Ask AdmissionsConsultants

[adamsapple]

Amy,

I see that the bar gets a copy of my law school application...does that include all supporting documents?

What if I fudged a bit on my jobs-like the dates and ommitted a few so I didn't look as flaky?

I am going to assume that the schools will not notice (for the sake of this post) but how about the state bar association?

Any advice?

[Amy Johnson]

Amy,

I see that the bar gets a copy of my law school application...does that include all supporting documents?

What if I fudged a bit on my jobs-like the dates and ommitted a few so I didn't look as flaky?

I am going to assume that the schools will not notice (for the sake of this post) but how about the state bar association?

Any advice?

Hi Adamsapple and thanks for your inquiry,

I wish I had an easy answer for you on this; but my advice to you depends on a lot of things: in which State you apply for admission to the Bar (I suspect the documentation requested varies from state to state); how much you 'fudged'; have you already been admitted to schools?; etc.  It would be terribly unprofessional of me to give you advice on a potential academic integrity issue with so little information given here.  For those of you reading this post and getting your applications ready for the next cycle, I advise you to check out a statement by GW where they address this issue nicely:  http://www.law.gwu.edu/Admissions/JD+Admissions/appform.htm

Amy Johnson
Senior Consultant
AdmissionsConsultants Inc.
ajohnson@admissionsconsultants.com

[BearlyLegal]

Amy:

Thanks for your time and invaluable input:

2 Questions:

1) I have been accepted to Fordham PT, but would like to attend the FT program. I have also been offered large scholarships at schools that have historically been Fordham's peer schools (Tulane, for example - 90k). I think that I have a good chance of receiving an offer at one of Fordham's current peer schools (BU and Emory). Do you think it would be possible or advisable to ask Fordham to change my status from FT to PT prior to 1L?

2) Out of curiosity - how does one develop a career in admissions out of Law School?

[me333]

tag

[t L]

2) Out of curiosity - how does one develop a career in admissions out of Law School?

Great question.  I'm interested in this also.

[RageLaw]

Amy,
Thanks for all of your help in this thread.  My question is this: I've been complete at one of my top choices for 5 months and have heard nothing from them, save for confirmation that my app is complete (i.e. no hold status, waitlist, nothing).  My numbers fall well within this school's medians.  Is it now appropriate for me to write them a letter of continued interest or should that be reserved for hold/waitlist status applicants?

[Fangoria]

Hi Amy, thanks again for answering our questions. I posted this elsewhere but was hoping to get your take on it if you have time... I recently got into a school that I will be thrilled to attend in the Fall. However, I studied my butt off for the December LSAT last year thinking that my original score wasn't quite good enough, only to be thwarted on test day by some serious issues with the people administering the test. In short, I cancelled my score. However, I'm the sort of person who does not like to "lose" at anything, even if it is to a soulless inanimate object like the LSAT, and I was thinking about retaking in June, just to prove to myself I can score higher. Can anything go wrong with this plan? If I cancel again or score worse, will it affect my admission status? WIll the score even be sent to my school? Less importantly, would there be any benefit to doing really well now that I'm already pretty set for next year? Mostly I just want to go in there and show the test who's boss (me, hopefully). What do you think?

[startingtoworry]

Hi Amy,

I have a two quick questions, and I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to answer them. Here is a vague picture of my profile to provide some context:
- I applied to my top school in mid January.
- I included a full page essay on why that school is at the top of my law school list even though they requested none.
- My numbers: I'm above their 75%ile on the lsat and slightly below their median with my UGPA.
- I think I have good soft factors.
- Most of the profiles on lsn with similar #'s are getting scholarships.

Q1. With the ASD a week or two away, are my chances of acceptance remote if I do not hear from them by then?

Q2. Also, in your response about the adcomm's ability to identify individuals on this site, you mentioned that there are ways that they can identify people if they want to. Assuming that an individual didn't provide any identifiers in connection with their profile  (like lsat score, UGPA, lsn info, location, email etc), are you saying that they still can identify who each of us is??? Can you confirm my interpretation of what you wrote, and elaborate on how they do this?

[Daretel]

Amy, thanks for taking the time to share your insights into the admissions process.

I was curious about your experience with applicants having multiple LSAT scores. Suppose an applicant has a decent GPA (3.6+) but already has two LSAT scores in the low 160s, within 3 points of each other, and a cancel thrown in for good measure.

Would it be advisable to retake the LSAT for a third score (enough time has passed since the first LSAT for a retake)? How do you think T20 schools would view a significant jump (+5 points) in light of the multiple retakes? Would the previous LSAT scores substantially undermine the value of the third higher score such that it may not be worth the try?

I'm aware that it's recommended to explain previous lower scores through addendums, but what if there isn't a meaningful explanation (i.e. being sick during test, not studying for test, etc.) ?

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Amy Johnson]

Amy:

Thanks for your time and invaluable input:

2 Questions:

1) I have been accepted to Fordham PT, but would like to attend the FT program. I have also been offered large scholarships at schools that have historically been Fordham's peer schools (Tulane, for example - 90k). I think that I have a good chance of receiving an offer at one of Fordham's current peer schools (BU and Emory). Do you think it would be possible or advisable to ask Fordham to change my status from FT to PT prior to 1L?

2) Out of curiosity - how does one develop a career in admissions out of Law School?

Hi Bearlylegal and thanks for your inquiry!

There is no harm in asking about flipping from PT to FT. You might also ask about their policy regarding moving into the full-time track after both the first semester and the first year.

With respect to your other question, when I was on staff, I found that about 50% of my colleagues had law degrees and there was an incredibly diverse collection of past professional experiences.  If this is something that interests you, I recommend that you talk to the admissions office once you start law school to see if they have any student worker, student ambassador or internship opportunities.  Sometimes law schools will allow current law students to attend Fall recruiting events.   Another frequent practice is for a law school to hire recent graduates (while they await their bar results) to work the fall recruiting swing (Law Days, Graduate and Professional Days . . .) All of these would provide you with a chance to get a better feel for the profession and make some contacts.

Amy Johnson
Senior Consultant
AdmissionsConsultants Inc.
ajohnson@admissionsconsultants.com