University of Michigan Law School
Office of Admissions and Financial Aid
Jeffries Hall, Suite 2200
701 South State Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-3091
734.764.0537
law.jd.admissions@umich.edu
law.umich.edu
JD APPLICATION FOR 2025-2026 ADMISSIONS SEASON
The following instructions are for JD applicants for the 2026 first-year entering class. They pertain to both the regular- and early-decision processes, as well as to dual-degree programs with other University of Michigan schools. (Those applying as transfer or visitor students should use the application designed specifically for those processes.)
INTRODUCTION
We know that applying to law school can be daunting, and the University of Michigan Law School Admissions Office welcomes having the opportunity to demystify the application process whenever possible. Please reach out to us (by phone at 734.764.0537 or by email to law.jd.admissions@umich.edu) with any questions, at any point; our office hours are Monday through Friday, 8AM to 5PM, Eastern time. We are also happy to meet with applicants, alone or in small groups, to answer general questions about the Law School and the application process. (We do not, however, perform evaluative interviews.) We offer student-led tours when classes are in session and maintain a list of classes that visitors are welcome to attend. We encourage applicants who plan to visit Ann Arbor to contact the Admissions Office for appointments (or register online at our website).
You will be able to keep track of your application via our applicant portal, but we will also inform you by email when (1) we have received your application (usually within 5 days of submission to LSAC); (2) we begin processing your application (usually within 5-7 days of our receiving your Credential Assembly Service, or CAS, report from LSAC); and (3) we have made an admission decision. Please be sure to add us to your safe-senders list in your email program so that our emails to you do not get filtered into your spam folder.
Most applicants will receive a decision within 10 weeks of their application becoming complete, and we typically finish our initial admissions decisions by mid-April.
For more information and FAQ about the application process, please refer to our website.
APPLICATION PROCESS
Applicants can access and view our application for the 2025-2026 admissions season beginning in early August, and can submit applications beginning Monday, August 25, 2025. Our regular-decision deadline is February 28, 2026, and filing of the application form alone is sufficient to meet that deadline. (See below for a discussion of our early-decision timeline.) Because we use a rolling admissions process (that is, we review applications in the order in which they are completed), we encourage applicants to submit their application form and all supporting documentation in advance of the deadline, if possible. Applicants who submit supporting materials after the February 28 deadline may be at a disadvantage.
We consider an applicant's file complete once we have received the application for admission, the $75 application fee (or waiver), one letter of recommendation, a résumé, the personal statement, and a CAS report (also known as a Law School Report), including an LSAT writing sample. More information about each of these elements is available below. Once an application is complete, we will begin our holistic review, in accordance with our admissions policy. You are responsible for ensuring that all materials reach us; we will not review incomplete applications.
LSAT/CAS REGISTRATION
All applicants must register with the Law School Admission Council's Credential Assembly Service. We require all applicants to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), except for those already enrolled in a graduate program in another school at the University of Michigan; for those applicants, we will accept a GRE, GMAT, or MCAT score in lieu of an LSAT score. We recognize, further, that many University of Michigan graduate and professional programs do not require standardized test scores; while we consider standardized testing to be an informative aspect to the application process, we will waive this requirement for those applicants enrolled in another University of Michigan program who do not have a graduate or professional test score.
Law School Admission Test (LSAT)
The LSAT is scheduled to be offered eight times between August 2025 and June 2026. We recommend that applicants take the test by January of the calendar year in which admission is sought. In other words, applicants to Michigan's entering class of 2026 are best-served by taking the LSAT no later than January 2026. Applicants who submit scores from February 2026 or later may hinder their chances of admission because their applications will not be completed until after our deadline has passed. LSAT scores remain valid for five years, so during the 2025-2026 admissions season, applicants must submit a score from June 2020 or later.
Please note that as a general matter, we are not able to delay our application review in order to wait for an additional LSAT score. If you want to ensure that we do not make a decision on your application until we have received your latest score, you should wait to submit your application until about a week before the relevant score is due to be released.
LSAT takers will be able to complete LSAT Writing, a proctored, on-demand writing exam, on their own computers, at a time and place of their choosing, either shortly prior to or after the completion of the rest of the LSAT exam. Those who already have a writing sample on file from a previous exam do not need to submit additional samples, although they may do so if they wish. We consider an application complete once we have one LSAT Writing sample.
Registration with Credential Assembly Service (CAS)
CAS registration directs LSAC to compile a number of LSAC Law School Reports to be sent, upon request, to the law schools to which you apply. Law School Reports include an undergraduate academic summary, all LSAT scores and writing samples, and copies of all transcripts submitted to CAS.
Transcripts
For every US and Canadian undergraduate institution you have attended, you must request that transcripts be sent directly to LSAC. CAS will summarize the transcripts and send a summary report, along with copies of all transcripts, to each law school to which you apply. (Please note: If you receive additional grades after applying, you should submit your updated transcript to LSAC, which will in turn send us an updated report.) If you attended an international undergraduate institution, you should arrange to have your transcript mailed to LSAC, Box 2000-M, 662 Penn Street, Newtown, PA 18940-0993; the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) will then complete a Foreign Credential Evaluation, which LSAC will incorporate into your Law School Report. If, however, you completed international work through a study abroad, consortium, or exchange program sponsored by a US or Canadian institution, and the home campus transcript clearly indicates that work, you do not need to provide copies of the international transcript. (Please be aware that there can be significant delays in processing international transcript requests.)
Finally, if you have undertaken graduate work, you must request that your graduate institution(s) send official graduate school transcript(s) directly to LSAC.
HOW TO APPLY
Applicants use the LSAC FlexApp to apply. Despite our efforts to be as transparent as possible in these instructions and in the form itself, we think it's inevitable that our questions on the FlexApp will occasionally create uncertainty for the applicant, so we provide an annotated version with all the tips and tricks we can think of. This version is available in the "Forms" section of our LSAC application, as well as on our website.
Also, please note: While providing your Social Security number on the application form is entirely optional, you must provide it to us in order to be processed for federal financial aid, including loans. Therefore, if you do not wish to include the number on your admissions application but do intend to submit the FAFSA, please contact our Financial Aid Office (734.764.5289 or lawfinaid@umich.edu) to discuss.
APPLICATION FEE
All applications for admission must be accompanied either by a $75 application fee or by a fee waiver. We prefer that you pay the application fee with a credit card via LSAC. If you cannot use a credit card though, you may instead mail us a check drawn on a US bank, made payable to the University of Michigan. We cannot accept cash.
We offer several types of application fee waivers. We waive the application fees of candidates who meet any of the following criteria:
- US military members and veterans
- Corps members and alumni of City Year, AmeriCorps, and Teach for America
- Applicants who demonstrate serious financial hardship (including, but not limited to, any candidate who receives an LSAC Fee Waiver)
To request a fee waiver based on any of these criteria, please visit this page on our website. If your request is granted, we will email you a fee waiver coupon number that can be entered on the payment page at the time you transmit your application through LSAC. Please be assured that requesting a fee waiver has no bearing on our admissions decisions; the application reviewers will not have that information available to them. We employ a need-blind admissions process and welcome and encourage applicants from all socioeconomic backgrounds.
We also give application fee waivers through LSAC's Candidate Referral Service, based on candidates' LSATs and UGPAs. We send letters and emails to recipients to make them aware they've been selected, and the waiver will appear automatically in LSAC's application checkout. To be considered for a CRS waiver, you must have an active CRS account indicating your intended enrollment year, as well as both an LSAT score and either a self-reported or an LSAC-calculated UGPA.
LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION
Although we require only one letter of recommendation, we encourage you to submit three. Typically, the most helpful recommendations are from undergraduate or graduate faculty, but letters from employers, particularly for candidates with significant work experience, can provide extremely informative input as well. Recommendations from coaches, volunteer supervisors, or others who know you well and have had the opportunity to assess your abilities and contributions may also be worthwhile additions. Personal recommendations, from family friends or others, are generally not helpful.
Letters of recommendation are most informative when they discuss the extent and nature of the recommender's acquaintance with the applicant and comment candidly on as many of the following subjects as possible: the applicant's intellectual and scholarship abilities, capacity for original thought, 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.
We prefer to receive letters of recommendation via the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service. Each letter of recommendation should be accompanied by the LSAC form declaring the applicant's intent regarding access to the letter.
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS: PERSONAL STATEMENT, OPTIONAL ESSAYS, AND ADDENDA
The University of Michigan Law School has long understood that enrolling students with a broad range of perspectives and experiences generates a vibrant culture of comprehensive debate and discussion. Written submissions are an extremely helpful tool for evaluating potential contributions to our community. Please note that for all written submissions, we expect that the work is the applicant's own, meaning that the ideas and expressions originated with the applicant, and that the applicant wrote all drafts and the final product. In general, applicants ought not use ChatGPT or other generative artificial intelligence tools as part of their drafting process. (There is one exception to this rule, however, discussed below under "Supplemental Essays.") Applicants are nonetheless welcome to use electronic tools (like Grammarly or spellcheck), or may, similarly, ask pre-law advisors, mentors, friends, or others for basic proofreading assistance and general feedback and critiques. At the end of the day, you should feel comfortable saying "yes" if asked the question, "Is this essay your own work?"
For ease of reading, please use double-spacing and at least an 11-point font.
Personal Statement
We require a personal statement. For detailed guidance on how to approach this piece of writing, please refer to the Personal Statement page of the Attachments section. While we do not impose a page or word limit for the personal statement, we value clear and concise writing; most personal statements are between two and four pages.
Supplemental Essays
Supplemental essays allow you an opportunity to provide us with relevant information that you were not able to include elsewhere in your application materials, as well as to further showcase your writing skills. To that end, we provide ten different directed prompts on a variety of topics. If you think writing on any of the topics suggested would help us get a better sense of you, we encourage you to consider submitting your responses to one or two (but no more). Each essay should be between one and two pages, and should include the number of the prompt you are addressing at the top of the essay. For all but one of these prompts, our rule against using generative AI pertains; one prompt, however, is specifically designed to be used with AI tools, and if you choose to answer it, you must use generative AI.
Addenda
If there is any information in your application you wish to clarify (for example, particular grades; a history of standardized testing that under-predicts your academic performance; gaps in employment) you may submit that information in the Attachments section under Addendum. Please note that if you answer either of our conduct questions in the affirmative, you must submit a supplemental statement providing complete details. You may submit as many addenda as you need.
EARLY DECISION PROGRAM
We offer a binding Early Decision program for applicants who have considered and investigated their law school options carefully and are confident that the University of Michigan Law School is their clear first choice, regardless of financial considerations. In return for the Law School's commitment to give an Early Decision applicant a decision by December 15, applicants must restrict their law school choices and commit, at the time of application, to attend Michigan Law School if admitted. Applicants to our Early Decision program may apply to other law schools, but may not apply to any other binding early decision programs. If admitted under the Early Decision program, applicants must withdraw any existing applications to other law schools (regardless of the status of those applications), as well as not initiate any new applications. While we evaluate Early Decision candidates according to the same selection criteria that apply to all candidates, we take their clear enthusiasm for Michigan Law School into account as a positive factor in our evaluation.
Binding Early Decision programs are not appropriate for everyone, and we urge you to consider carefully before you apply. Students admitted under these programs restrict their law school choice in return for the certainty of learning an admission decision earlier than is typical. While under our Early Decision program, applicants are eligible for merit- and need-based financial grants on the same terms as every other admitted student, students for whom financial aid considerations are paramount are not well-suited for this program: Financial aid decisions are not made until later in the season, and those admitted under Early Decision will not have an opportunity to compare awards from other schools. Likewise, students who have not had an opportunity to research law schools thoroughly prior to applying may end up being dissatisfied at having restricted their choices.
Early Decision applications must be submitted by November 15. Early Decision applicants must take the LSAT no later than the October administration, and must register with LSAC's Credential Assembly Service no later than October 10. The Admissions Office must receive all application components by the deadline, with the exception that the LSAC Law School Report and LSAT score may not be available until later if applicants sat for the October LSAT administration. We will automatically consider Early Decision applications that are incomplete by the deadline as part of the regular admissions process, and we will inform applicants accordingly. Early Decision applicants must indicate on the application form that they are applying for the binding program by checking the Early Decision box, as well as by signing the Early Decision certification.
Applicants admitted via Early Decision will be required to submit a $600 deposit by January 15.
REAPPLYING
If you have applied to the University of Michigan Law School in a previous admissions season and are interested in reapplying, we appreciate your continued interest and we would be pleased to receive your new application. Please be assured that your previous application does not place you at any disadvantage. You will be competing against our new pool of applicants on an equal footing. To reapply, you must submit a new application form and a $75 application fee, and must re-register or maintain your registration with CAS, even if you do not plan to retake the LSAT. If you completed further coursework since your previous application, you should have updated official transcripts sent from your college or university directly to CAS.
In addition, you must resubmit all supplemental materials (that is, essay(s), résumé, addenda) with your new application, even if the content of those documents has not changed. Thus, if you wish, you may resubmit your prior essays; we strongly suggest, however, that you consider submitting new or refreshed writing. Likewise, we encourage you to provide us with any new information you think would help us evaluate your qualifications. Finally, you are welcome to re-use your prior letters of recommendation or to submit new ones; we will review any letters that you have assigned through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service for the current admissions season.
APPLICANTS WITH DISABILITIES
Michigan Law does not discriminate against applicants with disabilities. Applicants who wish to should feel welcome to provide information about their disabilities (whether physical disabilities, learning disabilities, or other conditions) in the personal statement or an optional essay, or in a separate addendum. Any information an applicant chooses to provide will be used to help us understand the applicant's achievements and put them in context, as one of many factors we consider in evaluating the application. We reach out to every applicant who is admitted, regardless of whether they have disclosed a disability during the admissions process, to ensure that we provide appropriate accommodations for the Law School's academic programs as well as examinations.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY POLICY
The University of Michigan Law School, as an equal opportunity employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination. The University of Michigan Law School is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, height, weight, military or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.
Ethan Madore