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The purpose of this manual is to familiarize you with the law school application process. While the process is long and involved, the steps outlined here will minimize the difficulties you might encounter. Therefore, read this manual carefully and keep it handy for easy reference over the next few months.
To view a Law School Application Timeline click here: Pre Law Timeline.
The formal application process runs from September through a variety of application deadlines (typically anywhere from January 1st through March 15th). It is preferable, however, to apply early. Plan to complete all aspects of your applications and submit them by Thanksgiving if possible. Submit applications prior to deadlines because the law schools do not make exceptions to deadlines. To prepare a timely application requires organization, attention to detail and conscientiousness. For this reason, you should begin the application process during the spring, before you intend to apply. To help you through this process:
The Pre Law Guide is adapted from the University of Pennsylvania's Pre Law Guide and is co written by Jane Finkle, Pre Law Advisor, Bryn Mawr College and Michele Taylor, Pre Law Advisor, University of Pennsylvania
Although the formal application process begins in September when applications become available (on paper and on-line), you can reduce the time spent in completing your applications by following the Application Timetable. A completed application requires an application form with an essay, supportive letters of recommendation, a Dean's letter when required and an LSDAS report.
All steps, ideally, should be completed of November or shortly thereafter, allowing you to submit the applications well before the deadlines. While this will not guarantee your admission to a particular school, nor early notification of your status, applying early will get you thorough consideration. It will also increase the likelihood of your admission, provided your profile meets a school's admissions criteria.
To determine a range of schools to which to apply requires information on the type of school you want and a realistic idea about where you are likely to be accepted. Relying on general notions of prestige or reputation is not enough. If you select the "best" law school in these terms, it may turn out not to be at all well suited to your specific needs and personal goals. It is important for to use the materials available in the CDO library and online as well as meeting with the pre law advisor to guide you in determining a list of schools that are in your range and that suit your personality, interests, geographical preferences and ability to pay. Also, be sure to visit the school's websites for specifics on their programs, faculty, clinics and other areas of interest.
Things to consider when evaluating law schools:
THE SCHOOL: Does it have a national or regional reputation? Is it traditional or non-traditional, practical or theoretical, in its general approach to legal education? How flexible is the curriculum in allowing you to pursue your interests? Open to dual-degree programs? What types of clinical offerings are available? Are there enough clinical slots to accommodate student demand?
THE FACULTY: How accessible is the faculty? What is the student-faculty ratio? What are the credentials of the faculty? What are the particular strengths or interests of the faculty?
THE STUDENTS: What are the size, gender and racial compositions, and backgrounds of the students? How competitive are students with each other? Are they ranked? What is the curve? It the school small or large? Does the school offer some small, seminar style classes? What opportunities are there for socializing and working together on projects?
PLACEMENT: Where are graduates of the school finding placement - in what areas of the country? What kinds of positions and salaries are they being offered? What assistance is given for locating summer and part-time work? Who comes to recruit on campus and do they interview all students, or only a prescreened percentage?
COSTS: What is the overall cost of attending the school, including tuition, fees, books, housing, food, and transportation? Is financial aid available? Is it needs or merit based? To qualify for needs based, is parents' financial information required? What is the average debt load of graduates? Is there a loan repayment program for lawyers who go on to public interest?
SETTING: Is the environment of the school urban, suburban or rural? Do you have strong feelings about one or the other? What is the availability, cost and desirability of the housing? Are there safety issues? Is the library convenient and comfortable?
Career Development Library
The Career Development library has numerous law school reference books, along with publications on careers in law, the law school experience, the LSAT, and sample LSAT tests
Campus Visits
During the fall semester a small number of law schools send representatives to campus to discuss their programs and to answer individual questions. Calendar of such visits are available through CDO's listings on OCEAN. Visits are also announced on our pre-law email distribution list.
Developing Realistic Expectations
Law school admission is more than a numbers game, but the numbers are important. To estimate your chance of acceptance, look at the patterns of acceptance/rejection (based on GPA/LSAT score) in The Official Guide to U.S. Law Schools Prelaw Handbook in CDO library. You may also check the Boston College Online Law School Indicator, and Law Services (LSDAS) allows you to search for law schools based upon your LSAT and GPA scores.
Although these are all useful as general guides for your application process, statistics aren't everything, and that is why it is important for you to speak with a pre law advisor about your application strategy. Unfortunately, some students are rejected by all the schools to which they apply because they overestimate their qualifications and underestimate the competition. Also, the difficulty of getting into law schools varies every year, depending upon fluctuations in the numbers of applicants. The best way to avoid disappointment is to apply to a range of schools that includes a few long shots, some safety schools, and a good number of "likely to be admitted" schools. Apply only to schools that fit your criteria and that you are willing to attend. Despite the odds, if a particular school seems to have just what you are looking for, by all means apply!
Deferral
Law schools encourage you to submit your applications the fall before you want to matriculate and not before. After you have applied, however, if your circumstances change and you decide not to enter that year, some schools will consider requests for deferred admission (usually for one year) while others will require you to reapply at a later date. Do not ask for a deferral until after you have been admitted. Specific deferred admittance policies are usually outlined in application materials of each school or on the school's web site. Be prepared to write a letter explaining why you want to defer.
EXPENSES
Be prepared for the various costs associated with applying to law school. Fees for registering with LSDAS ($99.00), and taking the LSAT ($108.00) once, having your LSDAS report sent to eight schools, and fees for applying to eight schools will add up to about $900. Currently, most application fees are running from $50-100, with many more schools at the higher end of the range. Law schools affiliated with state university systems usually have lower application fees.
Additional fees should also be expected. An LSAT prep course can cost anywhere from $300 to $2000. Postage, phone calls, transcripts, recommendations fees, etc. can add up to another $100 -$300. You should seriously consider visiting some of the schools before you make your final decision on law schools and thus should consider travel costs. Added to these figures would be your acceptance deposit which law schools require when you are admitted. These currently average $200-400 and in many cases are nonrefundable. Given that these figures represent conservative estimates, you may want to budget your costs at a higher level.
WAIVERS
Students who currently receive financial aid at Bryn Mawr can attempt to have application fees waived. A copy of your financial status statement (available from the Financial Aid Office) should be sent along with a letter requesting the fee waiver when you apply to law schools. If you are an alumna(us) at the time of applying, then you will have to provide last year's tax information.
If you are absolutely unable to pay the LSAT/LSDAS registration fee ($108-LSAT and $99-LSDAS), you will need to pick up an official LSDAS/LSAT Waiver form at Career Development Office, or print it out from www.LSAC.org. After you complete the waiver form, send it with your LSDAS registration form (also on the web or in the LSAT/LSDAS Information Book). Keep in mind that it will take some time to complete the necessary information for the law school; and that LSAC/LSDAS will require more time than usual to process your LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Form when it is accompanied by a Fee Waiver Form. You may not have a decision regarding fee waivers for quite a while. The service applies very stringent criteria and so it is important to be realistic about your chances of getting a waiver.
THE LAW SCHOOL DATA ASSEMBLY SERVICE (LSDAS); LAW SCHOOL ADMISSIONS COUNCIL (LSAC): The LSDAS is the organization that administers the LSAT exam and the Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS). Become familiar with its services and procedures by reading the materials in the LSAT/LSDAS Information Book or the Law School Admission Council web site; ALL FORMS FOR ALL ASPECTS OF THE LSDAS APPLICATION ARE AVAILABLE through this organization. You can register with LSDAS/LSAC/Law Services using the forms in the Information Book, or on-line. Remember, careful completion of all forms will aid in the quick and accurate processing of your registration materials.
The LSAT is designed to measure one's ability to reason, understand and read. The LSAT consists of five 35 minute sections (one of which is experimental) and a 30 minute writing exercise. This writing sample is not scored, but a copy is forwarded along to each law school you apply. Some law school admissions officers take the writing exercise seriously, so be sure to give it careful attention. The four scored sections include three different types of questions: Reading Comprehension (1 part), Analytical Reasoning (1 part) and Logical Reasoning (2 parts). The scoring scale is 120-180.
Attempt to do as well as possible the first time that you take the LSAT. Preparation is KEY. All your scores will be reported (up to the last 5 years' test results) to the law schools, along with your average LSAT score. The LSAT is administered four times a year, in February, June, October and December. The optimal time to take the test, if you are planning to apply Early Action, is in June between your junior and senior year, or in October of your senior year. Most importantly, however, is to be well-prepared for the exam and to take it when it best fits your schedule. If you are not going to go to law school the year after graduation, then you may want to take the LSAT after the school year ends, when you have more time to prepare. Scores are usually valid for three years.
You can register for the LSAT Test on-line (www.lsac.org) or with the registration forms available in the LSAT & LSDAS Registration Information. Please respond "yes" to the question authorizing your pre-law advisor to receive a copy of your score and other coded information. This information is held in strict confidence and is the only way our office receives accurate information on Bryn Mawr applicants.
To obtain more information about the LSAT and its intended use in the law school admissions process, consult your Official Guide to U.S. Law Schools Pre-Law Handbook and the materials in the LSAT/LSDAS Information Book. Both are available in the Career Development Office Library. For LSAT test dates, see www.lsac.org.
LSDAS organizes and summarizes information from the LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Order Form, your LSAT score and the information from your undergraduate transcripts, into LSDAS Reports that will be used by the law schools in their consideration of your application. Nearly all law schools require applicants to subscribe to the LSDAS. Once registered with LSDAS, you are responsible for seeing that they receive transcripts of all your undergraduate and graduate courses completed in the United States, Canada, and specific foreign schools. Don't forget to have college courses taken in high school also sent if you got credit for them. Transcripts from foreign institutions not listed in the Law School Admission Information Book are not interpreted by LSDAS and should be sent directly to the law schools. (Those schools that do not use the standard A through F grading system of the U.S.) LSDAS does not summarize graduate and professional school transcripts (unless the work contributed to your undergraduate degree), but will send copies of your graduate transcript to law schools.
A complete LSDAS Report includes your LSAT score(s), a summary of your undergraduate transcript(s), and information from your LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Form with copies of all your undergraduate/graduate transcripts and the LSAT writing sample attached to it. In addition, you may send your letters of recommendation to law services so that they may distribute these to the law schools with their reports.
Once registered with LSDAS, you are responsible for seeing that they receive transcripts of all your undergraduate and graduate course work completed in the United States, Canada, and specific foreign schools. Transcripts from foreign institutions not listed in the Law School Admission Information Book are not interpreted by LSDAS and should be sent directly to the law schools. LSDAS does not summarize graduate and professional school transcripts (unless the work contributed to your undergraduate degree), but does send copies of them to law schools
FORMS
Use the Transcript Request Form in your Law School Admission Information Book or from the LSAC to request the registrar's office to forward official transcripts to LSDAS. If you are unable to obtain a transcript from an undergraduate institution because of an outstanding financial obligation, you must complete the Academic Record Form (Form I-7) and return it with the LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Order Form. Failure to do so or neglecting to mention an undergraduate institution on your LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Order Form will result in a note appearing on your LSDAS Reports to this effect. You do not want this to happen!
Beginning on the date LSDAS processes your signed and completed LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Order Form, your subscription will be valid for 5 years. Be sure, if you take additional courses during that period of time, or acquire another degree, that you have those transcripts also sent to LSDAS.
You do not have to subscribe to LSDAS when you take the LSAT. It is best to subscribe to LSDAS when you are ready to apply to law school. If you did not subscribe to the LSDAS on your original LSAT/LSDAS Subscription Order Form and only registered to take the LSAT, you can register for LSDAS at a later date by completing the Supplemental LSDAS Subscription Form in the Information book or on the LSAC web site.
Use the additional LSDAS Law School Report Order Form in your LSAT/LSDAS Information Book to order LSDAS Law School Reports in addition to those ordered on your original LSDAS subscription. There will be a LSDAS File Access charge as well as a charge for each additional report requested.
TRANSCRIPTS/ACADEMIC CONSIDERATIONS
Law schools look closely at your academic record, not just at your cumulative GPA, giving special attention to the intensity and depth of your undergraduate curriculum. They are particularly interested in your ability to perform well at an academically rigorous level. Law schools will expect to see some upper-level coursework. Keep in mind that the "balance" of your academic program is also important.
In addition to reviewing your course selection, law schools are also interested in any trends in your grades. They usually make some allowance for a "disastrous freshman year," a "sophomore slump," or an "off semester" when substantial improvement in subsequent semesters occurs. In many cases, an upward trend is evaluated more favorably than strong freshman and sophomore years followed by a mediocre junior year. Likewise, if your grades improve after a change of major or leave of absence, this will also have some bearing on the way law schools interpret your GPA. If you did have a problem semester, it can be helpful to include an addendum to your application to law schools explaining the nature of the difficulty. Please consult a pre law advisor on this if you plan to write an addendum.
You are responsible for sending all transcripts through the summer before you apply to law schools to LSDAS. It is helpful also if you would bring an unofficial transcript in when you meet with a pre law advisor. There is a $3.00 fee to have your official transcript sent to LSDAS. If you attended other undergraduate institutions for credit towards graduation, follow their procedures for acquiring a transcript, then have it sent to LSDAS using the Transcript Request Form.
FALL SEMESTER GRADES
In January, if your fall semester senior grades are consistent with past semesters or reflect an upward trend, you may want to send an unofficial transcript from the Registrar's Office directly to the individual law schools and send an official transcript to LSDAS. Discuss this with your pre-law advisor. In some cases, your fall grades will make a difference, and some schools are now requesting that you send your fall transcripts. If you are waitlisted in the spring and you performed well in the fall, you may want to have your transcript sent to the law school.
It is optional to include an Expanded Resume with your applications. The Expanded Resume is a summary of the important events, activities and experiences in your life, focused predominantly on your college years. Its format is similar to a resume, but includes a more descriptive listing of each item. For instance, when listing a work or extracurricular experience, you should describe WHY you got involved in it, WHAT you actually did (what specific duties you performed) and WHAT you derived from the experience. In this way, information about your motivations and personal development becomes clear.
When you develop your expanded resume, avoid repeating information already presented in your application. Examples include your home address, name, social security number, and specific courses, since law schools will have your transcript. If you decide to discuss in detail two or three extra-curricular experiences as your personal statement/essay, then list these activities only briefly on the resume. If you decide to discuss a work experience in your personal statement/essay, you need only to briefly write it on the resume. Use this expanded resume to discuss or explain accomplishments such as a thesis topic, a special academic honor, or a study-abroad program. It is helpful to give copies of your Expanded Resume to your recommenders so they can write more comprehensive letters supporting your applications.
You may also bring your resume to an appointment with your pre law advisor. She can critique the Expanded Resume as a supplement to your law school application. Please allow 3 working days for a written critique dropping it off and picking it up at the CDO desk. Remember to include this optional Expanded Resume in your application only if it provides additional information not revealed elsewhere in the application or in your personal statement/essay. If you have been out of school for some time, then a regular, business-oriented resume is an acceptable alternative.
Be sure to open a credentials file at CDO in the spring of your junior year, or during the fall of your senior year at the latest. Although law schools requiring letters of recommendation include their own recommendation forms in their application materials, it is not necessary to use them. All law schools accept recommendations on Credential forms in the Career Development Office. Likewise, they will accept letters sent from the LSDAS Recommendation Service (see below), although Harvard Law prefers letters to be sent from the Career Development Office. In some cases, law schools will want the top section of their forms completed by the applicant and returned to them with the letters from Career Development; if this is the case, include this top section when you submit your request to send your letters to those schools. Stop by the main desk at Career Development to open your credentials file and to pick up the requisite recommendation forms.
These forms contain a section asking you to indicate whether you wish to waive your right of access to the recommendation. Since most law schools give more credibility to confidential recommendations it is suggested that you waive your rights.
Depending on the law school, you may be required to send one, two, or three letters of recommendation. The norm for seniors or recent grads is to send three letters of recommendation with your law school applications: two academic recommendations (be sure one of these is from a faculty in your major) and one related to an extra-curricular or work-related activity. Beyond three, consider whether or not each additional letter contributes significantly to a law school's ability to evaluate your application.
In requesting a letter of recommendation, ideally your goal should be to contact someone who knows you and thinks well of your work. This person should be both willing and able to take the time to write a thoughtful and thorough evaluation. If the recommender is well-known in his or her field, this can be an added plus, but only if the other factors are there. Consider the purposes for which you want the recommendations. Try to include letters from people who have seen you in relevant activities and could compare your work with that of other students. For example, law schools are interested in your writing, communication, research, and analytical skills and how they compare with those of past and present Bryn Mawr applicants.
You should initially contact in person the individual you would like to write your recommendation, if at all possible, and if not possible, by telephone. Only if no other way is feasible you can ask someone by email to write you a letter. You want to be able to gauge your potential recommender's response to your request. When asking for letters of recommendation, it cannot be emphasized enough how important it is to get a sense from the person whether s/he is really willing to write for you. Always ask politely. Phrase your request in such a way that if the potential recommender does not feel comfortable writing a letter for you, he or she can gracefully decline. A tactful approach might be, "Do you feel you know me well enough to write a letter of recommendation supporting my applications to law school?"
It helps also if you discuss your plans with your recommender. Letters are most effective when the writer can describe you as being well-suited to a particular goal. Even if you are not entirely sure what you will do, let him know the purposes for which you are most likely to use your letters of recommendation. If you are considering a variety of goals (law school/employment), you may want to ask him to write two letters targeted for two different kinds of goals, each with its own date to distinguish it. Remember that career goals are a work in progress and that you don't have to have every last part of your life mapped out before you choose a course of action. Inform your recommender about your background and remind her of the work you have done. Give her a copy of your expanded resume, a description of your courses with grades, and copies of your papers and exams. If she is a former employer, remind her of the specific contributions you made and any special projects you worked on. You should also provide her with a copy of your resume, transcript, work done for class and a copy of your personal statement. After the initial request has been made, follow up with an email or telephone contact a few days later, thanking your recommender for writing you a letter .
Make it easy for recommender to return his or her your letter. If you are having the letter sent to Career Development, provide him or her with a stamped envelope addressed to: Career Development Office, Bryn Mawr College, 101 North Merion Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA . Always include the CDO credential form to be attached to his letter, or, if you are having the letter sent directly to LSDAS, include an LSDAS/LSAC recommendation form for his/her letter (and a stamped enveloped addressed to Law Services.) These forms are available on line at www.lsac.org or in the LSDAS/LSAT Information Booklet. It will be your responsibility to keep track of the status of your letters.
IF YOU WANT YOUR LETTERS SENT TO LSDAS FROM CREDENTIALS, YOU MUST FILL OUT AN LSDAS FORM FOR EACH LETTER THAT IS TO BE FORWARDED TO LSDAS AND INCLUDE THESE WITH YOUR REQUEST.
Many law schools require a statement (Dean's Letter/College Questionnaire) from each of your undergraduate institutions where you are/were a student in good standing. Read the law school admissions materials carefully to determine if this is necessary. At Bryn Mawr, your Dean is responsible for writing the Dean's Letter/Questionnaire. Remember to request your Dean's Letter early in the fall to avoid lengthy delays in processing your letter and most important..... you want to give your Dean ample time to write a strong letter on your behalf.
The law school application essay/personal statement provides the law schools with the opportunity to evaluate your writing and your ability to communicate an idea or theme in a clear and concise manner. It is most important that your ideas be well organized and focused. Your theme choice is not typically limited to "Why do you want to attend law school?" but should be a topic that reflects personal values, decision making processes, significant contributions, accomplishments and/or special experiences that are not fully revealed elsewhere in your law school application.
Think of the personal statement as your opportunity to share your strengths in a positive, non-defensive way. This should not be viewed as an opportunity to explain, apologize for, or defend a negative issue or experience, such as a poor academic record or LSAT score. In choosing a topic take time to first analyze your personal history, evaluate experiences most relished, and determine the personal significance of learning or events in your life.
Most importantly discuss the "hows" and "whys" of your experiences. Why did you make a particular decision? How did you benefit from the choice you made? What did you value or gain from your experience? Discuss the personal significance of an event.
Keep in mind that the topic is your choice. Law schools will be interested in analyzing the content quality of your essay as well as, learning more about you. In fact, since law schools do not usually provide interviews, the essay serves as an opportunity for admissions officers to "get to know you." Think: What can I write in a couple of pages that would serve as an introduction to who I am?
Try to personalize your statement by avoiding the use of passive expressions. Instead use active language. Perfecting your grammar and spelling is a given. Vary your sentence structure and write engagingly. Many law schools request that the length be 250 or 350 to 600 words. As long as the essay strongly holds the reader's attention, a slight deviation from the suggested length will not be a problem. Two typed pages (space and a half) is acceptable by most law schools. Generally, applicants can attach the same essay to each application, perhaps varying the last couple of paragraphs to address the particular issues a particular school would like you to cover.
Finally, realize that you will probably be making several drafts with many revisions and refinements. The pre-law advisor will be happy to assist you in the critique of typed drafts. Please allow 3-5 days for a thorough critique. Please drop off and pick-up essays at the CDO desk, or if you are an alumna , email essays to advisor as attachments as long as you provide a fax number or address to which printed and critiqued copies can be sent.
You and you alone, are responsible for getting all application materials in on time. Make copies of everything and keep track of dates. Allow sufficient time when requesting supportive materials for your applications. All offices experience delays, especially during peak request periods.
Credentials(letters of recommendation) generally takes 48 hours to process. Assume nothing and check everything. Keep copies of all your application materials, including checks. Be sure that schools have received all your materials and that each file is complete. You may want to send all applications to law schools by certified or return receipt mail. You may also want to enclose your own return postcard verifying your file is complete with law schools. CALL THE LAW SCHOOLS IF YOU DO NOT GET VERIFICATION OF THE RECEIPT OF YOUR APPLICATION MATERIALS.
If you do not receive notification from LSDAS within 6 weeks of forwarding your transcript, write or call LSDAS, using the information provided in your LSAT/LSDAS Information Book. If there is an error or unreasonable delays through no fault of your own in materials being received, contact the law school, Law Services (www.lsac.org), or your pre-law advisor.
Apply early for financial aid. Although most law schools have an April 15th deadline, it is recommended that you apply well before this deadline (by the end of February, if possible). Complete your FAFSA form, which is available at Financial Aid at the end of December (or online at www.fafsa.ed.gov), and request that it be sent to the law schools where you have applied for financial aid. Some law schools require other forms, so be sure you complete all appropriate financial aid forms for each school. Also research the scholarships offered by individual law schools..
If you find yourself in such a category, definitely write a letter to the law school confirming your interest in their school. Be sure to mention any academic endeavors or extracurricular achievements that have occurred since the time you applied. Do not hesitate to send further information that will aid them in evaluating your application (fall semester grades and if necessary spring grades, an additional letter of recommendation ) and to inquire as to whether a personal interview can be arranged. Do not push your luck by contacting the law schools too frequently about your status, but do let them know of your continued interest. A good rule of thumb is to remain confident about your candidacy, keeping your applicant file "current" with pertinent information, not with a lot of "extras."
If you are waitlisted, you may call and ask where you stand on the waitlist and admissions may or may not tell you. Be prepared to wait a long time to hear whether or not you get off the waitlist. Each year the number of people getting off the waitlist varies and sometimes you don't find out if you are in a school until late in the summer. That means that you will have already put down deposits at another school, along with money for an apartment. At some point you have to decide how much you are willing to sacrifice financially, and disrupt your living situation in order to go to your first choice school.
After hearing from all your law schools, typically by April 1-15, many schools require that you submit a tuition deposit to hold a place in the class. In some cases the deposit is refundable; in some, it is partially refundable; and in others, it is non-refundable. Unfortunately, not all law schools notify you of their decisions by April 15, which necessitates that you make decisions about each offer without knowing where you stand with all the other schools. Because of this, try to decide from your admits and put down only one deposit. You also may want to contact this law school and request an extension on the deposit deadline date. Prior to making a final decision to attend or not attend your top choices, plan to visit the schools if it is at all possible. Once you have decided which law school to attend, be sure to notify the other schools (if you have not already done so) that you will NOT attend.
Once you begin to receive notification of your admission status to law schools, feel free to discuss your choices with your pre-law advisor. The process described above is lengthy and demanding. If you work closely with your mentor and pre law advisor, and if you are organized, realistic and pro-active, you should be able to achieve your goals.
* Available in BMC CDO Library
In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the number of attorneys leaving the practice of law. While high salaries, power and prestige are very attractive, the long hours, stress and repetition can outweigh the benefits. Students are often lured to law school by what they perceive as a secure career path. Certainly a legal education provides a good foundation for any work setting, but there may be other ways to achieve your interests and career goals. Also, law school is expensive and requires total commitment to your schoolwork so make sure the investment of time and money is worth it to you, now. Before you begin the process of applying to law school, evaluate your skills, abilities, interests and personal characteristics.
These are many of the skills and abilities lawyers see as important in the practice of law and may give you a place to start in evaluating whether law is a good fit for you. Once you feel confident that law is your career choice, research the areas of law that interest you. Besides traditional law firm work, there are options in environmental law, national, state, and local governments, labor law, patent law, corporate law, public interest and self employment and many other possibilities. The CDO library contains books and journals about different areas in law. Talk to lawyers who are practicing law in your area of interest. (CDO has an alumni network, which includes a listing of attorneys who are happy to talk with students about what they do.) Find out what a typical day is like, their education an d work background, what they like and don't like about their job and what skills and abilities they think are important in the practice of law. Getting answers to these questions might give you a better perspective on whether this type of law is a good fit for you.
In the last 10 years, the practice of law has changed dramatically. Learn about both current and future trends by reading newspapers, magazines and journals (ie. New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Student Lawyer, US News and World Report). This will also help to determine whether you have a realistic view of the law field.
The study and practice of law can be stimulating, challenging, and provide some exciting opportunities--just be sure it's right for you.