Long Story Short

There’s no denying that applying to law school is stressful.  As if having good grades weren’t enough, a successful law school application needs strong test scores, extracurricular involvements, recommendations from professors, and of course essays.  Applying to law school while balancing a full course-load is definitely not easy, but there are a ton of pre-law Hopkins students that do it successfully every year.  To any readers who are considering a career in law in the future, here are a few tips that were really helpful to me as I went through the admissions process:

1) Don’t go through your undergraduate years completely consumed with building your resume for law school.  Yes, it is important to have some sort of law-related experience, but having other diverse experiences is also very important.  One of the best things that you can do for yourself is to pursue your interests: learn a language, volunteer at a local elementary school, join the outdoors club, or do research.  Don’t let your overwhelming desire to get into a good law school completely dictate what extracurricular activities you choose throughout your undergraduate years.  Pursuing your interests – no matter what they happen to be – will help you.

2) Don’t save your essays until the fall semester!  The essays were a lot more work than I had anticipated.  Even though I was pretty busy over the summer working at a law firm and studying for LSATs, I was even busier during the fall semester.  In hindsight, I should have at least thought of what I was going to write about for each of the essays over the summer – that would have saved a ton of time in the fall.  If I were doing it again, I probably would have used the summer to get a good idea of what I wanted to write about for the two essays required by almost every school – the personal statement and the “How will you bring diversity to our incoming class” essay.

3)  Don’t wait until October of your senior year to take the LSAT.  A law school won’t consider your application completed until they receive your LSAT scores, and the earlier your application is completed the better.  Also, if you take the June LSAT and think you can do better, you can always register for the October LSAT.  You would be in a much tougher situation if don’t take the June LSAT and don’t do your best on the October LSAT…

Phil keeping me company while I studied for the LSAT during our family vacation

4)  On that note, don’t start studying for the LSAT at the last minute.  It’s generally recommended that law school applicants start studying for the LSAT about 2 months in advance.  I don’t think I started quite that early, but I think I would have really struggled if I had started studying less than a month in advance.  The more practice tests you can do, the more used to the material you will be, and the more likely you will do better on test day.

5)  Don’t apply late in the admissions cycle!  Many schools state on their website that it is highly recommended to apply earlier in the cycle.  Most law schools operate on a rolling admissions system, which means that there isn’t just one decision day for everyone.  The applicants who apply earlier will receive their decisions sooner.  More importantly, there are more spaces remaining in the class in September compared to February or March, so it may put you at a slight advantage to be a September or October applicant rather than a late-winter applicant.

6)  Don’t forget the deadlines for financial aid forms.  Once you’re admitted, most schools require that you send a deposit reserving a place in the fall class by April 15^th.  However, the priority deadline for financial aid is March 15^th.  Don’t mix up the deadlines, or it may affect the amount of aid that you receive.

7)  Don’t neglect law school admissions fairs.  Once a year, Hopkins holds a law school admissions fair in which admissions officers from a ton of law schools come to campus, set up tables, and are available to meet and answer questions from prospective students.  I decided kind of at the last minute to stop by this fair, and meeting some of the admissions counselors turned out to be extremely helpful.  I felt like I got a much better sense of each school’s personality and advantages much better than I had from just visiting their websites.  I would really recommend the law school fair to anyone who is even considering applying.

8)  If possible, don’t enroll at a school without visiting!  Each school holds a few admitted student days in the spring in which admitted students are invited to campus to sit in on panels with professors, meet current students, and even attend classes.  I visited one of my top choice schools last weekend and it turned out to be very worth it.  Before I visited I was afraid it would have a competitive vibe and be in the middle of nowhere, but during my visit the school seemed much less competitive than I was imagining, and I actually really liked the area.  Even though it was annoying missing a lot of class for the visit, it was definitely worth it.

Overall I thought the law school application process was actually a little easier than the college application process, and the rolling admissions system definitely made waiting for a decision much less stressful.  Good luck to any future applicants!

It’s the last week of classes!!! YAYY!  I cannot believe this semester is already over – each semester seems to go by faster than the last.  In 17 days I will be at home sitting on my couch, probably watching ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas.  I am so excited.

Before that can happen, I still have to get through 5 final exams, which, judging by this pile of notes next to me that I have to study, is not going to be fun.  Fortunately we have a few days to study during reading period, and the exams tend to be pretty spread out, which also helps.  Even though five exams sounds horrible, finals week is never as terrible as it is made out to be.  Here are a few tips to make finals week a little more bearable but still productive!

Tips for finals week survival:

the Lighting of the Quads: students gather to watch President Daniels turn on the lights lining the quads each wintertime

1.  Make time to do holiday things!

Go to the Lighting of the Quads.  Participate in the campus gingerbread house competition.  Bake holiday cookies.  Hang up lights.  Buy a fake Christmas tree for your apartment/ dorm room.  Go see the Miracle on 34^th Street.  There are so many things to do around here to celebrate the holiday season and to make finals week a little more cheerful.

2.  Give yourself a break

As you’re reviewing and preparing for each exam, try to set aside some time to spend with friends before they all go home for break.  It’s important to give yourself time to relax so that you’ll go into your exams both calm and prepared.  This year, I have three of my finals during the last week of classes and only two during finals period: German on the 12^th and genetics on the 18^th.  Since I will definitely not be studying genetics for 5 days straight after German is over, I’m looking forward to having some down time to do things like take naps and watch Christmas movies

3.  Don’t forget intersession registration!

Intersession runs for three weeks in January and gives students the opportunity to take courses (for free!) in subject areas that interest them or in which they didn’t have time to take classes during the regular semester.  There are two types of classes offered: academic exploration classes (regular classes) and personal enrichment classes (art, music, dance, etc.).  You can literally take anything from Introduction to the Appalachian Fiddle to Beer Appreciation (only students 21 and over) to Quechua (the Incan language).  Also, housing is covered by your fall tuition, and most of your friends will probably be staying at Hopkins, so consider registering for something!

4.  Plan out what you’re going to study and when.

MSE library is in the holiday spirit

Don’t just write “Study” in your planner – make a list of which chapters you’re going to study on which days.  If you don’t you’ll probably be cramming a lot of material at the last minute, which is not fun.

5.  Cook ahead of time, or buy frozen meals

I never feel like cooking anything during finals week: I always end up buying my dinner from somewhere and spend too much money during that week just because I’m too lazy to cook.  A good solution to this is to cook easy meals ahead of time or buy frozen meals from the grocery store.  Either way, you will have pre-made meals whenever you need them during finals week, and you won’t end up overspending.

6.  Clean your room

Having a clean space to study in makes finals week a little more bearable.  You’ll thank yourself later for taking 20 minutes to pick up your clothes and vacuum your room before you’re under a lot of stress.

7.  Avoid the library – try Levering Hall!

The library is always really crowded during finals week, but one of my favorite places to study that is never really that full is Levering Hall.  During the wintertime there are two fireplaces in the Levering Hall lobby, and it’s so to sit on the couch by the fire and listen to the Christmas music that is played there.  Also, if you need a caffeine fix, the Pura Vida Café is right there in the building!

8.  Start packing your things to go home!

Start setting aside your clothes and anything that you will need at home over the next few weeks, and get excited for break!!