Pre-law at Lycoming is a four-year program consisting of:
- Individualized advising
- Flexible, yet tailored program of courses
- Internships and practical experience
- Preparation for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT).
Lycoming is the perfect place to prepare for a future in law. In fact, the American Bar Association recommends a broad liberal arts degree as the best education for gaining admittance to law school. Our chief pre-law advisor, Dr. John Whelan, has been helping students gain entrance into law school for three decades. According to Dr. Whelan, the most important credentials in gaining entrance to law school are grade point average, the results of the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), and excellent recommendations. He advises students to take a major they enjoy, but encourages them to take courses that will require reading books and articles that argue, analyze, criticize, evaluate, interpret and explain.
Practical experiences and internships can also give students an edge for gaining acceptance into the law school of their choice. In the freshman or sophomore year, as part of the Lycoming College SHARE (Students Having A Real Experience) program, students work for one month in an area law firm. (A number of firms are located within easy walking distance of the campus.) In the junior year, pre-law students are eligible to complete a semester-long internship in a law firm, the District Attorney's Office or within a legal services organization. Some Lycoming students spend a semester in Washington, DC as part of Lycoming's Washington Semester.
Most law schools reject 50% of their applicants, and the better-known schools reject a much higher percentage. Because of the importance of obtaining a good LSAT score, Lycoming has a program designed to help students prepare for this exam. In the first month of the freshman year, Lycoming pre-law students take a practice LSAT exam. With results in hand, students are assisted in developing an individualized, four-year plan of courses and internships. The practice LSATs and a mini-LSAT prep course are offered each year.
Getting into competitive law schools takes commitment, hard work, and discipline. Recent graduates have been accepted to law school at Duke, NYU, Vanderbilt, Washington and Lee, William and Mary, Dickinson, Notre Dame, Temple, Georgetown, Tulane, Villanova, and the University of Pittsburgh, among many others.
