How to Begin Law School

Your decision to attend law school was likely informed by careful cost/benefit analysis, so now is the time to act swiftly and get organized with a weekly routine that includes reading time, class attendance and study sessions.

Start planning and practicing exam questions early and regularly – you’ll thank yourself later!

1. Be Organized

Law school requires hard work, and it can be easy to become disoriented as you juggle daily struggles like studying, attending classes and managing other commitments. To succeed at law school you’ll need an effective organization plan.

An effective way to prepare for law school is to make a master calendar for the semester. This will give you a bird’s-eye view of your academic schedule so that you can view assignments, tests and meetings that need your attention in advance and allocate enough time. Furthermore, creating such a schedule will help establish routine which can aid with maintaining focus.

Another critical step toward law school readiness is identifying and focusing on your academic strengths and weaknesses. If written communication is something that challenges you, begin developing it now so as to enhance your ability to draft briefs, memos and analyze cases in class. Also consider majoring in areas that will enhance this skill such as English, History, Sociology or Philosophy that will further sharpen them.

If you have an interest in any aspect of law, explore it now. For instance, if corporate law interests you, find an area within that field during undergraduate school and take courses related to it. If criminal or civil law interests you instead, make sure to reach out to professors for more information on taking courses related to those areas of the law and research topics that would fit.

Be sure to request the “viewbook” of each law school you are interested in attending and become as familiar with it as possible, getting an understanding of its culture and admissions criteria. Once done, create an LSAC account in order to register for the LSAT (this requirement will typically apply), as well as collecting letters of recommendation from professors who can attest to your abilities as a student and potential future lawyer.

2. Don’t Miss a Single Day of Class

Establishing good study habits and attending all classes regularly will increase your odds of succeeding in law school. Attendance also allows for networking purposes and to maintain relationships with professors; should there be an unforeseen reason that prevents you from attending, inform your professor ahead of time so they can provide additional materials or avoid potential attendance problems with your attendance record.

Law school is an intensive and fast-paced environment. If you find yourself losing focus or falling behind in your studies, the consequences can be serious: not only will you miss important legal concepts that might otherwise have helped prepare for exams, but you may also face more difficulty when the time comes. If this occurs to you, seek help immediately from tutors or Pre-Law Advisors as soon as possible to prevent further delays.

If your grades fall short of what you expected, don’t give up! Law schools take many factors into consideration when making admission decisions; your personal and professional experiences as well as language capabilities could be more influential than your GPA. A Pre-Law Advisor can discuss all available strategies with you to increase performance.

Once you have established study habits and are on track to finish your degree, it is time to narrow your list of law schools. Use databases, guidebooks and the internet to narrow your options down; use law school databases, guidebooks and the Internet as resources to identify schools which could suit you academically, professionally and geographically. Once your list is made up, start researching schools on it before gathering application materials from each. Register with LSAC’s Credential Assembly Service as well as request letters of recommendation for the ones which stand out most as potential matches for yourself!

Once accepted into law school, it’s essential not to allow excitement take precedence over effort in the classroom. While your first year may pass quickly, make an effort to do well in all courses and contribute meaningfully during legal externship or clinic participation. By semester’s end you will have an opportunity to test yourself against one of the greatest challenges of law school – taking the bar exam.

3. Practice Exam Questions

Applying legal rules to new sets of facts is one of the best ways to strengthen exam performances, even for subjects you have taken before. Doing this helps focus your mind on legal analysis – something your notes or outline might have missed; taking practice exams also provides an invaluable way of discovering any complexities or nuances that may not have come through as clearly when reading through notes/outlines alone; also it shows whether or not you grasped all underlying concepts but were unable to apply them successfully in real world scenarios.

Your professors can be an excellent source for law school practice exams. Many professors post old exams on course websites or share them with students via e-mail or during office hours; if possible, try and obtain copies of the model answers as this can provide insight into what information your professor considers important as well as ways of structuring an effective response and spotting issues that need addressing.

Practice questions from various vendors can also provide an extra bit of practice; although these might not be as useful as what your professor offers, they can give an indication of the types of questions that could appear on an open book exam and how best to tackle them.

Before beginning class, it’s also advisable to familiarize yourself with how your professor grades exams. This will enable you to allocate practice exam time more strategically – for example, if he or she tends to place more weight on essay questions than multiple-choice ones, you might spend more time practising writing complete and comprehensive essays.

Practice exams can also help prepare you for the variety of optional essay and interview questions asked of law school applicants, designed to give admissions committees a fuller picture of who you are and why you chose their school. In order to stand out, it’s best to attempt answering all optional questions honestly in order to stand out.

4. Ask for Help

No matter where or when you decide to pursue legal education, attending law school is a significant decision that has lifelong repercussions for your future career. When selecting your law school it is crucial that you make the best possible selection possible based on personal preferences, cost considerations and future career needs.

No matter the complexity or duration of your extracurricular activities, internships, or jobs, making time to study for and submit your LSAT is of utmost importance. Careful planning of each step in the process will allow you to effectively manage your time while honing necessary organizational skills essential for law school success.

Once admitted to law school, take full advantage of opportunities to connect with fellow students, faculty and staff. Participating in student orientation events, information sessions or any other gatherings that provide insight into law school culture, academic environment and overall community can give invaluable information that can assist in selecting which schools best suit your goals and lifestyle.

As students enter their first year of law school, it can be easy for them to feel overwhelmed or confused by the experience. Law school’s rigor requires them to absorb vast amounts of new material at an accelerated pace than expected and its methods differ dramatically from undergraduate coursework. If you need assistance or advice regarding material covered in class or preparing for exams/writing briefs/etc…, professors and upper level law students are great resources that can provide answers and assistance – don’t be shy to reach out! If anything comes up that you feel lost or overwhelmed just reach out; professors/upper level students are often there ready to provide assistance in terms of answering any inquiries related to material covered/studied/exam/brief writing process/etc…

Many students thrive best in classroom environments, so it’s beneficial to familiarize yourself with the typical format of classes at each school you are considering attending. Some courses may utilize Socratic-style instruction while others focus more on group discussion than reading. If there are concerns with any course in particular, reach out to current students either through campus activities or the admissions office for introductions; similarly if law schools ask you to answer optional questions thoroughly and thoughtfully.