<p>Hey,</p>
<p>I am currently a college sophomore at Carleton and I am interested in going to law school. What should I do this summer to make myself the most competitive applicant possible? Thanks.</p>
<p>Since, as many will tell you here, GPA and LSAT scores are the driving forces behind law school admission. So, first make sure that whatever you do over the summer does not compromise that. Otherwise, finding work in a law firm, or better yet volunteering at the ACLU, DA's office, legal aid, etc, etc, will both serve to expose you to what being a lawyer is really about (forget that TV stuff), and perhaps demonstrate to some admission office the seriousness of your desire to attend law school.</p>
<p>I would discourage you from volunteering with the ACLU. The organization is very controversial and some law school admissions representatives may make false assumptions about you that may adversely affect your application. Working for a local law firm, prosecutor's office or Legal Aid is a safer bet.</p>
<p>I can't imagine a law school admissions committee that would downgrade you for having volunteered for the ACLU, other than Liberty University.</p>
<p>The one thing you can do in a summer that would most improve your chances would be to study diligently for the LSAT.</p>
<p>(Full disclosure - I'ma card-carrying member of the ACLU.)</p>
<p>I also can't imagine most schools feeling negatively about the ACLU. Law faculty, like academics in most areas, are generally fairly liberal.</p>
<p>I knew there was a reason (beyond your sage advice) that I liked you Greybeard.</p>
<p>Aw, shucks, Concerneddad! You're making me feel all warm and fuzzy.</p>
<p>OK, Greybeard, time to slowly back away from your computer!! LOL</p>
<p>
[quote]
I can't imagine a law school admissions committee that would downgrade you for having volunteered for the ACLU, other than Liberty University.
[/quote]
Please heed my warning; I didn't just make this up for entertainment purposes. Those working for the American Civil Liberties Union, American Center for Law and Justice (the opposite of the ACLU), and any politician on either extreme of the politicial spectrum are at risk of having a lot of assumption made about them by law school admission staff. You can gain the same level of experience by working at a less controversial internship.</p>
<p>If working for the ACLU makes you an extreme liberal, why is Bob Barr working for them?</p>
<p>Again, I can imagine few law schools that would downgrade a prospective student for working either for the ACLU, or for the American Center for Law and Justice, or for Ted Kennedy, Barbara Boxer, Dennis Hastert, Trent Lott, Rick Santorum, or any other member of the House or Senate.</p>
<p>Thinkingoutloud, I'd be interested in any evidence you may have to the contrary.</p>
<p>There are no studies that support my position. No law school admission officer would ever openly admit to this conclusion. My conclusion is based on my knowledge and experience with law school admissions. (I won't go beyond that; I do not find it helpful when one poster says my opinion is better than yours because I know more adcoms than you do; so I avoid going down that path). Nevertheless, there is a trend among major law schools to avoid controversy (except for a few nutty speakers now and then). If a law school admissions officer could see into the future and had to chose between a prospective student who would become a judge or a partner at a major law firm and a prospective student who would join the ACLU and sue government institutions, etc., then the law school admissions office would choose the former.</p>
<p>I'm basing my view on a gut-level reaction, and my own venerable experience, but I'll elaborate.</p>
<p>I'm a liberal Democrat now, but was active in the New York State Conservative Party in college, and noted that fact on my law school applications. I went to Boalt Hall. I don't think it would have occurred to liberal professors to keep conservatives out; liberal professors like jousting with conservative students, and conservative professors like jousting with liberals. Law school is all about discussion, and discussion without a diversity of views is dull.</p>
<p>The professor of mine who was most conservative had clerked for Earl Warren on the Supreme Court; my professor confirmed that Earl Warren loved to discuss policy with conservative clerks.</p>
<p>To the extent that there's typical political profile of an American law professor, it's probably a fiscal conservative with distinctly libertarian leanings on social issues. Sure there are places where the ACLU is viewed as beyond the mainstream, but not many of them are law schools.</p>
<p>Liberty University is an exception; its stated purpose is to train cadres of conservative lawyers to oppose the efforts of organizations like the ACLU .</p>
<p>I will grant you that leadership in the Young Sparticus League, or any other organization dedicated to the elimination of private property, will win you few favors with admissions committees. Possession (of property) isn't quite nine tenths of the law, but it's not that far off.</p>
<p>My two cents (which is roughly what it's worth): the ACLU internship will do for you what you make of it. If you leave questions unanswered ("Is this guy a liberal nutjob?"), you might have problems - but, in general, unanswered questions (i.e. "Why was her GPA so bad this semester?" "Why does this person want to go to law school?" "Would they even go here if they got in?") are a black mark against you. </p>
<p>Furthermore - if your internship is just something on your resume, I don't think it will be as good as if you write about it in a personal statement or supplement. If you want to avoid the liberal nutjob label, you could present your experience in a balanced manner - that you liked x, y, and z, but didn't like a and b; then, work in any connections it might have to what you want with a law degree. You could make it into an opportunity to present yourself as thoughtful and focused, not just have potentially controversial resume padding.</p>
<p>If you haven't already done so, go to the OCD--or whatever career services is called at Carleton--IMMEDIATELY and look for summer jobs/internships. You've already missed the deadlines for many. Apply to as many as you can in which you have some reasonable interest, even if you don't meet all the requirements. Don't worry about it being law related. Obviously, if there are jobs/internships that ARE law related, apply, but don't limit yourself. </p>
<p>Then if there are cities you'd like to work in this summer, and you know someone who goes to college in one or more of them, ask him to go into his college's OCD and look through the listings for you. Often NGOs and government agencies that want interns only post locally, but will consider students from elsewhere. </p>
<p>Next, if Carleton has an alumni directory, get a copy and go through it. Many are broken down by field of employment--I don't know if Carleton's is. Write personalized letters to any alums working for organizations and companies of interest to you, asking if they can help you get an internship and/or job, explaining, of course, that you are a Carleton student. If you can afford to work for nothing, say so. Enclose a resume, including skills like word processing, knowledge of Excel, Power Point, etc. If at all possible, get two Carleton profs to agree that you can list them as references on your resume. If you have good grades, enclose a transcript. </p>
<p>Look through the Princeton Review Guide to the Best X Number of Internships for College Students--that might not be the exact title but it's close to that. See if there are any in it of interest to you. </p>
<p>Seriously, do not focus on getting something in the legal field. Get the best internship/job you can. It will be more impressive to say that you held a position in which you got to do some meaningful work. </p>
<p>I know that this is counter to much of the advice you will get here. If you can get a great internship that's law related, sure, that's great! But reality is that as a college sophomore, probably in liberal arts, it's unlikely you will be swamped with offers. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I'll agree with Jonri (and probably even more than he thinks!)... because, in my experience, a legal background in some form can be helpful for law school admissions but is not really helpful in job searching. If you have a career (i.e. solid background in a field, with some actual work that takes experience and know-how to complete), you will be in a much better position for employment during and after law school. Law is becoming more pervasive and more specialized - work with the trend, not against it. I'm not saying that you have to run off and go through med school because you are potentially contemplating bioethics, or that people with no real work experience don't do well - but having real experience (career, not a job) will be helpful. </p>
<p>I'm not sure how much legal work v. non-legal work really matters - not sure if it makes a difference if you answer phones in a law firm or if you answer phones in an immigration center and are thinking of immigration law. I guess it's time for the "do what you like to do, as it will ultimately serve you well to have developed a focus and a passion" speech.</p>
<p>I've got to back up Greybeard on this -- even if some adcoms might be sketchy about this, most professors are fairly liberal, and appear to support the ACLU.</p>
<p>Also, there's no way to predict who's going to end up a judge or biglaw partner. And all ACLU membership (as a youngster) means is that the student has a sincere passion for the law. </p>
<p>I guess it's possible that some schools might prefer a more conservative (and boring) pre-law experience -- but I'm not sure I'd want to study at those schools.</p>
<p><<please heed="" my="" warning;="" i="" didn't="" just="" make="" this="" up="" for="" entertainment="" purposes.="">></please></p>
<p>I'm pretty entertained by your posts. </p>
<p><<those working="" for="" the="" american="" civil="" liberties="" union,="" center="" law="" and="" justice="" (the="" opposite="" of="" aclu),="" any="" politician="" on="" either="" extreme="" politicial="" spectrum="" are="" at="" risk="" having="" a="" lot="" assumption="" made="" about="" them="" by="" school="" admission="" staff.="">></those></p>
<p>It's always a bad idea to pretend to be someone you're not, especially if you're pretending to be a wishy-washy, middle of the road applicant with no clear values.</p>