LSAT and Law School Admissions

I am in a crabby mood today. We have enjoyed the three-week visit of my son, daughter and son-in-law and the latters' seven-month-old baby. And they all went home this morning, at least to their home on the other side of the globe. :-(  I can handle the absence of the adult members of my family, but I can't forgive taking away my one and only grandchild! He's just too delicious. Enough on my foul mood; onto the topic at hand.

I frequently enjoy Anna Ivey's columns on Vault.com, and today's article, "Is Admissions a Numbers Game?"  is excellent as usual.

To paraphrase Ms. Ivey's article, yes, Virginia, law school admissions is a numbers game, but once your numbers are competitive, the subjective factors take over. And if your numbers are in the ballpark, but on the low side i.e. (for non-under-represented minorities) in the 20-50 percentiles, then the subjective aspects of your application have to work overtime to make you so appealing that the reader wants you as a member of the school's class despite your inferior numbers.

The only quibble, I have with Ivey's article, and it is a minor one, is she blames the nefarious rankings for the super-sized importance of the numbers. There is no question in my mind that rankings play a major role in influencing admissions decisions because, as she points out, they play an over-sized role in applicant decision-making. However, I think she overstates her case, and a comparison to b-school admissions is useful.

LSAT and GPA have been major factors in admissions for more than the last ten years. They are easy to use, and frankly law schools don't ask for much more, just a two-page personal statement and a couple of recs.  GMAT, GPA, and rankings also influence b-schools admissions, but MBA admissions staff weigh the subjective elements more seriously. First of all b-schools require more subjective input in the form of multiple essays and interviews. Business schools ask typically for 4-6 essays and sometimes 3 recommendations. Secondly, the range of acceptable grades and GMAT scores is somewhat wider at the top b-schools.

MBA programs also deal with rankings and rankings-crazed applicants. For whatever reason, however, the business programs invest more effort in screening applicants; law schools just blame the rankings. Ivey is reflecting the standard law school admissions lament, but the law schools need to look at themselves a little more critically and perhaps take a page from their business school colleagues' playbook  if they want to reduce dependence on LSAT and GPA and make the law school admissions process more holistic.

 

Comments

[Anna Ivey]

Thanks for the kind words. I completely agree with your comparison to b-school admissions, and also agree that law school admissions officers share a great amount of culpability for overreliance on numbers, not least because they don't see it as part of their jobs to screen for applicants who really belong in law school. There wouldn't be nearly as many miserable lawyers out there if they did.

Law schools also do a terrible job marketing themselves compared to business schools (shocker, I know!), so law school applicants are, in my opinion, even more crazed about rankings than b-school applicants, because the rankings fill a greater information deficit on the law school side. Law schools haven't figured out the concept of comparative advantage and niche marketing -- they pretend they are all things to all people.

Also keep in mind that b-schools could (and sometimes do) opt out of rankings if they really wanted to, whereas the American Bar Association makes public the numbers behind the law school rankings. Law schools have to be ABA-accredited if their graduates are to be able to sit for the bar exam and practice their profession, so opting out really isn't an option for law schools.

I so wish law schools would adopt the b-school approach to gatekeeping. Inertia is a powerful force, though, so I don't see that changing anytime soon. And kudos to Northwestern Law School for breaking away from the pack and requiring work experience.

[Linda Abraham]

Thanks for your comments and additions. We agree. I particularly appreciate your comment about the poor marketing job that law schools do. Certainly the lousy law student satisfaction rates show that the schools are not doing a good job of preparing their applicants to become law school students. The high level of dissatisfaction among attorneys just strengthens the point.

I attended a conference of law school advisors about 8 years ago. The keynote was given by a local law school dean who railed against the rankings and complemented those in attendence on their holistic approach to law school admissions. The audience, pleased with themselves, nodded in agreement and basked in the appreciation and flattery.

The next session was a panel discussion on issues in admissions with a lot of give-and-take with the audience. It focused ENTIRELY on GPA and LSAT. "Holistic" went out the window, seemingly having departed wiht the dean.

The emperor is wearing no clothes.

[Vera]

Law School Admission Question:

I am a Cuban-American woman, living in California, 40 years old, accomplished career in education, single mom, Undergrad GPA 3.6, MBA GPA 3.4, MAE GPA 3.7, LSAT 155.

Do I stand a chance in getting a full tuition scholarship (the only way that I will be able to attend law school - I have kids to support) with my LSAT score?

I studied and took classes for the LSAT, BUT bottom line...that was my score.

Thanks for any feedback!

Vera :)

[Linda Abraham]

Vera,

yes, you do have a good chance at acceptance and possibly a full scholarship, depending on where you apply. If you are in Southern California, look into Loyola, Pepperdine, and Soutwestern. Just call them up and ask them about your chances of obtaining financial aid and the type of financial aid. I am not as familiar with the local law schools in northern CA, but the idea would be to contact schools where your LSAT is average or slightly above average. Your grades are fine.

Good luck!

[Debbie]

I have been receiving emails from law schools encouraging me to apply. Should I be flattered, or do they do this for everyone?

One school mentioned my LSAT score and one school my area of interest.

Thanks!
Debbie