Personal Statement: At Mercer Law, we seek a student body with varied backgrounds, experiences, and interests. Your personal statement provides an opportunity for you to communicate valuable information about yourself that will aid us in reaching a decision. Think broadly about what you might wish to convey and how you might best convey it. You might write about your career goals, background, or identity. You might elaborate on significant life experiences, unique skills, and abilities, or what inspired you to seek a law degree. Why do you wish to attend Mercer Law? You might wish to address significant obstacles met and overcome. You might address socioeconomic challenges, atypical backgrounds, or educational paths, or experiences and perspectives relating to discrimination, disadvantage, or disability. Any of these subjects, and many more, could be an appropriate basis to communicate valuable information about yourself. The Admissions Committee will also consider your personal statement as a writing sample.

In addition to the required personal statement, you may wish to provide additional information about yourself that you were unable to provide elsewhere. You might wish to discuss how you have overcome a disadvantage or obstacle and how that might promise success in law school and in the profession. How will your perspective, experience, voice, contribute uniquely to the classroom and community? Feel free to address any factors or attributes you consider important and relevant.

The Woodruff Scholarship essay and the admission application must be completed and received in the admissions office no later than December 15. This brief form may be used to apply for the scholarship covering full tuition and an annual stipend of $5,000. It involves the submission of an essay on the topic of legal ethics.

PLEASE SUBMIT A BRIEF ESSAY ON THE FOLLOWING TOPIC (one or two pages). DO NOT FORGET TO INCLUDE YOUR NAME AND LSAC ACCOUNT NUMBER.

Topic: Lawyers are expressly prohibited by ethics rules from engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation. Yet, sometimes, lawyers conducting investigations leading to prosecution do engage in deceit and misrepresentation as part of these investigations. For example, lawyers working for the government often hire "testers" to apply for jobs or housing to uncover illegal discrimination. Lawyers working for the government will instruct these testers to misrepresent their credentials or desire for the job or house and, in doing so, also cause innocent parties ? parties who do not discriminate ? to incur the costs involved in processing phony applications. Should this sort of conduct be prohibited? If so, why? If not, why not? If some should be permitted and some not, where would you draw the line and why?

Please attach your resume.

In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners. Visit www.ncbex.org. Please take your time and answer these questions carefully. Each question must be answered yes or no before your application will be processed.

If your answer is yes to any of the following questions, you must provide a complete explanation. Because of the high ethical standards to which lawyers are held, the failure to disclose an act or event such as the ones described below is often more significant and leads to more serious consequences than the act or event itself. Failure to provide truthful or complete answers or failure to inform the Admissions Office of any changes to answers may result in denial of admission, revocation of admission or disciplinary action by the Law School, or denial of permission to practice law by the state in which you seek admission.

In accordance with standard requirements for bar admission, you must disclose each instance even though the charges may have been dismissed or you were acquitted or allowed to plead nolo condendere or adjudication was withheld or a conviction was reversed, set aside, or vacated or the record sealed or expunged regardless of whether you have been told by anyone, including a judge or a lawyer, that you need not disclose any such instance.

In addition to the character and fitness requirements listed above, any conduct or behavior that could call into question your ability to practice law in a competent, ethical, and professional manner, including the inappropriate use of social media, may result in denial or revocation of admission.

1. Have you ever been detained, arrested, formally accused, cited, or prosecuted for the violation of any law (excluding traffic offenses)?

2. Has your driver's license ever been suspended or revoked? Have you ever been charged with or cited for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs?

3. Excluding parking violations, have you been cited or charged with more than five traffic violations within the past five years (including violations to which you were allowed to enter a "nolo contendere" plea)?

4. Have you ever been dropped, suspended, warned, placed on scholastic or disciplinary probation, expelled, or requested to resign from any college, university, or law school, or otherwise subjected to discipline by any such institution, or requested or advised by any such institution to discontinue your studies therein? Please review all transcripts before answering.

5. Have you ever been formally charged with plagiarism, cheating, lying, or otherwise taking unfair advantage of fellow students at any college, university, or law school you attended or are presently attending?

6. Regardless of whether the record has been expunged, cancelled, or annulled, or whether no record was made, have you ever been subject to proceedings before a school honor court or council (or any similar body?)

7. Excluding a license to practice law, have you ever applied for a state or local license in order to pursue a career, such as real estate license, a professional license, etc.?

Mercer University School of Law

Office of Admissions and Financial Aid

1021 Georgia Avenue

Macon, GA 31207

478.301.2605

lawadmissions@mercer.edu

INTRODUCTION

At Mercer Law, we seek a student body with varied backgrounds, experiences, and interests. We seek to produce genuinely good lawyers in an ethical and pragmatic sense who are well-equipped to begin their careers in the practice of law. By cultivating a community of respect, our graduates are equipped to act ethically, effectively, and with excellence in the many forms of service required of lawyers.

On September 1, Mercer Law begins accepting applications from prospective students wishing to begin their studies in the fall semester. Acceptance and scholarship decisions begin in early fall. Applicants are encouraged to complete their file by January 15 to receive the timeliest consideration.

You will find information below about how to apply to Mercer Law. Please reach out to us with any questions or concerns. We offer student-led tours and allow visitors to attend a first-year class during the fall and spring semesters.

You will be able to track your application on our online status checker, and we will inform you by email when we have received your application and when a decision is rendered. Please be sure to add us to your safe-senders list in your email program so that our emails do not get sent to your spam folder.

For more information, please visit our website.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Complete Application through LSAC. We do not charge an application fee.

Personal Statement: Your personal statement provides an opportunity for you to communicate valuable information about yourself that will aid us in reaching a decision. Think broadly about what you might wish to convey and how you might best convey it. You might write about your career goals, background, or identity. You might elaborate on significant life experiences, unique skills, and abilities. You may wish to address socioeconomic challenges, atypical backgrounds, education paths, or perspectives that informed your path to law school, and specifically Mercer Law School. Any of these subjects, and many more, could be an appropriate basis to communicate valuable information about yourself. The Admissions Committee will also review your personal statement as a writing sample.

Optional Supplemental Essay: In addition to the required personal statement, you may wish to provide additional information about yourself that you were unable to provide elsewhere. You might wish to discuss how you have overcome a disadvantage or obstacle and how that might indicate success in law school and in the profession. How will your perspective, experiences, voice, contribute uniquely to the classroom and community? Feel free to address any factors or attributes you consider important and relevant.

Résumé: You must provide a resume with your application materials. The resume should be between 1-2 pages. The following sections must be included: Contact Information, Previous Education, Professional Experience. You may also include: Skills, Community and Volunteer Work, Awards and Honors, Affiliations and/or Memberships, Publications or Presentations, and Interest or Hobbies.

Two Letters of Recommendation: Please have your letters of recommendation submitted through the LSAC letter of recommendation service. Typically, the most helpful recommendations are from faculty, but letters from employers, particularly if you have significant work experience, can provide helpful information as well. Recommendations are most informative when they discuss the extent and nature of the recommender's acquaintance with you and comment candidly on as many of the following subjects as possible: intellectual and scholarly abilities, ability to analyze and critically assess information, quality of oral and written expression, growth potential, achievements, and personality, including interactions with peers and with the recommender. Please do not use family members as recommenders.

LSAT/GRE: Applicants must take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). To register for the LSAT, visit the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) at 215-968-1001 or LSAC.org. We will not review your file until we receive your LSAT score and writing sample, and we will not consider a test score more than 5 years old. If you plan to apply with a GRE score rather than the LSAT, register for the GRE at the Educational Testing Service (ETS). To submit your GRE score, log into your ETS account and select Mercer University School of Law using ETS institution code: 4809. You must submit all GRE scores from the past five (5) years.

Register with Credential Assembly Service (CAS): Whether you choose the LSAT or GRE, you must register with the Credential Assembly Service, a service of LSAC that collects and analyzes academic data and transcripts. You must arrange to have a transcript submitted to LSAC from every undergraduate and graduate college or university you have attended. Your CAS registration authorizes LSAC to compile your application documents and send CAS reports to the law schools where you apply.

Reminder: If you take the LSAT, LSAC will provide your score to us, and it will be considered when we review your application. If you take the LSAT after being admitted with a GRE score only, Mercer Law reserves the right to revisit your file and rescind the offer of admission.

Bachelor's Degree Required: You must have a bachelor's degree prior to enrollment.

Final Academic Transcript Required: If admitted and prior to enrolling, you must have a final academic transcript sent to LSAC, which reflects your undergraduate degree and date conferred. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in your being withdrawn from Mercer Law.

For more information about Mercer Law School, including Consumer Information (ABA Required Disclosures), please visit our website.

Mercer University School of Law is approved by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association, 321 North Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60654, 312-988-6738.

IMPORTANT ADMISSION AND SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINES

December 15

George Woodruff Scholarship essay deadline. We award four full-tuition scholarships plus a $5000 per year stipend to four incoming students each year. You must have your admissions file and Woodruff essay completed and submitted to the admissions office by December 15 to be considered for this scholarship.

January 15

Merit scholarship priority deadline.

May 1

Priority deadline for completion of financial aid file (if applying for student loans).

June 1

Admissions Application Deadline.

July 1

Transfer and Transient application and completion deadline.

FOREIGN EDUCATED APPLICANTS

Mercer Law requires that foreign transcripts be submitted through the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) Credential Assembly Service. If you completed more than one year of postsecondary work outside the US (including its territories) or Canada, you must use this service for the evaluation of your foreign transcripts. This service is included in the Credential Assembly Service registration fee. An International Credential Evaluation will be completed by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers, which will be incorporated into your law school report. Applicants whose native language is not English, and whose undergraduate education is from outside the US, are required to submit a Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score. If this applies to you, you must contact the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and request that your TOEFL score be sent to LSAC. Your score will be included in the credential evaluation document that will be included in your law school report.

DECISION FACTORS

We conduct a holistic review of many factors related to an applicant's potential for success in law school and potential to become a competent and ethical attorney. We believe that enrolling students with a wide range of experiences, abilities, perspectives, accomplishments, skills, goals, and interests enhances the quality of the conversations in our classrooms and better prepares attorneys to work with clients from corporations to the indigent. Some of these factors include The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or Graduate Record Examination (GRE), undergraduate course of study and grade point average, letters of recommendation, personal statement, postgraduate work, work experience, extracurricular activities, academic distinctions or honors, community and military service, leadership ability, character and fitness, relevant demonstrated skills, obstacles overcome, and all other relevant background information will be evaluated.

TRANSFER AND TRANSIENT STUDENTS

Transfer applicants in good academic standing at another ABA-accredited law school should apply and complete their file by July 1. Transfer applicants must apply through LSAC and currently be registered with the Credential Assembly Service (CAS). Before a transfer application will be evaluated, applicants must have an updated CAS report, including all transcripts from any institution attended and a final law school transcript with grades reflected from the completed first year. In addition to the standard application requirements, class rank and a letter of good standing should be sent directly to Mercer Law's Admissions Office after completion of the first year of law school. The letters of recommendation should be submitted from law school professors. The personal statement should include the reason for transfer. Transfer applicants must have completed their first year of law school and be in the top half of their class.

Mercer Law will only accept credit earned at another ABA-accredited law school. The Law School will accept credit for courses when the grades received equal or exceed the graduation average required by the school where the student has taken the courses. When the Law School accepts credit for courses taken at another school, the grades will be recorded as "S" and will not be computed into a student's grade point average at Mercer Law School. In addition to meeting the other requirements for graduation, transfer students must complete at least four semesters at Mercer Law. No more than two semesters of academic credit can be transferred from schools that are not members of the Association of American Law Schools.

Transient applicants must apply through LSAC, submit a personal statement, and two letters of recommendation. Transient applicants must be registered with LSAC Credential Assembly Service, have an updated CAS report with transcripts from any institution attended, and submit a letter from the home law school approving visiting status and confirming good standing.

JOINT JD/MBA PROGRAM

Mercer Law and Mercer's Stetson-Hatcher School of Business offer a program leading to both the Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration degrees. Both schools have collaborated to offer strong combined programs in law and business. The MBA program offers a flexible evening format and an intimate graduate setting, providing students with an opportunity to develop strong connections with each other, the faculty, and the business community. With its focus on ethical leadership and problem-solving skills, Mercer's MBA program enables students to make connections between business theory and its practical application. Each school must separately admit the applicant. Neither the JD nor MBA degree will be awarded to a student until the student has completed the requirements set forth in the joint program for both degrees.

For more information on the JD/MBA program, please visit our website.

FINANCIAL AID

Approximately 98 percent of Mercer Law students receive some form of financial aid. Financial aid is awarded in the form of merit and need-based scholarships, student loans (federal and private), work-study, vocational-rehabilitation benefits, and other programs. Mercer Law's priority deadline for completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is May 1.

GEORGE W. WOODRUFF SCHOLARSHIP

Four members of each entering class are designated George W. Woodruff Scholars. This prestigious scholarship covers full tuition as well as a $5,000 annual stipend for books and living expenses. To be considered for this scholarship, the Woodruff Scholarship essay and admissions file must be completed and received by Mercer Law no later than December 15.

The George W. Woodruff Scholarship was created to ensure the continuation of the tradition of excellence at Mercer. We are looking for candidates whose exceptional personal attributes, as well as academic credentials, indicate that they will make an extraordinary contribution to Mercer Law and to the legal profession. Finalists are brought to the campus for interviews with Mercer's faculty and alumni. This scholarship will be renewed for the student's 2nd and 3rd years if the student remains in good academic standing (78 average and above).

Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy

Mercer Law is committed to maintaining a fair and respectful environment for living, work, and study. To that end, and in accordance with federal, state and local law and the University's Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Policy, the University prohibits harassment of or discrimination against any person because of race, color, national or ethnic origin, disability, marital status, veteran status, sex (including pregnancy, child birth or a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, age, or religion (except in limited circumstances where religious preference is permitted by law), or any other protected status or characteristic as defined by law.

Incidents of unlawful harassment and discrimination will be met with appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal or expulsion from Mercer Law. The University will follow the Sexual Misconduct Policy (Title IX Policy). All allegations of discrimination and harassment not covered by the University's Sexual Misconduct Policy, based on the protected categories outlined above, will be handled pursuant to this policy.

For more information contact Human Resources, phone 478-301-2786, whaley_ce@mercer.edu or the Title IX Coordinator, Office of Equity and Compliance, phone 478-301-2788, stellato_sl@mercer.edu, 1501 Mercer University Drive, Macon, Georgia 31207. The Sexual Misconduct Policy (Title IX Policy) and the Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment policy may be found at https://equityandcompliance.mercer.edu/.