Pre-law
Lawyers help individuals and businesses understand and address legal issues. Lawyers provide advice to clients and help them to understand laws, rights and responsibilities applicable to their situation. A lawyer's occupation also includes advocating for clients during criminal or civil proceedings and litigating in court.
Pre-law timeline
- Meet with your academic advisor and a pre-professional peer advisor
- Begin basic courses (silver core requirements, major requirements, etc.)
- Join a pre-law club (i.e. Phi Alpha Delta) and/or other organizations
- Seek volunteer experience (and continue throughout undergraduate years)
- Choose a major (if you haven’t already done so)
- Begin to form relationships with professors
- Explore career options; begin writing your resume
- Seek internships or research experience
- Become involved in campus/community activities (and continue throughout undergraduate years)
- Start researching schools. A good way to begin is on the web, such as on the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) website
- Meet with a pre-professional advisor to assess your preparation and discuss the application process
- Attend law school fairs held at the University and/or in San Francisco or another accessible location
- Reality check: What are your chances? GPA/LSAT? Experience? Personal attributes?
- Consider taking valuable electives: computer classes, philosophy, communication, statistics, ethics, economics, etc.
- Visit as many of the law schools to which you plan to apply as possible
- Pick up an LSAT/LSDAS Information booklet
- Sign up for the LSAT, study and take the exam in February or June
- At the beginning of the school year, start working on your personal statement
- Attend appropriate workshops to help with the application process
- Sign up for LSDAS in late summer or early fall and send in your transcripts
- Request catalogs, application materials and financial aid information
- Ask people to write letters of recommendation
- Retake the LSAT if necessary
- Check out your graduation requirements
- Send out all applications by late November
- Make sure your LSDAS report is accurate
- Contact all schools to which you have applied early in the Spring semester to check on the status of your file
- Send appropriate people thank-you notes and inform them of your success or future plans