Application Requirements and Instructions
Application Requirements and Instructions
Any exceptions to these requirements for international, permanent resident, transfer, and visiting applicants are outlined in Additional instructions for international, permanent resident, transfer, and visiting applicants.
William Mitchell requires that students earn a bachelor’s degree before entering law school. Applicants must subscribe to and have their college transcripts sent to the Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS). Contact information is below.
William Mitchell requires all applicants to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). The LSAT covers a broad range of disciplines and measures a number of qualities that are essential for law school, including ability to read, understand, and reason. The LSAT includes a 35-minute writing exercise.
To register for the LSAT and
LSDAS,
applicants
should
read the
LSAT
& LSDAS
Information
Book, available from:
Law School Admission Council
Box 2000
Newtown, PA 18940-0998
You may also contact the
Law School
Admission Council
(LSAC) at:
Four weeks after you have taken the LSAT and submitted your Application for Admission to William Mitchell, LSAC will send William Mitchell your test score, LSAT writing sample, letters of recommendation, and the LSDAS analysis of your undergraduate academic performance. You will also receive a copy of the report and test score.
Applicants must have taken the LSAT within five years of entering William Mitchell. For students entering fall 2007, the oldest valid LSAT would be October 2002. We require that applicants take the LSAT no later than February of the year in which they plan to enroll.
Submit your completed application form with all supporting documents to William Mitchell in the preaddressed envelope in the application booklet. Please include your name in the return address portion of the envelope. If you do not have a preprinted envelope, mail your application and supporting documents to:
William Mitchell College of Law
Office of Admissions
875 Summit Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55105-3076
You may also apply online at www.wmitchell.edu.
All applications must be accompanied by a nonrefundable $50 check or money order payable to William Mitchell College of Law. Persons unable to pay the fee due to extreme financial hardship may petition for a fee waiver by requesting a fee waiver form from the Office of Admissions. This form is also available on our Web site at http://www.wmitchell.edu/admissions/Application+Fee+Waiver.pdf. The application fee can also be waived through our Alumni Referral Program. If you know a William Mitchell alumnus/a, have him or her fill out an Alumni Referral Card for you. Contact the Office of Admissions or visit our Web site to obtain an Alumni Referral Card. You must submit the paper application with the Alumni Referral form. We are unable to waive the required fee electronically at this time.
Two confidential letters of recommendation are required. Your recommenders should know you well and be able to assess your personal qualities and your potential for success in law school. They should describe at least some of these characteristics:
• academic ability, including creative thinking, reasoning ability, and oral and written communication skills;
• leadership and interpersonal skills;
• motivation and self-discipline; and
• demonstrated ethics.
Your recommenders should write on either official or personal stationery and mail their letters directly to LSDAS.
Your personal statement should be one to three pages in length and should include any information that will help the admissions committee act on your application. We encourage you to tell us why your application should be considered favorably.
Please include such information as:
• your reasons for applying;
• life and career goals;
• particular experiences or background applicable to law school;
• academic abilities or special skills, talents, or strengths; and
• leadership and interpersonal skills.
We also urge you to discuss any obstacles or disadvantages that you have had to overcome, such as poverty, culture, hardship, or disability.
Your résumé should include a complete history of your post-secondary employment and education, including graduation and employment dates, colleges, and degrees received. Other information that you should list on your résumé includes community service, leadership activities, awards and honors, and internships.
Admission to William Mitchell College of Law is based on both academic and nonacademic factors. We encourage you to submit all information that you feel we need to know to make an admission decision. We don’t require admission interviews but encourage applicants to schedule informational sessions with admissions representatives.
First-year students
Fall admission May 1
Transfer students
Fall admission May 1
Spring admission November 1
Because the college admits on a rolling basis, it is to the student’s advantage to apply early in the application process.