College Registration

[FLYsociety]

My first post on here, been lurking for a while and finally decided to create an account. 



Well I have registration for Arizona State University in 2 weeks and i'm going to be a freshman in the fall.  I want to major in political science (I actually enjoy it) and am 85% sure I want to go to law school after undergrad.  How important is it for me to tell me counselor I want to go to law school?  Will my class schedule be different if I tell my counselor I want to be pre-law?

[Changed Name]

I'm not sure if this is a joke or not, but I'll try to give some serious advice in the off-chance that you're being serious.

Firstly, i think it's hard to determine before actually going to college and taking political science classes that you'll enjoy it.  I studied PS, and I enjoyed it but I could never have known.  I also studied philosophy, and I enjoyed SOME of it, but a lot of it I found very frustrating.  Although, I must say, I believe philosophy was far better of the two disciplines in terms of helping me develop my "thinking" skills and teaching me how to write.

Secondly, counselors at colleges are worthless.  I think you'll find all the information you'll need by surfing these boards and filtering through the junk.  There's some great advice on here, and a lot of counselors don't really understand what law school admissions are like.

Thirdly, there's no reason why even if you tell your counselor that you're going to law school that your class schedule will change.  Pre-law is not a major, and if there's anything at your school which gives a designation of "pre-law," I'd avoid it like the plague.  With that being said, if your goal is going to law school, that may change YOUR preferences as to which classes you'll want to take.  You'll probably take Constitutional law since you'd probably be more interested in it.  If your school has such distinctions (mine did), you may take political science classes which are tailored towards "legal" questions.  But since there's no required curriculum to enter law school, there is no formal change a counselor would require of you just because you are "pre-law." 

You may then be wondering:  "what types of classes should I take, etc.?"  The general rule of thumb is take anything that you enjoy and will get high grades in.  Law schools care about GPA and LSAT.  If you rock those two numbers, you'll rock your admissions cycle.

[FLYsociety]

What about this thread seems like a joke?

"if there's anything at your school which gives a designation of "pre-law," I'd avoid it like the plague."

This is what i've heard so I figured i'd ask on this website..

[Changed Name]

The best thing you can do is to really get a HIGH GPA, even if this means taking a few "cake" classes to boost it up.  Don't major in something that will have AdComms scratching their heads (for example, basket-weaving).  Political science is traditional so you won't stand out, but it won't hurt.  A high GPA in political science will be more than enough.

Get involved in activities so that you'll have things to talk about on your applications and just be a well-rounded person.  Law schools will like to see that you were able to juggle multiple activities (although, they'll definitely take the guy with great numbers who did nothing over someone who was involved in everything but only ended up with mediocre numbers).

As far as the LSAT goes, you're too early to really be doing any studying for the test.  I'd suggest just improving the skills that are necessary to perform well on the LSAT.  For example, try improving your reading comprehension by reading dense materials.  Improve your logical reasoning, etc.  But don't focus on practice tests or anything -- not for a couple of years anyway.

[FLYsociety]

Wow thanks for the detailed advice, I will follow it thoroughly.  When the time comes for the last will I need to sign up for classes to study for it?

[Changed Name]

Wow thanks for the detailed advice, I will follow it thoroughly.  When the time comes for the last will I need to sign up for classes to study for it?

You don't have to sign up for classes, but I do strongly recommend them.  They are expensive, though.  I feel that the classes help compile the information and help get you started in adjusting your thinking for each question type and section.  However, there is a major caveat when it comes to taking a class:  don't think that they do all the work.  You still need to put in the hours and study (and study really, really hard!).

[FLYsociety]

Wow thanks for the detailed advice, I will follow it thoroughly.  When the time comes for the last will I need to sign up for classes to study for it?

You don't have to sign up for classes, but I do strongly recommend them.  They are expensive, though.  I feel that the classes help compile the information and help get you started in adjusting your thinking for each question type and section.  However, there is a major caveat when it comes to taking a class:  don't think that they do all the work.  You still need to put in the hours and study (and study really, really hard!).

Money won't be an issue.  Ahh i'm not looking forward to studying but I know it will be a huge part of my life come lsat and law school(if I go).