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Application Review Services by Selene Steelman, Admissions Counselor

Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
edited December 2018 in Law School Admissions 2037 karma

Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you know that I'm available for more application reviews. I've done a few so far, and they went really well.

-Selene

What is Application Review?
Our goal is to tell you what an admissions officer might think after reading your file. I will review your application (a PDF preview) along with other materials that an admissions committee will see (LSAT history, academic summary, etc.). I will give you feedback in a conversation via the phone or Skype and send you notes after the call.

Who am I?
I worked in law school admissions for fourteen years before coming to 7Sage. You can read more about me (and all of us) here: https://7sage.com/admissions/about-us/

What’s the difference between Admissions Consulting and Application Review?
Admissions Consulting comes with unlimited help on all aspects of your application, including strategy, editorial guidance on every essay, and after-app follow-up (for interviews, letters of continuing interest, etc.). Application Review is a review of a single application.

What do you Get in an Application Review?
I will review each element of your application (essays, resume, addenda, transcripts, letters of recommendation) and give you feedback about how an admissions officer might interpret the information. I will offer recommendations on how to revise your current materials to strengthen your overall application. If you have a proposed school list, we can talk about that as well. I will take notes pinpointing strengths and weaknesses and my recommendations. We will walk through each application piece together in our phone/Skype conversation, and I will email you my review notes afterwards.

How much does it cost?
$499.

What do you need to do before you use this service?
You need to write all of your essays, have PDFs of all your academic credentials, fill out an application via LSAC, and upload all of your attachments. You should be ready to hit “submit” before you buy this.
If you’ve already applied, I can give you a post-mortem.

Who should NOT use this service?
Don’t purchase this if you plan to submit your application tomorrow. I may advise you to revise or rewrite large portions of your application.

How do you purchase?
Email editors@7sage.com with the subject line “Application Review” for a reservation. We’ll give you a start date. If that date works for you, you can hold the spot by purchasing the service through a link that we’ll pass along.

Comments

  • David BusisDavid Busis Member Moderator
    7355 karma

    Someone who used this service a few days ago sent me this email: "I would have never thought that a one hour phone call could be worth $500. It absolutely was. Selene is GREAT. Thank you both so much."

  • NotMyNameNotMyName Alum Member Sage
    5320 karma

    I've been working with 7Sage admissions and we were left scratching our heads when I was Waitlisted at Georgetown based on my numbers. David passed my file over to Selene and she gave us her opinion.

    I was very impressed with Selene's notes on my app and wish I had had a chance to hear her thoughts before I submitted. She provided incredibly thorough notes on each part of my app and how they came together as a whole. These notes sounded like what I imagine a conversation amongst adcoms reviewing a candidate sound like -- reading her notes was like being a fly on the wall. She also shared what she felt was missing and I'm working on adding these pieces in the following months in a LOCI.

    As is usually the case, 7Sage is offering valuable resources at relatively reasonable prices. $500 is a lot of money. If you have the means though, I do think you're getting a bargain.

    Thanks Selene.

  • Leah M BLeah M B Alum Member
    8392 karma

    This sounds like a fantastic service. Understanding that we shouldn't need to submit within 24 hours, how much of a window do you have to review in the next couple of weeks? Trying to get an app out by the 31st and still need to do some work on my PS. Is there any sort of turn around time that we could expect, or should allow for to be reasonable?

    Thanks!

  • David BusisDavid Busis Member Moderator
    7355 karma

    Selene is generally very fast, and I think she is available, but I'll let her speak for herself. @"selene.steelman"

  • Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
    2037 karma

    Hi Leah! I am available to work with you on an application review. Turn around time is generally within 24 hours or less. If you are looking to submit by December 31st, and your materials are ready to go, we can talk about a timeline for the coming week. Please contact editors@7sage.com if you are interested in moving forward.

  • Leah M BLeah M B Alum Member
    8392 karma

    Thanks @"David.Busis" and @"selene.steelman"! I'm still working on my PS unfortunately, so it's not quite ready to go yet. I'm going to work on that and see if I really can get this one out by the 31st, haha. Might be pushing it. But thank you so much!

  • Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
    2037 karma

    Good luck with your PS, Leah!

  • turbodogturbodog Alum Member
    41 karma

    I have a question (duh lol). Upon reading the list of services, I see a review of our letters of recommendation but don't FERPA regulations require waiving an LOR for it to be accepted? Does this suggest that one would ask the recommender to see a copy of the letter and if so wouldn't that be unethical on both parties? Sorry if this is a silly question.

  • Leah M BLeah M B Alum Member
    8392 karma

    @turbodog I'm no expert and guessing that Selene will respond, but LSAC gives you the option to waive your right to review the LORs or not (they don't mention FERPA, but it makes sense that this is waiving your rights under it specifically). From what I've been told, you really should check the box waiving your right, as the schools you apply to may question your motivations for not waiving it. It is up to you whether or not to waive that right though and not required. However, waiving it also doesn't mean that it is necessarily against any rules or unethical if a reviewer voluntarily allows you to see your LOR. It only means that LSAC and the law schools you apply to are under no obligation to let you view your LORs.

  • Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
    2037 karma

    If the candidate is able to provide a LOR because she has not waived her rights, or if the candidate has crafted a draft LOR at the request of a recommender, I will look at them and see how they contribute to the overall tone of the application. If no LORs are available because rights have been waived, then I will look at the candidate's story based on all other available materials. Since candidate's can't really control what is written about them, we try to work on crafting and refining the areas that the candidate can influence. To be honest, in my experience reviewing law school applications, waiver or no waiver was never discussed when evaluating the quality of LORs. That said, I think most academic recommenders will expect you to waive your rights.

  • Selene SteelmanSelene Steelman Free Trial Member Admissions Consultant
    2037 karma

    To be more clear, a student’s decision to waive her right doesn’t affect her ability to show the LOR to me, an admissions counselor.

    If a student does not waive her right, she can walk into the admissions office/registrar of the school she eventually attends and demand to see her recommendation letters. If she does waive her right, she can still ask her professor/recommender for it and share it with anyone she wants.

    In other words, the right that you either waive or don’t waive is that of demanding to see your LORs from an admissions office or registrar once you are admitted and enrolled and knowing that they must comply. But even if you give up your right to demand it from an admissions office or registrar, your professor/recommender can still share it with you, and/or you can still ask to see it, and/or you can share it with anyone you want.

  • David BusisDavid Busis Member Moderator
    7355 karma

    @turbodog ☝️

  • turbodogturbodog Alum Member
    41 karma

    I wasn't trying to be complicated or anything. I am sorry if I gave that impression. I only asked because last Spring during my last semester of my Masters program, I had a professor (department head) that was going to provide me with an LOR; she actually told me I had to sign the waiver for the processing due to new FERPA requirements. My recommenders didn't even ask if I had waived my rights or not but I have worked closely with both professors though my undergrad and grad studies. Thank you for addressing my question. ^.^

  • LouislepauvreLouislepauvre Alum Member
    750 karma

    Hello! Is this service still being offered @"selene.steelman" ?

  • David BusisDavid Busis Member Moderator
    7355 karma

    @Louislepauvre it's still available! But we've raised the price to $599 (sorry—it turns out to be a lot of work!) and we may match you with one of our other former admissions officers.

  • LouislepauvreLouislepauvre Alum Member
    750 karma

    Thanks for letting me know @"David.Busis"! I would be interested in working with Selene though. Cardozo is a target school, and I would love to hear her insights. Is that possible? Also, after materials are all sent, generally how long is the turnaround time? I would be looking to begin the review within a couple weeks. Thanks for your help!

  • David BusisDavid Busis Member Moderator
    7355 karma

    @Louislepauvre Yes, you can still work with Selene! Turnaround is generally very quick—within 48 hours.

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