Product Description
The straightforward guide to surviving and thriving in law school

Every year more than 40,000 students enter law school and at any given moment there are over 125,000 law school students in the United States. Law school’s highly pressurized, super-competitive atmosphere often leaves students stressed out and confused, especially in their first year. Balancing life and schoolwork, passing the bar, and landing a job are challenges that students often need help facing. In Law School For Dummies, former law school student Rebecca Fae Greene uses straight talk, sound advice, and gentle humor to help students sort through the swamp of coursework and focus on what’s important–all while maintaining a life. She also offers rare insight on the law school experience for women, minorities, non-traditional, and non-Ivy League students. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Great!
After reading this book I read a few pages on a law school's website.I knew exactly what they were talking about and much more.This book is a great introduction to law school and related things.

Nothing you probably didn't already know
I tend to agree with "PNC2007" on that this is a very generic book on law school admissions and survival.I'm not a law school student (yet) that's why I was looking for some information.Like many For Dummies books, the book tries to be humorous and claims to give you the "insider secrets," but there's really absolutely nothing "secret" about what the author dispenses in way of advice.Want to get into a good law school?She says you need a high LSAT score, a high GPA, a good essay, and good recommendations.Duh.Don't we already know this?I mean, if you didn't already know this, you really shouldn't be even thinking about attending law school.The author spends two or three chapters letting you in on some studying tips.You know what?These ain't tips; they just tell you to "do your homework; organize your studying schedules; study hard."Duh, again.If the message is that law school is really tough, you don't need a 350-page book peppered with bogus humor to learn that.

I really don't think anyone can benefit from this book, except the genuine high-strung types or the real "dummies."Even this law-education dummy finds the book for the most part useless.

Regal Legal Boook
John Ventura gives very strong and detailed information for many legal wheelings and dealings.He covers may situations the average person might find him/herself in, and the majority of this book is outstanding.The only problem is that I try to absorb all this knowledge, but it's so detailed that you have to read it more than once to keep it in your head.

Good read, but should look into other topics...
This book was a good read.It will help calm your nerves before entering the first year of law school.Law 101 was also and excellent book.However, in retrospect, I would concentrate on learning about getting a job (resumes, interviewing, cover letters.)You will be expected start this right around finals time of your first semester.Most people were worried about their first finals and got a late start on this.It is easy to fall behind and once you are there it is difficult to catch up.Most people found that the job search was last on the priority list until after first year classes were over.You will be well ahead of the game if you are prepared for a job search.It will allow you to concentrate more on studying.While the first sumeer jobs aren't crucial they can provide good experience for landing second summer jobs.Also, reading about different law specialties is a good idea.You don't have to know what you want to do going into law school but the sooner you have a direction the better.

Read this book if you're discouraged about law school
I just finished my 1L semester, and my grades are starting to trickle in.So far, not so good.But I'm vowing to do better next semester, and I felt this book was very helpful in helping me see what exactly my mistakes were this semester.I bought this book a few days ago, on the recommendation of some 1Ls in my class, because unlike some of these other reviewers, my school's professors do not take the time to explain how to succeed in law school or how to study.Nor am I very friendly with any 2 or 3Ls who could provide me with this information.The reason I picked up this book is because I wanted a thorough and well-spelled out discussion of what exactly law school is all about, since I didn't do much reading on the topic before I started school in the fall.I've read other Dummies books, and felt this one was overall better organized and more thorough than those I've read in the past.I'm making up for lost time now on my winter break by learning more about how to be a better 1L, and I was very satisfied and pleased with this book.I strongly feel I'll be a better student because of it.

I recommend this book highly because I got a great overview of what I need to do better next semester in order to boost my law school GPA (which right now is hovering close to a 2.7).The chapter on "Making the Most of Your Study Time" helped me realize what really should go in an outline and what should not--after reading this chapter I realized I went about my outline all wrong--again, because no one really took the time to sit down with me and explain it all.And the chapter on "Thinking and Talking Like a Lawyer" summed up into words what I couldn't quite put my finger on about law school over the past three and a half months: what exactly the new method of thinking that you're supposed to learn in law school is all about.Up until this book helped elucidate this concept for me, I realized that I really wasn't "getting" what I was supposed to out of the Socratic Method.Now I feel a little more clued in.

This book was full of good tips, such as making me realize that in order to be competitive for summer clerkships, you need to get your cover letters in to the largest and most competitive firms by Christmastime.If it weren't for this book, I wouldn't have known that, because my career services office really doesn't do a good job of letting students know important facts like this.I also appreciated the chapter on "landing your perfect summer job" because it explained what exactly the monetary and prestige differences, among others, are between the large firms and small firms.Perhaps most of all, this book made me feel appreciated.More specifically, I liked the way this book, unlike others I've read, didn't try to sell you on the large firmas the only option for your summer job (or career.)Similarly, this book also did a great job of not trying to sell you on the idea that the law review is a make-or-break-your-legal-career move.See the "Getting Involved in Law School" chapter for reassurance that it's perfectly okay not to end up making the law review, or even wanting to, because there are other valuable EC's out there.I also learned from this chapter that it can be more important to find EC's that are a good fit for your future career plans than to just blindly assume that the law review is the end-all-be-all. That's one aspect that really annoyed me about other law school guidebooks I read--the subtle or not-so-subtle theme that you must be in the top 10% of your class, on law review, and a summer associate at a big-name firm to "make it" as a lawyer.I appreciated the fact that Greene's book didn't make these assumptions, and liked the way non-traditional uses of the J.D. were thoroughly explored (see the Considering Alternative Legal Careers chapter) unlike other books, which just gives a nod to this equally valid way of using your J.D.

As per the Dummies tradition, this book spells things out for you, and many intelligent and hard-working students, like myself, need that.My recommendation for other law students is to read this book to get a good overview of law school and to help you better find your place when you're lost.I think other law school guidebooks can also valuable, but if you're looking for a more user-friendly guide, and one that has a more liberal tone than the other much more conservative law school books I've read, then look to this book to once and for all finally understand what law school is all about and your place in it. ... Read more

Product Description
This set of CDs includes a 5 hour lecture on Contracts and a 10 page handout.For the Law School Legends Audio Series, we found the truly gifted law school professors most law students can only dream about - the professors who draw rave reviews not only for their scholarship, but for their ability to make the law easy to understand. We asked these select few professors to condense their courses into a single lecture. And it’s these lectures you’ll find in the Law School Legends Audio Series. With Law School Legends, you’ll get a brilliant law professor explaining an entire subject to you in one simple, dynamic lecture. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Buy "Sum & Substance Contracts" instead
If you're a law student who is studying contracts these lectures WILL NOT help you. Epstein is a brilliant and effective scholar who does everything in his power to hide that fact from you in these lectures. The information he provides is general and too vague to be useful to effective law students.He mentions all the right principles (Offer/Acceptance, Consideration, Adhesion, ect) but with no real discussion of the rules and exceptions behind the principles that you'll need on your exam. It feels like Epstein is teaching a mini-course for non-lawyers who only need a passing familiarity with a few contract principles.
His advice on how to take the exam is essentially just a series of reminders like, "On an exam, for Offer and Acceptance, make sure that someone is offering something and that someone is clearly accepting the offer." -Brilliant!I stopped listening after the first CD, by then it was obvious that it wasn't going to be helpful.
If you want a good Contract review, buy the "Sum & Substance Contracts" audio lectures by Douglas Whaley. Contracts (Sum & Substance Cd's "Outstanding Professor"Series)
They cost more, but it is worth the money. Whaley will give you an in-depth understanding on the principles and give you straight-forward rules you can apply on your exam questions. I used his CD as I was constructing my outline and preparing for the exam. I received a 91 on my exam which was the 3rd highest grade in my class.
Do yourself a favor and pass on Epstein's contracts.

Saving me in Contracts from Abstract Professor

I almost returned the cd after reading the reviews but decided against it after getting assigned an abstract theoretical professor in contracts in a gigantic class. Knowing full well she will ask us the basic contracts exam hypos I still have to learn the main stuff. This cd set is wonderful. Epstein may not tell the funny jokes that Freer does but he certainly makes the stuff easy to learn, easy to understand - especially the definitions and what to look for in exams mentioning which fact patterns professor love to trick students with.

Easy to use cd's that tell you which topic is being discussed. One cd gives a full outline - just print away. I think I will go ahead and buy the rest of the series. As a student, I'm on a budget but these actually do a very good job supplementing you studies. I recommend them over all the Emmanuel books out there (which I also have) b/c as a 1L you will get tired of reading and this is when you just sit back and absorb the info.

Perfectly adequate
First thing.Let's set expectations.This is a five-hour lecture.First-year contracts is a six-semester-hour course.For every hour in class, if you spend two hours studying, then that means it is supposed to take 18 hours per week, times 15 weeks to learn contracts.That's 270 hours of preparation to sit for one or two exams.You are not going to "learn contracts" from this five-hour lecture.You should not expect that.What this lecture IS, however, is an excellent summary review of contracts.It is probably true that you might get the same information by reading the detailed table of contents from your casebook.(Except that the lecturer explains each heading and gives you a brief review of the rules).So if you are looking for an easy way to learn contracts without having to read your casebook, then I agree with the other rater, don't waste your money.Why did I buy this?I drive 7 hours every weekend.That's 3.5 hours of NPR every Friday evening, and 3.5 hours of law lectures every Sunday afternoon.What has this lecture done for me?Before starting my class, it gave me the lay of the land in contracts, so that when I began learning contracts, I had the perspective of how all the material fits together.That aided me with memory retention as I aquired the content.Second, during the middle of each semester, I gave it another listen, which helped me keep the perspective.Finally, I gave another listen before each final, which reinforced what I had learned.When you find yourself viewing your notes and outline in your head while the lecturer is speaking, it helps reinforce your memory recall, and it builds your confidence.I can tell you also that during my finals, as I was answering a few questions, I could hear Epstein's Texan accent blasting in my head, and yes, it did help me recall a few of the principles.No, this is not a 5-hour short-cut to learn a year-long contracts course.Nor will you become instantly rich or fluent in Spanish.But if you do read your book and attend your class, and you have dead time to listen to this lecture, it will help.

Where's the Beef
His voice has a kind of southern/Texas accent, but it is understandble. He speaks slowly--too slowly. His audio apparently followed an organizational style consistent with his books. His course organization is different than I am getting in a first year course taught using the Farnsworth casebook.

However, I have taken 3/4 of a year course already and I am truly stunned about this audio for one reason--no content. I gave up on this audio after listening to 40% of it, because it said nothing. I might as well have spent my time just reading the section headers for my casebook for all the useful information being imparted.

I know that someone is going to write this audio should be for review only, not learning the subject. I think the audio should be for review _and_ learning. This audio simply fails on both counts, for example the cases/hypos are infrequent and are so sparsely detailed that I could not follow what he was trying to say about them.

The set of CDs was a real waste of money. ... Read more

Product Description

Choose the Right School and Get In!
The U.S.News Ultimate Guide to Law Schools combines expert advice on how to get into the school of your choice with the most up-to-date information on the nation's accredited programs. This book gives you the information you need to make wise decisions about your future.

Customer Reviews (5)

Use it Wisely
This book should only be used as a guide and the ranking system is very biased. Each person is different and will want to use their own ranking system of importance, but this book does give a concise detail of every school. It sets a good foundation for knowledge about law schools.

I did not want a 2003 book
I did not know that I was ordering a 2003 guide to law schools. I never would have ordered it if I had known it was obsolete.

Good Resource
This is a great reference to anyone applying or thinking of applying to law school.Whether or not you agree with the influence US News has in law school admissions it remains a fact of life.It is a system that is inherently flawed, but along with the rankings, this book gives detail on each school which you can and should use to further investigate the schools to which you apply.Don't let the US News rankings dictate where you apply and don't let this book replace a campus visit and talking with the dean of admissions with a prospective school.Use it to supplement those things.

Some Good Information, but Faulty Data
First of all, I agree with the other posters that a lot of information is packed into this magazine/guide.It might be worth your while to purchase it for that reason.

However, the discriminating consumer should be forewarned that some of the data contained in this guide is inaccurate.The data is self-reported data collected from law schools.Since all the schools want to increase their U.S. News ranking, they sometimes report information that is inaccurate--or arguably fraudulent.I found this out the hard way.I attended a Top 20 U.S. News Law School.When I enrolled in the law school--and ever since--U.S. News has reported that the school I attended has roughly a 97% employment rate at graduation and that the median salary for graduates of my school was close to $100,000.

The year I graduated from the school--2004--maybe 40-50% of students had jobs at graduation.Many classmates of mine, for all I know, do not have jobs as of today.Of those students who had jobs at graduation, many were working low-paying jobs for smaller law firms or for state agencies.In other words, the U.S. News data was way off the mark.

I recognize that it is difficult for U.S. News to police the data supplied by law schools, but they need to do a better job of it.They could also use some common sense.For instance, U.S. News reports that over 95% of USC Law grads have jobs at graduation, and that the average salary is close to $100,000.But in its guide to business schools, U.S. News reports that 89% of Harvard Business School grads are employed at graduation with the average salary being $85,000 or so.How could career prospects possibly be better for USC Law grads than Harvard Business School grads?I don't believe it, and I don't see how U.S. News could believe it either.

It amazes me that law schools are able to report borderline fraudulent information and U.S. News does nothing.I was one of those who believed the U.S. News data, but then found out the hard way that the data was woefully inaccurate.

If you buy this guide, try to get as much as you can out of it, but take all the data you read with a grain of salt.Much of it was reported by law schools with an interest in inflating the data, and none of the data is ever independently verified.

Really good resource to have on hand
This is an excellent resource guide with useful information and summaries of all the ABA-approved law schools. The book provides detailed descriptions of the top 4 law schools- Yale, Harvard, Stanford, and NYU- as well. The book provides applicable and objective information, as opposed to other books which just spout off the obvious facts. ... Read more

Product Description

A practical, user-friendly approach to school law supported by carefully constructed information that is of immediate interest to classroom teachers, supervisors and school administrators.

Key Features

Maps out the court’s decision-making process in an easy-to-understand format

Illustrates the key aspects of a legal issue through case-studies in every chapter

Explains complex cases with succinct case briefs that target legal laypersons and comprehensive chapter overviews that highlight important concepts

Encourages dialogue with accompanying discussion questions for each case brief and case study

Offers additional case briefs online at www.sagepub.com/aquilacasebriefs

Intended Audience: This book is designed for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students of school law and is a valuable resource for courses in school administration, supervision, and teacher education.

“I find this book to be a very well done, comprehensive text, with useful activities and exceptional case briefs” -Dr. Christine Villani, Southern Connecticut State University

“More than a comprehensive text, this is a reference work for any active school administrator. School Law for K–12 Educators will be found open on a desk more often than closed on the shelf.” -Philip Huckins, New England College

Customer Reviews (1)

Good Book, Timely Information
Frank D. Aquila presents a timely book on the subject of School Law.The book is arranged, like most other school law texts, thematically, presenting cases in four parts: Policy Issues, Students' Rights, Teachers' Rights, and Legal Aspects of Schools.Issues are subdivided into individual chapters.For example: Policy Issues includes chapters on Desegration, Church-State Interaction and No Child Left Behind.Each chapter includes thorough discussions of the most notable "landmark cases" with which we should all be familiar.Additionally, examples of lesser known cases, and even hypothetical cases with discussion questions, facilitate discussions of basic principles in each chapter.

This is a newer text (copyright 2008), including currently relevant topics such as Contract Liability, Tort Liability, Financing and Use of Public Funds, Violence in Schools, and Internet Issues.In addition, there are useful introductions to the legal system and to legal research, online website access to those cases Mr. Aquila has cited, even a map showing U.S. Federal Court Districts.Appendices include Selected Portions of the U.S. Constitution(those relevant to education, of course) and a Table of Authorities linking specific cases to their locations within the text.The glossary includes clear explanations of relevant legal terms.In short, all the things I remember having to go to other sites to research when I took School Law.

I found the book to be well-organized, comprehensive, easy to navigate, and easy to understand.I would recommend this to any teacher or student of School Law. ... Read more

Product Description
In this work, nationally-recognized exam expert Professor Charles Whitebread will teach you the eight secrets that will add points to every exam answer you write. You will learn the three keys to handling any essay exam, how to use time to your advantage, issue-spotting, how to organize your answer, and the hidden traps of the "IRAC" method. Once you have mastered these skills, you can put your knowledge to the test with sample exam questions, and check your answers against those provided. There is also a special section on how to do well on other exams, like open book, multiple choice, or policy exams. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Given free to 1Ls at my law school
The author spoke at my school and everyone in the audience got a free copy. Definitely recommend. In addition to the comments by the first reviewer, it is a fast read which is key when you already have so much regular reading to keep up with. Put a copy on your toilet and you'll finish reading it in just a day or two while you are in the bathroom. Top 5% of my 1L class.

This is the Secret to Getting As that No One Knows About...
I don't know why this book doesn't have a review, so I figure I'd say something.This is the best book for law school.It teaches you how to see the forests from the trees.Getting to Maybe is good, in the sense that it teaches you how to address the difficulties presented in law school exam question.However, once you learn how to address the forks in the law and the forks in the facts, you need to be able to present these things to your law professor on your exam.That's where Charles Whitebread comes in.I read his book the summer before I started law school, after a lawyer at the big firm I worked at it recommended it, and he finished in the top 5% of his class.I knew how to approach lectures, outline correctly, and take law school exams.I ended up finishing in the top 10% of my 1L class, which isn't too bad.I also read Getting to Maybe, so I'm sure that reading the two books together will help a lot. ... Read more

Product Description
A parent objects to a curriculum that includes a unit on Greek gods, arguing that it violates the separation of church and state. As a teacher or administrator, how should you respond? This type of issue is one most educators will have to confront eventually, in addition to other hot-button issues such as zero-tolerance policies, drug and alcohol testing, and prayer in schools. The School Law Handbook is designed to enable educators to confront such issues with information, insight, and initiative.

The issues are organized into five areas: the school environment, Constitutional issues, students, personnel, and accountability. Within each area are several chapters, each beginning with a realistic scenario followed by legal and practical analyses of the situation. Armed with this knowledge of the parameters governing each scenario, educators can more effectively manage their responses, asking and answering the key questions:
* What are the legal boundaries?
* What is the district policy related to this issue?
* What are the potential strategies for resolution?

In this era of unparalleled public scrutiny, The School Law Handbook is essential reading for all school personnel.

Bill Bosher is Executive Director of the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute and Dean of the School of Education at Virginia Commonwealth University. Kate R. Kaminski is an attorney in the field of education law and the Director of Legal and Policy Services for the Virginia School Boards Association. Richard S. Vacca is Professor Emeritus and Senior Fellow of the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The School Law Book
The book is great. Shipping was very fast and the book was in excellent condition.

Useful and concise
This book provides a great way to quickly acquaint oneself with the legal implications of common school situations.However, it does fail to address special education law, namely IDEA, which is critical to truly understanding school law. ... Read more

Product Description
For over twenty years, The Educator's Guide to Texas School Law has been the preeminent source for information on Texas school law for the state's education community. The sixth edition is the latest in a series of revisions designed to keep the book current, comprehensive, and readable. Readers will find a number of changes in the new edition. First and foremost, the immensely important No Child Left Behind Act has been incorporated at various points in the text, particularly in discussions pertaining to accountability, assessment, and school safety. Other changes include an expanded discussion of charter schools, school uniform policies, and student drug testing programs. Employment issues are now addressed in two chapters, one dealing with contractual matters and the other with personnel management. The new edition includes all legislative developments, relevant federal and state court rulings, and Texas Commissioner of Education decisions to date.In its ten chapters, The Educator's Guide discusses a myriad of topics relating to the legal structure of the Texas school system, attendance law and the instructional program, the education of children with disabilities, employment law, rights of expression and association, the role of religion, student discipline, open meetings and public records, privacy issues, student search and seizure, and legal liability of school districts and employees. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

TEXAS SCHOOL LAW: EVERYONE SHOULD OWN THIS BOOK
THIS BOOK IS USED FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE IN THE EDUCATION GRADUATE PROGRAM, BUT I BELIEVE EVERYONE, INCLUDING BEGINNING TEACHERS SHOULD HAVE THIS BOOK.IT IS A BOOK THAT WILL SAVE ANYONE WHO IS IN THE EDUCATION FIELD A LOT OF MONEY AND HIS/HER PICTURE OFF THE FRONT PAGE OF THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER.

Law Book
This is an easy to follow book that covers any questions an educator may have over just about any law.I loved that it had a regular index as well as an index of court cases.

Great TX School Law overview
This book was an asset.I used it instead of my assigned text when working to pass the TExES Principal exam.This book was much better and more reader friendly than anything else I had used.The special ed section is a Must Read as is the part on employee rights!I highly recomment this book!

Necessary for Texas Educators
The title doesn't sound overly interesting but it actually is an interesting book. Teaching is an important job but there are a lot of things that a teacher could do to get in trouble (such as breaking privacy laws).The book also covers the law regarding starting a job contract, which I found to be particularly enlightening. It also covers some of the changes to Texas law since No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and laws regarding English language learners and illegal immigrants (they have the right to public education like anyone else).These are all important issues for the Texas teacher.

The Educator's Guide to Texas School Law
This book arrived quickly and has proved to be everything I needed it to be. Thank you very much ... Read more

Product Description

This text addresses legal principles applicable to practitioners in a succinct but comprehensive manner. It uniquely blends a detailed treatment of landmark cases with a thorough discussion of the legal context, trends, and generalizations to guide all school personnel in their daily activities. Information in this text will help alleviate concerns voiced by educators who either don't know the legal concepts that govern schools or feel that the scales of justice have been tipped against them.

Customer Reviews (2)

Good resource for the non-lawyer, could have been better organized
I'm just an average teacher trying to stay out of trouble.For example, I just KNOW that kid has a cell phone - can I ask him to empty his pockets?

This book provides a lot of great information, presented in a way that a non-lawyer can understand and digest. The information is presented in a way that is relevant to both teachers and administrators.It's geared towards federal laws, with comments about when and how state laws may modify things. (I'd like to find a version of this book oriented specifically to my state, now!)The best part of this book was the end-chapter summaries, which made good, helpful generalizations.

The biggest weakness of this book was the organization. I read it cover-to-cover, and I didn't notice any issues.However, later, when I wanted to go back to a specific topic, the index and table of contents weren't as helpful as they could have been.I eventually found the section I wanted, but it was more work than it should have been.

Good book for uneducated teachers with regards to law
With all the horror stories we hear about teachers being fired and sued over decesions they made about punishment and what to teach and how to teach, this book is a gold mine. It provides information on just about any topic a teach may encounter. Not only does it have great information, it is also written with few "legal trade" words. ... Read more

Product Description
Whether one is a college junior facing the LSATs, a senior sitting with disappointing test scores, or someone who has always dreamed of a career in the law, there is too much at stake not to ask the hard questions about what lies ahead.

€ How to choose the right school
€ How to get in
€ How to succeed as a student
€ How to find career fulfillment

In How to Get Into Law School, Susan Estrich lends her unique point of view and far-ranging experience-as ace law student, tenured professor, renowned legal scholar and analyst-to the life and career questions applicants will face, and answers them in the frank, no-nonsense manner that is her trademark. Featuring anecdotes from admissions directors, professors, veteran attorneys, and adventurous students alike, How to Get Into Law School lays out the facts on:

€ Applications
€ Essays
€ Getting Scholarships
€ Community service
€ The Rigors of Studying
€ Surviving Interviews
€ Finding Employment
... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

i RECIEVED A BOOK I DID NOT ORDER...I ORDERED "WHY DO NUMBERS COUNT" AND I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY I GOT HOW TO GET INTO LAW SCHOOL
I ordered "Why Do Numbers Count" by Lance Shaler.It is still in the brown wrapper...I have been traveling...I've already spent for a book that I didn't ever order...what do I do?????
I recieved HOW TO GET INTO LAW SCHOOL????
MAKES ME SKEPTICAL ABOUT ORDERING FROM AMAZON.i RATED THIS TRANSACTION WITH ONE STARBECAUSE THE SYSTEM WOULDN'T LET ME NOT RATE ..?

Excellent
Book was in the condition it was said to be in, and it shipped on time.

Helped me get into law school
This book was such an eye-opening look at the law school admissions process and also the first year of school.I was trying to break into a very tough market of well-ranked schools with some major blemishes on my undergraduate record. This book taught me how to frame those problem areas which ultimately got me admitted to a Tier One School and a Tier Two with an offer of scholarship money.

Her tips on the first year of school were just as accurate. Following her advice helped me to get toward the top of the class while keeping my sanity.

I appreciated the athletic yet conversational style of writing and thought her depiction of the whole law school game was quite accurate, particularly her warnings about how front-loaded law school can be. I highly recommend this book to anyone in their "0L" or 1L year.

The Basics of Law School: An overview for the aspiring Law School Student
I just finished reading Susan's book. I'll highlight some key reasons why I think anyone interested in law school should buy this book.

Unlike many of the books that feed off students insecurities and common myths about law school, Susan Estrich tells it how it is. A Harvard graduate, she has worked in the legal system for 35 years as a professional, professor (currently USC), and Dean.


She's done extensive research and has covered all the basics for anyone thinking about law as a career. She breaks it down into two parts:

How to Get In
What You Need to Learn

How to get in: This includes why you'd want to study law, how committed you are, studying for the LSAT, making a case for yourself (the application process: personal statements, recommendations, GPA, majors, etc), interviews, following through, what schools to apply to, what 'best' means to you, and financing the education

What you need to learn: This part overviews everything that goes on once you're in law school. Its brief, but it describes the characteristics of 1L, 2L, 3L (1st 2nd and 3rd year in Law School), the variety of teaching styles, how to take exams, how to get the most out of it, how to deal with "hitting the wall", finding internships & jobs, unhappy lawyers and how to avoid being one of them, professionalism, and defining yourself.

I think the book is great. I loved her extensive research. From not knowing anything before reading the book, it gave me a great foundation for questions and continuing my research for law school. What I really liked was her interviews and responses from Law School students and graduates about their experience and wisdom. I found it helpful and insightful.

(If you are looking for a more in depth analysis of Law school (getting in, surviving, etc.), this won't provide you with that level of detail. For that I would HIGHLY recommend "Law School Confidential: A Complete Guide to the Law School Experience". It was written by ten successful law school students who recently graduated from the top 100 Law Schools)

Hope this helps.

full of stellar advice
"How to Get into Law School" is perfect for anyone in law school, applying to law school, or thinking about maybe applying to law school. I first read this book three years ago, and at that time I was thinking about maybe applying to law school. "How to Get into Law School" not only convinced me that law school was the right decision for me, but it also provided a road map. By carefully following the advice in this book over the course of a few years, I am pleased to report that I will be attending one of the finest law schools in the country as the recipient of a substantial merit scholarship. Overall, I fared better in the application process than friends of mine with better grades, better LSAT scores and better careers. Take it from me, this book is gold. ... Read more

Product Description
Professors Fischl and Paul explain law school exams in ways no one has before, all with an eye toward improving the reader's performance. The book begins by describing the difference between educational cultures that praise students for 'right answers,' and the law school culture that rewards nuanced analysis of ambiguous situations in which more than one approach may be correct. Enormous care is devoted to explaining precisely how and why legal analysis frequently produces such perplexing situations.

But the authors don't stop with mere description. Instead, Getting to Maybe teaches how to excel on law school exams by showing the reader how legal analysis can be brought to bear on examination problems. The book contains hints on studying and preparation that go well beyond conventional advice. The authors also illustrate how to argue both sides of a legal issue without appearing wishy-washy or indecisive. Above all, the book explains why exam questions may generate feelings of uncertainty or doubt about correct legal outcomes and how the student can turn these feelings to his or her advantage.

In sum, although the authors believe that no exam guide can substitute for a firm grasp of substantive material, readers who devote the necessary time to learning the law will find this book an invaluable guide to translating learning into better exam performance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (63)

Getting to Maybe
The book was in the condition I expected it to be in, therefore I am satisfied with my purchase.

More harm than help
ULTIMATELY, this book clouds your mind at a time when you are already stressed.Even if the book's test taking tips are the best in the world, the LAST thing that you want to be worrying about walking into an exam is the proper test "methods" to apply legal reasoning.It is better to spend your time studying the material and not the book (even if you read it early in the semester).Additionally, the reviewers that say this book is the next best thing and made them get good grades are probably from the same people that would have done well anyway.So, don't necessarily put too much weigh on their opinions. (yes I didn't do well my first year but EXCELLED later)

Further, I don't think you can really get value from this book by reading it before you have ever taken a law school exam.It's like reading a book about the finesse aspects of flying and then jumping in an airplane and thinking you are Chuck Yeager.If anything, focus on studying the first year materials and then consider this book...maybe...

everyone says buy this book - they are right!
Useful, easy to read and the advice will be valuable all three years of law school. An excellent resource.

Seller shipped to me quickly and in good condition as promised.

Highly Recommended
Lots of information, including many detailed examples.I wish that this book had been available when I was a law student.I doubt that much of it will be news to anyone who has gone to law school and taken many law school exams, but if you've never had to answer hypothetical questions before or spot issues, this book is a great place to start.Obviously, it won't guarantee that you'll do well on your exams but it will give you a sense of how to write answers --particularly what not to do-- and what law professors are looking form when they grade them.Highly recommended.

Awesome Book - Should be outlined to realize full potential
This book is a very valuable resource in acquiring the skill necessary to write stellar law school exams. It nearly breaks down writing law school exams down to a science; something that is not at all easy to do.

To get the most out of this book, it should definitely by outlined. While it may seem to be a daunting task to outline a 320 page book, the material is not that dense and the font is quite large; a motivated individual could read this entire book in an afternoon.

I don't understand how this book received so many mediocre reviews; it fulfills the purpose it was written for to near perfection.

In short, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking to organize their thoughts more effectively when attacking a law school exam. I would also highly recommend outlining this book like you would a physical science text. ... Read more

Product Description
College students planning to go on to law school will find the most up-to-date information available on nearly 200 ABA-approved law schools across the United States. Profiles include details on admission requirements, academic programs, the school calendar, a capsule description of the faculty, library facilities, tuition and fees, available financial aid, graduation requirements, professional organizations, and student body composition. Several non-ABA schools get brief profiles in a section of their own. The book also offers advice on choosing a law school, getting career counseling, taking the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), and applying to a law school. A sample LSAT with answers and explanations is a bonus feature in this directory. ... Read more

Product Description
Competition for admission to law school is intense, with many if not most students hoping to gain admission to a 'dream' law school. Many of these students then hope to transfer to that dream school. The intensity of the law school experience-along with the exclusivity of top law jobs-feeds a desire among many law students to 'transfer up' to their dream school.

This book is a guide for these law students. It points out the difficulties and potential traps, and walks students through the transfer process. Importantly, this is the only book available in this topic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

Good stuff
The perfect book for someone who starts thinking about transferring. Along with Arrows TLS post, it simply is a must read for anyone who wants to get acquainted with transferring. As has been stated, there is precious little information out there about the process and it is better to simply find out about every aspect of transferring at the start of it all. The examples are extremely helpful as well as charts and data on how many applications schools receive, how many students they admit, and how many actual matriculate to the school. All in all, a perfect book for the process. If you receive your first semester grades and they are stellar (or good enough to transfer), and you have the desire to, I'd order this book right away. The transferring process takes an enormous amount of time during your second semester (at least for me) and reading this book helps immensely.

The Best Resource for Law Transfer Students
I knew going into my tier 4 school that I intended to transfer. What I did not know, however, was that when it became time to transfer so little information would be available to help me make my decision. You can't really receive guidance at your current or target school. The little information that is available is scattered across underground law student forums and message boards on the internet. The authors of this book have compiled an excellent collection of the advice available for transfer students to decide both whether or not they should transfer and, if they choose to do so, where they should transfer and how to do it.

I have recommended this book to my fellow students and I am glad to have utilized it in filling out my transfer applications this summer.

The BOOK FOR TRANSFERRING!
This book was extremely helpful for transferring law schools. It breaks down in every detail the steps you must take in order to achieve that goal. An extremely great road map. My suggestion: Purchase this book as soon as you start thinking about transferring. It will save you a lot of time. Don't waste time researching every blog and reading every little article about transferring..this book does that in less than 300 pages, and it is very accurate(researched schools and conducted questionnaires with professors, admissions,and students). Additionally, even if you are NOT thinking of transferring this book provides you with valuable insight in how you can achieve great grades in law school and maintain a competitive advantage. Solid, Solid Book!!

Pointless
If you have any interest in transferring then you should already know that the better your grades are, the more likely your chances are to transfer to another school. The only aspects of a transfer that this book explained that I had not considered previously was that the lower ranked your current school is the less likely it is that you'll be able to move up to a tier one or T4 (top 4 school) and there was some good information on how to integrate once at the new school. I am currently at a great school (tier 1) in city that I hate because I did not consider all of the factors (such as what the city had to offer) when I made the decision about what law school to attend. I want to transfer to schools that are at a very similar ranking in another city and believed that this book will help me figure out how to do so. It did not. If you're reading this book you have probably already went through the law school application process once and this book does not explain much more than you've already learned.So ... here is the gist of the book without spending 100 pages reading the same restated sentences. Study as much as you can because the better your grades are, the more likely that you'll be able to transfer the school of your dreams; aim to a reasonable school ... if you're at a 4th tier school, it is not extremely likely that you'll be able to transfer to Harvard, Yale, or Columbia, but it is possible that you'll be able to get into a better ranked school in the state you're currently attending or where you have great ties; if you're currently at a Tier 1 school and wish to move to the top 20, it is possible if you're in the top 5% of your class; your personal statement should reflect who you are now and why you want to leave; lastly, your LOR should be from someone who you can trust because the authors seem to suggest that there is a lot of weight placed on an LOR from a law school professor.

Great overview of the process
I was really impressed by the thorough overview presented in this book - not just of the mechanics of transferring, but also of the various pros and cons associated with the process. Heading into law school I heard lots of speculation about the transfer process, but there was never a good source of information for it - until now! ... Read more

Product Description
Offers complete, accessible information on every topic of concern to law students ranging from the LSAT, the Bar Exam, Law Review, computerized research and videotape study aids to obtaining that important clerkship or job. Includes recent data on demographics of law school applicants, current salaries for a variety of legal careers, nontraditional courses, legal clinics, detailed discussions regarding the latest law trends such as deregulation and insider trading. Will appeal to law students at all stages of their education. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

Not Bad
Overall-not a horrible book by any stretch of the imagination. I'd suggest buying a used copy for cheap. I still am looking for a another book to prepare me for law school.

good common sense book...straight forward
I wasn't going to leave a review, but after reading those other reviews that gave a 3/5 star because the book "needs to be updated badly", I decided to throw in my own two cents...first...

This book does not need to be updated...it's fine...Law school hasn't changed in hundreds of years....As for laptops in class, so what?

Laptops are just things for taking notes. This book addresses the very important things: how to create great briefs, how to create a great outline, and how to take a test...that's ALL you need...

If you can't figure out that laptops and Examsoft (AKA the devil) are just ancillary to the above mentioned things...then this book (and any other your find on Amazon) ain't gunna help yo sorry *&$% in law school..

On a more positive note!

I highly recommend this book...Already told my friend to get it...It's very straightforward..takes the guess work out of everything...

BUY IT.

"How to Excel in Law School"
"The Complete Law School Companion: How to Excel at America's Most Demanding Post-Graduate Curriculum" by Jeff Deaver, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1992. ISBN0-471-55491-X, SC 206/229 pages.Appendices I - Intro. Legal Sys.&II - Glossary Terms with Index 3 pgs.No Illustrations.

This Revised & Updated edition (1984 - 1992) is a singularly attractive & informative reading for those interested in the core curriculum, types of study materials and teaching methodologies found in law schools.It is a well-rounded and well-written syllabus written by a cum laude law school graduate who is also a published writer of novels.Deaver provides a succinct explanation of necessary study habits, types of work assignments and obstacles one may expect to encounter in choosing law as a career.Special emphasis is given on steps to maximize performance on law school tests and the bar exam, using test examples and answers which follow a specific format and covers I Short Answer, II Issues Presented, III Analysis (Rule of Law, Applicable Facts, Conclusion), IV Other Considerations and V Conclusion.The author utilizes the LCM or Legal Concept Management as outline for learning this material.

Two Appendices are especially informative, i.e. the Introduction to the American Legal System, a federalist system of laws prescribed by both federal and state government, and a concise review of how laws come to pass and appear on the books, i.e., the categories of Procedural (how to redress) and Substantive (what one's rights are) Laws. A distinction between Criminal and Civil Laws and brief review of the court system (tri-level) into Federal District & Specialty Courts, Geographic or Circuit Courts (Appellate), and the Supreme Court is outlined.

Overall, this is a good read - for the targeted audience of enrolled law students, it is, perhaps, somewhat dated on finer points of law school and bar exam examination taking as some scoring methodology has changed and computer programming is paramount. It contains an excellent overview on "Law Review" and helpful tips on finding law clerkship or related jobs before graduation.

finis

This book is now extremely outdated, but has a few useful things
I just finished my first year at a top ten law school. I didn't read this book or The Law School Companion in full before school started, but I read through parts of it during the year and over winter break. Overall it does help with giving you hints if you are utterly clueless on what to expect, but it is very outdated and there are far more useful books out there. One that I prefer is called Introduction to the Study and Practice of Law in a Nutshell (based off the Nutshell series which is very helpful and used by practicing lawyers). I would recommend Law School Companion but I think that book will tend to scare you too much and be counter-productive. I wish I had gone into law school having read the nutshell book, but the truth is that you will figure everything out once you are there and there is no reason to read a pre-law book unless you are in really in a panic. If you do choose to buy this book BUY IT USED. I had a copy I put into recycling because the used copies are selling for so little.

Very helpful book
As a first year law student with no idea what to expect, this book was extremely helpful.I purchased it the summer before my first semester, and imagine how excited I was when my legal writing teacher recommended this book over all law school aides.This book explains a great deal about law school, including what to expect in general, how to write briefs, and effective outlining methods.I would highly recommend this purchase! ... Read more

Product Description
One of the best ways to stand out in a crowd of law school applicants is to write an exceptional personal statement. Law School Essays That Made a Difference, 4th Edition, contains 70 real application essays as well as interviews with admissions pros and with students who've been through the process and made it to law school.

Law School Essays That Made a Difference, 4th Edition includes essays submitted to the following schools:

American University Washington College of Law
Boston College Law School
Boston University School of Law
Columbia University School of Law
Cornell University Law School
Duke University School of Law
Emory University School of Law
Fordham University School of Law
The George Washington University Law School
Georgetown University Law Center
Harvard University Law School
New York University School of Law
Northwestern University School of Law
Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey School of Law–Camden
South Texas Law College of Law
Stanford University School of Law
University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law
University of Chicago Law School
University of Colorado–Boulder School of Law
University of Houston Law Center
University of Michigan Law School
University of New Mexico School of Law
University of Ottawa Faculty of Law
University of Pennsylvania Law School
University of St. Thomas School of Law
University of Texas at Austin School of Law
University of Virginia School of Law
University of Wisconsin Law School
Vanderbilt University Law School
Yale University Law School ... Read more

Product Description
Law school can be an expensive, time-consuming, and frequently exhausting experience. Students must “hit the ground running.” Law School Labyrinth acts as a road map to the entire law school experience—from admissions to graduation and beyond. Steven Sedberry examines popular law student misconceptions and helps readers understand the primary objectives of law school. Following his “been there, done that” advice, students will learn how to read legal opinions, participate in Socratic dialogue, and assimilate and retain information necessary to succeed on law school exams. Going beyond the classroom, the book provides information on summer clerkships and career advice. Law School Labyrinth is the consummate blueprint for all three years of law school. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

Things actually make sense
I'm only half way through the book but it makes a lot of sense. I will be a 1L next fall and glad that I'm taking a year to begin to familiarize myself with the courses and basics for law school. I have read 2 books before this one and they were just ok but this book is the best I've read. I like how there is an actual step-by-step approach of how to build an outline. The other books just basically youi'll need one and here's what should go in it. I believe in trying to be prepared as much as possible when tackling something new. I would highly recommend this book for those entering law school. People can say you don't need to read books like this but yeah you do. I mean really, for what that book costs, there's no reason not to purchase this book and read it carefully. I'll probably read it again right before school. Great starter!

I read this before law school. I am currently in my second semester 1L
Some of this information is not will researched or misleading. I don't know if the author might have gotten funding/sponsors for his recommendations. For example, he gives recommendations for student loans through 2 sources but the best source of loans is usually the package given to you by your law school. The best advice was the use of commercial outlines but the types of outlines he recommended did not check out. I used some of the ones he highly recommended - viz., Black Letter Outlines by Westlaw as well as Blonde's - and the Westlaw ones were really bad. They are written by professors and the way they give the information is vague, unclear, and doesn't explain (much like a lot of lectures). I switched to Emmanuel's my second semester. It was just painful to realize how clear most of the information is given by outlines other than the ones the author recommended. I thought that maybe Westlaw, in addition to paying highly for the professor's to write for them (in a really bad way), might have paid other authors to recommend their stuff. That's the only way I could imagine how such bad information could be recommended when so much better information is out there.

GREAT Book
I am going to be attending my first year of law school in a month and I wish I read this book sooner.
The book is not only a great read, but give you some amazing perspective. It covers how you should be preparing even before you apply to law school, how to pay for law school, and then how to succeed and law school and beyond. It really gives a great overview of what to expect.
I wonder if the tips will work, but they are definitely interesting and I hope I try them out.
Also, unlike many books, Sedberry tells his own story, it feels more like a conversation at time, then a book.
LOVED IT!

Excellent Read for Anyone Even Just Thinking of Law School
I'm a journalist, but I've always considered whether going to law school would be a possible professional alternative for me. This book certainly helped me get a better sense of what to expect in law school from someone who lived through it. I highly recommend it!

Invaluable Roadmap for Law School and Practice
If only I had had this book before I attended the University of Texas law school!Instead of spending the first semester flailing around and trying to figure out if others knew some secret I didn't know, I would have had a PLAN for my reading, class participation, note-taking, outlining and exam preparation.Though I worked very hard, I did not work efficiently and my first semester grades were lackluster to say the least.Eventually I graduated with honors, but my mistakes at the beginning made the next two and a half years far more difficult and stressful than they should have been.

This book, besides being a roadmap for law school, also addresses many other useful topics including the process of getting into law school, paying for it, applying for and getting summer clerkships, and preparing for and taking the bar exam.Mr. Sedberry gives you the perspective of those you will have to deal with and impress along the way - admissions counselors, professors, recruiters for potential employers, etc. His tips are insightful and will help you know what is expected of you so that you can perform toyour potential in every instance.

Bottom line: law school is far too competitive (and expensive) to waste time while you get your bearings.Reading this book will enable you to hit the ground running in an efficient manner, even before law school begins.Make no mistake though - following Mr. Sedberry's suggestions will require you to work very hard.But you will stand out among your peers and be far better prepared and more confident than the vast majority of your classmates. ... Read more

Product Description
Mastering the Law School Exam is designed to provide students with a knowledgeable, reasonable, and rational voice to navigate the intricacies of law school exams. This book is practical rather than theoretical where the emphasis is on providing the type of detailed examples necessary to show students precisely how to do it and how to write it. By working with numerous illustrations in the context of substantive law, students learn to: Fill the gap between what the professor refers to as learning to think like a lawyer and the actual means for doing so. Create a successful path from note taking to outlining to exam writing. Identify the basic skills that exams seek to test and the precise manner in which they are tested. Become familiar with the general types of law school exams through examples and detailed analyses of sample answers. Use the language of the law in the writing of issues, statements of the rule, and analysis of the facts. See what adisorganized examreally means and how to correct it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good law book
What can I say - Good law book.Required reading by several law schools, including Southern Law School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. ... Read more

Product Description
A successful law school candidate must be articulate and capable of clear, consecutivethinking--qualities that invariably translate into their written work. This updated manual instructs law school applicants on preparing the style of essay that is required for law school admission. Approximately 40model essays originally submitted by applicants to leading law schools are presented in this book with a critique following each essay. General essay-writing advice is also included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (19)

Incredible--a must-buy for applicants
This book helped me immensely with my personal statement for law schools. It doesn't just give abstract suggestions, it helps you every step of the way and makes the process a lot less daunting. It also tells you exactly what admissions officers want to glean from your essay (your personality) and explains how you can show that to them. I had previously been reading a Princeton Review book about personal statements, and not only did it not help, but it just made me feel like I could never write a good essay. "Essays That Will Get You into Law School" gave me great strategies and concrete, helpful tips for crafting a great essay.

Good Starter
This book is best used for those people who do not know exactly how to put information together, but do know what they want to add in thier essay. If you do not have previous experience in anything and do not have a story, well then this book is not for you. It gives you great ideas to add into your essay, but it does not spoon feed you the method. The examples in the back are not the best, but they help you draw out some ideas that you would not have otherwise remembered or deemed important.

Essays that get into law school?
Most of these essays are garbage, foreign to what most people need to know.I'm shocked that some of these people got into law school.I'm starting to figure out why the profession is a dying one and why no one respects it.

Get another one, or search deeper.This is simply a PC book of garbage and generic information on how to write an essay that you learned your first two years as an undergrad.

Essays that don't relate
The general tips provided about writing your personal statement are good, but are generally common sense to anyone who has taken a argumentative writing class and/or a good english class.Most books about the overall application process include these tips.

As for the essays included in this book, they are applicable to the average applicant, that is unless the average applicant has worked for five years in the Sudan raising orphans, or escaped genecide as a child.It would be more helpful if this book included essays that were written by applicants with a more normal work/life experience.This book was a complete waste of my time.I would suggest instead to read "How to get into top law schools" and then focus your reading on the adcom's quotes.

For those who dont know where to start
If you are like me and had no clue where to begin writing a personal essay (the personal ones are always the hardest, this book offers a step by step outline of how to brainstorm subjects and how to organize your thoughts, write and outline and eventually the essay(s).

I really needed this because I, like you, will have to write a number of essays, depending on how many schools we are applying to. I have all these ideas and life experiences, but did not know how to organize them, let alone write anything coherent!This book helped me tremendously with organization and perspective and put me on a path to writing 4 sucessful essays. ... Read more

Product Description
If you're looking for an easy-to-read, chronological guide to every step of the law school experience, this is the book you need. Written from a student's perspective, rather than that of a professor, Law School Insider answers every important question faced by today’s new law students and their families!

Learn about admissions, each year of classes from 1L to 3L, student organizations (including special sections on law reviews and other journals), job hunting, bar exams, and much more.

Discover modern legal careers and learn how to win jobs with top law firms and judges.

Take an inside look at modern family, gender, racial, and other key issues for today’s students.

Find out how to take classes in Europe and Asia for credit in United States law schools.

Conquer the nation’s toughest bar exams and learn which have the highest pass rates.

Learn all about law reviews, their secret elections, and how to become an editor.

If you need to learn about law school, make certain that Law School Insider by Jeremy B. Horwitz, esq. is at the top of your list! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Great Intro to the experience of law school
I found this book an excellent introduction to what the experience of law school would be like-- from one student's perspective.It didn't have a great deal of practical advice on how to brief cases or outline classes, but it did provide me with a better sense of what to expect from the whole 3+ year process.For practical advice on briefing cases and studying suggestions, I found Law School Confidential much more useful. However, I think the two books complement each other.I enjoyed reading this book, and suspect I will reread sections as I move through law school.

The Best Book About Law School!!!
As a prospective law school applicant, who will be applying to a Juris Doctor program this year, I read a lot of books about law schools. Law School Insider by Jeremy Horwitz, Esq. (a cum laude graduate of Cornell Law School, who is currently working as an attorney) is by far the best book about a student's life before, during, and after law school. Unlike other books, this book is organized in a straight-forward manner and is well-written.It starts from the Introduction and Preparing for Law School Chapters that guide you through the entire admission process, from selecting a good law school to making educated choices after receiving acceptance letters.Thereafter, the author writes about the first year, memorable first-year summers, two-L, journal elections and intrigue, second-year summers, the third and final year, and the Bar exam. In addition, the book is supplemented by useful Tables on the first-year course schedules across the nation; modern law-related career options and elective specializations; state Bar exam subject matter coverage and MPRE requirements, to name a few. Various Appendixes include the sample writing completion submission and sample class outline excerpts.

Throughout the book, Jeremy offers a lot of valuable details about his personal experience as a law student in Cornell Law School. For example, he writes that his "...own first day of classes was only modestly intimidating. The readings had taken a long time, but were short enough that I though that I generally understood where they were going. Most of my professors initially came across as nice enough people, and the first class discussions about the readings were relatively gentle..." I found this to be similar to my own law school classes. In other chapters, he describes his experience of hunting for a job and compares different areas of practice and cities. No doubt, such details are extremely important.A few persons who posted their negative reviews about this book should have known that God is in details.

It is no secret that, due to the economic and other related factors, admission to any law school in the country (not to mention top law schools) has become extremely competitive during the recent years.LSAC offers the following nationwide statistics:

Law School Applications (Entering Class of Fall 2002)
89,000 applicants submitted over 440,000 applications. Average of approximately 5.3 applications per person; 17.4% increase in applications.

LSAT Test Takers (Entering class for Fall 2003)
June 2002 LSAT: Largest June exam in history. 27,808 prospective applicants took the exam; 16.3% increase from June 2001 exam.
October 2002: 52,604 persons took this exam; 12.5% increase over October 2001.

The bad news is, of course, that the competition to get into the law school of your choice is going to get even much tougher.But the good news is that after reading Law School Insider your chances of admission to your dream school will increase significantly. I strongly believe that this book is a must for any prospective law student. It is worth every penny, and I highly recommend it to anyone considering going to law school.Also, the Internet website created by Jeremy Horwitz, www.lawschoolinsider.com, is an excellent source for obtaining additional information about the complicated law school admission process, as well as for finding answers to your questions.

A short note about myself: I hold my first law degree from one of the best law schools in Europe, and an advanced Master of Laws degree from American law school (I wish I had read this book before I was applying to the LL.M. program!)

My favorite assigned pre-law book
I can see why this book was assigned reading for one of my college classes, it has been very helpful (and easy to read) in explaining what law school is really about, the careers I can pursue, and telling me what I need to do to prepare. Most of my books get sold at the end of the semester, but because this has so much information on how the first, second and third years of law school work (still 2 years away for me), I will keep this when I dump my other books. I have also found the web site (with free updates and discussion forums) for this book to be major bonuses.

BTW, it's funny to see how the "critics" behind the 1-star reviews here disagree about such ridiculous things. Is this book "mature"? "Humble?" Everyone who loves the book knows that it is both of these things, but even the "critics" can't seem to agree, probably because the "critics" are really jealous competing authors trying to take whatever shots they can to make people doubt a great book. Look past the 1-star smears and get this 5-star book!!

Thumb through at a bookstore first - you may save some $
I can't see why this book received such high marks from other readers. I found the author's perspective to be immature (e.g. bragging about parties), narrow (almost completely his own), and too general to be helpful.

The book would have been much improved if it was written several years after law school when the author had some career experience to reflect upon what he could have done better if he could do it over again. Instead it appears to have been published almost immediately after his graduation.

The book also could have been improved if multiple authors narrated their experiences. Instead, the book almost completely focuses on his. Thus, you're better off talking to some friends who have gone to law school, so that you can obtain multiple perspectives, than reading this book.

Finally, the book could have been improved with more facts. Such factual references would have been the appropriate way to utilize footnotes. Moreover, it would have given some legitimacy to his claims and advice. The appendices are one of the few places you can find useful facts, but they are too brief to justify the purchase.

My advice is to page through this book in-person first. It is nearly the equivalent of a self-published biography. It is not a useful guide to understanding law school. An undergraduate student may be fooled into thinking so, but anyone with a few years of career experience can see it for what it is. Just skim a few of its pages and the nearly useless footnotes (which yes he says you can skip at the beginning of the book) to save yourself some time and money better spent on other guides.

p.s. Contrary to another reviewer's speculation, I am not a competing author. I am an administrative code writer considering a career transition by going back to law school. If you are someone who could probably be defined as a non-trad student, I think you will share my opinion of this book.

Number One on My List of 3 Must-Have Books
A little about me: I'm now in my second year of law school and Purchased both Law School Insider and Law School Confidential last year. I wound up keeping only my copy of Law School Insider, which is a newer and more relevant book for me.

Now that I've completed my first year, I think that there are three books that every law student should read before (and maybe during) attending law school. The first two are Law School Insider and Getting to Maybe. Getting to Maybe is a good book on exams, and Law School Insider is the best book about the experience and how to prepare.

A little about law school: law school is a challenging LEARNING experience. If you want to be a lawyer, you go to law school to learn how to think, how to read, and how to manage your time. It is not just about getting good grades, it is about picking an area of personal specialization and actually learning. Only Law School Insider speaks to both the importance of grades and truly learning a specialty.

Besides the fact that Law School Insider is much more thorough, it is also a mature person's look at law school. Law School Confidential is peppered with exclamation marks (to make it seem more exciting!), formulas, way too many cocky, overconfident male perspectives, and handfuls of comments from all-white "mentors." I recognized these as gimmicks when I saw them but only realized how wrong and useless they were for me when I tried some of them.

By comparison, Law School Insider is a balanced book that actually speaks to the lifestyles and choices of different readers, including people who are married and worried about starting a life after law school, and tells people from diverse backgrounds how to maximize their chances of success. It has the most useful information, with none of Confidential's attitude. You can see that same attitude in the few absurdly negative reviews of Insider, but ignore it, it's just more Confidential hype without any substance.

On the subject of attitude, there is not a trace of arrogance or artificial stress anywhere in Insider. This contrasts sharply with Confidential, which suggests among other things that you should skip applying to law schools unless you're going to go someplace Robert Miller and his friends consider prestigious, and that law school is going to be like a war. Miller and I were both educated in Pennsylvania, but I know this stuff isn't even true at most of the schools in my state, let alone elsewhere in the country.

So what is the third book I would recommend if not Confidential? One-L. Confidential's perspective on law school is old and outdated too, but One-L is much more entertaining if you're buying a book about law School to be entertained. If you're looking to learn about law school life, you owe it to yourself to buy Law School Insider instead. ... Read more

Product Description
Michael West, an attorney and graduate from a top ten law school, provides you with all the information you need before you apply to law school and once you get there. Compiled from the experiences of law students in 2005-2010 and current lawyers, the strategies in this book enable students to avoid the mistakes that popular law school guides advocate. By focusing on what the other law school guides don't tell you, West puts you in complete control of your legal education. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Good, Honest Advice!
This is a great read and invaluable to an incoming law student. I am a 3L and read the other books on how to "prepare" for the rigorous study of law before I even started my 1L year. Looking back, I think some of those things were just overhyped. I really dont think there is a need to start reading hornbooks or going to law school "boot camp" in order to get ahead your 1L year. I say that understanding that everybody has a different way of studying and learning -- some people get a lot from outlining and some people dont. I liked this book because it was candid. It doesnt try to scare you or deceive you into thinking that it contains the secret for you to get on to law review. Rather, the author provides an honest take on what law school life is really all about. Its about time that a book like this was written.

Good Entertainment
This is a very entertaining book. I hope it was meant to be...

If you are looking for an, extremely, honest account of law school, look no further. Reading this book will save the average student, who only wants to be better than half the class, a TON of effort! If, however, you want to do better, you need to apply yourself, and this book does not encourage hard honest work.

All that said; This book was a very humourous read. I hope people buy this book and have a good laugh.

Not much to it
I bought this book because of all the great reviews, but was very disappointed.There is just not much here beyond common sense (i.e., networking helps you get a job).The "unconventional" advice is just foolish.For example, West encourages cramming as a way to study for finals.He writes, "[3Ls] can do better than younger law students without even so much as showing up to class or buying textbooks or reading anything until right before the final.The way a 3L takes an exam is by studying everything right before the exam and writing as much as possible on the exam with as many seemingly irrelevant tangents as possible"

1L
I haven't started law school yet, but I think this seemed like a good read in conjunction with the other guides.Most of the books I read said the same thing and this seemed to give the other side of the story.It included some common sense as well that I think is easy to forget when caught up in all the law school preparations and over all made me feel a little better about starting school.

Indispensible Advice
I recently picked up a copy of this book as a present for one of my paralegals, who will be entering law school in August. I hadn't really read through the book (to be quite honest, I purchased it because it was a bargain), so I was surprised when my paralegal began asking me to verify some of the book's claims. He began asking me questions like: "Is it true that sucking up helps in law school?" [forgive me for the obvious example, I don't want to give away any of the book's more insightful gems--I come to praise Michael West, not to bury him], to which I had to vociferously answer, "YES!" "But," he responded, "isn't grading blind in law school?" I explained to him that in my experience it wasn't always and, even when it is, buttering up the professor never hurts. I don't know if I told my paralegal this, but every A I ever got in law school came with a little sucking up. When you're on such a tight curve with so many other competitive, overachieving students, every little bit counts.

After a few of my paralegal's more extreme/provocative questions, all of which seemed to reflect spot-on insights about law school (again, I don't want to ruin anything), I began to get curious and asked to borrow the book. I read through the whole thing in a night and I can tell you that, although I know law school experiences can vary, the book is as spot-on accurate as it is irreverent and hilarious to read. "Beat Law School" (even the name strikes me as a propos--law school is very much a challenge, as well as a competition in which there are definite winners and losers) is short, but it's densely packed with on-the-nose insight and a capacity to realize, as well as a willingness to point out, when the emperor is parading the streets in his birthday suit.

I read "Law School Confidential" when I first entered law school, and it taught me to highlight different parts of cases in different colored markers (advice that I followed for all of a week). Every review I've read of "Beat Law School" seems to say "I wish I had this book when I started law school." Take it from me, it's easy to regret one's actions in law school--what we do in our first year (our first term, especially--when we LEAST know what we're doing) echoes on in eternity. To that extent, I 100% agree with those reviews. I wish I'd known in my 1L year what I know now, and "Beat Law School" would have cleared up a great number of mysteries. ... Read more