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Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:13 am**

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NOTE: Transmission of electronic applications to this law school will begin on 9/15/2011. Please return to this page at that time to transmit your application.

Important Application Deadlines: http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd/apply/

EARLY DECISION (BINDING)
September 1 - Earliest date to submit an application.
By November 15 - Application must be received.
By December 1 - Application must be complete.
By December 31 - Decisions will be sent.

REGULAR NOTIFICATION
September 1 - Earliest date to submit an application.
By March 1* - Application must be received.

Admissions Checklist: http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd/apply/

- Completed application form with electronic signature
- Application fee in the amount of $80.00 or an approved Penn Law or LSAC fee waiver
- Undergraduate transcripts from all schools attended
- Graduate transcripts from all schools attended
- Credential Assembly Service Law School report
- Two Letters of Recommendation (must be submitted through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service)
- Résumé or Curriculum Vitae
- Personal statement

Application Instructions: http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd ... ctions.pdf
Note: Last year, the supplemental essays were required, this year they are optional.

Optional Essays
If you wish, you may write an additional essay on any of the following topics. These optional essays allow you an opportunity to provide the admissions committee with additional relevant information that you were not able to include in your personal statement. Please include the essay with your application by electronically attaching it to your application before submission through LSAC. You may answer more than one essay topic if you so choose. Include your name and LSAC account number on each page. Please limit any optional essay to one page, double spaced and title it appropriately.

- Describe how your background or experiences will contribute to or enhance the diversity of the Penn Law community (e.g. based on your culture, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, ideology, age, socioeconomic status, academic background, employment experience, etc.).
- Please discuss the work of art or literature that most influenced your decision to pursue a legal education.
- How will your legal education and professional development at Penn Law support your five year plan upon graduation?
- If you do not think that your academic record or standardized test scores accurately reflect your ability to succeed in law school, please tell us why

JD Status Checker: https://aces2.lsac.org/YourStatus/membership/logon.aspx
________________________________________________________________________

c/o 2014 Reference Threads:
Applicants: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7&t=134394
Attending: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 8&t=133502
Waitlist: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7&t=145779
________________________________________________________________________

Countdown Timer to date on which applications can first be sent:
http://www.timeanddate.com/counters/cus ... =00&p0=179

Penn Decision Date Graph, 2009-2010:

Decision Date Spreadsheet for Oct/Nov Apps:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreads ... 2dcE#gid=0

LSN 2011-2012 Cycle Applicants: http://penn.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants
LSN 2010-2011 Cycle Applicants: http://penn.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants/1011/

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:19 am**

You are so thorough in all things that I am perpetually in awe. *Falls at the feet of HP*

P.S. Essays being optional is making me think about throwing Penn another app although they stabbed me in the heart this cycle.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:21 am**

descartesb4thehorse wrote:You are so thorough in all things that I am perpetually in awe. *Falls at the feet of HP*

Thank you

Wanted to create a resource center for potential applicants so they don't have to go searching elsewhere. I'll probably edit in more info in the near future.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 9:45 am**

yeah, these threads you made are really good. I'll be applying here, and doing every optional essay I can

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:01 am**

Hello, friends.

I don't really want to go to Penn, mainly because I go to Penn State and need to get the hell out of this state ASAP...but yeah, I'm sure I'll probably end up here, just because that's how life works.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 11:29 am**

Yes, hawkeye you are SO thorough. Really appreciate the application info. I will be applying! I will write 2 of the optional essays, still mulling over 'why penn'...

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 12:35 pm**

Thanks for all the information Hawkeye!

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 12:49 pm**

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:09 pm**

Seriously, dude, thanks for making all of these; this is great.

Do you guys think just the "Why Penn" supplemental essay is sufficient to demonstrate interest and avoid YP, or would you play it safe and write two?

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:13 pm**

acadec wrote:Seriously, dude, thanks for making all of these; this is great.

Do you guys think just the "Why Penn" supplemental essay is sufficient to demonstrate interest and avoid YP, or would you play it safe and write two?

No problem!

I'm struggling with this at the moment as well. I literally have nothing good to write about for the art/literature essay. I was talking to Xifeng and she said that she would suggest writing two essays because it may help you land more scholarship money. I'm not sure if it's necessary for avoiding YP, however.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:16 pm**

I personally wrote two and I think it definitely helped me be in the running for some awesome named scholarships (as well as avoid YP). I mean, if you just want to avoid YP, one is probably fine, but $$$ is great too.

Penn was one of the schools I was choosing for in the end, so let me know if you have any questions I can help with

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:21 pm**

Thanks for the advice; I'd certainly be happy to write another one if it meant a better shot at money. Trouble is, like HP, I can't think of anything for art/literature (and I'd contribute nothing to diversity and have no LSAT/GPA problems to explain).

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:24 pm**

ihhwap1 wrote:
PSUdevon wrote:Hello, friends.

I don't really want to go to Penn, mainly because I go to Penn State and need to get the hell out of this state ASAP...but yeah, I'm sure I'll probably end up here, just because that's how life works.
Idk where you're from, but if you're a sports fan then you may have a rough time with the Eagles/Phillies fans

Also OP these threads are beautiful. Well done.

Edit: The required essays are optional this year? Interesting. I'm curious as to why that is.

You called it. I'm a New Yorker, and I can't take it anymore. I really can't. They're just the worst.

Edit: for "Optional Essay," the Code of Hammurabi is on display at the Louvre, and I'd write my art/lit on that one, since it actually did make a significant impact on me. But does it qualify?

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:27 pm**

PSUdevon wrote: Edit: for "Optional Essay," the Code of Hammurabi is on display at the Louvre, and I'd write my art/lit on that one, since it actually did make a significant impact on me. But does it qualify?

OMGinternationallaw
~collegial~
cerTTTificates

sounds perfect

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:29 pm**

soj wrote:
PSUdevon wrote: Edit: for "Optional Essay," the Code of Hammurabi is on display at the Louvre, and I'd write my art/lit on that one, since it actually did make a significant impact on me. But does it qualify?
OMGinternationallaw
~collegial~
cerTTTificates

sounds perfect

So, that's a maybe?

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:29 pm**

PSUdevon wrote:
soj wrote:
PSUdevon wrote: Edit: for "Optional Essay," the Code of Hammurabi is on display at the Louvre, and I'd write my art/lit on that one, since it actually did make a significant impact on me. But does it qualify?
OMGinternationallaw
~collegial~
cerTTTificates

sounds perfect
So, that's a maybe?

I say go for it.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:30 pm**

i think it's a great idea. since it actually affected you, you're already ahead of most people writing that one, i bet.

i just came up with the outline for you.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:32 pm**

The only things I can think of are legal movies (e.g., Counsellor at Law by Wyler) or legal literature (e.g., Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky). But I don't know how I'd use those to write something that didn't come across as trite.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:33 pm**

Yeah, sounds like a good plan. My essay was pretty lame, but considering you could think of something that might work I'd say you're ahead of most people in here XD

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:36 pm**

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:40 pm**

ihhwap1 wrote:
PSUdevon wrote:You called it. I'm a New Yorker, and I can't take it anymore. I really can't. They're just the worst.
Oh no haha if you're into the Mets and/or Giants then best of luck to you. At least as a Yankees and/or Jets fan I guess it only gets really bad around playoffs?

And are you guys going to discuss your "5 year" plans in your Why Penn essay? Frankly, I'm not entirely sure what I want to do after graduation, and I was going to spend most of my essay talking about what makes Penn so great.

Mets and Jets. But the sheer douchery of Phillie fans would make me hate them even if I was from Seattle.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:40 pm**

ihhwap1 wrote:
PSUdevon wrote:You called it. I'm a New Yorker, and I can't take it anymore. I really can't. They're just the worst.
Oh no haha if you're into the Mets and/or Giants then best of luck to you. At least as a Yankees and/or Jets fan I guess it only gets really bad around playoffs?

And are you guys going to discuss your "5 year" plans in your Why Penn essay? Frankly, I'm not entirely sure what I want to do after graduation, and I was going to spend most of my essay talking about what makes Penn so great.

Yeah, it sounded like they explicitly want us to discuss the 5 year plan. I am going to discuss that but am still struggling with it as well. I say just make something up that you are interested in. No one's going to hold you to it! They expect people to change their minds in LS.

For my 2nd statement I am going to do a DS.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:58 pm**

In 20 minutes, I wrote a first draft of my Optional. Anyone want to take a look?

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 2:03 pm**

I need to write a diversity statement. Urgh. How long are these normally?

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 2:03 pm**

My 5-year-plan was just a Why Penn with one line about five years, so it probably doesn't need to be TOO hardcore.

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