Law School Podcaster

Waitlist purgatory. The place no law school applicant wants to end up. What should you do now? Some say you need to continually update the school with your recent developments, more letters of recommendation and maybe even take the LSAT again, but some schools tell you not to send anything unless there's been a significant change in your application. We'll explore where you should go from here and what you can do to help get you off the waitlist and onto the accepted list.

Law school applicants have had to face the LSAT since 1948. Now, it's your turn. To help you prepare, we have interviewed the various test preparation companies to hear what they have to offer. They will discuss the different types of courses they offer, from traditional classroom courses, private tutoring and online courses. Each company will have the opportunity to explain how they are unique and what makes them stand out. Listen and learn what option is best for you.

Get ready to think hard, dig deep and do a little soul searching. It's time to tackle your law school personal statement. The personal statement is the single most important part of your entire application which you can control. So put your LSAT scores and your GPA aside for a bit and think about how you can convince the admission committee that you deserve a spot in their entering 1st year law school class. Our guests will tell you where to begin, what to focus on and how to address any weaknesses in your application, such as a low LSAT score or a weak GPA. You will also learn how to prepare the people you chose to write your letters of recommendation so that your recommendations are consistent with your personal statement and help enhance the overall image you are building of yourself.

You are considering a law school education, and you know it's a good investment for your future. But, you may not be sure exactly how to finance the cost of a 3 year education that can top more than $40,000/year in expenses. Our experts explain the options available, and outline the financial aid process, including federal and private loans, grants and scholarships and how best to prepare financially to continue your studies. Listen to what law school deans who work with students at various stages of the financial aid process have to say, we talk with one dean who helps students put the financing together to pay for school and with a career services dean who helps place students in the jobs that will help them pay back their debt. We hear from experts with FinAid.org, Fastweb.com, and Sallie Mae, to get insight that will help you get started on your financial strategy to pay for law school. We also take a look at what changes in the federal student loan program might mean for law school applicants and students.

Joint degree programs are proliferating and one of the most popular are the programs offering to join a graduate business degree (MBA) with a law degree (JD) for a joint JD/MBA. More and more schools are offering these combined programs in response to strong student demand driven by the potential for substantial savings of time and money. We talk to the experts to find out what the real value of these programs are, when a dual degree makes the most sense for a student, the procedures and standards for admission, what the academic challenges are, and we get the latest information about post-graduate career opportunities.

It's no surprise that, during a recession, the legal job market tightens and legal employment is harder to find. Big Law firms that once snapped up students and law school graduates are laying-off lawyers, reducing associate class size or deferring the start dates for students with accepted job offers. Legal employers are changing the ways they recruit lawyers and the way they do business. Meanwhile, the tough times are steering more applicants to law school. What does this mean to currently enrolled law students, law school applicants and freshly-minted law school graduates? We interviewed law school deans of admission, financial aid and career services, the Executive Director at NALP and the writer for the Wall Street Journal who covers notable trends in the legal market for the business community, to get their advice on what can be done to navigate one's career and application during these challenging times.

The LSAT® is the single most dreaded part of the law school application process. Everyone has heard the stories and the myths surrounding the exam. Listen in as we talk with law school deans of admission, and get some perspective about the test from a current law school dean who served on the Test Development Committee for the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). Our experts dispel some of the popular notions about the exam, including the notion that the questions are designed to trick test-takers. The deans also weigh in on how important the LSAT® is relative to other factors when evaluating your application. Finally, we also hear from two test prep companies about how they can help prepare students to master the material on exam day.

With so many law schools, how do you decide which school is right for you? Part of your decision will be based on where you think you will get accepted, but there is more to consider than just LSAT scores and undergraduate GPAs. In this episode, we explore the various factors you should consider when deciding where to apply, including curriculum offerings and other activities such as law reviews/journals and clinical programs, opportunities for legal employment after graduation, and factors such as cost, accreditation and location. Our guests will give you specific recommendations on what you should look for in a school as you compile your list of potential law school programs.

In the competitive world of law school admissions, your goal is to build the best possible application package. This means covering all your bases. Have your written a personal statement that is full of details and free of errors? Did you make the most of opportunities to showcase your unique accomplishments? Did you properly address perceived weaknesses? In this show, we provide tips to help you create the killer law school application, one that will leave a lasting impression. You will hear directly from law school admissions deans about what they look for in a candidate and you'll get several tips from an author whose book is about writing the best personal statement for law school and from a consultant who guides applicants through the law school application process.

For students thinking of applying to law school, it is never too early to start building a strong application. In this show, we interview top law school admissions deans, admission consultants, authors, and current law students to help illuminate the process by telling us what can be done now to help applicants get in next year. Find out when to start studying for the LSAT, how many time applicants should plan to take the exam, when the best time to visit schools is, how to narrow choices, and how to address weaknesses in an application, such as low grades or potentially low LSAT scores. Find out when the best time is to submit the application. We also examine how current economic conditions may affect the application process.