Letter of Recommendation
General Guidelines
Law schools generally ask for at least two academic letters of recommendation and often will allow additional recommendations which should be employment-based. If the applicant has been out of undergraduate school for three or more years, law schools will generally expect only one letter from a professor. The most useful faculty recommendations compare applicants to their peers and address writing abilities, analytical skills, and intellectual development with specificity. The field of study or rank of the author have no bearing on the letter; pick recommenders who know you and your work well, preferably faculty from whom you have taken more than one class.
Letter Writers with Gap Year(s)
Even if you plan on taking time off before law school, it can be a good idea to ask for a letter at the end of your fourth year when you are still fresh in the mind of the writer. Through the Credential Assembly Service (CAS) on LSAC.org, you can store letters for five years.
Requesting a Letter
You should give recommenders at least four weeks’ notice before the letters are due. For more guidance on how to approach a professor for a recommendation, please speak with a Careers in Law adviser.