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My Four Principles

Once you have done your absolute best on the LSAT (the importance of which can’t be overstated), your task when applying to law school is to get into the "middle pile." What I mean is, after you submit your applications, you’ll generally get auto-admitted into your “safeties,” and you’ll likely get auto-rejected from schools that are completely out of reach. This initial sorting, a.k.a. indexing or administrative review, is based almost entirely on your LSAT and GPA. The third or middle pile is for all other schools — schools you probably should get into but might not, all the way to schools you probably shouldn’t get into, but where you do have a chance. Once you’re in this middle pile, your written materials really matter in determining whether you can win over a skeptical law school admissions committee.

To get admitted to more of your reach schools, I recommend treating your application as a lawsuit and you are a lawyer advocating for your own admission. As discussed in a previous post, when applying to law school, your jury in this case is a busy law professor at your dream school. To reach your desired verdict (i.e. an offer letter), you have to craft your application so that professor ultimately thinks two things: (1) I feel like I know this person and his/her story makes sense, and (2) I think he/she would make an excellent law student and lawyer.

How do you do that? Over the years, I’ve noticed four general strategies that work to an applicant’s advantage. While none of these approaches are all that revolutionary, I can’t think of any reason not to apply them when working on your law school applications. So, without further ado, I give you Cliff’s 4 Principles to Applying to Law School:

(1) Do Your Very Best On Each and Every Part of the Law School Application

Making Your Strongest Case for Admission

make their strongest case for admission (1) I really feel like I know this person and his story makes sense, and (2) I think he would make an excellent law student, I'd really like to teach him Civil Procedure next near. imagine who this juror is

Inside the Law School Admissions "Black Box"

Having gone through the processes myself, having helped hundreds of clients prepare their applications, and having formed relationships with dozens of admissions officers and professors, I now have a decent sense of what happens after And knowing what happens from the law school's perspective will hopefully empower you, the smart applicant, to shape your application to what schools are actually looking for and avoid common, and sometimes grave, mistakes.

A Hollistic Approach to Your Application

the importance of approaching the entire application holistically http://www.LawSchoolAdvising.com , I volunteered my time helping dozens of friends, friends-of-friends, and friends-of-distant-relatives with their personal statements (PS), resumes, additional essays, and letters of rec. In November 2008, I was contacted by a woman named Christina Brown, the ex-girlfriend of a friend of mine, who wanted my take on her applications. She had already applied to some schools, but didn't feel like she was putting her best foot forward. I was more than happy to help, so I reviewed her materials on a flight from Los Angeles to San Francisco....

Law School Applications 101 Seminar: Making Your Strongest Case for Admission

Applying to law school? Just finished the LSAT and ready to get started on the other components of your application? Curious about the different ways you can approach your personal statement, resume, letters of rec, and addenda?

Join us on June 22nd for an informative and interactive discussion with Harvard Law School graduate (class of 2005) and professional law school application adviser, Cliff Sarkin. Cliff will offer his expertise and insight into the application process and share the approaches and theories that have helped dozens of clients get into their top schools.

Tuesday, June 22nd, 6:30 pm, San Francisco Click here to register!!!

Topics will include:

How the Admission Process Really Works
Overall Application Strategy
Brainstorming and Writing a Winning Personal Statement
Turning Your Resume From a 6 into a 10
Who Should You Ask to Write a Letter of Rec for Your & What Should It Include
What Other Materials Should You Include in Your Application and Why

If you're applying to law school right now or any time in the future, you do not want to miss this this opportunity!

Tuesday, June 22nd, 6:30 pm

Law School Applications Seminar

Law School Applicaitons 101: Making Your Strongest Case for Admission Harvard Club of San Francisco (HCSF) Law School Admissions Series

Law School Admissions 2010: Demystifying the Process, Debunking the Myths HCSF Law School Admissions Series

Thursday, October 1, 6:30 - 8:30 p m • University Club  • 800 Powell Street • San F rancisco, CA • with Cliff Sarkin(Harvard Law School '05)

Join us on October 1st for an informative and interactive discussion on

Bay Area Law School Admissions Panel -- September 16th

Law School Admissions 2010: Demystifying the Process, Debunking the Myths Harvard Club of San Francisco (HCSF) Law School Admissions Series

Law School Admissions 2010: Demystifying the Process, Debunking the Myths HCSF Law School Admissions Series

Wednesday, September 16th, 6:15 - 8:30 p m • University Club  • 800 Powell Street • San F rancisco, CA

• Hosted by Jen Shin, HCSF VP of Activities • Moderated by Cliff Sarkin (HLS '05)

Presenters include:
    •    Edward G. Tom, Assistant Dean of Admissions, UC Berkley School of Law (Boalt)
    •    Michael Trevino, Assistant Dean of Admissions, UC Hastings School of Law
    •     Bakari Bock, Attorney (Associate Corporate Counsel, YouTube), Harvard Law School 2005
    •    Bryan Ketrose r, Attorney (Associate, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati), Yale Law School Year 2005

Admissions Timeline

Law schools begin accepting applications between September 1st and October 1st of the year before the applicant intends to begin his or her 1L year. Most schools -- including Yale, Stanford, Columbia, Chicago, and Duke -- allow applicants to submit their packets on September 1st. Others, like Harvard and Georgetown, open their admission windows at various points during the month of September. Berkeley will only begin accepting applications on October 1st.

The final day on which one can apply also varies, but for most schools it's either February 1st or February 15th. Be sure to check the admissions website for every school to which you apply for its particular submission windows.

Regardless of when any particular school allows you to subit your application, remember: APPLY AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE. More on this soon...

Our Initial Consultation

Once you reach me, we will arrange a time -- either in person or over the phone -- to meet for approximately 20 - 30 minutes. During this initial (and free!) consultation, I will begin to get a better understanding of your goals, start assessing the range of schools that are within your reach, and introduce you to the comprehensive approach that worked for me and has proven successful for countless clients. It is also an opportunity for you to see the depth of insight and experience I bring as a Law School Advisor and the possible ways I can help you perfect your law school application.

Welcome

Thank you for visiting LawSchoolAdvising.com.

In the coming days, I will post to this page with various ideas, thoughts and strategies you may want to employ as you begin preparing your law school application. For more information on any of these, or to begin working together to build your strongest case for admission, visit the CONTACT page, send me an email, and we can start the process of perfecting your appliction. Again, welcome to Law School Advising.

Cliff