Office of Career Services

Law School & Law Careers Links

Considering a career as a lawyer? Because there are no coursework prerequisites for law school, many people apply without really understanding what a legal education and career as a practicing attorney are really about. We highly encourage students thinking about law school to be sure they want to pursue law as a career. Networking, job shadowing and internships with lawyers are all good ways to explore the field. Numerous Southwestern alumni work in law and can serve as points of contact.

American Bar Association Legal Specialization Areas

Profiles different legal specialties.

First Day of Law School Tutorial

SMU's online tutorial is designed to help prospective law students understand the Socratic method of instruction used in law schools.

Internet Legal Resources Guide

A categorized index of more than 4,000 legal Web sites intended to be a comprehensive resources of information available on the Internet concerning law and the legal profession, with an emphasis on the US.

Law School Admissions Council (LSAC)

Detailed information on the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and the Law School Data Assembly Services (LSDAS).

Legal Jobs

Search for jobs and internships in the legal industry.

Legal Writing Prep.com

Read more than 50 articles about pre-law and law school preparation issues free.

National Association of Legal Placement

Provides placement statistics of graduates of member law schools (most ABA-approved law schools are members). NALP's mission is "Preeminent leadership and expertise in legal career planning, recruitment and hiring, employment and professional development worldwide."

Official Guide to ABA-Approved Law Schools

The American Bar Association and Law School Admission Council produce this searchable database. LSAT and GPA ranges, Bar passage rates, faculty-student ratios and other statistics for all ABA-approved schools are available.

Petersons.com

Searchable directory of graduate school programs, including law. Also click on "Advice Center" and scroll down to "Law School" for articles to help you prepare to apply to law school.

Pre-Law Handbook

This site enables college students to decide whether they want to become lawyers and guides to law school those who do. One chapter of this website contains exclusive rankings of law schools. This website has no ads.

Pre-Law Services

UT Liberal Arts Career Services' page of resources for Pre-Law majors, including annual Law Fair, LSAT, researching law schools, etc.

Texas Young Lawyers' Association

Great assistance for new lawyers and those considering law careers

Texas State Bar Association

Find contact information for networking purposes for SU alumni practicing law in Texas. Contact Career Services to get alumni contact names.

TopLawSchools.com

Tips for law school applications, rankings, articles, LSAT preparation help, personal statement help and more on this free site.

UT Liberal Arts Pre-Law Handbook

UT Liberal Arts Career Services' downloadable PDF resource for pre-law students.

Westlaw

Westlaw is the leading online legal research service, providing the broadest collection of legal resources, news, business and public records information. Westlaw offers free and fee-based services and resources.

When Fear Knocks: The Myths and Realities of Law School

by Peter F. Lake, Professor of Law, Stetson University College of law, offers this article about what law school is really like.

Events

Monday, November 30th, 2009

Monday, January 4th, 2010

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

Career Services Calendar >

Contact us

Southwestern University
Career Services
P.O. Box 770
Georgetown, TX 78627-0770

Phone: 512-863-1346
Fax: 512-863-1270
career.services@southwestern.edu