Prelaw Action Plan
Food for thought
You have chosen an academic track that will expose you to top professors, law school professionals, practicing attorneys and ultra-competitive classmates. It will require good long-term planning, day-to-day concentration and a relentless desire to achieve. Since you are reading this web site you are probably ready to take the first steps to becoming a prelaw student.
Consider these points:
- There is no single path that will prepare you for a legal education. Students who are successful in law school, and who become accomplished professionals, come from many walks of life and educational backgrounds.
- Whatever major you select, you are encouraged to pursue an area of study that interests and challenges you, while taking advantage of opportunities to develop your research and writing skills.
- Taking a broad range of difficult courses from demanding instructors is excellent preparation for a legal education.
- The student who goes to law school lacking a broad range of basic skills and knowledge will face a difficult challenge.
Getting Involved
Involvement in student groups should bolster your education and pre-law experience. An organization that allows you to network with students, faculty and professionals is very important.
- Identify student groups that afford you opportunities to serve the community, which shows commitment outside the classroom, and to develop leadership skills.
- A pre-law student should seek leadership opportunities to develop planning, organization, interpersonal communication and dispute resolution skills.
Be careful in how you allocate your time.
- Over involvement may hinder your success in a group and educationally.
- Being a member of every student group available will not impress application committee's.
- Becoming involved with one or two student groups with leadership experience, community outreach, and networking opportunities will serve you well.
Texas Tech University hosts hundreds of student organizations. Take a LOOK yourself and see if one might appeal to you.
Below we have made available a suggested timeline for each year so that you may keep track of your own progress throughout your college career. Keep in mind; this is only a suggested timeline and by no means constitutes success or failure on the road to law school.