<p>I'm an undergrad freshman interested in going to law school after graduation.
Does anyone have any good advice? Or..
If you could start your undergraduate years over again, what would you do differently?</p>
<p>If you're looking to go to law school, do yourself a favor, and avoid any major described as being "pre-law". There's nothing you need to focus on for the next couple of years except for finding a major that interests you (and virtually all of them are fine for law school) and working towards the best grades possible. Numbers (GPA and LSAT) account for nearly the entire application process. Worry about the LSAT later.</p>
<p>^ I completely agree.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I'll keep that in mind. :-)</p>
<p>I have no particular interest in any major yet, and I don't know whether I should choose good-GPA major or high-employment-rate major (in case I don't graduate law school). Majoring in Economics would bring down my GPA more than say Sociology major, but I think I would have better chance getting employed with Econ major if I don't pursue a legal career. Any recommendations? How many people actually drop out of law school?</p>
<p>Get as high a gpa as possible. For ec's. do relevant ones, but ones you're interested. And if you can get leadership positions, that best. But don't feel like you should do a ton of ec's. Study early and often for the lsat and do well on it.</p>
<p>In response to post #5:</p>
<p>I agree you should aim for the highest GPA possible. However, if by "relevant ones" you mean the OP should go for EC's related to law, then that's flat out false. Almost any ECs are acceptable. Membership in some "pre-law" society probably means LESS than most other ECs.</p>
<p>As for studying for the LSAT, as I said before, don't worry about it yet. Starting to study for it TOO early in advance can result in burn-out. If you plan on taking a September/October administration, then studying during the summer should be fine as long as you're not particularly poor at standardized tests. If you're taking during the academic year, then give yourself at least a good 3 months to study, and be serious about it. I've posted before on how I went about studying for the test:</p>
<p>take 1-2 economics course(s) and see if you like it.. if you do, major in it. While it may be harder than sociology, you may also find it more interesting and will be more willing to put extra time into it if necessary</p>
<p>Thanks!
As for ECs, I'm currently volunteering at a community law center and joined one student club. Is it better to join more clubs or volunteer more?</p>
<p>Also, what are some of your suggestions for long-term study method to prepare for law school? Like how to self-study to become a better writer, reader, or logical thinker.</p>
<p>In response to #6, I wasn't talking necessarily about a "pre-law society", but things such as government/polisci related research, or student government, or mock trial are considered more relevant to a law school than knitting class.</p>
<p>As for long-term and other ecs, I would worry more about grades, so only take on ecs that won't affect your gpa. As for long term preparation, writing intensive classes and classes relevant to the area of law you are interested in might be good.</p>
<p>In response to #9:</p>
<p>I still disagree strongly that an applicant's participation in "relevant" ECs (as per your definition) makes any real impact, nor does a lack of such ECs harm the applicant. All of my ECs were either music or academic-based. Someone I know from my undergrad going to Stanford was a varsity football player and wrestler. Still another friend from my undergrad who just got into HLS mostly did biology research during his four years!</p>
<p>In other words, go for ECs that interest and excite you. They're all fine.</p>