On Sept. 21, the University hosted its annual Law School Fair.

This year, it was held virtually and was open to all students and alumni. More than 80 law school admissions teams from all over the country and LSAT prep companies attended the fair. Notable schools included University of California-Los Angeles, University of Notre Dame and Boston University, among dozens more.

A few days before the fair, Pre-Law advisor Christina Butler hosted a workshop to help students prepare for the fair. She helped students book their specific appointments and gave information on how to best maximize time during the three hour long fair. Butler also helped students craft questions to ask law schools when meeting with their representatives. Questions ranged from specifics about the admissions process, information about the curriculum of the school and the general culture around the law school. 

Students had the opportunity to ask these questions in two different styles of meetings during the law school fair, during a group question-and-answer session or in a 10 minute one-on-one session with a member of a law school admissions team. The Q&A sessions were 30 minutes that typically started with a short presentation providing basic information about the law school. Then, students were able to ask their questions or write them in the chat for counselors to answer. The interests of the students in the sessions determined what the focus of the Q&A was. Some sessions focused more on the culture of the campus, while others delved into opportunities in the surrounding area to get involved, including social justice projects that students could join. 

This was a very effective way for students to find out more about schools they were interested in, but they also could sign up for one-on-one sessions with the representative. This allowed students to provide more information about themselves, including why they are interested in law school and why they would be a good fit at that specific school. They could also ask questions that they might not want to in a group session. It also allowed students to provide a face behind the application for admission representatives to remember. Most students were eager to take this opportunity, especially if they were currently in the admissions process. 

The University’s  Law School Fair is one of the first fairs at the start of the admissions cycle. This provides students a unique opportunity to interact with admissions officers before most other universities. Students that are not yet applying could use this time to find out more about each school and narrow their interests for when it is their time. They could also find out more information about LSAT prep companies and get a better idea for how they will prepare for the test. Preparing with a prep course or private tutor is a very popular study method for students, although most can get fairly expensive. Students applying in this admissions cycle could find out more about the process and possibly get advice for their personal application.

After the law school fair was finished, students gained a better idea of what school they were interested in. Those applying in this admissions cycle resumed working on their personal statement and resume, and those not yet applying started to think about when to start studying for the LSAT.