Month: July 2015

Illinois pre-law students now have the opportunity to participate in a new pre-law student organization. We are sharing this information for all interested Illini.

Still searching for the perfect law related, extracurricular activity? Looking to get more involved on campus? Your search is over, as a Pre-Law Chapter of the National Black Law Students Association has been chartered on campus! Students who become members of NBLSA’s Pre-Law Division will join the membership of a prestigious organization that continues to culturally transform the legal community.

As a member of the Pre-Law Division, you gain access to irreplaceable resources, invaluable networking opportunities, as well as exceptional mentorship. This year, we hope to provide our members with the tools necessary to make law school dreams a reality—from LSAT prep to First Year Success, and everything in between. Membership also makes you eligible for NBLSA scholarships, fellowships, conventions and programs. This year, Pre-Law members will also have the opportunity to participate in advocacy competitions, such as the Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition, the Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition and the NBLSA Nelson Mandela International Negotiations Competition.

Please visit this website if you are interested in learning more about NBSLA and its Pre-Law Division. For more information about the Illinois Pre-Law Chapter or if would like to join, please email chapter President, Subria Whitaker at swhitak2@illinois.edu.

Are you planning to apply to law school this fall? Now is a great time to start getting to know your law schools. Maybe there’s one school that you already know you are super interested in. You have a friend at another law school. But what do you really know about the law schools that interest you?

Now–as in, over the summer, while you have time–is a great time to start getting to know law schools . Here are three easy ways.

• Blogs. From Yale’s blog to Northwestern’s to Michigan’s, many law schools have interesting and informative blogs written by their admission staff. Here is where you can find out what the school is really like. What does the dean of admissions hate reading about in personal statements? What is the school’s recruitment schedule for the semester? Be the first to know about events and heed their suggestions–some not very subtle–about how your application can appeal to this school. You can also follow the blogs by signing up for email updates or adding them to your Feedly stream.
• Twitter. Likewise, most law schools host Twitter accounts, like Illinois, DePaul, and Chicago-Kent. Although these are more often used to tweet about articles written by faculty or events that happening right now, you can learn a lot about a school from its Twitter feed. Add your schools of interest to your feed and take a look at them once a week. Maybe even read those articles about what the faculty are doing. During the admission cycle many deans will use Twitter to make admissions announcements, so keep following them for updates.
• Visits. Yep, good old fashioned face to face visits are a great way to get to know an admissions dean and make a good impression. The admissions deans I know are amazingly gifted at remembering people with whom they have spoken, for good or for ill. Dress professionally, give a firm handshake, and come prepared with 2-3 talking points about why you are interested in the school along with 2-3 good questions that go beyond the website. Deans will remember.