Transferring Law Schools

The decision of transferring law schools has a lot of components to think about and evaluate. To know more about your chances of doing so, and the difficulties in the process, read on...

One gets enrolled in a law school only after working hard and fulfilling numerous exacting requirements. The first year in an institution teaches you, along with other things, whether your school is a right place for you.

You also come to know if the city you have moved to, is a suitable place for you or not. Some of the students, to their misfortune, find that not everything is to their taste, and It is then that they start thinking about transferring to another school. However, that is easier said than done.

Most of the time, the reason behind the decision is the ambition, which can be translated to a student's wish to do better in the future. Some students want the transfer because they think that by doing so, they will have a better chance of being recruited by one of the bigger law firms.

In fact, some of the firms do believe that these candidates prove themselves to be better lawyers, as they are focused on forging a successful career right from the first year.

While mapping the 'when', 'how', and 'where' aspects of transferring to new schools, students should keep in mind the following useful points

• Get in touch with the admissions department of the institute you want to join. Understand that each school follows different principles and have different policies regarding accepting students from other colleges.

• Take advice from the officials in your current school about how one can go about the process.
• In some cases, the applications of transfer must go through the Law School Admission Councils. Be sure to acquire an original Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS) from the council.

• Whether you have scored a very high grade point average (GPA) in LSAT or not, does not have any say when you are trying to get transferred. In this case, your performance or the class rank for the first year in your current law school is the only support to lean on.

• The schools that you will apply to for the transfer will certainly ask for a character reference or letter of good standing from you.

• Request letters of recommendations from your professors, especially from the ones who have been helpful to you or think favorably about you. These letters will prove to be a helping hand for you in gaining entry in the new institute.

• Official transcripts and a personal statement or an essay, submitted with your application, will prove useful in stating why you are considering a transfer in the first place.

• Keep aside snide remarks and rude suggestions about your current college, out of the essay.
• A document or letter from your current school clarifying the fact that you are not on an academic probation will be necessary/helpful.

• After collecting all the documents, submit them along with the application.
• You may have to pay a transfer application fee, depending on the regulations of the school you are applying to.

Your reasons for applying for a transfer must be thought out thoroughly, as it may lose you some credits that you have gained with your hard work. You will lose your friends and associates that you have made during the past year, and you will have to start rebuilding your social life in the new place right from scratch.

All in all, transferring to another law school is a tall order you are subscribing to, so think again, and if you are set on it, choose wisely.