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October Law School Checklist

Two weeks ago, Tipping The Scales shared some strategies from Shawn O’Connor, CEO of Stratus Prep, on what you can do in September to stay on track with your law school application. Now, O’Connor is back with some strategies for October:
Early October: If you’re taking the October LSAT, O’Connor advises you to focus on test preparation, cautioning you to only take one or two practice tests a day to avoid burnout. If you don’t feel ready, consider pushing your test back to December.
On the application front, O’Connor recommends that you finish a second draft of your essays, with special emphasis on substance and organization. He also shares three questions that you should use to guide your editing:

• Is my story unique?
• Do I highlight and elaborate on my strengths?
• Do I demonstrate my interests and passions?

Mid-October: At this point, you should be writing or revising your resume, focusing heavily on including quantifiable experience and accomplishment relevant to law school. O’Connor adds that you should have someone like a law school admissions counselor or prelaw advisor review your resume to ensure it is clear, concise, and appropriate. Mid-October is also the time to write and edit short answer questions too.
Late October: With your second draft completed, O’Connor notes that this is the time to edit your essays for grammar and style. As with your resume, you should share your essays with school professionals and loved ones and incorporate appropriate advice.
Source: US News and World Report

Law School At A Crossroads

“So where do we go from here?”
That’s the question that 46,000 new law school graduates are asking this year. Buried under six figure debts and facing a demoralizing job market, many graduates wonder: “Was it all really worth it?”
They’re not alone in asking that question…especially those 19,000 new grads who still haven’t found their first job. Law schools are now under siege. State governments have slashed education funding across the board. Prospective students are shying away from the risk, with applications falling by a third since 2010 according to Kaplan. Employers complain that graduates aren’t prepared to hit the ground running. And legal work has become a commodity with the emergence of overseas outsourcing, do-it-yourself software, and tighter budgets in the public and private sectors.
Frank Wu, chancellor of the Hastings College of the Law, sums up the problem this way: “Legal education is in crisis…There are too many lawyers, there are too many law students and there are too many law schools.” And law schools seem to agree. According to a recent Kaplan study, 54 percent of law school admissions officers said they cut their 2013-2014 law school student body…and another 25 percent intend to make similar reductions next school year.
So what’s the solution? Two weeks ago, an American Bar Association Task Force made a series of recommendations, including scaling back licensing requirements, devoting greater focus to practical experience, and giving schools greater freedom to experiment with curriculum. President Obama has also chimed in, supporting a two year program. And schools like UC Berkley are providing legal clinics and externships with local companies to help students gain experience.
Most important, the economic collapse and its accompanying ripples are slowly changing the culture of law schools. Administrators and professors now realize that they are not entitled to unending growth. And they are competing for dollars with more options than just nearby law schools. In a time of scarcity, that means greater attention to individual student needs. Even more, the cost of law school has reminded students to review their options and take their school commitment more seriously. In the words of Charles Weisselberg, a UC Berkeley law professor and associate dean, “I don’t think that law school is any longer the refuge it was 20 years ago for the liberal arts student who graduates from college and isn’t sure what he or she wants to do…People are more deliberate … and that’s a good thing.”
Sources:  San Jose Mercury News, Washington Business Times