WELCOME TO THE "EVERYTHING LAW SCHOOL" BLOG

I would like to welcome everyone to my blog on "everything law school".

Please take full advantage of the resources available to you here and feel free to comment or email me about anything you would like to add or see done to the page.

Any additional resources that could be added to this page will only create opportunities of knowledge for those seeking it.

-LAW BABY

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

INTRO TO LSAT - A BREAKDOWN

So you realized from previous posts that your GPA (grade point average) in college is going to play a role in your pursuance of law school.  With that out of the way lets get to know the crucial part of the admissions process that determines whether the fact that your friends and mother tell you "Law school is your calling..." will really come true.

The LSAT (Law School Admission Test) is known as many things amongst which terms like "The Gatekeeper", "The Factor", but also known as "The worst test you'll ever take", "I hate this thing" etc. 

First let me get this out of the way. The exam is not easy. It is long (4+HOURS), and it requires a lot of concentration and thought. This is not like your Psych 101 exam where you drank and partied the night before and came in the next day half-dead into the class and miraculously passed the exam with a C-. This will not be the case for you LSAT examination. It will take practice and long hours of studying and understanding to get the score you need on this exam.

The LSAT is given four times a year, usually in February, June, September and December. It consists of 5 timed sections of 35 minutes each. Of the 5 sections one is experimental. What that means is that the LSAC (the makers of the exam) get you to do some free labor for them by testing out questions that they might put on future exams. Of course they don't tell you which section is experimental so you have to focus and do each section given as if it were being counted. The test also has a Writing Sample portion which is NOT scored.

Here are the components: (these are the ones that they will score)

1.Two logical reasoning sections each with 24-26 questions.
2.One analytical reasoning [AKA logic games] section with 22-24 questions.
3.One reading comprehension section with 26-28 questions.

4.One unscored EXPERIMENTAL SECTION [could be games, logical reasoning, or reading comprehension]
5.One unscored Writing Sample which is timed.

The writing sample is usually a scenario which you are required to elaborate upon. The test makers want you to stay focused on the topic and either argue FOR or AGAINST the situation. The essay is then scanned and sent to law schools that you apply to. It could be used as a sample of your writing but being that you will be sending schools personal statements, addenda, and other written materials they will have plenty of your writing so the Writing Sample is not the most crucial thing on this exam. Not to mention that the Writing Sample is given as the last part of the exam and after 4 mind-crushing hours of testing your writing skills are probably affected for the worse.

Ok so we know now the components of the test. 

The test is scored on a scale and the resulting scores range from 120 being the lowest to 180 being the highest possible. Most students (about 55%) score between 145-158, and the rest of the percentage is divided and scores range below 145 or above 160. 

No matter what recruiters of schools, law students, websites tell you about the weight of the LSAT in the admission process, I will say this much: the test score is PROBABLY THE MOST important number entered into that admission "equation" along with the GPA, personal statement, letters of recommendation etc.

The next post will break down the components of the exam and discuss them in detail. 

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

YOU DECIDED, HUH?

So... you decided?

You really want to be a lawyer. You chose yourself a law related major in college and took all the classes that had anything to do with law or had the term "legal" or "law" mentioned in them. You spoke to your friends about your decision. They agreed! You have great people skills, communication skills, are loud and people listen to you. THEREFORE YOU SHOULD BE A LAWYER. IT'S YOUR CALLING.

Well...

You can forget all of that. While those dreams may suffice to get you some socialization in the first year of college, thats about as far as they will go. First and foremost, utilize the resources at hand. Get started by letting your academic college advisor that you plan on attaining a legal education. While that might not do much, other then the occasional "Good for you!", it may just open a small door to a bigger room. Most of the time schools have a pre-law club, or program or what have you. Do not get fooled! While often times these programs are a golden choice, one must be careful because they may just fill your day with pre-set schedules, and material that you often might not need. 

Keep in mind that law schools often look for people who are somewhat from a broad field of study. Therefore if you are thinking of going to law school, you might want to rethink that major in Bio-Molecular-Reactor-Building.  The pre-law programs often will have courses in English, Writing, Communications, Philosophy, Statistics, Accounting, Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Political and Government Studies. These courses of course could be chosen independently without needing to comfort to some "pre-law" defined schedules. This is where the idea of consulting the pre-law advisor and a general academic advisor comes in handy.

After speaking to advisors and devising a 4 year plan for success, start focusing on school work. One of the biggest mistakes I made in my college career was to have partied way TOO MUCH. Yes there is such thing! And the consequences are often fatal. No one is telling you to live in the library, but you should at least know where the library is. 

The first two years of college are the most important. Most schools have some sort of general requirements that want you to fulfill. These requirements are your general formation. They serve a very crucial purpose for those aspiring to be legal minds. They develop that broad field of study mentioned above that law schools look for. So indeed, pay attention in your Accounting 101 class, and your Philosophy 100 class because courses like those will come in handy.

The second half of your college career consists of your major and minor [if any] and electives. You take classes pertaining to what you want to deepen your study in. This is why taking your first two years seriously also is important - it develops your enjoyment to particular field of study through exposure to multitudes, and in turn helps you make a decision for a major. These two last years could be considered less worrisome but that would be a mistake. You need be on guard throughout your collegiate career, for this is an important skill in law school. 

My friends in law school when I was a freshman in college always gave the same advice:  "Cut the partying down, man, because this education is no joke". Of course I didn't listen. As a matter of fact I wanted to disprove them by showing that one can party hardcore and still do well in school and go to a decent law school. Well that didn't quite happen. [I'm going to leave my personal story for another post.]

So I would like to pass on that advice "CUT DOWN ON THE PARTYING, BECAUSE LEGAL EDUCATION IS NO JOKE". 

In future posts I will discuss steps that have been proven efficient for law school admission during your senior year in college. 

Monday, October 27, 2008

HOW I GOT STARTED

A little bit of background...

First and foremost allow me to say that I AM NOT IN LAW SCHOOL (not yet at least) and any advice deduced or deliberately given herein is strictly based on a personal experience. While I don't want to sound like a misleading infomercial - YOUR RESULTS MAY VARY - however parts of what I have experienced and currently experiencing are [at least i believe they are] universally applicable.

With that out of the way...
I started thinking about a legal education very early in my life, however thinking and doing are completely separate things. Only this summer was I ready to set up a mode of attack for gaining entry into the legal education world. While it is not an easy task, it is feasible in all accounts. A crucial thing to keep in mind is determination and motivation. 

For me the determination came after the motivation. While I have numerous friends who are in law schools all around the country, I am still baffled sometimes by their strong will and perseverance to continue. Law school is no college education, and not to be taken lightly. Toward the end of this summer I had a inspirational conversation with a very good friend of mine regarding law school. While he had been studying for the LSAT for quite sometime, I had been enjoying all aspects of life. His conversation focused on the aspect of motivation. He said that the exam played a major role in the admission process and that it was the "gatekeeper" of law school admission. While at first surprised and skeptical I researched the topic on my own and found his statements to be true. He also said that in order to succeed in this exam, the work must parallel the commitment.

The motivational factor for was the fact of seeing someone to be so determined to achieve a goal. So a month later I decided that it was time. Time to achieve my dream and succeed. I purchased materials (which will be discussed in a later article) and began slowly studying for the exam.

The equation one must keep in mind is Motivation + Determination = Success. The examination requires massive concentration and critical and analytical thought. One must be determined to succeed, motivated to further his/her dream and absolutely ready to give up some parts of their social life.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

FIRST POST

It has been stated that blogging is about a particular calling, which should be some topic which is something that one is particularly passionate about. Fortunately, while I am particularly passionate about many things, I have tried blogging about many topics that I am involved in. However, on many occasions, the passion for those topics (DJ-ing, digital printing, t-shirt making, etc), only recently have I discovered what it truly means to be passionate about a topic.
The idea to pursue a legal education was something that lurked in my mind since the times of childhood. I always had a interest in legal aspects of issues, argumentation, logical following etc. Unfortunately interest doesn't necessarily parallels intelligence or a "gifted" perspective to a particular topic. I discovered this recently when I decided to seriously pursue my legal education.

First I found out what the requirements, and the pre-requisites are, and then I was presented with the infamous L.S.A.T obstacle.
This test is used by virtually by all law schools across the country as a hefty predictor of the performance in the first year of law school. Apart from that, it plays a major defining role in the admission process. The score is weighed into heavy account when law schools choose from a pool of applicants for admission.
The exam itself was a massive motivator for this blog. I decided that by writing out the obstacles I have faced and the particular events leading and following this exam would somewhat [even if in small part] help those who aspire a law school education.

This is strictly an introduction of what is to come. In future articles I will describe in detail the advice I have gathered from the law school exam known as the L.S.A.T as well as techniques, strategies and lessons for helping aspiring legal minds.

Thank you for reading this introduction. I certainly hope to hear from anyone with anything to add. The GOAL FOR THIS BLOG WILL BE TO BRING TOGETHER A FREE SUBSTANTIAL PREPARATION for an environment demanding analytical, logical and critical thinking and writing skills, which is what law school education is.

-LAW BABY