The application file is your interview for one of the few seats in a law school class. This interview consists of some or all of the following separate components:

• The Covering Letter - Name, Rank and Serial Number
• Application form - make copies and practice completing a copy before completing the original.
• Third Party Statements - What Others Say
• A transcript of your grades - You will not be able to change the numbers, but you may be able to influence the interpretation of the numbers. For example, if a grade of B is the top grade in the class, ensure that the committee is aware of this.
• Your LSAT score - Most schools average scores. But, if your second score is higher than your first score, you may have grounds for requesting that the school use only the higher score.
• LSAT Writing Sample - Can be compared to the personal statement to determine if the applicant authored his/her personal statement.
• Letters of recommendation - Can be enormously helpful. Don't ask somebody to write a letter for you. Ask a potential recommender if he could and would be willing to write a positive letter of recommendation.  In this way, you can exercise some control over the content of the letter.
• Direct Applicant Input - What The Applicant Says
• Personal Statement - Written by the applicant and the most controllable part of the application file. This will either be in the form of one long question or a number of very specific short questions.
• Autobiographical Sketch - Many schools (including the Ontario Law School Application Service application) ask for a list of jobs, awards, extracurricular activities, community service, etc.

Back to Top

• Your goal in the application process is twofold:

  1) You want to be accepted to the law school of your choice.

  2) You want to be accepted in the spring! You do not want to be sitting on "pins and needles" throughout the summer waiting to hear from the law schools. For this reason it is important to ensure that your file is complete as early as possible.

   

• The Application Is The Interview!

  Many students approach law school applications in the same way as they approach constructing a resume. There is an important difference. A resume is used for the purpose of obtaining an interview. The law school application and other components of the file are the interview!

   

• The Application Process Is A Big Job!

  It will pay you to do a good job on the application process. Although grades and LSAT scores continue to be primary considerations for law admissions, the other components of your file are becoming increasingly important. Schools that require personal statements rely heavily on them. Law School applications are becoming increasingly lengthy. It will take a substantial amount of time to properly develop them.

   

• Start Early

  The completion of a law school application and personal statement should be thought of as the equivalent of writing a term paper. They will require:

  • research
  • focus
  • editing
  • rewriting

  They should be carefully checked for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and visual appeal. You should begin as soon as the law school applications become available.

   

• How Many Law Schools Should You Apply To?

  Lots! If you want to attend law school you must be accepted. The more schools you apply to, the greater your chances of acceptance.

   

• How To Determine Where To Apply

  If you are applying to U.S. law schools you should obtain the Official Guide To U.S. Law Schools from Law Services. It will give you a strong indication of where (given your grades and LSAT scores) you will be accepted. Target your applications to those schools.

  There are fifteen Canadian common law schools. If you want to attend law school in Canada there is no reason to not apply to all of them.

   

• The Necessity Of Direct Marketing

  Law schools spend a lot of money deciding who to admit to their first year classes. It is clear that they care who they admit. Law schools have their own objectives to meet when they fill their first year classes. Some schools want students with a social conscience. Others look more closely at extra-curricular activities. There is a trend in law admissions to the effect that the composition of law school classes should better reflect the composition of society as a whole. Some schools admit students in an attempt to meet this objective.

  Different employers look for different things in selecting job applicants. Therefore, you would apply to different jobs differently. For the same reason you should apply to different law schools differently.

   

• Direct Marketing - The Practical Consequences

  You must not think in terms of one application and personal statement for all the schools to which you are applying. Rather, you must develop a different personal statement for each law school. Your application should emphasize different things about you for each law school. You may want to use different kinds of letters of recommendations for different law schools. For example, at some schools and for some categories of applicants, your employment history may be relevant and a letter from an employer might be relevant. At other schools these considerations may not be relevant.

   

• How To Determine What Law Schools Look For

  There are three sources of information.

  • 1. The school's calendar.
  • 2. The school's application form.
  • 3. The LSAT Registration Book for Canadian schools and the Official Guide To U.S. Law Schools for U.S. schools.

  As you peruse these sources of information look for a statement of a generalized policy on admission. You must then emphasize the specific facts about you which are most relevant to the school's criteria for admission. Look for special programs that the school offers which you are specifically interested in.

  For example, if a school states that it will look favorably on applicants who are interested in a specific program, then make it clear that you are interested in that program! If a school indicates that it will look favorably on applicants who come from a background that would give the applicant a special perspective on law and society (assuming you qualify) make it clear that you qualify. Explain exactly how you qualify! These are two examples of obvious and necessary "direct marketing."

   

• What Are The Components Of Your Application File?

  Your file will consist of the following components:

  • 1. Completed Application - Sent by you.
  • 2. Transcript Of Grades - To be sent by your school.
  • 3. Personal Statement if applicable - Sent by you.
  • 4. Letter(s) Of Reference if applicable - To be sent by the referee.
  • 5. LSAT score - To be sent by Law Services.
  • 6. LSAT Writing Sample - Sent by Law Services with your LSAT score.

  Your job is to ensure that each of these components is as good as it can be. Your application and personal statement are under your complete control. They should be worked and reworked until you are satisfied with their contents.

   

• How To Obtain Law School Applications And Calendars

  In the early fall call or write the law schools. Ask that they send you their current calendar and application form when they become available.

   

• What To Do When You Get The Application Form

   

  • 1. Make Photocopies Of It.
    You must practice filling it out. It is important that it have visual appeal as well as content.
  • 2. Determine What Category You Will Apply In.
    Most schools have more than one category for admissions. Most students will find themselves applying in the "mainstream category." This category is for students who are just completing or who have recently completed their university prerequisites for law school. (Most students will have a Bachelors degree.) There is often a "residual category" for applicants who cannot meet the minimum academic requirements. Applicants in this category will often have been away from the academic world for number of years.
  • 3. Determine What Date The Application Must Be In And What Date The File Must Be Complete.
    The date that the application must be received may be different from the date that the file must be complete. Be careful! Sometimes schools have different dates for different categories of applicants.
  • 4. Determine How The School Uses The LSAT.
    Does it average scores or take the highest? How recent of a score is required? Does the test have to be taken no later than a certain date? (for example the December LSAT) Make certain that Law Services has been directed to send your score to the law schools. It is Law Services and not you who is responsible for sending your LSAT scores to the law schools.
  • 5. Are Letters Of Reference Required? If So, How Many And What Kind?
    It is important that you know well in advance how these letters are used. It will take you time to organize the people who will be sending you references.
  • 6. Take immediate steps to ensure that your grades are sent to the law schools.
    It is amazing how many people fail to do this on a timely basis. There is no reason to delay this vital step. If you don't receive an early acceptance you will also have to send transcripts of your final grades when they become available. It is not necessary that the school have received your application in order for the transcripts of your grades to be sent.

Back to Top

The Nuts And Bolts Of Completing The Application Form

Here are some simple steps for how to complete the application form.

1. Make copies of the blank form.

2. Acquaint yourself with the school's generalized policies on admission.

3. Complete a first draft of the application.

4. Put the first draft away for a few days.

5. Complete the second draft.

6. Give the completed second draft to others for comment.

7. Complete the third draft or as many additional drafts as you wish.

Back to Top

• Reproduced with permission from Mastering The LSAT - How To Prepare
  Effectively And Successfully.  Copyright John Richardson 1994, 1998, 2000.
  All Rights Reserved.