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PreLaw: Application Process

Timeline

April–May
Register to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). The Law School Admission Council now offers the option of online registration. Set up your LSDAS account.Begin to prepare for the LSAT. Take sample LSATs.
June
Take the LSAT at a time and place convenient for you. Taking the LSAT in June instead of September is highly recommended.
Summer
Request that the University Registrar, Carruthers Hall, send an official copy of your transcript to LSDAS. Use the transcript matching forms to request that the University Registrar send your official transcript to LSDAS. Read the section on Law School Data Assembly Service to learn more about this service. Begin to prepare the outline of a personal statement or essay. You can then adapt it to the particular law school application. After receiving your LSAT scores (about four weeks following the test), start thinking about the range of schools to which you will apply.
August
Visit law schools. Conduct initial conversations with potential recommenders.
Fall Semester
Complete and mail applications to each law school. Dean's certification forms are required by some law schools and are completed by the Dean of Students Office in Peabody Hall. HOLIDAY SCHEDULE FOR DEAN'S FORMS. You should allow two-three weeks for completion during our busiest time (October-November.)
September
Attend the prelaw meeting. Establish a file with Law Services. Contact recommenders and give them the LSDAS recommendation cover sheet. Ask them to send the recommendation and cover sheet directly to LSDAS. Attend the University Career Services Professional/Graduate School Forum and meet with law school admissions representatives. Obtain applications from each law school to which you will apply, either by contacting them directly, downloading them from their website, or visiting their table at the UCS Graduate Forum.
Retake the LSAT if necessary.
November–December
After an appropriate length of time, inquire at schools to ensure that all materials have been received. Double check with the law schools, the Interfolio file and/or your recommenders to ensure that every detail is in order and ready for admissions committee review. Schedule interviews with all schools that offer this opportunity. Study practice questions and conduct mock-interviews with UCS counselors or friends.
Spring Semester
Inform Preprofessional Advising about your acceptances and where you will matriculate.

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Tips

Because it is possible for a very well-qualified applicant to be rejected as a result of poor planning, carelessness, or lack of follow through, you will want to make sure you have done everything you possibly can do to ensure your credibility. Below are some tips you will want to pursue.

  • Challenge yourself academically throughout your undergraduate years by taking a variety of rigorous courses.
  • Begin the application process early (spring or summer of the year before you plan to enter law school).
  • Be realistic as you assess your qualifications for law school admission. Take a long hard look at yourself, your qualifications, your motives, your ambitions, your goals.
  • Be thorough when completing paperwork. Do not rush the process. Check and double-check all information to ensure accuracy and neatness. To eliminate guesswork on the part of admissions staff and reduce the chance for error, include your social security number on all forms, correspondence, etc. and complete every area of information that applies. Photocopy each application before you mail them to law schools. Type applications.
  • Keep options open. Be flexible with your options. Periodically re-evaluate yourself and your chances of admission to law schools. Prepare alternate plans in the event you are not accepted to law school.
  • Do not procrastinate! Putting things off until the last minute will create a more hectic and stressful time for you and may cause you to make mistakes on your applications. Follow the sample of steps below for timely application to law schools.
  • Read the LSAT Information Book carefully and spend ample time preparing yourself for the test. Review the test format and practice speed and self- pacing by taking one or more sample tests. Old LSAT exams are available for purchase from Law Services. The best LSAT review material is the official LSAT PrepKit, a Law Services publication.

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LSDAS

Almost all ABA-approved law schools and several non-ABA-approved schools require that their applicants register for the Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS). The LSDAS prepares and provides a report for each law school to which you apply. The report contains information that is important in the law school admission process. Your report will include:

  • An undergraduate academic summary
  • Copies of all undergraduate, graduate, and law school transcripts
  • LSAT scores and writing sample copies
  • Copies of Letters of Recommendation if processed by LSAC

Your LSDAS period will extend for five years from your registration date. If you register for a Law School Admission Test (LSAT) at any time during your LSDAS period, the LSDAS period will be extended five years from your latest LSAT registration.

Subscribe to LSDAS the summer in the year before you plan to start law school. Registration is available online (http://www.lsac.org) or by mail. For students who plan to enter law school directly after undergraduate school, this would be the summer between third and fourth year. If you plan to wait for one or more years to apply to law school, you should not subscribe to the LSDAS service until you actually begin to apply to law schools. The LSDAS subscription is good for three years. Be sure to allow enough time to assess your chances of admission and to retake the test if you must.

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LSAT

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is a half-day standardized test required for admission to all law schools that are members of the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). It provides a standard measure of acquired reading and verbal reasoning skills that law schools can use as one of several factors in assessing applicants. The test is administered four times a year at hundreds of locations around the world.

If you plan to attend law school immediately after you graduate, it is a good idea to take the LSAT in the summer between your third and fourth years (June). By taking the June test you will have your LSAT scores back in time to use with your current GPA to help you decide on schools to which you will apply. Another advantage of the summer test date is that it allows for an October retake if needed.

You can register for the LSAT by phone, mail, or online. For more information about this exam or for online registration, visit http://www.lsat.com/LSAC.asp?url=lsac/about-the-lsat.asp

Test Prep Resources

Some students choose to take a formal LSAT prep course. The decision to take a prep course is entirely up to you, not all prelaw students take a course; some choose to study on their own by using prep books or other resources.

  • Kaplan Test Preparers—Details on Kaplan services, plus info on education programs, admissions, financial aid, and more.
  • The Princeton Review—Data and statistics on U.S. law programs, plus info on admissions, financial aid, and grad school survival.

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Choosing Schools

If you are traveling during the summer or during the academic year, visit law schools that you are near. Try to visit while schools are in session so you can attend a class or two and talk with students to get an idea about whether you would be happy at that particular law school. Many law schools have a student-run service offering tours and discussions with other law students. When you get down to making a final decision, "hunch" considerations about a law school environment or atmosphere can be an important factor.

Law School Search

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Dean's Forms

Deans Forms will be processed by the Dean of Students Office in Peabody Hall as of December 12, 2008. Forms should be sent to this address: U.S. Mail only.

Peabody Hall / Second Floor
P.O. Box 400708
Charlottesville, VA
22904-4708
Tel: 434.924.7133
Fax: 434.924.3889

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