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law related extracurriculars

mjg2317mjg2317 Alum Member

I'll be applying to law school this coming fall. I am worried about how not having any law related extracurriculars such as an internship or club membership will affect me. I have a high gpa and if I am at or over the mean LSAT score for a school, how much will my lack of these extracurriculars affect me? I am involved in many other extracurriculars, just not law related.

Comments

  • BinghamtonDaveBinghamtonDave Alum Member 🍌🍌
    8700 karma

    It has been my experience that these are not make or break areas of an application. I have no law related experience on my resume and was not involved in that many clubs in school, although I do volunteer in my community and teach Sunday school.

    It has been my experience that law school admissions is a largely-although certainly not entirely- numbers driven game. Things like clubs are "soft" factors that can contribute to a coherent whole application, but are far from necessary.

  • AudaciousRedAudaciousRed Alum Member
    2689 karma

    If your numbers are great, it shouldn't be an issue. We all have different lives. They know we may come from different backgrounds and have had (or not had) opportunities for these things. I have very little in the way of any extra curricular activities. Why? Because I worked, had a family, and had to attend university online due to location. Kinda hard to participate in clubs ;) If I were young and well off, maybe instead of work, I would have had clubs. They know this.
    Do I suspect they'll hold that against me? Not likely. I made the most of what I could, and that shows in my transcripts. If my LSAT score is at or above their median while my grades blow their 75th %ile out of the water? I think I'll be doing just fine, president of the chess club or not ;)
    You'll be fine, too.

  • Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
    2037 karma

    It doesn't matter if your ECA are not law-related. While showing a demonstrated interest in law in a resume is always a good idea when applying to law school, admissions committees are looking at ECAs and other experiences to see if:

    • you have social skills and can relate well to people,
    • you are organized with your own time and can handle responsibility,
    • you are capable of receiving a task and seeing it to completion,
    • you show leadership qualities, and
    • you have strong communication skills.

    They are looking to see what you learned from those experiences. Good luck!

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