Features
- Cover Type: Paperback with 324 pages
- Published by: Harvest Books April 4, 2005
- Written in: English
- ISBN 10 Number: 0156029790
- ISBN 13 Number: 978-0156029797
-
Book Dimensions:
7.8 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
- Weighs: 9.6 ounces
Product Description
As dean of admissions at the University of Chicago Law School, Anna Ivey decided the fate of thousands of law school applicants. In this book-the first of its kind by a former law school admissions officer-she draws on her expertise to cover topics from the application and the essay to the interview and the recommendations, touching on hot-button issues like how much the LSAT, ethnicity, and age really matter. Offering an insider's advice on how to produce the very best application, this guide gives straight answers to questions such as:
• What kind of essay should I write to set me apart from the rest of the pack?
• Should I explain my low LSAT score, my D in chemistry, my attention deficit disorder, my time in rehab?
• Is law school worth the debt I'll face when I graduate?
Full of invaluable examples and anecdotes about real admissions decisions, The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions is certain to become the new bible for would-be law students everywhere.
About The Author
ANNA IVEY earned her law degree at the University of Chicago Law School, where she later served as dean of admissions. Ivey now runs a successful admissions counseling firm for college, business school, and law school applicants, helping clients make the most compelling sales pitch for admission. She divides her time between Boston, Massachusetts, and New Orleans, Louisiana.
Reader Reviews
I've been the prelaw advisor at a medium-sized religious college for more than twenty-five years, and my advice about law school application runs largely along the lines outlined in Anna Ivey's nicely written book. In the future, if a student begins to write me off as a curmudgeon, I'll be able to cite chapter and verse from this author, who's a good quarter-century younger and has a far better claim to speak with authority about such matters than I. So, undergraduates, read and heed. Nevertheless, I have a few quibbles. One inference of the Ivey Guide is that a great many admission decisions are made on the basis of personal essays, interviews, and recommendations. Actually, as Ms. Ivey would probably agree, most decisions are based flatly and unimaginatively on GPA, LSAT, and minority status (if applicable). My feeling is that the other materials often serve largely as conscience salve for the typical admissions officer (of which Ms. Ivey was certainly not). In my experience, essays, recommendations, and the like prove most significant for those at the top and bottom of the food chain: to students applying at the twenty top-ten law schools (the probable target market for this book) and students who will gladly take anything above the California unaccrediteds. I also hold reservations about the sample essays and sample recommendations given in the appendix. The good ones are better than the bad ones for sure, but I found myself disliking all the authors. To me the best of the essays sound like they were written by slick showoffs. (At least the authors either have great writing skills or good ghostwriters.) As for faculty recommendations, I've had numerous students admitted to the best law schools without ever having written anything longer than this review. I wonder if there are now admissions officers out there with a permanent wince because of the longer rambling essays and recommendations that are likely to appear because of the advice given in this book.
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