Wrote Why X for all schools I was admitted to. Heavily lent on my soft factors (URM, legal experience, great LORs from folks who knew me well). Tried to limit how much I check r/lawschooladmissions.
Applicant wisdom
Advice applicants left on their LSD.Law profiles, searchable by topic, school, and stats.
297 entries
Admitted to University of ChicagoKJD but graduated from undergrad with BA & MA in 4 years. Withdrew from Stanford, Columbia, Penn, and Duke before receiving official scholarship offers. Did not negotiate for more aid from schools.
Get off LSD and never come back.
Craft a compelling narrative that connects your identity and experiences with what you want to accomplish through the law.
Apply earlier than I did lol - applying early doesn’t guarantee you will get a decision faster, but applying late nearly guarantees that you’ll be scrambling as deposit deadlines approach.
After significant self-reflection, I decided to withdraw all applications this cycle. I will be reapplying for the Class of 2027 after pursuing some work and life experience. Good luck!
apply early!
It’s never too late to practice law if it’s something you want to do! Take the time to figure out if this career is one you want to follow, and then do so with all of your might!
what, like it’s hard? (it is, in fact, hard)
The LSAT is a learnable skill!
Find ways to distract yourself while you wait. I wish I did a better job managing my stress throughout this process. It’ll all work out as it’s meant to! You’re doing great!
why not apply and see what happens I wrote georgetown top 10, penn on collaboration, stanford music and who you would talk to through history, UVA on resiliency, why duke
Wrote Optional essays wherever possible. STEM major from a mediocre state school, but I spent a ton of time on perfecting the written materials in my application.
apply early, broadly, and write all the optional essays! T10 ug, international fellowship after graduating, interest in specific area of law that came up in my essays
Wrote Why X essays for Duke, UVA, Michigan, Penn (core values), and Cornell. Submitted diversity/lived experience statements to all schools that had the option.
T3.5 softs (2 yrs WE in marketing and education). Applied to UChicago and UVA with a 171 in November. Applied to the remaining T8 schools with a 174 in February.
Chose HBS over YLS. Additionally applied to MBA programs A: Harvard, Wharton, MIT, Columbia, YaleSOM WL/R: StanfordGSB, UChicago, Northwestern, NYU, Cornell
Do not stress for the first two to three months after you submit applications. You cannot tell how things are going to go; don’t bother thinking about them.
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