Whether students are considering going to law school from their undergraduate studies or after gaining professional work experience, preparing for law school is essential. The earlier you plan for law school requirements, the better. Although there are many different scenarios and educational backgrounds amongst every student, in this blog, we will discuss how to prepare for law school as a sophomore in their undergrad studies. Let’s cut right to it!
Hello, overachieving undergrad sophomore! Sophomore year of college is an exciting time, is it not? You’re finally getting to pick your own classes rather than take core requirements, navigating the party scene campus life, and may even be applying to internships.
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, you may be brainstorming potential answers to Aunt Linda’s favorite question: “What are you going to use that degree for?” After giving some thought, we’ll just admit it: “legal education & law school” is a tempting, impressive answer.
The list for what to do as a sophomore if you want to go to law school is rather short. The good news is, although you’re slightly closer to the actual application process than a college freshman, you’ve still got quite a bit of time before you make an Elle Woods-style admissions video for your spot at Harvard*. More importantly, it might be a bit too early to take the LSAT, but it’s never too early for LSAT preparation. Start researching how you’re going to prep for the LSAT or how you’re going to find an lsat tutor. In the meantime, here are some suggestions to bolster your application:
1. Focus on your GPA
Law school admissions heavily depend on your numbers. Blueprint is here to help you study with the LSAT via LSAT prep courses, but it’s in your best interest to help yourself out with grades by maintaining a strong GPA.
2. Legal internship?
Sophomore year is generally the time that college students begin to pursue internships. What better way to figure out if you want to be a lawyer and pursue this career than by shadowing real ones? Perhaps try reaching out to local law firms and see if you can be an intern. After all, what law firm doesn’t need a smart, organized, and motivated addition to their team?
3. Explore your other interests
We really want to emphasize the fact that you should be focusing on participating in activities and developing skills you are passionate about! The legal world collides with many people’s day to day interests — you’d be surprised to see how you can make a difference! If anything, by being ultra-engaged in something you care about, you can build qualities that make for a good lawyer! Get that personal statement content!
4. Connect with your pre-law society
Although pre-law advisors can be a hit or miss, the pre-law community at your university or a law school admission council can be a great resource! Reaching out to pre-law groups will also allow you to meet others who want to go to law school — maybe you can plan on being classmates again (or, if you are particularly evil, you can strategically apply to schools you know for a fact they won’t be applying to). This could also allow you to form study groups or find internship opportunities!
5. Junior year deferral program? 3+3?
Some schools, such as Harvard, have a program for their own undergraduate students who are certain they’d like to go to law school. If you are attending a school which either has a deferral program or a 3(years of undergrad)+3(years of law school) program that you are interested in, this summer may be the time for you to begin studying for the LSAT. Do your research now during your undergraduate education so that you won’t miss the opportunity later!
Well, that’s all you really need for now, college sophomores! We hope you’ll have fun preparing for law school (but not too much fun — remember, law schools do have a character and fitness requirement) during the next few years of your undergraduate experience. We hope you’ll still be as starry eyed about the legal field when the time comes for you to apply to law school — we will still be here to help you!
*We are not suggesting you actually make an admissions video for Harvard.
