Welcome to UMass! Whether you’re just starting your college years, or transferring into UMass to continue what you started elsewhere, the Pre-Law Advising Office is here to help. Below you’ll find the substance of the Pre-Law sessions that I (along with my colleagues in the Student Legal Services Office) offer during the Summer New Student & Families Program (NSFP) — so if you made it to summer orientation, this will be a helpful reminder, and if you didn’t, no worries, you’ll find it all here.
First, if you’re a freshman, there is nothing can do this first year of college to dramatically help or hurt your eventual law school admission chances. Literally nothing. I mean, avoid felonies if you can (which is a generally good idea, no matter where you find yourself in life).
What should you be doing instead?
Honor the transition to college
It’s a bigger step than you might think. Everything in your life is about to change in ways that are very difficult to envision right now — where you live and who you live with; the kinds of classes you take, how often they meet, and how you study for them; your surrounding community; the range of activities you can engage in; and more. Take some time to get used to this new world, and do your best to ensure your first-year grades don’t suffer because you underestimated the transition.
Remember: You’ve got time! Lots of time! Most applicants to law school — two-thirds or more — have already graduated from college. Only a minority go straight through (K-JD, as the forums like to call it). Take your time.
Study what interests you
There’s no “pre-law” major or preferred set of courses. Law schools welcome applicants from the widest possible range of majors, minors, concentrations, etc. If you already know what you want to major in, great, go for it. If you’re rethinking your first choice, or still trying to decide, then don’t be afraid to explore. Take some sample courses in the disciplines you might be interested in and see what really captures your attention. Remember that if you’re interested in your courses, you’ll get more out of them, and you’ll do better. Grades will matter, but the field won’t.
Learn to be a good writer
Writing is the core skill for every kind of lawyer, and the advent of AI is not changing that — in fact, it’s making it more crucial than ever that the humans involved know what they’re doing. Take courses in which you’ll be asked to write research papers and persuasive essays, and in which you’ll get good feedback on your writing. This could be in any field, but you’re most likely to find that kind of academic experience in the humanities and social sciences. If you’re pursuing a major in a STEM field or in business (especially Accounting or Finance), you’ll want to look in other departments for the kinds of courses that can help you strengthen you writing skills.
Get to know your instructors
Professors really aren’t as scary as they might first appear, and they really do have a lot to offer beyond what they’re formally teaching about in class. Visit office hours — these are times when your professors are just hanging out in their offices, waiting for students like you to come talk with them. Ask questions about class, or about your professor’s research interests or career paths (look up their profile page before you go, so you know something about them). Maybe look for opportunities to work with them on their research. Every professor thinks these kinds of interactions are inherently beneficial to students, but they’re also potentially strategically beneficial: you’re helping them get to know you so they have something good to say about you in the future. And keep in mind that the graduate student TAs in your discussion sections are also helpful resources!
If you’re a transfer student, much of the above still applies. You’ve already seen what college is like, but you’re still transitioning to a different one, which can bring some new challenges and opportunities. Take some time with that. You’ve probably settled on a major already, but you have less time to get to know your professors, so you might want to prioritize making those connections, as well as connecting with your academic, career, and pre-law advisors.
What about outside the classroom?
Do what’s meaningful to you
Clubs (law-related or not!), volunteer activities, and work are all equally important to law schools in the admissions process. They really don’t care whether you do law-related stuff, and that job you’re doing to pay the bills is just as important an experience to them as that cool club you’ve always wanted to get involved with. Make meaningful choices and you’ll have a more compelling story to tell about yourself when it comes time to put together your law school application.
But if you’re reading this, you’re probably interested in law stuff, so here are a few you might want to check out.
Pre-Law Club
National Black Law Student Association (NBLSA) Pre-Law Chapter
Kappa Alpha Pi (Pre-Law Co-ed Fraternity)
Mock Trial Team
Parliamentary Debate Team
Model UN
Student Government Association (SGA) judiciary
Conduct Advisors
Explore Legal Careers
Law school is expensive and demanding, and legal careers are not for the faint of heart. Make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into, and that you like it, before you head too far down this path. Your first and second years of college are a great time to do this, and we’ve devoted a big section of this website to helping you figure out how. Internships, shadowing, informational interviews, lawyer networking events, and even podcasts! You’ll find a ton of resources on those pages.
One great way to explore legal careers is right here on campus — the Student Legal Services Office legal assistant internship. Click through to find more info about the internship, but also about this fantastic office on campus that provides free legal services to all UMass Amherst students.
Just remember, though: the purpose of pursuing a law-related internship is not to impress the law school admissions offices — it’s not a prerequisite to a successful law school application. Rather it’s for you, to ensure that your decision to attend law school is as well-informed as possible.
Some extra thoughts for transfer students
If you’re one of the many students transferring into UMass — either after successfully completing your Associate’s at one of our community colleges, or at a different point in your college career coming from another institution — you may feel like you’ve got a shorter timeline ahead of you as you think about applying to law school. But while it’s true that you’ll have fewer than four years at UMass, your timeline for law school is still completely within your control. Remember, only a minority of students go straight to law school after college, so you have as much time as you’d like to figure out what your own schedule looks like.
Reach out whenever you have questions!
While this website has a ton of information that will answer most of your most pressing pre-law questions, sometimes, you just want to talk to somebody face-to-face. So feel free to schedule yourself for an appointment once the Fall semester starts — you’ll use Navigate, the same scheduling platform that you’ll use to make appointments with other kinds of advisors. Pre-Law Advising appears as an option for all undergraduate students, right under “Advising Services” on the app. Pre-Law Advising availability for the Fall will become visible a week or two before classes start. In the meantime, you should always feel free to email the Pre-Law Advisor, Diane Curtis, with any questions.
