Hi Haley,
Congrats on your score! I'm really excited to hear that you did well
Now for even more good news: you are still in great shape as far as rolling admissions, and there's no need to wait another year.
This question comes up enough that I put together a chart of
what "early" really means in the context of the admissions cycle. The chart there is from a few years ago, but the basic pattern still holds. Even if you don't submit your apps until Christmas-time, you still are relatively early in the process. And, so what I'd suggest is that you attempt to get everything submitted within the next two months. That means that you need is to get started right now in the admissions process. A lot of that is paperwork—requesting transcripts, filling our applications, etc. But, there are a several parts that you either control or that are somewhat out of your hands:
- Your Personal Statement and any addenda
Your Personal Statement will require a lot of work, and a lot of drafts. I posted a few helpful tips on the Forum yesterday:
- 1. Check out the free seminar I did on the personal statement. It's available instantly, and can be found at http://www.powerscore.com/lsat/help/#free-lessons, as the sixth link under "Recorded/Archived Lessons." That seminar covers a number of important elements that everyone should consider when putting together a personal statement, as well as a number of tips I've collected over the years. I also use examples to support the advice I give in there, and viewing that seminar is often really helpful for applicants.
2. Re-draft your statement repeatedly. The biggest mistake students make is only drafting it two or three times. It really shows in a bad way. the proper process is to draft it, then read it instantly and make changes. Take two-three days off, and then come back to it and re-read it closely, and then make changes again. the repeat that process as many times as you can stand it One of the big mistakes students make is getting suggestions, quickly making changes, and then not waiting a few days before picking it up and reading it again. and, if there's time to take a week off between reads, that's even better. It gives you more distance and better perspective on what you've written, and how that will sound to other readers.
It will take a while to get your personal statement in shape, but this is one part of the process that you do not want to rush.
Your Letters of Recommendation
This is the one piece of the process where you have limited control on the timeline. While you can control who you ask, you can't make your recommenders submit their responses any faster than they choose to do so. So, the best advice here is to immediately determine who you will ask, compile a dossier of information on yourself for them (unless they know you really well, which is always the hope), and get the proper forms and info in their hands as quickly as possible.
That should give you a start, but at least you know you can relax. You aren't in any trouble time-wise at this point and you don't have to scramble and hastily submit your apps yet.
I hope that helps—please let me know. Thanks!
