The Admissions Process

The Application File
How Can I Apply for Admission?
Application Fee
Two Writing Samples
The Law School Data Assembly Service Report
Two Recommendations
Reactivation of The Application From the Immediately Preceding Year
Transfer Students
Visiting Student
Online Applications 2007 LSAC Electronic Application
Credential Assembly Service  Foreign-Educated Applicants

The Application File

• The completed Application Form
• The Certification Letter, completed and signed
• The Application Fee of $15.00 (check, money order, or credit card;Visa, Master Card, or Discover)
• Two Writing Samples: the Personal Statement and the Essay
• The Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS) Report
• Two Recommendations (through LSDAS service)

How Can I Apply for Admission?
There are two methods to apply for admission this year:

• You may complete the application forms and submit them by mail or in person to the Admissions Office. The forms are provided in this packet or available to be downloaded from our Web site www.law.utk.edu) if you have Adobe Acrobat Reader software.
• You may use the 2008 electronic application package provided by LSAC (www.LSAC.org).

Application Fee
A nonrefundable $15.00 application fee must accompany the Application, Certification Letter, and Writing Samples. Please make your check or money order payable to The University of Tennessee, or you may charge the fee to your Visa, Master Card, or Discover.

Two Writing Samples
Both a Personal Statement and an Essay are required and should be written by you and enclosed with the completed Application Form. The Admissions Committee will review both writing samples for content and form.

• Personal Statement
  The personal statement provides an opportunity for you to present your personal background, your motivation for the study of law, and your description of how you plan to contribute to the legal profession. This is also your opportunity to provide information that pertains to the admissions criteria established by the admissions committee. Please do not exceed 500 words
• Essay
  Your essay should discuss for the admissions committee the Experience that you consider to be one of the most important Learning experiences you have had in the past 10 years. Please limit your essay to no more than 500 words.

The Law School Data Assembly Service Report
The Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS) provides a means of centralizing and standardizing undergraduate academic records to simplify the law school admission process. The College of Law, like nearly all ABA-accredited law schools, requires that applicants use the LSDAS service. The LSDAS prepares a report for each law school to which you apply. There is a registration fee for the LSDAS as well as a fee for each law school report (go to www.LSAC.org for more information and current fees). The LSDAS report contains an undergraduate academic summary, copies of all undergraduate, graduate, and law/professional school transcripts, LSAT scores and writing sample copies, and copies of letters of recommendation processed by the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). The College of Law will request your LSDAS report upon receipt of your application for admission. It can take several weeks for your application to become complete after your application and ccompanying materials reach us. It is your responsibility to submit your application well before the March 1 priority deadline so that we can order and receive your LSDAS report in time for full consideration by the Admissions Committee.

Two Recommendations
The College of Law requires two recommendations as part of the selection process. These recommendations should be written by people who have known you long enough and well enough to make a sound evaluation of your intelligence, industry, character, motivation, and aptitude for the study of law. Recommendations from individuals who can judge your academic abilities are usually most helpful to the Admissions Committee. If you have been out of school and in the workplace for a number of years, you may find employers or clients to be your best sources.

The College of Law requires applicants to submit recommendations through the LSAC letter of recommendation service that serves all member schools. This service is included in the cost of your LSDAS Registration subscription. Your letters will be copied and mailed to us along with your LSDAS Report, or as received by LSDAS. To use this service, follow the directions for submitting letters outlined on the LSAC Web site (www.LSAC.org) or in the LSAT/LSDAS Information Book. Be sure to fill out and give each letter writer a recommendation form from www. LSAC.org or from the LSAT/LSDAS Information Book. In the event that your undergraduate institution has a recommendation service and will not forward your recommendations to Law Services, they may be forwarded directly to our Admissions Office.

Reactivation of The Application From the Immediately Preceding Year
Applicants who wish to reactivate their application for admission from the immediately preceding year should request reactivation of the file in writing well before the March 1 priority deadline. The applicant must update the file with information about employment, graduate study, or other information pertinent to the admissions criteria for consideration by the Admissions Committee. Additional materials submitted, such as an updated Application Form and recommendations, will be added to the original file. No materials will be substituted for the original materials; rather, the additional materials will be considered as supplementary information. Candidates who applied in the immediately preceding year do not need to submit an additional Application Fee.

If you have retaken the LSAT since you last applied, it is your responsibility to notify the Admissions Office at the time you request reactivation of your file. A new LSDAS report will be ordered by the Admissions staff, and your on-line account will be charged $12.00.

Individuals who wish to reapply after more than one year may not reactivate an old application. New original application materials and a LSDAS report must be submitted. Your online account with LSAC will be charged $12.00 for the report, and a $15.00 application fee is also required.

Transfer Students
The number of seats available for transfer students is limited, therefore admission as a transfer student is competitive. To verify that seats are available, prospective candidates are encouraged to call the Admissions office before applying by June 15 for fall term. Transfer applications should be complete no later than 3 weeks (21 days) before the beginning of fall term. Transfer decisions will be made and communicated to the candidates as soon as possible.

Transfer applicants must be in good standing at a law school accredited by the American Bar Association. The Admissions Committee will consider each transfer applicant’s undergraduate and law school records and grade point averages, LSAT score, the reason for seeking to transfer, and all other factors that are used in making admissions decisions.

Transfer applicants must supply the following materials to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid for the file to be complete and considered by the Admissions Committee:

1. A completed application for admission
2. An LSDAS report (the College of Law will order this report, and your online account will be charged $12.00.)
3. Two (2) letters of recommendation, one of which should be from a law faculty member at law school attended
4. A letter stating the reason(s) for seeking to  transfer
5. A personal statement and an essay
6. The following materials from the law school attended:

a. a letter of good standing with an indication of class rank from the dean
b. an official law school transcript
c. a copy of the official law school catalog

7. The $15 application fee.

Candidates admitted to the College of Law as transfer students may receive up to 31 semester hours of credit for work successfully completed at the previously attended law school. A total of at least 58 credit hours must be completed at the University of Tennessee College of Law.

Visiting Student
A student who is in good standing at a law school accredited by the ABA may take courses at the College of Law on a space-available basis with the permission of the dean or the dean’s designee. Applicants to visit at the College of Law must supply the following materials to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid for the file to be complete and forwarded to the Office of Student Affairs for consideration:

1. A completed application for admission
2. An LSDAS report (a copy from the law school attended will be accepted)
3. Two (2) letters of recommendation, one of which should be from a law faculty member at law school attended
4. A letter stating the reason(s) for seeking to visit
5. A personal statement and an essay
6. The following materials from the law school attended:

a. letter from the dean or the dean’s designate which includes:

1.authorization to visit and any limitations or specifications on courses which will be    accepted by that school
2.indication of good standing, including class rank

b. an official law school transcript
c. a copy of the official law school catalog

7. The $15 application fee

Candidates should have completed the visitor application process no later than 3 weeks (21 days) before the beginning of fall term. Decisions to allow candidates to visit will be made and communicated to the candidates as soon as possible.

Online Applications 2008 LSAC Eectronic Application
All LSDAS registrants with LSAC online accounts will have free access to the 2008 electronic JD applications for all ABA-approved law schools including the “flow-as-you-go” common application information. This free distribution of online applications allows you to electronically package your applications with the transcripts, letters of ecommendation, and LSDAS law school reports that are being processed and sent to law schools by LSAC. There is no additional cost for the electronic application, but your online account will be charged $12.00 for each school to which you apply. Information about the 2008 electronic application process is available at www.LSAC.org.

The UT College of Law has discontinued providing an online application.

JD Credential Assembly Service for Foreign-Educated Applicants
The University of Tennessee College of Law requires that your foreign transcripts be submitted through the LSAC JD Credential Assembly Service. If you completed any postsecondary work outside the U.S. (including its territories) or Canada, you must use this service for the evaluation of your foreign transcripts. The one exception to this requirement is if you completed the foreign work through a study abroad, consortium, or exchange program sponsored by a U.S. or Canadian institution, and the work is clearly indicated as such on the home campus transcript. This service is included in the LSDAS subscription fee. A Foreign Credential Evaluation will be completed by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO), which will be incorporated into your LSDAS report. If we determine that you need to submit a TOEFL score, you must contact the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and request that your TOEFL score be sent to LSAC. LSAC’s TOEFL code for the JD Credential Assembly Service is 0058. Your score will be included in the Foreign Credential Evaluation document that will be included in your LSDAS law school report. To use the JD CAS, log in to your online account and follow the instructions for registering for the service. Be sure to print out a Transcript Request Form for each institution and send it promptly to them. More time is usually required to receive foreign transcripts.

Questions about the JD Credential Assembly Service can be directed to LSAC at 215.968.1001, or LSACINFO@LSAC.org.