Admissions

columnscolumns

Blog Posts

November 19, 2020
A Real Life Admissions Story

An instructive story from Mike Spivey.

October 24, 2020
Video: Character & Fitness Discussion

In this video, Spivey Consulting law school admissions consultants discuss the basics of the character and fitness section of the law school application, and how to assess the seriousness of your situation if you have something to report in that section.

October 23, 2020
Example of a Personal Statement that Covered Diversity/Adversity Themes

We wanted to post the below example of a case when a separate diversity statement was not necessary because the personal statement already covered those elements.

August 21, 2020
Inside Scoop on the New LSAC Digital Forums

What to expect and important information.

August 20, 2020
Top 50 Law School Application Opening Dates for the 2020-2021 Cycle

Please note, these are the dates that the applications become available on LSAC for applicants to peruse and begin to prepare school-specific essays, not when they can be submitted (though for many schools this is the same date). Organized by School: * Yale: September 1 * Stanford: September 15 * Harvard: September 15 * University of Chicago: September 1 * Columbia: September 1 * NYU: September 1 * UPenn: September 1 * UVA: September 1 * UC Berkeley: September 1 * U Michigan: August 1

August 4, 2020
Guide to Completing LSAC Applications

So you’ve worked hard to prepare your materials, and it's time to submit! What's next?

July 7, 2020
Predicting the 2020/2021 Law School Admissions Cycle

The 2020-2021 admissions cycle is going to be the most challenging yet to predict, and most will understand a large part of that uncertainty.

June 22, 2020
LSAC Forums & Recruiting Events in the Time of COVID-19

Because of COVID-19, LSAC and law schools are creating virtual options for recruiting events.

May 7, 2020
Predicting the COVID-19 Summer Of Law School Waitlist Movement

Early in my admissions career, a former boss of mine would often use the following Niels Bohr quote when speaking of law school admissions: “prediction is difficult, especially when it involves the future.”

Podcasts

April 28, 2020
Universities, Colleges, and Law Schools Plan to Be Open On Campus This Fall

In this podcast, Spivey Consulting Group founder and higher education expert Mike Spivey discusses the plans universities are making to resume on-campus operations this fall, as well as challenges to those plans from the medical community.

You can listen to the podcast via the YouTube video below, or via SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

November 25, 2019
The Waiting is Long and Full of Terrors

In this podcast, Spivey Consulting Group Founder and Partner Mike Spivey discusses the hardest part of the law school admissions process—the waiting—and how it can cause some applicants to hurt their own chances of admission.

Here's the blog post mentioned in the podcast: Spooky Halloween Blog: Real Stories of Things That Creep Out Admissions Offices.

Mike's other blog which is mentioned in this podcast: Spivey Blog.

Find our podcasts on YouTube, SoundCloud, and Apple Podcasts. And check out our law school data/rankings tool My Rank.

October 9, 2019
Traits of Law School Applicants Who Outperform Their Numbers

In this podcast, Spivey Consulting Group Founder and Partner Mike Spivey discusses commonalities between applicants who punch above their numbers. This podcast is also available on SoundCloud  and Apple Podcasts.

Also be sure to check out My Rank, our tool for comparing and ranking law schools with according to your own priorities.

November 12, 2019
Mike Spivey on the Darker Side of Self-Doxing in Law School Admissions

In this podcast, Spivey Consulting Group Founder and Partner Mike Spivey discusses what happens when a law school applicant posts something that deeply offends or insults law school admissions officers who may know who they are in real life.  

The Spivey Blog is mentioned in this podcast.  

As always, please reach out to us at info@spiveyconsulting.com for more information about working with us.  

Also check out our custom law school rankings/comparison data website, My Rank.

January 15, 2020
How to Approach and What to Take Away from Admitted Student Days/Weekends

In this podcast, Spivey Consulting Founding Partner Mike Spivey talks about why law schools have admitted student programs, what you can expect from them, what you can expect from others at the event, and how to make the most of the visit. He also answers r/LSA questions and added a separate podcast here on one of the elements that the toll and pressure of admissions can have on people and how to alleviate that.

February 8, 2020
How will the rest of the 2019/2020 Law School Admissions Cycle Play Out?

In this podcast, SCG's Mike Spivey speaks on what to expect for the rest of the cycle — including why it might greatly favor some people with strong softs this summer, thus making it a "Soft Cycle," but also why it has and will continue to be slow. Also discussed are two internal LSAC changes that will have significant impact for the rest of the admissions cycle and in future years.

Finally, the link Mike mentioned to the blog he wrote to those who are done and checking out of the admissions process – or just want a different take on things —can be found here: 10 Lessons Life Has Taught Me.