Pre-Law Advice Skip Nav
These links are specifically for students at the College of Charleston who are interested in legal careers.

The links present, in order, the following information. First, what does a legal career involve. Next, there
are undergraduate preparation hints, followed by a discussion of the law school application process.
There is a brief look at the last hurdle to a legal career--the bar exam and career placement. There is a
questionnaire, which serves as a guide to where you have been intellectually and where you might want
to be, whether you end up in law school or not. Also there is a bibliography, a film guide, and a source of acknowledgements.

The links are written by Dr. David Mann, Professor of Political Science, College of Charleston
http://www.cofc.edu/~mannd/

Pre-Law Advice Links

I. Legal Careers	VI. Will You Succeed?
II. Commitment to Law School	VII. Questionnaire
III. Undergraduate Preparation	VIII. Bibliography
IV. Law School Admissions Process	IX. Film List
V. Application Time Line	X. Acknowledgements

Special Announcements:

BRAND NEW: George and Sherry: What Every Law Student Really Needs to Know
on two hour reserve, pre-law

____

Special Announcement from Law Services: regarding letters of recommendation:

"LSAC’s Letter of Recommendation Service is about to change for the better. Gone are the complicated classifications “General,” “Targeted,” and “Inactive.” As of April 27, 2009, as letters are added to a candidate’s file, they will be classified as “Active.”

In order for a letter to be sent to a law school, the candidate must assign the letter to a particular school (or schools). Letters not assigned by the candidate to a particular school will not be sent to that school.

You will be able to check out the LOR process for yourself and your students at LSAC’s virtual, interactive candidate website, which will be available through your LSACnet.org account at the end of May. On the site, you will be able to replicate LSAC candidate services such as:

registering for the LSAT;
assembling credentials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation;
filling out law school applications; and
ordering publications."

--April 17, 2009

____

Pre-Law Magazines:
"7 Ways to Choose the Best Law School for You"
'Best Law Schools for Practical Training"
"Which Law Schools Rank Best on Diversity"
"The Truth About the LSAT"
"Most Political Law Schools--Conservative or Liberal"
"Financial Aid"
"Best Value Law Schools"
--available at Dr. Mann's office, Center for Student Learning, and Career Services

American Bar Association Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund: http://www.abanet.org/fje

Applications for 2010-11 LSAC Fee Waiver Program are available from Dr. Mann

Attention All Applicants: "dean certification letter" requests are handled by Dr. Cabot, Dean of Students, Student Affairs (Stern Center, 2nd floor)

Special Law Related Events at C of C, Fall '09-Spring '10

Sept. 17th, Thursday, 3:00 pm, Tate 207: Constitution Day Speaker Jill HaLevi--mediation

Sept. 24th, Thursday, 3:00 pm, ECTR 111: Open Pre-Law Advising Session; from first year student to graduated student, basic advice and planning; Dr. Mann will preside.

Sept. 26th: Kaplan Practice LSAT; Maybank Hall.  www.kaptest.com/practice <http://www.kaptest.com/practice>     (use zip code 29424)

Sept. 29th: "Navigating the Law School Admissions Process"--4:00; ECTR 101; USC Admissions Director Orr will be here

October 1st: Thursday, 6:00 pm, Maybank 219: New Pre-Law Series: "What Lawyers Do"--Ken Allen of Columbia, SC specializes in alcohol licensing throughout the state

October 8th, Thursday, 7:00 pm: Professor Richard Epstein, University of Chicago Law Professor--115 Beatty (formerly Wachovia Auditorium): "Takings versus Regulation: Where in Lies the Difference?"

October 15th, Thursday, 4:00 pm--ECTR 101: Personal Statement Workshop: Dean John Benfield, Charleston School of Law

Saturday. Oct. 10 & 17.  Princeton Review LSAT Sessions. Held at the Charleston School of Law.  
link to register:
http://testprep/princetonreview.com/CourseSearch/Search.aspx?productType=C&rid=1&Zip=29407&itemCode=18 <http://testprep/princetonreview.com/CourseSearch/Search.aspx?productType=C&amp;rid=1&amp;Zip=29407&amp;itemCode=18>
Click on Free Events and then register

October 23rd/24th: LSAC Regional Law School Forum, Atlanta: Hyatt Regency Atlanta--265 Peachtree Street NW--see LSAC for details (http://www.lsac.org)

October 28th: Meet Admissions Deans from Mississippi College School of Law,
University of Tennessee, Memphis, and Mercer (George School of Law)
4:00 pm, Maybank 207

October 29th: Career Fair and Expo--Gaillard Auditorium; 12:00-3:30 pm; law schools signed up include: Charleston School of Law,
Georgia State University College of Law, Ohio Northern University Pettit School of Law, Stetson University School of Law, University of Mississippi School of Law, University of SC School of Law; contact Career
Services for further details

November 3rd: Prof. Micah Schwartzman (UVA School of Law): "The Ethics of Arguing: The Value of Sincerity in Legal and Political Argument"; 3:00 pm, Arnold Hall, Jewish Studies Center

Pre-Law Advice Resources
General Pre-Law Information

Alphabetical list of American Bar Association approved law schools:
http://www.abanet.org/legaled/approvedlawschools/approved.html

Law School Admissions Council (LSAT information; check geographic search function especially)
http://www.lsac.org

LSAT sample tests free on line:
http://www.testprepreview.com/lsat_practice.htm

LSAT Prep Course on campus for C of C students/alums:
Contact Center For Student Learning (Addlestone Library): 953-5635 or Steve Gibson at gibsont@cofc.edu

Legal Education Opportunities for minority students
http://www.cleoscholars.com

"Out and In: Information for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Law School Applicants"--
brochure published by LSAC--available at http://www.LSAC.org/LGBT

Pre-Law Advisors' National Council--lots of great links on pre-law advice and advising
http://www.planc.org/

Southern Association of Pre-Law Advisors--some nice links
http://www.sapla.org/

Elon College's Web Site on Electronic Pre-Law Advising
http://www.elon.edu/pre-law/epla.htm

Law School Locator from Boston College. Based on your GPA and LSAT scores find out which Law
Schools are best for you.
http://www.bc.edu/offices/careers/gradschool/law/lawlocator.html

Find out which law school is best for you based the ranking of your criteria. 
Indiana University School of Law Bloomingtion.
http://monoborg.law.indiana.edu/lawrank/index.html

Other Undergraduate School Pre-Law Web Sites
http://www.elon.edu/pre-law/index.htm
http://www.davidson.edu/student/organizations/prelaw/page2.html#Top
http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/cas/Pre-Law/
http://www.aas.duke.edu/trinity/prelaw/

Financial Aid Web Sites
http://www.lsac.org/LSAC.asp?url=lsac/financial-aid-introduction.asp
http://www.accessgroup.org/
http://studentaid.ed.gov/guide
http://www.finaid.org/
www.fafsa.ed.gov

Bar Association Information

Charleston County Bar Association
http://www.charlestonbar.org/

South Carolina State Bar Association
http://www.scbar.org

American Bar Association Legal Help Site
http://www.abalawinfo.org/

For C of C students and others who seek specific pre-law information:

LSAT Prep Course on campus for C of C students/alums:
Contact Center For Student Learning: 953-5635 or Steve Gibson at gibsont@cofc.edu

For C of C students, there are electronic reserve articles in PLAW. These are law review articles
that discuss LSAT, pre-law majors, and a variety of other topics. The password is: aspire

For a set of hints on how to make it through law school, find:
29 Stetson Law Review Number 4, Spring 2000:  "Maximizing the Law School Experience II",
a copy of which is on Reserve at the C of C Library.

BRAND NEW: George and Sherry: What Every Law Student Really Needs to Know
on two hour reserve, pre-law

A copy of ABA-LSAC Official Guide to ABA-Approved Law Schools 2009 Edition
is on Reserve at the C of C Library.

A copy of Law School Without Fear by Shapo and Shapo is on Reserve at the C of C Library.

A copy of Law School Lists, 2007-8 Edition, is on Reserve at the C of C Library.

Copies of the following pre-law magazines are available at Dr. Mann's office and in Career Services:
"How to find great schools for minorities and women"
"Best Schools for your money"
"Which Law School fits you best?"
"Admissions: Behind closed doors"
"Great schools for minorities"
"How will you afford law school?"
"Do Rankings really matter?"
"Diversity Comeback"

Boston College Advice on Personal Statements
http://www.bc.edu/offices/careers/gradschool/law/lawstatement

A list of legal resources is available from Dr. Mann's home page:
http://www.cofc.edu/~mannd/newlaw.html