A group of aspiring law students from ABAC’s Law Club headed to The Westin in Atlanta on Oct. 19 to attend the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC) Forum, where they had the chance to learn about law school and how to prepare for it, talk to other students preparing for law school and meet with representatives from over 100 law schools from around the country.
The LSAC forum is held at multiple times throughout the year in several different cities around the country. It is meant to give students the tools they need to be ready to begin or move forward with the law school application process. The students who attended the Atlanta forum came from around the region. Most were from Georgia, but some came from Alabama, Florida, the Carolinas and even from as far away as Nigeria.
ABAC’s group included Taylor Swindell, Kirby Lawhorn, and Hannah Robinson, founding members and officers of ABAC’s Law Club, along with Christopher Barlow, Will Ansley, and Kasey Collins. Some students know already that they are going to attend law school, while others are still figuring out what they would like to do and have taken an interest in law. Dr. Joseph Devaney and Dr. Ryan Voris went with the group as well.
When the students arrived at the forum, they had a chance to make a “game plan” for which workshops they wanted to attend and which school representatives they would meet out of the many that were in attendance. Before lunch, the group attended sessions on law school admissions and on studying for and taking the LSAT, the standardized test that students applying to law schools are required to take.
For Law Club, president Taylor Swindell, this workshop was particularly helpful. “The LSAT has been the most nerve-wracking part of preparing for law school. Being able to participate in a workshop led by someone who writes the test alleviated a lot of the worry I had,” she said. In the admissions forum, students had the chance to ask questions about writing personal statements, resumes and getting letters of recommendation.
The biggest part of the day, and what the students were most looking forward to, was the opportunity to meet with law school representatives. Students were excited to visit with colleges closer to home, like Florida State University, some slightly further like Belmont College and some all the way across the country like University of Oregon. Students who visited with the representatives were able to get an application fee waiver, which helps students save hundreds of dollars that they can put towards saving up for sending out LSAT scores and paying for law school.
The last part of the day was attending a forum on “Financing Your Legal Education,” taught by a financial expert who works with the Law School Admissions Council on helping students understand the financial aid process. He talked about the importance of learning to live frugally and on what the best options for loans and scholarships are, and gave students from ABAC peace of mind about paying for law school.
Law school is daunting, especially in the middle of senior year, which four out of six students on the trip are facing. As Swindell puts it, “This is an event that anyone who is planning on going to law school should attend. I wish I could have gone before now.” However, she thinks that ABAC’s Law Club is exactly the tool to help students who are concerned about where to go next. “This is why I am so glad that we can have a law club that helps students planning to attend law school and directs them down the path to success.”
