2011 Law School Application Timeline

Ah, that magical twilight period. The time when we don’t know whether you’re reading our blog to see what’s going on with this application season or to gear up for the next one. Good thing I’ve got you covered either way. Here’s a timeline for those of you finishing up your application season (lucky bastards) and those who still have a long road ahead (and that’s not even counting law school).

FEBRUARY

You’re in one of two boats: still applying, or getting ready for next year.

If you’re still applying, now is the time to get on it. You should have everything ready to go when your score is released (March 4, most likely). Get your letters of rec in, finish those essays, and fill out all those mind-numbing forms.

If you’re applying next year and you’ve already taken this LSAT, I’m impressed. You must really want to go to law school. Start researching those schools in earnest and get a jump on letters of recommendation (if you have some professors in mind for it). If you don’t have any good letter writers in mind, start sucking up to some professors. Professional level sucking up. You should be way past brown-nosing. Also, if your soft factors (mostly extracurriculars) are lacking, sign up for a few clubs. Try to find one with upcoming elections, then weasel your way into a position no one else wants. I hear Secretary is good for this purpose.

If you’ve got the time, stop by a school or two that you’re interested in. Unless it’s in the Northeast. They’re still digging out.

MARCH

March 4 – Scores are reported for February. Get your damn applications in. Today. If they’re not, you’ve already lost the future.

MAY

May 3 – Register for the June 6 LSAT. You’ve got a few month to prepare and you’ll be doing nothing. This administration of the test will give you the best jump on the application season (if you haven’t taken February or earlier) while also allowing you a retake in October if things go terribly awry.

JUNE

June 6 – The big day. This is the LSAT that the super-prepared-but-not-anal-retentive students take. Go in relaxed, knowing that you’ve got a safety net known as the October LSAT. Then rock it’s face off.

June 29 – Play some air guitar as it is confirmed that you actually did rock the LSATs face off. If you didn’t, don’t worry. A nice power ballad will make you feel better. I’d recommend November Rain.

AUGUST

August 3 – Register for the October LSAT. Early. You should be waiting at your computer for registrations to open up; there will be a lot of people registering for this one, and you want to ensure a great testing center.

OCTOBER

October 1 – Another big day. Show up and laugh at the easy LSAT. This will discourage those around you, causing them to score lower and you to score higher (by about .00001%).

If you’ve already received a score you like, this is the first day to submit applications. You overachiever. I’d give you some advice, but you’ve already read our blog daily for the past 6 months and have an account with over 2,000 posts on TLS.

October 2-25 – Start working on your applications. Step one is always asking professors for letters of recommendation. They’ll take forever no matter what, but if you’re not early in the game, your letter will get pushed behind everyone else who wants something written by the school’s most prestigious professor.

Also, it’s time to start thinking about your personal statement. This might be a good time to call up Blueprint and get some law school application consulting, because we know you’re more interesting than you think you are.

October 26 – Scores are released. You’ll either be happy or sad. Either way, Halloween is less than a week away, so you’ll be drunk soon enough.

October 31 – If you’re taking the December LSAT, register before putting your costume on. Also, go with the wig. A Bieber haircut might seem more authentic, but you’ll have to live with it for awhile. Plus, you don’t want to be the guy (or girl, that might work better) at Floyd’s with the Bieber picture and the shame.

DECEMBER

December 3 – Hopefully, you’ve grown out of the Bieber haircut by now. Go in, answer some questions, and score well. I know you’ll do it; Never Say Never.

December 4 (3am) – Take some aspirin with a bottle of water and some Pepto Bismal. You’ll thank me in the morning.

December 4 (3pm) – Yes, the LSAT is over. Yes, you’re hung over. No, I don’t know who that is lying next to you, either.

December 5-Jan 6 – Finish up your applications so that they’re good to go when scores are released (notice a pattern here?).

JANUARY

January 1 – Make a New Year’s Resolution to enjoy every single second you have left of undergrad. Seriously. Don’t waste a day, especially on applications, since you’ve followed my advice and have everything completed by now.

January 6 – Scores are released. Are you still not saying never? Is Justin Bieber still relevant? I hope the answers to those two questions aren’t the same.

Article by Blueprint LSAT instructor and law school application consultant Matt Shinners.