Law School Application Guide (382K PDF File)
Personal Statement Handout (128K PDF File)
Law School Application FAQs (307K PDF File)
Applying to Law School Online Workshop
Begin your law school preparations as early as possible during your undergraduate career. The American Bar Association Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar has provided a statement on Pre-Law Preparation at www.abanet.org/legaled/prelaw/prep.html. Explore and examine both the profession and the law school experience. Carefully examine your interests, abilities and goals. Question your preconception about “the Law,” and weigh your aspirations against the realities of job opportunities and law school admissions. If these considerations do not yet confirm your commitment to a legal career, work a year or two before applying to law schools.
In recent years, the Dartmouth applicant pool has contained more recent graduates than graduating seniors and there is no disadvantage to delaying applications. Many people apply with the expectation of deferring admission. While one-year deferments are sometimes granted after acceptance, they are not automatic nor can they usually be extended beyond one year (policies vary from school to school).
Many seniors consider the option of working a year or two before applying to law schools. They question what kind of employment will enhance their chances of admission to law school. Students are often concerned that they may lack the motivation to return to school after they have begun a working career. Our surveys indicate that Dartmouth graduates do, in fact, return to school. Moreover, the overwhelming advice of alumni/ae currently enrolled in law schools is to take time to work before attending.
Law school admissions officers encourage work experience. The goals of older applicants are generally more focused and, therefore, they are better prepared applicants. Dartmouth graduates have worked in any number of fields before applying, ranging from business and education to the media and the social services. For example, both teachers and paralegals apply to law school. Paralegal work can give an undecided senior some experience in the field and help reinforce a career decision, but it is far from being an automatic, even desirable, route to admissions.
If you apply as a senior and are not accepted, you can always reapply without prejudice. Plan to take at least two years to gain experience and knowledge in a job you enjoy. Develop some skills that will make your next application significantly different from your earlier ones. In general, unless you are very certain about a career in law and have a strong record going into senior year, our advice is to wait. Don't rush. A challenging job can be a good foundation for your postgraduate education. Feel free to discuss your questions or concerns with the Pre-Law Advisor in Career Services. We wish you every success.
"Misconduct or irregularity in the admission process is a serious offense with serious consequences. Intent is not an element of a finding of misconduct or irregularity. Misconduct or irregularity is defined as the submission, as part of the law school admission process, of any information that is false, inconsistent, or misleading conclusion, or the violation of any regulation governing the law school admission process, including any violation of LSAT test center regulations." -- Law School Admission Council
Applicants should be prepared to answer candidly and honestly questions about their background. Examples follow:
From Cornell Law School
Have you ever been the subject of disciplinary proceedings, or been warned, placed on probation, or suspended for academic, nonacademic, or any other reasons by any of the colleges, universities, graduate schools, or professional schools you have attended, or are any such proceedings pending?
-and-
Have you ever been charged with or convicted of a crime, including expunged offenses, other than a minor traffic violation, or are charges pending?
From Boston College Law School
Have you ever been placed on academic warning, academic probation or conduct probation, or been dismissed or subjected to any disciplinary action from any college, graduate or professional school, law school or professional licensing agency? Are you currently charged with (note: we are not inquiring about arrests) any violation of law other than minor traffic violations with a fine of less than $100.00 per violation?
Applicants who answer "yes" to any such question should meet with a pre-law advisor and include an addendum with their applications. This document should describe and take full responsibility for the incident. Failure to disclose is considered misconduct and can result in expulsion from law school, refusal of an application to take the bar exam, or even subsequent disbarment.
Most law schools begin to announce decisions in February. By the beginning of April, you should know your status at most schools. If you are notified that your decision will be placed on "hold" or that you'll be placed on a "wait list", acknowledge the notification and send any relevant current information, such as an additional letter of recommendation and/or a brief account of your present academic work, especially if you are writing a thesis. "Hold" status implies that your application has been reviewed, and that the school has not made a decision. This may be because a school wants to see a larger percentage of the applicant pool before making a decision. "Wait list" status implies that the law school believes that you are qualified to be a member of the entering class, but that there were too many other candidates who were even more qualified. Many times students are admitted off the wait list through late in the spring and summer. If you find yourself on hold or on a wait list at a school, please discuss your options with a pre-law advisor.
Most financial aid is administered through individual law schools, and most awards are based on financial need. Although most financial aid packets have a large loan component, some merit scholarships are offered. Read individual law school catalogs for procedures for applying for specific scholarships and for financial aid policies. Contact the financial aid officer at the law school if you need further information. Many schools have loan repayment assistance programs (LRAP) for graduates who choose to enter low paying or public-interest law firms.
If you wish to be considered for federal aid, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, available from the law school's financial aid office and online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/. Individual institutions may require additional forms to be completed, please be sure to read the institution's financial aid literature carefully. If you are currently receiving federal financial aid, you should receive a FAFSA renewal form in November or December.
Information about fee waivers for LSAT and LSDAS is contained in the LSAT and LSDAS Registration/Information Book and online at www.lsac.org. If you require a fee waiver for an application fee contact the admissions office at a law school of your choice to determine if the school participates in the fee waiver program and how it wants you to submit your application. Get an early start during spring or summer, well before you plan to apply. Procedures for requesting application fee waivers are described in the individual law school catalogs.
| The University of Akron School of Law | University of Miami School of Law |
| The University of Alabama School of Law | The University of Michigan Law School |
| Albany Law School of Union University | Michigan State Univ College of Law |
| American Univ- Washington Coll of Law | University of Minnesota Law School |
| The University of Arizona | Univ of Missouri School of Law |
| Arizona State University | University of Montana School of Law |
| Atlanta's John Marshall Law School | New England Law- Boston |
| University of Baltimore School of Law | New York Law School |
| Baylor University School of Law | New York University School of Law |
| Boston College Law School | University of North Carolina |
| Boston University School of Law | North Carolina Central Univ |
| Brooklyn Law School | Northeastern University School of Law |
| University of California, Berkeley | Northern Kentucky University |
| University of California-Davis | Northwestern University School of Law |
| Univ of Calif, Hastings Coll. of The Law | Notre Dame Law School |
| University of California At Los Angeles | Nova Southeastern University |
| California Western Sch of Law | The Ohio State University |
| Benjamin N Cardozo School of Law | University of Oklahoma College of Law |
| Case Western Reserve Univ School of Law | University of Oregon School of Law |
| The Catholic University of America | Pace University School of Law |
| Chapman University School of Law | University of The Pacific |
| Charleston School of Law | Penn State Univ- Dickinson School of Law |
| Charlotte School of Law | University of Pennsylvania Law School |
| The University of Chicago Law School | Pepperdine University School of Law |
| Chicago-Kent College of Law | University of Pittsburgh School of Law |
| University of Cincinnati College of Law | University of Puerto Rico School of Law |
| City Univ of New York School of Law | Quinnipiac University School of Law |
| Cleveland St U-Cleveland Marshall | University of Richmond School of Law |
| University of Colorado Law School | Roger Williams University |
| Columbia University School of Law | Rutgers-The State Univ of New Jersey |
| University of Connecticut School of Law | Rutgers University School of Law-Newark |
| Cornell Law School | St Johns Univ School of Law |
| Creighton University School of Law | Saint Louis University School of Law |
| University of Dayton School of Law | University of St. Thomas - Minneapolis |
| Univ of Denver Sturm College of Law | University of San Diego-- School of Law |
| Depaul University College of Law | University of San Francisco |
| University of The District of Columbia | Santa Clara University School of Law |
| Drexel Univ- Earle Mack School of Law | Seattle University School of Law |
| Duke University School of Law | Seton Hall University School of Law |
| Emory University School of Law | SMU Dedman School of Law |
| Florida Coastal School of Law | South Texas College of Law |
| University of Florida | Univ of Southern Calif Law School |
| The Florida State Univ College of Law | Southwestern Law School |
| Fordham University School of Law | Stanford University Law School |
| Franklin Pierce Law Center | Suffolk University Law School |
| George Mason Univ Sch of Law | Temple University |
| George Washington University Law School | The University of Texas School of Law |
| Georgetown University Law Center | Texas Southern University |
| Georgia State University Coll of Law | Texas Tech University School of Law |
| Gonzaga University School of Law | Texas Wesleyan University School of Law |
| Harvard Law School | The Thomas M Cooley Law School |
| University of Hawai'i At Manoa | Tulane University Law School |
| Hofstra University School of Law | The University of Tulsa College of Law |
| University of Houston Law Center | University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law |
| Howard University School of Law | Valparaiso University School of Law |
| University of Illinois College of Law | Vanderbilt University Law School |
| Indiana Univ School of Law-Bloomington | Vermont Law School |
| Indiana Univ School of Law-Indianapolis | Villanova University School of Law |
| Inter American Univ School of Law | University of Virginia School of Law |
| The University of Iowa College of Law | Wake Forest University School of Law |
| The John Marshall Law School | University of Washington School of Law |
| Lewis And Clark Law School | Washington And Lee University |
| Loyola Law School- Loyola Marymount U | Washington Univ School of Law |
| Loyola University Chicago School of Law | Wayne State University Law School |
| Loyola Univ New Orleans College of Law | West Virginia University College of Law |
| University of Maine School of Law | Willamette University College of Law |
| Marquette University Law School | William And Mary Law School |
| University of Maryland School of Law | University of Wisconsin Law School |
| Mercer University | Yale Law School |
