What are the best Law School Admissions books? What materials will give me insight into the Law School Admission Process, including Law School applications, Law School Essays, Law School Personal Statements, etc.
There are plenty of books that claim to provide readers with insight into the law school admission process, but not all of them live up to the hype.
However, if you are looking for the best books on Law School Admissions to help you throughout the law school application cycle, there are a few books that are definitely worth purchasing.
For starters, these books on Law School Admissions are probably the best resources for general information:
The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert
With an amazon rating of 4.8/5 stars and over 55 reviews (previous edition), this books stands out at the top of the heap. If you are considering attending law school and you don’t already have this book, it is a must-buy. The recently updated second edition improves this classic with new information for current applicants, including how to maximize scholarship offers. Levine provides users with solid advice to help them through every step of the law school admission process. For under $15 on Amazon, this book is a MUST-BUY for anyone applying to law school.
The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions: Straight Advice on Essays, Resumes, Interviews, and More
With a respectable 4.6/5 star rating on Amazon, this is among the best books on law school admissions. Anne Ivey is a graduate and former admissions dean from the University of Chicago Law School, so her advice is spot-on and especially great for those interested in attending a top 10 law school. For about $10 on Amazon, this book is well worth the money.
How To Get Into the Top Law Schools
Though not as popular or well-received as the two previously mentioned law school admissions books, I still found this book to be helpful during my law school application cycle. At over 600 pages, this book contains a large wealth of information that other (smaller) books don’t include. For about $18 on Amazon, it is worth having around as a reference when you are working on each particular aspect of your law school application package.
Which Law School Admissions Book is Right for Me?
The Law School Admission Game is a great place to start, but I think that most people would benefit from The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions as well. Ivey’s was the Director at The University of Chicago Law School, so I’d especially recommend it for anyone swinging for the top law schools. At about $15 on Amazon, the price point is friendly enough to easily justify the investment.
On the other hand, I’d say that if you’ve already got those two, you should be safe to skip How to Get into Top Law Schools unless/until:
- You’re struggling with your personal statement or other application essays and you want to look at more examples to get some ideas (The Ivey book has a couple but How to Get into Top Law Schools has a ton of them).
- You finish reading the Admission Game & The Ivey Guide and are still hungry for more, or
- You’re like me and you feel more comfortable when you have lots of books on hand for reference
Below, I’ve put together the table of contents for each book, which should be helpful in making your decision.
THE LAW SCHOOL ADMISSION GAME
- Author: Ann Levine
- Author Street Cred: Former Director of Admissions at a T2 law school
- Price: about 14 bucks on amazon
- Length: 224 pages
- Current Version Published in: 2013
THE IVEY GUIDE TO LAW SCHOOL ADMISSIONS
- Author: Anna Ivey
- Author Street Cred: Former Director of Admissions at The University of Chicago
- Price: about 14 bucks on amazon
- Length: 314 pages
- Current Version Published in: 2005
HOW TO GET INTO TOP LAW SCHOOLS
- Author: Richard Montauk
- Author Street Cred: Went to Stanford Law, Runs an Admissions Consulting Company
- Price: about 20 bucks on amazon
- Length: 630 pages
- Current Version Published in: 2011
Gunning for the Top?
For those of you who are applying to Harvard (and other top law schools), check out How To Get Into Harvard Law, available in paperback and on Kindle as well.
Though I haven’t read this book myself, it was written by actual students at HLS. If you are applying to Harvard, I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t want to spend about ten bucks to buy the book on kindle. As with all law schools, insights from current students are an incredibly valuable tool to get a real feel for the law school.
Books on Law School Personal Statements
For advice on how to write your law school personal statement (essay) portion of your Law School Apps. You Personal Statement / Law School Application Essay is one of the most important factors aside from your LSAT score and GPA. You need to take this factor very seriously. The following books will help:
- The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert
- The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions: Straight Advice on Essays, Resumes, Interviews, and More
- Law School Essays That Made a Difference
- Essays That Will Get You into Law School
- 50 Successful Harvard Law School Application Essays: What Worked for Them Can Help You Get Into the Law School of Your Choice
Just for Fun
Also, some lighter material for your reading/viewing pleasure…
The following are required reading/viewing before you begin law school:
One L: The Turbulent True Story of a First Year at Harvard Law School by Scott Turow
The Paper Chase (movie) based on the book by John Jay Osborn Jr.
