First and Second Year Students
□ Select a major that you enjoy and that challenges you and prepares you for alternative career paths if you decide not to pursue a career in law after graduation. (Law schools have no preference on major so choose a major that is a good fit for you, not one that you think will look good for law school.)
□ Begin to explore careers in law through various resources: readings, informational interviews with attorneys, externships (shadowing), and internships in a legal environment.
□ Although there are no required courses for law school, it is important to take courses to continue to develop the types of skills that will be necessary in law school and in your legal career such as reading, writing, critical thinking, and analytical reasoning.
□ Review the Pre-Law website.
□ Focus on your academics; undergraduate GPA is one of the top factors in law school admission.
□ Get to know your professors (e.g., utilize their office hours, participate in class discussions, and sit in the front row of class). You will need academic letters of recommendation when you apply to law school and these professors will then be in a better position to write a strong letter of recommendation if they know you other than just your grade in their class.
□ Get involved in activities that interest you – student organizations, study abroad, research with faculty, leadership, community service, etc. While UF has several pre-law organizations (e.g., Pre-Legal Honor Society, Phi Alpha Delta, Esquire, Virgil Hawkins Pre-Law Society) you should get involved in activities and organizations that interest you, not necessarily just pre-law related organizations and activities.
□ Meet with a pre-law advisor in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Academic Advising Center (Farrior Hall). Call (352) 392-1521 to make a pre-law appointment or come as a walk-in and request to see a pre-law advisor to: begin exploring law and whether it is a good fit for you, to discuss the basic timeline for pre-law students, and keeping yourself competitive for law schools.
□ Join the pre-law listserv to stay updated on pre-law news and events. To subscribe, send an e-mail to listserv@lists.ufl.edu. Leave the subject field blank and enter the following text in the body of the message:
subscribe ufprelaw-L firstname lastname
(be sure to insert your real name instead of “firstname lastname”). You will receive an e-mail confirmation, and you must reply to the confirmation message to activate your listserv membership.