I wouldn't enter into law school on a whim. It takes a lot of self-discipline. All those here who have tried to maintain undergrad like social lives (that I know of) have suffered in their grades. Without a doubt, work translates into good standing. It's a question of being able to commit oneself thoroughly. Be prepared to sacrifice quite a bit of enjoyment. I am told things change after first year. Best Advice I Can Give: Buy a computer.
Michael Mayer, SMU '92, UT JD '96

Students should be reasonably sure that they want to go to law school. I would strongly discourage anyone going to law school because they do not know what else they want to do. They will regret it. It is important to remember that usually 100% of a class grade comes from one final exam. As such, students must develop a good pace and stick with it until finals are over. If you fall behind, it is difficult to catch-up. In that same vein, I saw people study all day every day for the first couple of weeks and then crashed. The most successful people usually took at least one night off a week and went out with friends.
Chris Jensen, SMU '93, Texas Tech JD '96

I Chose To Go To Law School Because: I thought what I would learn here would allow me to accomplish other goals. I didn't just want to be a lawyer or get paid a lot. I want to be empowered to make choices for myself and to put my skills to work to make society produce more justice and fairness. Those skills should help me choose where to apply myself to reach my goals and to produce work I can be proud of.
David Brown, SMU BA '92, Vanderbilt JD '95

Deciding Where To Apply: As I remember the law school application process, the fees for applying to law schools were not terribly high, there was a procedure for securing a hardship waiver for those fees if necessary, and most applications were surprisingly similar (so that once you completed the first application, completing subsequent applications was a ministerial process). In light of these facts, I adopted my first rule of thumb for deciding to which law schools to apply: when in doubt, apply. Very few of the top law schools make their decisions based solely on a quantitative analysis of an applicant's GPA and LSAT score. Instead, they consider a large number of other factors, such as background, interests and heritage, for which there is no uniform rating scale among the schools. Thus, it is very difficult for a college student to know exactly which schools will accept his or her application. This led me to adopt my second rule of thumb, somewhat related to the first rule: If a school interests you, apply (even if you do not think it will accept you).
Rebel Pace, SMU BBA '88, Penn JD '91

On Making the Decision About Which Law School to Attend: I can't stress the importance of getting to know each of the schools which you're considering and then, after due consideration, reaching your own decision for your own reasons. You can't do that until you've got some of your acceptances in. Avoid the temptation to even admit to yourself a "decision tree" to account for the different timing of your acceptances. More importantly, resist the temptation to consider rankings or any similar notions. Once the decision is made, it is very important that you have a basis of personal expectations (how you expect to do, why the school was the right choice for you, what you expect to like about it, what you don't expect to like, how well it fits into your career & geographic future plans, etc.). If you let US News or any other notion of the "best" law school make your decision for you (even before you get your acceptances), then you will not have gone through the process that produces this base of expectations. I can't emphasize the psychological importance of having a base of expectations when you start into this.
Todd McClusky, SMU BA '92, UT JD '95

I Wish I Had Known: The secret to success in law school is total dedication to excellence in the 1st year. Everything comes from 1st year performance, including permanent employment.
Steve Hill, SMU BA '91, Vanderbilt JD '94

The Single Best Piece of Advice I Got Regarding Law School Was: Don't worry about how everyone else is doing (whether they're outlining classes, meeting in study groups, etc.); study the way you want to, do what works for you.
Jonathan Lamendola, SMU BA '88, Emory JD '92

My Best Advice Is: Go to law school in the geographic area where you plan to practice! Contacts made during law school are invaluable.
Cynthia Letsch, SMU BA '92, Drake JD '95

Best Advice: Look at what you want to do and decide where in this country you want to start working and go to a school that places you in a position to achieve that goal. Don't go to law school because you don't know what else to do. It's too much work.
Elizabeth Hitchins, SMU BA '91, Duke JD '94

Having my goals set before I walked into my first class would have made law school more enjoyable. I think that it is important to remember that law school is professional school. You go to law school in order to have a job that you enjoy three years later. If you want to work as a congressional aide in Washington, then find out what professors have Washington connections, take their classes and visit them during office hours. If you want to teach, go to Yale, find out what professors place people in teaching positions, take their classes and visit them during office hours. If you want to work for a firm, make good grades. Being on the law journal and getting a clerkship are very useful credentials no matter what the person eventually wants to do.
Christi Cunningham, SMU BA '89, Yale JD '92

I want to leave you with the best piece of advice I have gotten about law school. It came from a prof here named Peter Murray. He said, "Build a boat." You see, while he was a student here he spent much of his time constructing small sailboats. I think the idea behind the advice was that each law student should have some dominating and serious interest to pursue while in law school, something that he or she truly cared about, to help forget about the law, now and then, and to enhance life. Otherwise a place like this can swallow you whole.
Joel Daniels, SMU BA '93, Harvard JD '96

Be prepared to assume a large debt. The typical law school gives very few scholarships to typical law students. Some have special scholarship programs, but not many. You will leave school with a large debt, so large that you may have to accept a more lucrative, less desirable job over a lower-paying, but more rewarding position. Don't worry--lawyers move around a lot. But don't let your lifestyle grow to fit your new income or you may never be able to take that public interest job.
Gary Nugent, SMU BBA '88, Northwestern JD '91

Advice for Doing Well: Most people that go to law school have fairly large egos going in. Prepare to be humbled. When I first started, I was told to enter study groups to prepare. I didn't and I regret it. That semester was my worst (although not bad). Study groups are a must so don't make the same mistake I did. Also, don't get behind, because it is so hard to get caught up. Finally, don't stress too much. If you get into a good school, you'll get a job. Then all of worries seem to magically disappear. David Wallace, SMU BA '92, NYU JD '95

Best Advice: The people who talk the most don't know everything. Don't lose faith in yourself.
Kerrie Vaughan-Forbes, SMU BA '93, Wake Forest JD '96

More Best Advice: What you can't know until you get to law school is just how hard you must work. I worked extremely hard at SMU. I killed myself at law school.
John Barton, SMU BA '92, Washington & Lee JD '95

Other Comments: I went to law school knowing that I wanted to work for a firm in a big city and I have borrowed almost the entire amount for three years. At a top ten law school if you do reasonably well then you'll get a job and be able to pay off any loans. At Duke the interview process works so that the student chooses which law firms to interview with and the law firm cannot screen you out for on-campus interviews. But I have friends at UT who had very few interviews because there the firms decide who they will interview and it's only the top 10% of the class. I am very glad that I didn't go to UT and borrow a lot of money and not have a job. It is very difficult to be in the top 10% of a class no matter where you go so I recommend going to a top ten school over a state school if you have to borrow money to complete law school.
Elizabeth Hitchins, SMU BA '91, Duke JD '94

The Single Best Piece of Advice I Got Regarding Law School Was: You can do it. You did well at SMU and you can do well in law school, too. Work hard, outline, and charge ahead especially during the many times you are unsure of yourself or what to do. You'll make it.
David Brown, SMU BA '92 Vanderbilt JD '95

When the Sprite commercials say that "Image is nothing; thirst is everything," they are wrong. Both are very beneficial for the law school application. Present your self in a professional and confident manner. And fill out the optional parts of the application; it indicates your thirst for admission into the respective school.
Akbar Kabani, SMU BS '98, Vanderbilt Law, Class of 2001.

I would advise any of you pre-law students to invest wisely in a LSAT preparation course such as KAPLAN, but don't expect the course to automatically improve your LSAT score. You have to divert the time and energy to take all their tests, worksheets, and practice problems in order to fully take advantage of their resources. In terms of classes at SMU which might prepare you for the LSAT or law school, I would definitely recommend political science and philosophy as potential majors. The elementary logic class under the philosophy department and the constitutional law class offered under the political science department are challenging yet wonderful classes to consider if you are interested in preparing yourself for the LSAT and law school.
Milton Chou, SMU BBA, BA '98, UC Boalt Hall, Class of 2001.

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