Most law schools are on a traditional academic year, and most law schools admit classes for September start only. The following timeline assumes that a student is on a traditional four-year undergraduate schedule and anticipates beginning law school in September following a May graduation. A student who anticipates taking time off before applying to law school will adjust the dates accordingly, as will a student who intends to apply to a program on a non-traditional calendar.

 

Freshman Year

Fall Semester

• Take interesting classes, get good grades, start building relationships with your professors.

Spring Semester

• Continue to take interesting classes, get good grades, and build relationships with professors.
• Give a little more thought to planning out your coursework for the next three years.
• Take into account all of the information given in the previous section of this manual regarding your academic program.

 

 

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Sophomore Year

Fall Semester

• Continue doing all the things you were doing freshman year.
• If you have some emotional and intellectual stamina, you might want to consider taking a couple of practice LSAT's.
  • Only do this if you can do it without getting invested in your score, because it is way too premature for that.
  • You may be able to use the practice test as a diagnostic of strengths and weaknesses and that will allow you to plan your academic program more intelligently.
  • If you find that you are weaker in reading comp, for example, you'll take an upper division English elective or you'll focus on courses that have heavy loads of reading and critical analysis.
  • If you find that you're weaker in logical reasoning, for example, you might take a math course or a philosophy course or a course that requires some case analysis.
  • This will allow you to use your coursework to prepare in some concrete ways for both the LSAT and for law school.

Spring Semester

• Choose coursework based upon your ongoing assessment of your strengths and weaknesses (while, of course, meeting the university's major, minor, general education, and skills requirements).
• Continue doing what you were doing in previous semesters.
• If possible, take some professors a second time.
• Research getting a law-related internship or job for the summer. (That way you'll have some idea of whether or not you even like the profession and its work.)

 

 

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Junior Year

Fall Semester

• Sometime during the late fall or early winter of your junior year, when you have a little bit of free time, you should take one or two LSAT practice exams.
• Take them timed under simulated test conditions and score them. See how you do. Assess where your score falls and where you want it to be.

Spring Semester

• Invest a little bit of money in some commercial test prep materials and study some on your own.
  • Do not sacrifice your coursework to test prep.
  • Take a couple more timed and scored practice exams and see how you do.
• Assess yourself:
  • How is the studying going?
  • Is your score increasing?
  • Are you generally self-motivated or do you need the structure and pressure of a course to study effectively?
• If you get a high score on your first practice tests, or if you think your studying is effective, or if you think of yourself as motivated and diligent and have confidence in your abilities to study on your own, you probably do not need a commercial test prep course and you will prepare for the LSAT on your own. You will lay out a study schedule for yourself which makes sense with your coursework and other obligations, targeting a June test date.
• If you do not score well on any of the practice tests, if you do not think your studying is effective, or if you need the structure and pressure of a group activity to motivate you to study, consider taking a commercial test prep course.
  • Obtain pamphlets and other information about the commercial test prep courses in your area and choose the best one for you. Your commercial test prep course will begin in the late spring or early summer and carry you through to the June test.
• Sign up to take the LSAT and sign up with LSDAS.
• Continue to work diligently on your coursework and do not sacrifice your GPA to LSAT prep. If you are on the ball and really do submit your applications in late October or early November, this set of grades will be the last the law school sees in making its initial determination on your application.

 

After Junior Year

June

• This is the ideal time to take the LSAT.
• Take it if you feel prepared and if you feel like you are at peak performance.
• Take it intending to take it only once. Do not take it as a practice run.

July

• You will receive your LSAT score.
• Begin work on your personal statement and resume.
• Begin to research law schools which interest you.

August

• Continue to work on your personal statement and resume.
• Continue to research schools.
• At the end of the month, contact schools on-line, via e-mail, or via phone, fax, or letter requesting admissions bulletins and applications.
• If you did not take the LSAT in June, or if you took the June test and cancelled your score, or if you took the June test and got a poor score, then you will be preparing for the next LSAT.
• You must sign up to take it and enroll in LSDAS if you have not done so.

September Senior Year

• Continue to work on your personal statement and resume.
• You will begin to receive information and applications from law schools.
• You may begin to fill out applications.
• You will contact your recommenders and request letters of recommendation.
• If you are taking or retaking the LSAT in October, you will be preparing for the LSAT.
• You will get off to a good start with your fall classes.

October Senior Year

• Finish up your personal statement and resume.
• Finish filling out your applications.
• If you are targeting early November with your applications, you will have your transcripts sent to LSDAS.
• Follow up with your recommenders to make sure that everything is on track with your recommendations.
• If you are taking or retaking the LSAT, you hopefully will take the test in early October.
• After the test, you will work on your applications, your personal statement, and your resume in earnest.
• If you intend to take the LSAT in December, you will be preparing for the LSAT as well as working on your applications, your personal statement, and your resume.
• You will continue to work diligently in your classes.

November Senior Year

• You will target early November to get your applications in.
• You will receive your LSAT score if you took the test in October.
• If you are not ready to send in your applications, you will continue to work on your applications, your personal statement, and your resume.
• If you intend to take the LSAT in December, you will be preparing for the LSAT and working on your applications, your personal statement, and your resume.
• You will continue to work diligently in your classes.

December Senior Year

• Try to finish up your applications and send them in.
• Give a real effort on your final exams, as this semester's grades may be the last set the admissions committees see.
• If you have not taken the LSAT or are retaking the LSAT, you will take it in December. December is the last test date to make the deadline for the overwhelming majority of law school applications.

January Senior Year

• Tie up any loose ends and make sure your applications are submitted and complete.
• You are anticipating February 1st as the deadline for many of your law school applications.
• Request that supplemental transcripts be sent to LSDAS.

February - May Senior Year

• You are keeping watch on all law school application deadlines and submitting your materials in advance.
• You are considering whether or not to add a school or two with later deadlines to your application pool.
• Hopefully you are receiving some admit letters.
• You will get your deny letters late in the spring.
• You may be faced with a deadline, probably April 1st, by which you need to make a deposit to reserve a seat at a school where you've been accepted.
• You are making sure you pass all of your classes because a bachelor's degree is required to start law school in the fall.