Career Planning Resources

As you explore a possible career in law, Calvin offers valuable resources to help you consider options and determine your future steps. Some of these resources are available directly through Calvin; additional links to outside resources are listed below.

Additional resources to help plan your career in law

• LSAT
  • The Law School Admission Council (LSAC) website provides information about the LSAT and LSDAS, official guides to American and Canadian law schools, registration for Law School Forums around the country, publications on LSAT preparation and several useful FAQ pages.
  • Exam Focus offers detailed information about LSAT tests and free practice tests.
  • Jay Cutts (author of Barron's LSAT Prep Book and Director of Cutts Graduate Reviews) offers a free pre-law planning system, as well as STEPS to the LSAT: A Self-Prep Support Program for a fee that allows unlimited access to the STEPS resources.
  • Kaplan Testing Services offers a FREE online practice test for the LSAT.
  • 7Sage.com provides free LSAT Logic Games explanations and LSAT study courses.
  • Chegg Test Prep offers LSAT preparation assistance, including a free practice test, free expert advice, instant live help and LSAT prep guides. Some of these services involve fees.
  • Affordable College Online provides a guide for planning to take the LSAT, including timlines, affordable test prep options, the cost of the LSAT, and more.
  • The Community for Accredited Online Schools website has additional information and advice about taking the LSAT, including a breakdown of the test, how it is scored, and tips to help students prepare.
  • Magoosh offers several different LSAT preparation plans, with week-by-week schedules to follow for several months as you prepare to take the LSAT.
  • Two- and Four-Month Study Plans as you prepare for the LSAT are available from University of Dayton.
  • Official practice tests drawn from real LSATs are available through the Khan Academy's Official LSAT Prep web pages. They also include evaluations to test your personal strengths and weaknesses to help set a practice plan, and feedback to help build skills needed to succeed at the LSAT.
  • The LSAC has published several free full digital practice tests to help test takers prepare for taking the LSAT in digital format.
  • Mometrix Test Preparation provides free online study tools and practice tests.
  • LawSchoolData gives you one centralized place to view the status of all your law school applications
  • Foster Swift law firm has created a free video series featuring real attorneys sharing information about what a law career is really like, as well as information about choosing a law school and the law school experience.
• Law school rankings
  • Professor Brian Leiter (University of Chicago School of Law) has prepared an extensive web site that rates the “Educational Quality Ranking of US Law Schools”.
  • Top-Law-Schools.com offers up-to-date law school rankings including exclusive law school profiles, advice for writing law school personal statements and law school forums.
  • ABA Required Disclosures 509 provides detailed information about ABA approved law schools, including bar passage rate, types of jobs graduates get, how much they give in scholarships, and more.
  • Public Legal provides detailed information about how schools are ranked according to tuition, law library size, professor to student ratio, and more (similar to information provided by US News Report). 
• Law school admission
  • The Law School Podcaster provides information, insight and advice on the law school admission process, including behind-the-scenes views of the admission process, post-law school jobs and current market trends.
  • Admission Essays that Worked includes six winning admissions essays from the University of Chicago.
  • The University of Michigan School of Law has an excellent website about the law school application and consideration process.
  • The Law School Admissions Council publishes Admission Made Simple: Your Journey to Law School which provides a basic walk-through about applying for law school.
• LL.M (Masters of Laws) program
  • LLMGuide provides general information about the LL.M. degree, as well as Master of Laws Programs in various countries around the world.
  • OnLineLLM is a resource including in-depth and unbiased information about a LL.M. degree, and includes accredited Masters in Law schools.
  • Go-LLM.com is a blog that provides useful tips, background information and news on law school applications and law schools in general.
  • LLMinfo.com provides scholarship information, LLM concentrations, a blog and several other great tools for LLM students.
• Financial planning
  • Money Geek provides a specific financial aid guide for law school that you can use as a proactive resource to help navigate the financial hurdles, including information about understanding the costs, finding funding, specific loans and scholarships and negotiating your aid package.
  • LST Reports gives detailed information (provided by actual law school students and graduates) about the cost of a legal education at specific law schools
• Life in law school
  • Law School Toolbox works to alleviate anxiety about the law school experience for prospective law students, current law students, and even bar exam takers with a free popular blog and podcast, as well as courses and private law school tutoring for a fee.
  • Law Student Ministries of the Christian Legal Society seeks to reach the nation's school campuses for Christ by encouraging law students to faithfully think and act, and by supporting Christian law student groups on more than 150 law school campuses and at some Christian colleges.
  • Ms. JD is a blog that supports and improves the experiences of women in the field of law, both students and lawyers.
  • Law School Numbers is a dynamic research and social networking tool for prospective law school applicants.
  • The legal field can involve high stress occupations and tasks — and tobacco use among lawyers continues to be high. Quit Day is a service designed to help individuals stop smoking.
  • 25 Legal Publications, Blogs, & Podcasts Every Law Student Should Follow provides links to a number of legal publications, blogs and podcasts available to law students as they prepare for a legal career.
• Law career information
  • National Association for Law Placement (NALP) provides useful information on employment trends for law school graduates.
  • LawCareersNow.com is a website which includes unambiguous information about attending law school, choosing a career as an attorney and many other topics which can help you plan your future in the field of law.
  • Educational requirements for becoming a lawyer or attorney in every state and jurisdiction within the United States is available at LawyerEdu.
  • Read the 25 greatest law novels of all time and watch the 25 greatest law movies of all time.
  • AboveTheLaw.com is an American blog that gives news and commentary about the U.S. legal industry.
  • Lawyer information provides an overview of the legal profession, along with tips about preparing for a career as an attorney, types of lawyers, basic LSAT information and where attorneys are employed.
  • Should I Go to Law School? 2 Exercises to Help You Decide — a blog written by Robert Theofanis
  • Learn How to Become a Paralegal gives useful information about the paralegal career
  • Learn How to Become a Lawyer provides information for aspiring lawyers to explore concentrations and search for institutions that will help them meet their goals
  • LiveCareer is a career website that has several very good resources about how lawyers can formulate effective resumes and cover letters at: Lawyer Resume Example, 13 Amazing Law Resume Examples and Best Lawyer Cover Letter Examples
• Conveying a Professional Demeanor

  As you prepare for a career in law, many situations and interactions will be impacted by your ability to convey a professional demeanor. When you are applying for an internship or summer professional position, interacting with a mentor, interviewing with a law school admissions counselor and in countless other settings, your actions, words, dress and behavior can make a significant impact upon the conclusions of others.

  • Business Insider’s 15 Business Etiquette Rules Every Professional Needs to Know includes a list of professional do’s and dont's and includes considerations that students may not be thinking about—but should!
  • Life Hack's 27 Email Etiquette Tips for Professionals gives straightforward information about how to formulate a proper email message for professional settings
  • Columbia University’s Skills—Workplace Etiquette discusses skills that should be learned in order to make positive impressions, treat people well, communicate clearly, follow meeting etiquette, respect work space rules and avoid international business pitfalls
  • Etiquette Scholar’s Dining Etiquette can walk you through everything from which fork to use, to when to begin eating, to simple rules about being polite and professional at a business event involving food