In regard for the early decisions, in a situation that where a candidate binds to an early decision to a school but finds out they did not get enough aid to cover full cost. What would you say the candidate decide what to do next?

It is not advisable to apply to a binding early decision program that does not have guaranteed scholarship if you know that you have to receive a certain amount to make attendance feasible for you. Doing so leaves you in a position without options and often you receive this decision prior to any financial offers from other schools that you can use to justify an award or increase in scholarship award should one be offered. In applying to a binding early decision program, you are communicating to that school that they are your top choice and that you will immediately commit and withdraw all other applications if admitted regardless of financial offering. Further, most binding early decision programs do not offer scholarship awards that cover full cost. If that's what you need, then binding early decision is likely not the best option for you.

Should reapplicants address the reason why they didn’t commit the previous cycle in an additional statement? What would you recommend to reapplicants?

Often, applicants will address their status as a reapplicant in a Why X School statement. Alternatively, if a school doesn't accept a Why X statement but they do ask specifically about why you're attracted to their program or how you'll engage to their community as a part of their PS prompt, you can address the fact that you are a reapplicant there. Without context, there can definitely be question marks about why you opted not to commit if previously offered admission.

If you have a professional letter of rec, does it need to be on employer letterhead?

Ideally, yes.

There was mention that there’s no limit on academic letters unless you’ve been out of school a long time. Can she speak more to that? What if you’ve been out of school for 5 years and realistically cannot get an academic LoR? Will professional letters suffice in that scenario?

So if you obtained LORs when you graduated or can obtain academic LORs still, AOs will gladly receive them because these attest to you within an academic setting. That being said, if you are 5+ years out of school, having only professional letters is typically acceptable. If you are only 2 years out, or anywhere less than 5 years out, some law schools will require an academic letter.

If I finished my bachelor’s degree a year ago, but my professors are out of office and I can’t get an academic letter of recommendation, can I have two professional ones instead?

Most law schools will expect at least one academic LOR if you've only been out of undergrad for a year. The professional LORs will be helpful, but remember that you're applying to a school, so the academic perspective is important.

If I played a college sport, would it help to get a letter of recommendation from a coach as well? (Given that sports mentality is another aspect of personality and values)

In my experience, admissions committees focus the vast majority of their attention on academic or professional letters only.

Does it look bad to have an undergrad LoR but no graduate school LoR?

Given the recency of the graduate program, it may seem a little odd not to have an academic letter from your graduate program, but if you have academic and professional letters overall, you've covered your bases. I'd be more concerned if you went to undergrad and grad school and didn't have any academic letters submitted.

How should we ask for fee waviers? And how early can we start asking for them?

Once the application opens, candidates can typically begin requesting fee waivers; however, you'll want to pay close attention to schools' websites, as some have specific fee waiver programs and have instructions posted on how to apply for them. If a school doesn't have a program or request instructions posted, you can email their office to request one. Some schools may ask for your stats if they offer merit-based fee waivers, while some will honor a fee waiver request if you've been approved for LSAC fee waivers.

If I've been out of school for two years, will schools expect a professional reference? I'm scared of being penalized by my current employer, and simultaneously know that I can get 2-3 strong academic references.

Admissions teams are aware that sometimes a candidate cannot ask their current employer for a letter for fear of adverse consequences. Strong academic letters are typically sufficient, though occasionally there will be a school that asks specifically for a professional letter. In those instances, you can share with that school your circumstances and consider asking a supervisor from a former job.

How many schools can you apply early action to that are binding? What happens if you're accepted into both?

Typically, you can only apply to one binding program at a time. If you are then rejected from a binding program, you could feasibly apply to another binding program assuming you are still within the deadline. You'll want to read the requirements closely to see what limitations are placed on the other types of applications you can submit.

Do you have any advice for reapplicants? Especially those that were waitlisted the first time - aside from raising LSAT scores, how can we give our applications the boost it needs this time around?

The goal is to strengthen the overall application. Improved stats, earlier app submissions, additional experience, new LORs, and stronger written materials that demonstrate growth from the time of the first application can all factor into a reapplicant gaining admission in a subsequent cycle.

How do you view a P grade during covid and a R (retake) grade on a transcript? Does it matter if the college did or did not factor it in the GPA?

Each school had different grading policies at the start of COVID, which are printed on your transcript so that we have a sense of whether all classes moved to pass/fail or whether students were allowed to opt for pass/fail rather than graded courses. Retaken courses do tend to be visible on transcripts––both the first grade performance and the subsequent one. typically these are ones that should be explained in an addendum.

I’m interested in working abroad for a year but am still indecisive about this idea, so I am not sure if I want to apply this cycle or next cycle. How bad does reapplying look? Would it be better for me to hold off a year?

It's best to apply when you know you're ready to attend. In some instances, it can't be avoided, and it becomes necessary to ask for a deferral to join the school a year later; however, many schools have very limited instances in which they will grant a deferral (and if they don't grant a deferral, an applicant would have to reapply). Often, deferrals are granted for military deployment, completion of another graduate/professional program, or unavoidable family circumstances. If you end up reapplying, you have opportunities to provide context within your materials.

If your stats are below the median, what are your chances of receiving a scholarship?

It depends on the school, the types of scholarships they award, and the other factors within your file. Need-based awards are not dependent on your stats, while merit-based ones are.

Would you say that attending a prestige/top undergraduate institution hold any significance in the committees decision making—attesting to the rigor of the academics and curriculum?

Attending matters far less than performance. The institution and the program can be taken into account, though how they are is dependent on each particular law school.

Do law school’s look closely at the writing assessment? How is it looked at in comparison to a personal statement?

It depends. Each school has their own admissions policies. In my experience, law schools can and do look closely at the writing assessment––it's a raw sample of writing and gives us a chance to assess your writing with the guarantee that there's been no outside feedback on it. While the writing assessment is about writing quality and ability to be responsive to the prompt and craft an argument, the personal statement serves a different purpose. It can be an indicator of writing quality, but it's also meant to tell AOs about you as a candidate.

When is the deadline to apply to law school?

Every school sets their own deadlines, so you'll want to research the schools on your list.

Are chances higher of admittance if you apply early decision? Would you be considered twice, once for ED and once for regular decisions or if you're rejected early then is it over?

This varies from school to school. Some schools have the same acceptance rate for their early decision programs as for their regular application pool, so the answer in that instance would be no. Whether ED applicants who are not admitted ED are rolled into the regular pool is dependent on the school, so it's a good idea to research the specific programs at the schools on your list.

Do you have a lesser chance of getting accepted / scholarships if you apply Jan/Feb?

It depends on the school. For some, more than half of their application volume may have been received by that time, so it would be likely that a good number of seats and scholarship dollars may have been awarded thereby decreasing chances.

Will the LSAT changes that started Aug 2024 be taken under consideration if there are multiple LSAT cancellations (for ex, for the last two LSATs before the Aug 2024 test change)? I was told that your highest LSAT score is what really matters.

The highest LSAT score is what is reported to the ABA; however, admissions teams will see and can consider your overall performance, including cancellations and fluctuations. Each school has different policies on how they view these components. When there are multiple LSAT cancellations, context via an addendum is typically helpful. It's not clear why an admissions team would need to take changes to the LSAT starting in August into consideration for two cancellations that took place prior without providing context.