You’ve spent countless hours pulling your application together. Your personal statement is written, your resume is polished, your recommendations are in, and you’re finally ready to submit. Before you do, take a little extra time to review the details.
A strong law school application is more than a collection of impressive materials. Every component should be accurate, intentional, consistent, and polished. Even small oversights can create confusion or leave an admissions committee with questions that could have been avoided.
Think of this as your final application audit. Work through the checklist for each school before submitting, and make sure the application you send is the one you actually want an admissions committee to read.
The 25-Point Pre-Submission Application Audit
Application Details and Requirements
1. Confirm the correct school application and admissions year.
It sounds simple, but make sure you're working in the correct application for the school and admissions cycle. This is especially important if you're applying to multiple programs.
2. Review the school's current application instructions.
Requirements can vary from one institution to another. Double-check prompts, page limits, required attachments, recommendation rules, and any optional materials before finalizing your file.
3. Verify all personal and biographical information.
Review your legal name, contact information, mailing address, citizenship or residency details, and other biographical fields. Make sure everything is accurate and up to date.
4. Disclose every required college or graduate institution.
Check that all educational institutions are listed consistently with your LSAC or Credential Assembly Service (CAS) records, where applicable. Don't leave out an institution or program just because you attended for a short time.
5. Confirm your transcripts and CAS status.
Make sure all required transcripts have been received and processed, and check that your CAS report is moving toward completion. Give yourself time to address any missing materials.
6. Verify your LSAT or GRE information.
Check that your test scores and any planned future test dates are reported exactly as the school requests. If you're applying with a different testing plan for certain schools, confirm those requirements individually.
7. Assign the correct recommendation letters.
Make sure each school has the intended letters assigned and that you've met its specific recommendation requirements. More letters aren't necessarily better if they don't follow the school's instructions.
Personal Statement and Supplemental Essays
8. Revisit the personal statement prompt.
Read the prompt one more time and ask yourself whether your essay actually answers the question. A compelling essay can still miss the mark if it doesn't address what the school is asking.
9. Check the personal statement formatting requirements.
Review the page or word limit, font, spacing, margins, headers, and file instructions. Don't assume every school uses the same formatting guidelines.
10. Make sure your personal statement has one clear message.
Your essay should give the reader a meaningful understanding of who you are and what motivates you. Most importantly, it should sound like you, not like a version of yourself you think an admissions committee wants to hear.
11. Review your opening and overall storytelling.
Does the opening give the reader a reason to keep going? As you read, look for opportunities to show your perspective through specific experiences rather than relying on broad statements about your strengths or goals.
12. Remove unnecessary repetition and distractions.
Your resume and essays should work together, not repeat the same information in slightly different ways. Cut generic claims, unnecessary autobiography, and details that don't add value to your overall application.
13. Make sure every optional or supplemental essay adds something new.
Whether it's a perspective statement, diversity statement, or optional essay, each piece should serve a purpose. If it simply repeats something the admissions committee already knows, reconsider whether it needs to be included.
14. Customize every school-specific essay.
Check that you've named the correct school and included genuinely specific reasons for your interest. Avoid generic statements that could apply to any program on your list.
Resume, Addenda, and Supporting Materials
15. Give your resume one final review.
Check dates, job titles, formatting, and descriptions of your experience. Use strong, specific action verbs and make sure your accomplishments are easy to understand. The Harvard Guide for resumes and cover letters is a great reference point.
16. Check for consistency across your application.
Your resume, essays, and application fields should agree on employers, activities, dates, honors, and education. Small discrepancies can raise questions that distract from the rest of your materials.
17. Review any addenda for clarity and purpose.
If you've included an addendum, make sure it's necessary and directly addresses the situation. Keep the explanation factual, concise, and focused on providing context rather than making excuses.
18. Carefully review every Character and Fitness question.
Read each question slowly and make sure your answers are complete and truthful. Pay attention to the wording and include any required explanations or supporting documentation.
19. Check employment, activities, honors, and short answers for omissions.
Look for missing experiences, unexplained gaps, or incomplete responses. Make sure the information you've included gives the admissions committee an accurate picture of your background.
Final Proofreading and Quality Control
20. Confirm every uploaded attachment is the correct final version.
It's easy to accidentally upload an earlier draft or the wrong document, especially when applying to several schools. Open each attachment and verify that it's the version you intend to submit.
21. Inspect the formatting of every uploaded file.
Don't rely on the original document alone. Check the uploaded version for unexpected page breaks, spacing issues, headers, symbols, and overall readability.
22. Proofread for both content and mechanics.
Read through your application once for substance and again for spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and typos. A fresh read can help you catch details you may have overlooked while drafting.
23. Search for other school names and leftover placeholders.
Use the search function to look for other school names, brackets, comments, track changes, or unfinished notes like "TK." This is a particularly important step when reusing or adapting application materials.
24. Preview and read your complete application PDF.
If the application system generates a final PDF, download it and read it from the first page through the certification section. This is your opportunity to see the application as an admissions reader will.
25. Confirm payment and certification requirements.
Before submitting, check application fees or approved waivers, signature fields, and any required certifications. Once submitted, save a copy of the final application and confirmation for your records.
One Last Review Before You Submit
Submitting your application is a big milestone, and it's worth taking the time to make sure every piece is working together. Your experiences, academic background, goals, and personal perspective should come through clearly, without avoidable errors or inconsistencies getting in the way.
If you're looking for another set of eyes, Ivy Grad Services is here to help. Our team provides premier consulting services for prospective and current graduate students, offering personalized guidance on personal statements, supplemental essays, resumes, and the application process as a whole. We’ve done it ourselves and have helped countless students do the same.
You don't have to navigate every detail on your own. Learn more about how we can support your next step at Ivy Grad Services, and take a look at our reviews and testimonials to hear from students we've worked with. We’d love to work with you!