Data

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Blog Posts

December 11, 2013
How down are applications? Consider this data...

As of 12/06/13 only 25 schools show an increase in applications, while 170 show a decline (5 show no change) Here is the breakdown: Increase of 100% or more: - Increase of 50% to 99%: 3 Increase of 40% to 49%: 1 Increase of 30% to 39%: 3 Increase of 20% to 29%: 2 Increase of 10% to 19%: 3 Increase of 1% to 9%: 13 No change: 5 Decrease of 1% to 9%: 23 Decrease of 10% to 19%: 52 Decrease of 20% to 29%: 48 Decrease of 30% or greater: 47

November 20, 2013
October LSAT Data by Region

A small glimmer of Oct LSAT Data is out *10/13 change from 10/12 LSAT by region. *** Far West 4,270 -12.8% Great Lakes 3,780 -16.0% Midsouth 4,100 -13.2% Midwest 1,090 -7.6% Mountain West 1,400 -13.1% New England 1,680 -10.9% Northeast 5,000 -9.4% Northwest 700 -4.9% South Central 2,970 -9.5% Southeast 4,050 -12.7% U.S. Regional Total 29,030 -11.9% Canada 3,280 -7.2% **

August 28, 2013
July 18, 2013
Percent change by LSAT bandwidth 2009/2010 to 2012/13*

Percent change (all decreases) by LSAT bandwidth from the 2009/2010 law school admissions cycle to 2012/13 law school admissions cycle. This data reflects applicant totals, not total volume (i.e. people who take LSAT but never apply) Highest LSATNumber of ApplicantsPct Chg YTD< 140-20%140–144-24%145–149-30% 150–154-36%155–159-35%160–164-44%165–169-35%170–174-44%175–180-47%The 2012/13 Data is as of 6/28/2013 and a final report has not been released by LSAC.** The final report should not reflec

July 16, 2013
Law School 2012/13 Applicant Data

ABA 2013 applicants and applications through 06/28/13 with the percent change from last year (last year at this time data was 98% complete: Currently there is one school with an application volume increase of 40% or more and 38 schools show a volume decrease of 30% or more. Twelve schools show an increase in applications, while 188 show a decline: Increase of 100% or more: 1 Increase of 50% to 99%: - Increase of 40% to 49%: - Increase of 30% to 39%: - Increase of 20% to 29%: - Increase of 10%

May 31, 2013
LSAC Data as of 5/31

Currently there is one school with an application volume increase of 40% or more, while 41 schools show a volume decrease of 30% or more. Twelve schools show an increase in applications, while 187 show a decline and 0 shows no change. Highest LSATPct Chg YTD< 140-7.5%140–144-12.7%145–149-11.8%150–154-13.2%155–159 -17.4%160–164-15.8%165–169-16.1%170–174-25.2%175–180-21.8%Get future releases first @https://twitter.com/SpiveyConsult

Podcasts

December 15, 2020
Law School “Yield Protection”: What It Is & Steps to Take to Prevent It

In this podcast, Mike Spivey discusses the phenomenon in law school admissions known as "yield protection," and explains steps you can take to prevent being waitlisted as a result of it.

You can listen to this podcast below, or via SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

As promised in the podcast, here are some resources for how to choose which law school to attend:

January 4, 2021
Commonly Misunderstood—But Important—Parts of the Law School Application Process

In this podcast, Mike Spivey discusses some of the most commonly held misconceptions about the law school admissions process, and how understanding them can help you get admitted.

You can listen to this podcast below, or on SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

  • 0:30 – admissions is inherently comparative
  • 4:21 – admissions officers want to get to know you
  • 7:12 – how do law schools make money?
  • 11:03 – being a savvy applicant (regarding advice from law school admissions offices)
February 8, 2021
Anything is Possible

For today's podcast, a little something different — some advice on resiliency in the face of watching others succeed in the ways you'd like to be succeeding.

You can listen to this podcast below, or on SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

January 19, 2021
Reddit AMA: Why haven't I gotten a decision yet? Is January too late to apply? + the worst PS we've ever seen

In this podcast, Mike answers a few questions from Reddit.

You can listen to this podcast below, or on SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

January 16, 2021
Interviews with Law School Applicants About the Admissions Process

In this podcast, Mike Spivey interviews groups of current law school applicants about their experiences with the admissions process — what has surprised them, how they've handled the stress, what they expect for the future, and what advice they would give to someone at the beginning of the process. The participants are all volunteers from r/LawSchoolAdmissions, and only one happened to be a client of Spivey Consulting.

Here's a link to the blog post Mike mentioned in the podcast: Spivey Blog, The Malevolent Puppeteer.

You can listen to this podcast below, or on SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts. Thank you for listening!

January 26, 2021
LOCIs & Law School Fit When You Can't Visit + International Applicant Considerations This Cycle

In this podcast, Mike Spivey answers more questions from Reddit. First up, he discusses differences international JD applicants might see in their admissions processes with the special considerations of this application cycle. Then, he talks about how to figure out whether a law school is the right fit for you when you can't visit in person — and, for those who haven't been admitted yet, how to write a strong letter of continued interest (LOCI) without visiting.

You can listen to this podcast below, or on SoundCloud or Apple Podcasts.

  • International JD admissions considerations this cycle: 0:52
  • Getting to know a school's culture when you can't visit: 4:32
  • How to write a LOCI when you can't visit: 7:32