Admissions

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Blog Posts

January 22, 2024
Glossary of Admissions Terms

Here's a glossary of some of the most common law school admissions-related acronyms, abbreviations, and terminology.

September 27, 2023
Which law schools interview applicants, and what are their interview formats?

If you're planning to apply to law school, you may be wondering, which law schools employ interviews as a part of their admissions process? Info here.

August 17, 2023
2023 Law School Application Changes Compiled

We have seen more law schools making changes to their application components and instructions this cycle than in any other we can recall. For your reference, we will be compiling these changes below, adding new schools as their applications and instructions are posted.

August 3, 2023
Predicting the 2023-2024 Law School Admissions Cycle

The 2022-2023 application cycle is coming to a close, and overall, it will finish with about 2% fewer applicants than the prior cycle—the lowest total number of applicants since the 2017-2018 cycle. In this blog, we look at 2023-2024.

May 23, 2023
Pro Bono Law School Admissions Consulting Opportunity 2023-2024

Spivey Consulting Group fully supports equitable access and diverse representation in legal education. We are excited to announce that, as part of this ongoing commitment, Spivey Consulting Group is launching its third year of our formal Pro-Bono Consulting Program!

April 12, 2023
U.S. News Significantly Reduces the Weight of LSAT/GRE & GPA. What's Next?

A few months ago, many law schools announced they would boycott sending U.S. News direct (and non-third party audited) data, essentially forcing U.S. News to change their methodology. The rates of the admissions metrics were significantly reduced. What does this mean?

March 27, 2023
How to Ask for a Seat Deposit Deadline Extension

Learn how to ask for a seat deposit deadline extension.

March 22, 2023
How to Write a Law School Letter of Continued Interest (“LOCI”)

Submitting a LOCI is a necessary step in trying to get admitted off any waitlist—this blog will walk you through some key "dos" and "don'ts" to keep in mind while you're drafting yours.

January 11, 2023
Understanding Law School Admissions Office Titles & Hierarchies

Admissions office staff titles can be confusing. If you're trying to decipher who in an admissions office is the seniormost decision-maker, this blog likely has your answer.

Podcasts

April 14, 2025
Following a Law School Applicant Through the 2024-2025 Cycle (Part 3, Decisions & Wrap-Up)

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey, we have our third and final interview with "John" (not his real name; u/Muvanji on Reddit), who we've followed throughout his law school admissions cycle for 2024-2025. John discusses his final decision on where to attend, his process of requesting scholarship reconsideration, his decision not to pursue waitlists, admitted students days, what he's looking forward to in law school, and his thoughts and reflections on the law school admissions process now that it's over.

Prior episodes with John:

You can listen and subscribe to Status Check with Spivey on ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠. You can read a full transcript of this episode below.

May 19, 2025
Dean Z of Michigan Law on Admissions Advice and AI—The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey, Mike Spivey and Anna Hicks-Jaco have a conversation with Sarah Zearfoss (also known as "Dean Z"), who has long led the admissions office at the University of Michigan Law School as Senior Assistant Dean and who hosts the admissions podcast A2Z with Dean Z.

The group discusses using generative AI to write your essays vs. to research admissions advice (including asking ChatGPT a few admissions questions and critiquing its answers), the prospect of law schools using AI to evaluate applications, grade inflation (and how admissions officers saw it before open access to generative AI vs. now), application timing (and how early applications correlate to stronger admit rates without necessarily causing them), and more. Plus, Dean Z introduces a new question being added to Michigan Law's application this upcoming 2025-2026 cycle.

You can listen and subscribe to Status Check with Spivey on ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠. You can read a full transcript of this episode below.

May 5, 2025
Waitlist Predictions for the 2024-2025 Law School Admissions Cycle

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey, Mike discusses the various factors that are at play for this cycle's waitlist season, his predictions for how it will go, and his advice for waitlisted applicants. For more on waitlist strategy, check out our Waitlist Deep Dive podcast episode!

You can listen and subscribe to Status Check with Spivey on ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠. You can read a full transcript of this episode below.