Law school admissions for the 2018-2019 academic year were particularly competitive, with applications up 8.7 percent from the previous year, according to data from the Law School Admission Council. Increasingly, applicants find themselves rejected or placed on the waitlist by schools that they expected to be easily admitted to because they relied on previous years’ scores to predict a realistic range of schools.
Because this trend is largely attributed to a reaction to Trump administration policies, it’s not expected to subside in the upcoming cycle, and it’s entirely conceivable that the number of applicants will increase even more.
Therefore, applicants should build a school list that includes not only programs that they are fairly confident would admit them and a few reach schools but also a few safety schools. Here are tips on how to choose safety schools as a law school applicant.
[Read: How to Apply to the Right Number of Law Schools.]
Know the numbers. While in recent years, factors such as personal statements and work experience have been given increased weight in law school admissions, the reality is that your GPA and LSAT scores are still the main factors in determining whether your application will be seriously considered.
Therefore, when compiling a list of schools, research previous years’ LSAT and GPA scores for incoming classes. Safety schools are traditionally those where both your GPA and your LSAT score are over the median — but with the increased competition, it would be wise to include a couple of schools where at least one of your scores is also above the 75th percentile of last year’s class.
Target specific areas of the law. If you intend to study or practice a specific field within the legal system, then you should explore which schools excel in that area. Generally, there is some correlation between the school’s overall rank and where that school is ranked across different fields, but in practically every field, you’ll find a few outliers.
For example, the Washington College of Law at American University is tied at No. 80 in the overall 2019 U.S. News Best Law Schools rankings, but its strong international law program is tied at No. 6, surpassing powerhouses like Stanford University. Similarly, Santa Clara University School of Law — ranked outside of the top 100 overall — is fourth in intellectual property law.
Lower-ranked schools generally also have lower scores for their incoming classes, so if you’re targeting a career in a more niche area of the law, add such schools to your list.
[Read: Do’s, Don’ts for Building a Law School Application List.]
Consider geography. It’s easier to land a job in some legal markets than in others. Firms and government agencies in the most competitive markets — New York City, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco — enjoy not only proximity to many of the top law schools, but also a high supply of law school alumni moving into the area from other parts of the country.
Naturally, the competition for jobs is fierce, and employers can prioritize graduates of higher-ranked schools.
However, if you are content with practicing law in other parts of the country, consider lower-ranked schools in your area. Graduating from the top school in your state can be just as valuable when it comes to finding work there as graduating from a higher-ranked school elsewhere.
[Read: Think About Location When Choosing a Law School.]
Consider your career goals. In addition to geography, think about what you want to do with your J.D. when you graduate.
Naturally, if you want to work at a top-10 law firm in New York, you would want to graduate from a top program. It’s uncommon to see incoming associates from schools outside the top of the rankings at such firms.
However, if you want to open your own firm, work as a local public defender or simply don’t want to enter the grindhouse junior associates go to in big law firms, then you’ll find that rankings matter much less to employers.
Remember that you can transfer. One benefit of a lower-ranked school is that it tends to be easier to earn grades closer to the top of your class. If you had a very successful first year, you can apply to transfer to a higher-ranked school.
You might not be able to transfer from a school ranked No. 200 in the country to the No. 3 Harvard Law School, but you’d be surprised how much mobility there is when transferring. Students regularly end up in schools dozens of spots ahead of the one in which they started — and nowhere on their diploma will it say “transferee.”
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How Law School Applicants Can Choose Safety Schools originally appeared on usnews.com
