Your LSAT score is in, your admissions essays
perfected, and all recommendations are filed
safely away at LSDAS. The difficult aspects of
the application process seem to lie behind you.
A sense of calm replaces application-induced
anxieties, and soon, unabashed pride will
accompany those acceptance letters that are
sure to come pouring through your door. All you
have to do is sit back and wait. Right?

Maybe.

For many prospective students, deciding which
admissions offer to accept can become a sepa-
rate, stressful challenge. In choosing a school,
considerations like overall cost, available schol-
arship money, geographic location, and reputa-
tion are important. The prevailing wisdom,
however, suggests that an applicant should
attend the best school to which she is accepted.
With ranking systems arranging schools into a
prestige hierarchy based on financial resources,
faculty accomplishments, and library collections,
among other factors, today's employers can
quickly assess the type of education a student
received. (The most prominent of these sys-
tems, the U.S. News and World Report Ranking
of America's Top Graduate and Professional
Schools, was founded in 1983 and is currently
the leading authority on law school rank.)

Unless you are seeking a specialized education
available only through specific programs on
select campuses—for example, with its American
Indian Law Clinic, the University of Colorado
would be a wise selection if your professional
dream is to help preserve tribal Southern Ute
lands—a school's ranking is often the most
important factor to consider in the school selec-
tion process. In today's prestige-driven legal
community, school rank can affect your market-
ability during school, upon graduation, and
throughout your career.

Because top firms recruit most heavily at highly ranked schools, students attending those schools have a better chance of obtaining well-paid jobs with large laws firm upon graduation. Without the benefit of on-campus recruiting or those coveted personal connections, however, interviews with choice law firms can seem as elusive as that 180 LSAT score—even for a student who aced contracts and wrote the winning appellate brief.

In addition to facilitating lucrative law firm positions, attending a well-ranked school is equally helpful for those who wish to secure prestigious public interest positions. Because public interest jobs often involve compelling cases addressing high-profile, controversial issues, public interest work is highly desirable; positions in the field can be as, if not more, competitive than those in the law firm arena. Attending an esteemed institution, therefore, can give candidates an edge when they seek to, say, protect dolphins from sewage sludge or analyze proposed housing legislation at a think tank.




This is not to say that attending a less highly regarded school is a waste of time and resources. It is very possible to graduate from a lower ranked law school and go on to realize great success. However, the reputation of a well-ranked school can give its graduates an enviable advantage in today's increasingly competitive job market.

Of course, the only way to gain admission to a top ranked law school is to excel in the admissions process. Impressive personal essays, glowing letters of recommendation, and, most importantly, a stellar LSAT score are essential. So, before you look forward to experiencing the exquisite stress of deciding between law schools, make sure you're in a position for law schools to want you, as well.