ahead and checking out a school's app and getting started on the supplemental essays in order to submit the first day they go live? Or would you recommend to wait a week or so after the applications come out to submit my materials?

gatorlaw wrote:Thanks guys. Would you advise going ahead and checking out a school's app and getting started on the supplemental essays in order to submit the first day they go live? Or would you recommend to wait a week or so after the applications come out to submit my materials?

Whichever you prefer. If you submit any time before the October LSAT results come out then you'll be in the first waive of admissions decisions for any school you apply to. The benefit to applying on day one or week one is that you'll be DONE with it and can concentrate on enjoying life for a year / raising your GPA during the fall semester.

Also, many schools are very generous with fee waivers but they don't come out until after the apps are already released. I highly recommend waiting until October or so to see if you'll get a fee waiver; it's free money in your pocket. Follow TLS to see when other people are getting them.

Bumi wrote:Make your resume. This took longer than I expected because most resumes are designed to get jobs. This one is slightly different.

Don't schools pretty much want to see the one you use to get jobs? I don't think I made any changes to my resume and it worked out fine.

spend time here
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 6&t=157200

Haha I have been wasting my days way on that June 2011 thread so I figured it was time to do something productive towards the 2012 cycle.

I got a fee waver from LSAC so I'm hoping most schools honor it. The only one I've seen that doesn't accept them so far is FSU.

One more question guys: If I go online and look up the 2011 applications, can I trust that the supplemental essays will be pretty much the same for this year? Duke has 2 sup essays, I believe, and I'd like to get 'em out of the way but I'm not sure if the prompts/ applications change every year or if they are pretty consistent across the board. Any tips from previous applicants would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

P.S: It is June 24th YET?!?

NYC Law wrote:

Bumi wrote:Make your resume. This took longer than I expected because most resumes are designed to get jobs. This one is slightly different.

Don't schools pretty much want to see the one you use to get jobs? I don't think I made any changes to my resume and it worked out fine.

I've worked for quite a while. If I were applying to a job in my industry, there's no way in hell i'd use the same resume I sent to law schools. Admissions deans are not businesspeople and don't speak the same language, and law admissions is more interested in my undergrad than a hiring manager would be, to name two differences.

You can send the same one and it'll work fine, or you can try to tailor it.

Bumi, can you give specifics on how the two formats should differ? Can you show us any examples?

I could definitely see why an adcomm couldn't care less about how difficult the closing shift at the campus Starbucks was, so it probably needs to be tailored...would you suggest listing things in order of importance or is chronological order expected? My most interesting work as an UG was probably towards my third/ fourth year so I would hate to bore them with my meager internships until they get to the good stuff.

Bumi wrote:

NYC Law wrote:

Bumi wrote:Make your resume. This took longer than I expected because most resumes are designed to get jobs. This one is slightly different.

Don't schools pretty much want to see the one you use to get jobs? I don't think I made any changes to my resume and it worked out fine.

I've worked for quite a while. If I were applying to a job in my industry, there's no way in hell i'd use the same resume I sent to law schools. Admissions deans are not businesspeople and don't speak the same language, and law admissions is more interested in my undergrad than a hiring manager would be, to name two differences.

You can send the same one and it'll work fine, or you can try to tailor it.

Oh ok, I'm K-JD, so my resume just consists of the same crappy part time jobs either way.