<p>I am currently aspiring to attend Law School (currently I am a sophomore at Vanderbilt) and was wondering about the effects of a disciplinary record would have on my admission. I was caught underage drinking, and was issued a univeristy fine and community service. There was no police report. I know that I will probably have to disclose this on my application. Assuming I don't have any more infractions, will one underage drinking incident noticably affect my admission to law school?</p>
<p>My best guess...</p>
<p>... is that, provided you disclose it, you won't have any problems - maybe one law school will make a decision based on that, but most law schools probably won't have too much an issue with it. It took place at least three years before you'll matriculate; you acknowledged it; and it's really not a huge deal - this isn't assault or drugs. Sure, it won't look great, but I doubt that it would disqualify you for admission. </p>
<p>I've gotten cynical. After a few years of this forum, I lost count of the number of times that someone just wants to get away with something. There are so many kids who ask if they can not mention something; if they can double-apply to binding early decision schools; if they can "fudge" their extracurriculars. Considering that you appear to have zero desire to cover this up, you seem to be in good shape. </p>
<p>The only advice I can give you is that, when you are getting recommendations, to have your recommenders talk about your character. Law schools want (at least in theory) people who have a respect for the law, civilization, and being good citizens. Also attach an addendum explaining the situation (you'll probably have to do this). The one thing that you might worry about is that, well, it's a drinking issue. The legal community is full of problem drinkers; there are even special alcoholics groups for lawyers. While I would never suggest that an adult who has a drink is a problem drinker, you should make every effort to demonstrate that alcohol is not a problem with you.</p>
<p>"I know that I will probably disclose this on my application." Disclose it if you're asked; if you're not, there's no need to mention it.</p>
<p>hear hear.</p>
<p>It will probably be brought up in the dean's recommendation. As long as you don't repeat the past, it shouldn't automatically ding you.</p>