Dearest LSAT-takers and loyal blog readers, it is my duty to you to consistently put forward helpful, interesting and useful information to help you along on your LSAT prep path to your legal future. To properly perform this duty, I keep my eyes and ears open for any juicy LSAT tidbits that come my way. Since we’re on the waning end of our celebration of the June exam being over, I thought why not discuss some things you may see come Fall 2013. Through all my reading and keeping up to “LSAT-date,” I’ve found that there are three things to watch out for come the changing leaves of Fall [or for those of you in California, come the September heat].
- Shrunken Applicant Pool
From Fall 2011 to the Fall 2012, the number of law school applicants has dropped by 13.6 percent—Fall 2011 saw an all time high of applications at 602,300 filed amongst 87,500 applicants, but the number of applicants filed in the Fall 2012 was 469,642 amongst 67,957 applicants. It’s expected that these number will continue to decline in 2013.
What does this mean for you? Well, because of the smaller pool, you will have more leverage and power when it comes to where you are accepted and how much money is offered to you. Some law schools, as a response to this diminished applicant pool, may begin to drop their class sizes in an effort to keep their GPA and LSAT averages the same, while keeping their acceptance rates low.
In this way, you will have more power when it comes to the perks of your law school acceptance (e.g. how much financial aid you are eligible to receive).
- Increased “Big-Law” Firm Hiring
The “Big-Law” firms in the United States have steadily increased their hiring since 2009. It is expected that this trend will continue on into 2013 and the years following. These jobs are some of the highest paying jobs in the legal industry. Another good reason to rejoice, no?
- Look Into International Law
There is growing need for interdependence between countries. As globalization continues to occur, knowledge and expertise in International Law will become more and more of an asset on your legal resume. More and more employers will be looking for law students who focused on workers’ protections, treaties and trade, cross-border economic relationships, etc.
So, to sum up: smaller applicant pool, increased hiring, stronger emphasis on international law. All these trends mean good things for you. I hope that this gave you a bit of inspiration to rev up those Logic Games, Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension skills to prepare for the October LSAT. I promise your hard work during your LSAT prep will pay off. Continue on, my LSAT-taking friends!
Happy Studying!
