Long Island College Admission Tips
Every year, hundreds of thousands of students are looking for, and hoping to receive admission to, the "right" colleges, universities, graduate schools, and professional schools. Likewise, thousands of colleges, universities, graduate schools, and professional schools are looking for the "right" students. And, while many students are seeking scholarships and financial aid, colleges, universities, and graduate schools want to assign their scholarships, grants, teaching assistantships and other financial aid resources fairly and wisely.
Admission is more difficult depending on what you are going for, for example, if you are going to school in Long Island to study law-well, this is perhaps amongst the hardest subject to be accepted in. So, for those of you who might be going to Hofstra, Touro, Stony Brook or any of the other 19 schools on Long Island going to be a law student-here are some tips that might help you in the door.
Make the decision to go to law school for you, and you only. Don't go because of family or friend pressures, etc.
Have realistic expectations and know what you are getting yourself into. Law school is very intensive and demanding and many lawyers regret their decisions to practice the Law.
Prepare for the LSAT adequately, If you can afford to make the 3 year investment, you can certainly invest 100 or so hours and self study with some good LSAT prep books or take a prep course with a respectable instructor.
Invest the "up front" time to determine which law schools and programs are best suited for you, Once again, this is a huge venture that you are about to make. You don't want to attend a school where you will not be happy and/or sufficiently prepared for your future career.
Develop a good "story" to tell the admissions committees, Think about who you are, why you want to become a lawyer, and what makes you unique or different. It is much more effective and efficient to complete your applications once you know what story/theme/message you need to support. The top law schools are exceedingly competitive and good grades and LSAT scores alone will not get you admitted. You need to differentiate your submission from the many other applicants who have similarly high GPAs and LSAT scores.
Research the law schools, You wouldn't go to a job interview without first conducting some research on your future employer, right? So why wouldn't you do the same for a law school? Find out all you can about the school's culture, specialties, faculty, etc-do not base your decision completely on rankings.
Write your personal statement, You're writing about a topic you should know better than anyone else: you. If you've followed the steps outlined above, writer's block should not be much of a problem at all. Above all else, take the time to write a separate statement for each law school-formal copies are not personal. According to University of North Carolina Law School Assistant Dean for Admissions Michael J. States, the most common mistake that law school applicants make is sending the same personal statement to different schools. By doing so, they risk sending in a statement that does not sufficiently respond to the school's admission questions, and are wasting an opportunity to say why a particular school is the right school for them.
Obtain letters of reference, Select who you want for references and determine how you should approach them. Tell them what you would like them to say and explain your "story" to them-they should certainly validate that story to the best of their ability.
Practice for the admission interview -- if one is required. You don't want stutters and pauses of awkwardness. Look over your application from a third person's perspective. Think about what questions they will ask you. Arrange one or more mock interviews to ensure you have your story down and that it flows naturally. Remember, if you fail to plan-you plan to fail.
Sit back, wait and relax. You've done everything you could do to the best of your ability. With some luck, you'll have to choose which of your many offers to accept!
If you are not accepted right off and you know this is truly what you want to do-don't give up. It is just like anything else in life-if you have done all you can do; it is only a matter of time.
|
