Hi everybody!

I am planning to apply to the following law schools (listed in order of preference) SLS (Corporate Governance and Practice), HLS, and CLS. However, I am wondering whether I have good chances to get in or I should also consider other (less stellar) law schools.

My profile is the following:

1) Just admitted to the Italian bar;

2) Graduated with best possible marks and honors from a top Italian law school;

3) TOEFL iBT 110/120 (30 R; 29 L; 24 S; 27 W);

4) 3 years work experience in a "Magic Circle" business law firm ranked tier-1 in my area of specialization;

5) I expect to obtain strong rec letters from my boss (very famous lawyer) and a former professor.

Many thanks for your help!!!

Strong for HSL, very strong for CLS, weak for SLS.

Sorry, but I would say weak for all. I mean no offence, just stating the obvious.

Apparently you lack publications, variety and something else. Good grades, brilliant references and top iBT scores are common to ALL those applying to these schools. You'll need something else.

Hi there!

[None taken, don't worry! :) ]

Nice overview. Apparently you are an exception to the rule, as I assume (correctly) there are fewer applicants from Bolivia than there are, from instance, Brazil, Argentina, and certainly China, Germany, India and so forth.

I know how admissions work better than almost eveyone on this forum, because I have been directly and indirectly involved. Of course, each school has its standards and entry criteria, however, the general path is the same.

Since you say you got into Berkeley (congrats, by the way), you should know there's little "fight" for it compared to the following: Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Chicago, NYU, Columbia - to name a few. The OP asked for advice in terms of SLS/HLS/CLS (Stanford, Harvard, Columbia) - My rationale stands still regarding those schools.

Now, had he mentioned entry to UCLA, Berkeley, Houston, Cornell, etc - I would have said he has very good chances. But the truth is that for HLS, CLS and SLS he has limited options.

Note: this is not to say he should NOT apply. He should, in fact, and he should do it with enthusiasm! I did not told him not to apply, I just said he has limited chances. Because that's the truth. See the difference? :)

Hi!

Well your case certainly is interesting. Very interesting in fact.

a) You say last year you did not get into Fordham, nor NYU. This year you got into Berkeley. Since you say there was no change except for personal statement and LOR, I am stunned. I assume Berkeley's class is smaller than NYU's so entry is more competitive.

b) What do you mean by "I focused on my personal statement and LORs " - those LORs, how exactly did you focus on them?

c) "I am trying to make a point that no matter what, a person could be the exception to the rule." - very true, and congratulations for being the exception yourself!

d) "am no exception to HLS, CLS or SLS, so you might be absolutely right. If I get rejected, you win. If I gain admission, however, anything's possible." - did you apply to HLS, CLS or SLS, too?

e) Maybe you got me wrong on stating you're Bolivian. I did not imply that you are weaker than others from China, India, germany, Brazil ... I wanted to point the fact there are much more applicants from those countries as opposed to applicants from Bolivia (maybe you were the sole applicant from Bolivia to Berkeley's LLM, who knows?), so you being from Bolivia was to your advantage.

f) You probably spent around $500 (maybe even more) on application fees. It is safe to assume you are not looking for scholarships for your LLM? If you are not (that is, you will fund it yourself), then this could also have been to your advantage!

Anyway, your case is, as said before, exceptional, and it'll be very interesting to see your updates on this. Good luck!

This kind of discussion is really interesting, i mean about the "criteria" to be accepted in SLS/HLS/CLS.

@ c.urresti, congratulations! it such a big achievement to get into Berkeley, I believe you worked very hard for your Personal statement & LOR. yes I heard about the high competition to get into Berkeley, they are not just looking for academic background but more into personal statement and LOR.

@ hawkme, can you share more details about your personal opinion/ experience about SLS/HLS/ CLS? well Im sure most of the applicants to those schools must have a very stunning academic result and probably some of them also have a publication, but based on your experience/ knowledge what is the main point/criteria to be accepted into those schools?


thanks

Hi there!

I don't have personal Experience on the matter yet, but I know some people from my country being addmited at CLS, NUY and even Berckeley with just a good profile but not stars and still they made it...
I think, they look applicantions as a whole, and as far as I know PS is very important... so I think in the end you have a chance..

Thank you!!!

Hi!


And if people out there think like me (that anything's possible), please visit:
http://www.vincelombardi.com/quotes.html

Well, I got into Berkeley so I can give you a clear idea about admissions into Berkeley. I got into several other universities and some of this stuff is applicable to them too.

1) Hawk's right. They generally look for diversity in the class. So if you happen to be the only guy from a country to apply, your chances shoot up considerably. Not that they'll take anyone but mediocre grades will suffice.

2) Happen to be from India,China, Brazil etc? Its harder to get in. Thats because there are more qualified applicants than you can imagine. Some have good grades, Some have solid work ex and some are just interesting people.

3) How hard is it to get into Berkeley or CLS or NYU? I would say Berkeley and CLS are more selective in their admissions. CLS considers work experience heavily. If you have one yaer of work ex and poor grades, I would advise you to wait. Berkeley looks more at grades but is willing to look beyond that if you have significant years of experience doing something meaningful and if you meet diversity standards. Its generally easier to get into NYU and Georgetown over berk/cls/penn. Harvard and Stanford of course are tougher to get into. Harvard because they look at publications,grades and the 2 part essay. Stanford's 3(?) year experience requirement autotmatically screens out a good number of llm applicants. The rest are highly qualified at their jobs and have great grades.


4) Berkeley admission standards are incredibly relaxed when it comes to to the professional LLM program. Its incredibly easy to get into, the reason being that its an easy money maker for the university. Times are tough and every law school is looking for ways to keep themselves a going concern. This is no reflection on the QUALITY OF THE PROGRAM. I believe Andrew Guzman teaches during the summer. Rest assured, the quality of instruction is still superb.

5) The more work experience you have, the easier it is to get into someplaces. Remember these law schools have to place you after graduation and its easier to place you as a lateral hire.

Someone above is right. For school at this level, the "hard" conditions are not determinative. You have to show extrordinary "soft" strength in your PS an CV, which probably none of us can show you how - you know yourself best.

SLS requires 2 years of working experience but most LLM far exceed this line. Besides, SLS is really heavy reading...I hear people in CLS has a better life.

Good luck!