Being a South Asian pre-law student with a majority (or all) of your friends and family being in STEM or business can make navigating the law school process a little difficult. I only really had two people in my life to turn to when it came to navigating my own legal educational and career goals. And pretty much zero people when it came to pursuing my goals involving an intersection of law and health.
So it’s been amazing to be able to be that person for some of you who may not know any other lawyers or law students! I just wanted to answer some common general questions I’ve received about what law school and a path towards the legal field has been like so far, in case anyone else may benefit from it!
As always, please feel free to reach out to have a more personal conversation or if you have any other questions:)
Undergraduate Prep
What I was told: do NOTHING.
Which I mostly agree with. There are no “best” majors or required
classes for law school, and you can pretty much choose whatever major you’re genuinely interested in. One of the majors I chose was Political Science because I thought I needed it for law school–and it helped, but I honestly don’t think it was necessary. My other major, BCN (Biopsychology, Cognition, Neuroscience), is what I was truly passionate about and I think it would have been completely okay for me to just stick to that one major.
So seriously, go ahead and major in what will help you in the future and what you earnestly crave to learn more about. That decision is not going to impair your law school admissions at all and admissions committees love admitting students that come from diverse backgrounds!
The one thing I was told that I don’t entirely agree with is to come into law school with a blank slate. I was always nervous about coming into law school without any “legal” knowledge or experiences. But people I talked to made it seem like that’s the best way to enter this environment. I agree that no one should come in thinking they know the law and how it works. However, I think I personally could have benefitted from taking some time off to gain various experiences. So many students come into law school with experiences in higher education, legal settings, companies, journalism, teaching, international locations, etc. Those opportunities have allowed classmates to formalize their goals, think more broadly and critically, and mature immensely by being exposed to new and various perspectives.
Application Process
1. Research: I didn’t find undergrad advisors helpful (or optimistic about my goals). However, they can be a great resource, so if your school’s advisors are helpful, I’d start there! But the first step for me was going to Michigan’s Law School forum while I was there and the Chicago Law School Forum during my gap year. Being able to talk to representatives from law schools allowed me to further determine whether law school was what I wanted to and was able to pursue. I also made an account on lsac.org (which you’ll need to sign up for the LSAT and to send applications). LSAC has some helpful articles about the legal field, law schools and the lsat. I looked through those articles, schools’ websites and formal or official articles/blog posts for more information.
Whatever you do, DO NOT CONSTANTLY LOOK AT LAW SCHOOL FORUMS! I don’t know who writes those posts, but they are usually angry, bitter, or demotivating people; and you do not need to stress yourself out every day by scrolling through those posts! They will make you believe that you cannot get in with your stats but I (and sososo many others) definitely proved them wrong!
2. Letters of Recommendation/Transcripts: Something I messed up with was forming relationships with my professors throughout undergrad. I was fortunate enough to have some really amazing professors my senior year who I ended up feeling comfortable and connected with enough that I was able to ask them for letters (plus I was taking a gap year, so I didn’t
need letters until later on anyways). Build those relationships, find mentors
and keep learning from everyone around you–because those experiences are what formed some of the perspectives and aspirations I have today!
I knew I would be applying for law schools sometime after September; but I wanted to give my recommenders enough time, so I asked them to write my letters sometime in May after classes ended. Meeting in person is definitely a more personal option, but writing emails (which I did because I wasn’t in Michigan anymore) is just as appropriate. I asked 3 professors and my research mentor to write my law and health recommendations since I knew I would be applying for two programs and I didn’t want to disturb them again in the future.They all asked for my transcript, resume, personal statement, schools I’m interested in, etc. I found that rather than being annoyed, the professors appreciated my constant (but reasonable) followups. So definitely don’t bug them every week; but if they’re okay with it, give them reminders since they have such busy schedules.
Likewise, I ordered my transcripts and had them sent to LSAC as soon as they were posted from each school I attended (all universities, community colleges, summer courses, online courses). Be sure to check whether CAS (discussed below) accepts electronic transcripts, requires a document to be attached or explains any other specific instructions with letters and transcripts. Not following the minor details or nearly missing deadlines because of these small parts to your application causes unnecessary stress that can be avoided by just taking care of them well in advance!
3. LSAT: No matter how much I hate taking exams, I genuinely love studying, so this part was actually something my nerdy side enjoyed!
Studying for the LSAT is a process though and it depends entirely on your work ethic. I can be very lazy, so I thought I would need to take a prep course because getting myself to focus for long periods of time is not an easy task. However, I wasn’t working at that time, prep courses can be expensive, and I read about a lot of people studying on their own. So I gave it a shot! All I bought was The LSAT Trainer and a bunch of PrepTests for probably less than $200 total.
Preparing for the LSAT honestly just takes a LOT of practice. I took my first
LSAT in September; and even though I got through the book and concepts, I had not taken as many practice tests as I should have. So I didn’t do as well. But by the time I took it a second time in December, I had gone through all the skills again and took every single practice test I bought. And then I ended up jumping 18 points and doing really well! So don’t feel discouraged if your first score isn’t a true reflection of your abilities–with more practice and less stress the second (or third or fourth) time, you can definitely improve your score by a lot!
In total, I studied for about 3.5 months (I took a little break in between the 1st & 2nd tests), and I think that was plenty of time. For the first test, I only got a little more than a month of studying, and that was not enough time. If I studied any more than 3.5 months, I personally would have felt drained, so I think that was a perfect amount for me! Most of the LSAT studying has to do with being able to think logically and reading through a bunch of jargon to solve similar types of problems in a time crunch. Being able to set up and stick to a study schedule that works for YOU–whether it’s through attending weekly classes or setting up times to go to your favorite study spot on your own–is key.
4. Personal Statement:
One of the most important parts of your application that will help you stand
out is your personal statement. Everyone comes to law school for their own
reasons–which may or may not be similar to many others that are applying at the same time as you. Your job is to genuinely tell your story. Why are you applying? What has inspired you? What have you overcome? What are you hoping to accomplish? Use these questions to guide yourself in putting the pieces of your life together to tell your own story. Stay away from generics like: “My parents said I have been arguing since I was five years old and told me I would make a great lawyer one day.” Think about what you want to gain out of this experience–not what the admissions committees would want to hear. They come across a variety of stories every year–so many that this is the one place in your application where they will not have any standard expectations. It’s your moment to wow them with a unique perspective!
5. CAS/Filling Out Applications: Through LSAC, you need to sign up for the Credential Assembly Service (CAS), which is like the Common App for law schools. CAS collects your transcripts, letters of rec, LSAT scores, and any other necessary documents all onto a general application. This service costs $195 and helps cut down on time as it saves your answers for generic questions. You can add as many schools as you want to apply to. However, each school has its own application fee on top of the CAS fee. I believe you can apply for a fee waiver for CAS if you can demonstrate an extreme need. However, MANY schools provide fee waivers for their individual application fees. So go to those law school forums and ask representatives if they provide waivers or ask your undergraduate schools/pre-law departments if they give waivers for any schools. On top of that, many schools provide merit based fee waivers if they are impressed with your GPA or LSAT scores. I received fee waivers for about 3/4 of the schools I applied to–which allowed me to apply to more schools than I originally had intended to. SO DON’T BE SHY AND GET THOSE FEES WAIVED!!
Choosing a School
One of the (poor) pieces of advice I had received while applying was to only
attend a top 25 law school. I became convinced that if I went to a lower ranked school, I would not get a job, I would have a lower starting salary, or that I would not receive as great of an overall legal education even if a certain school was ranked higher in a specialization I was interested in. Although I followed that advice and don’t regret where I am, this is not the same advice I give to others. I’m grateful to have received a really generous scholarship, so I won’t be in debt for too long. However, there were some law schools that offered me full tuition scholarships which I declined mostly because they were lower ranked schools. Additionally, although I am able to pursue my health interests through another way, my school does not have an abundance of classes that I am truly passionate about. I did not attend schools that were ranked in the top 2 for health or human rights–just because they were not overall top 25 schools.
Whenever I go to networking events or interviews, the majority of individuals I speak with graduated from non top 25 law schools. I read up on their professional journeys, and they all have done amazingly well for themselves. Most importantly, they were all individuals I truly enjoyed speaking with because they seemed to be passionate and loved the work they did. And in the end, that’s truly what matters. You are going to be investing a lot of money, time and energy into a legal education. So if money is a major concern, go to that lower ranked school that offers you a greater scholarship. If you are set on pursuing a specific type of law, go to the top-ranked school for that program, even if it’s not in the top 10. If you have a family or another personal obligation that requires your attention, choose the best program that is closest to that location.
In the end, there are so many factors to weigh, and although ranking can be important (to an extent), there are other factors that can be just as–or even more important based on your life. My dad made me a little chart with factors such as cost, location, ranking, clinics/opportunities I wanted to pursue, job outlook, etc. that each had a value designated to it according to its important to me. For my top four schools, I filled out this chart and was able to look past just the rankings and see what was truly going to be beneficial for me holistically and in the long-run.
The most important lesson I learned was to NEGOTIATE YOUR SCHOLARSHIP! Schools have money, and you need to ask them to increase what they originally offered you. Talk to the financial aid offices when you visit the schools or call/email if you’re unable to visit. I felt uncomfortable about this at first, but they are used to students asking because scholarships are such an important factor. It probably varies by school, but after asking, I received a link to fill out a form, the committee reviewed it, and within a week or so, my financial package increased! So again, don’t be shy and don’t settle on what they initially offer you (unless you ask and they truly cannot offer you anything more–i.e. you got off the waitlist later on, you’re a transfer student, there is not enough funds, etc.). BUT DEFINITELY TRY NEGOTIATING–the total scholarship amount I ended up receiving sealed the deal for accepting my offer at my law school!!
General Tips/Advice
1. DON’T FREAK OUT. I know, this is easier said than done. Applying to law school can seem like a daunting process, but it doesn’t have to be. As long as you have done your research, know what you want to gain out of law, and put in a reasonable amount of time and effort–you will be fine!
2. Don’t let your “numbers” define your worth. People reach out to me with concerns about their low gpas or lsat scores holding them back. Honestly, my low gpa was the biggest concern I had before applying. But offsetting that with a decent LSAT score and diverse experiences, letters of rec, and personal statement got me in to a majority of schools I applied to. If you look at the statistical ranges, there are people that come in with very different scores. I’d be lying if I said numbers don’t matter; but they’re just that–numbers that are a PART of your application. Most schools (hopefully) are taking more holistic approaches in admissions and I personally only wanted to attend schools that held that mindset.
3. Don’t lose yourself in the process. People get so caught up in going to the best school and becoming the best lawyer and making the best kind of money. If you choose to go to law school, you have a reason and purpose for picking that route. There are so many demands in this educational and career path that it can become easy to lose focus of what truly matters. Taking a few years off is okay–gain experiences through travel, work or volunteer opportunities. Receiving a low LSAT score is okay–you have four more chances every year to retake the exam. Not gaining admission from a school is okay–there are other options and there is always next year. Law school is not going anywhere and keeping that perspective from the beginning will go a long way.
4. Just Breathe. People have expressed their concerns regarding the stress and anxious thoughts applying to schools brings into their lives. And I went through it too–the application processes can be draining. But it’s so important to step back and breathe. Meditate, go workout, spend time with your family & friends. Do what makes you happy instead of spending all your time and energy on studying and applying. Be kind to yourself and be kind to others along the way. Definitely put your best effort and passion into it, but not at the expense of your health or your life. Everything will work out eventually, so you might as well be happy and feel like it’s worth it along the way! 💕💕
