Resumes: Not Just for Job Hunting Anymore

A resume can be a valuable tool in applying to law schools. It allows you to not only list your previous experiences, but expand and highlight them in a way that makes your candidacy more appealing. As mentioned before, law schools look for well rounded applicants to admit, and those who took an active role in their home institution during undergrad come out on top.

Similar to a resume you would create for a job, your law school resume ought to include work experience (internships, part time jobs, summer jobs, etc.) you had during your college years. It's important to show the committee that you were able to balance the work load in and the out of the classroom. If you didn't have a job during undergrad, have no fear; admission committees aren't necessarily looking for work experience in every applicant. Simply stated, they are just looking to see that you weren't partying it up so much in undergrad that you didn't have time for much else.

Many admissions committees look for volunteer work on a resume too and feel strongly about a law school prospect involving themselves in their community and giving back. In your law school education, you'll have to perform pro bono work, and once you graduate you will be working with the public, so it helps to have a background in this. It doesn't matter where you volunteer -- soup kitchen, animal shelter, assisted living facility -- it just matters that you did.

Listing and elaborating on your extra-curricular activities is also crucial. Make sure to denote whether you held any leadership positions in clubs during your years. Getting involved and being a leader bodes well with law schools.

Also, beef up your resume with any awards you might have won in undergrad or special recognitions. If you published anything you wrote, definitely include that on the resume. There's no such thing as being an over-achiever to an admissions committee, and the more accomplishments you can display on your resume, the more likely a review committee will see your determination and offer you admission.

If you are looking to flush out a resume, you can always add a section near the bottom detailing future plans in law. Keep it simple though; law school resumes ought to be scanned easily and not boughed down with wordy sentences which distract the reader.

As always, feel free to contact me or e-mail me your resume if you need some pointers.