William S. Richardson School Of Law
University of Hawai`i at Mānoa
2515 Dole St.
Honolulu, Hawai`i 96822
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ADMISSION TO THE WILLIAM S. RICHARDSON SCHOOL OF LAW
(Accredited 1974 by the American Bar Association (ABA); membership in the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) 1989)
HOW DO I APPLY? Catalogs and applications for Fall 2008 will be available in September 2007. Write to the Admissions Office at the address above, email us at lawadm@hawaii.edu, visit our website at www.hawaii.edu/law, or call 808-956-3000 to receive these materials.
WHAT ARE THE ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS? A bachelor's degree or equivalent from a fully-accredited institution of higher learning in the United States or abroad; the results of the Law School Admission Test (LSAT); registration with the Law School Data Assembly Service (LSDAS); the completed 2008 application form; two letters of recommendation (forms provided with application); official graduate transcripts sent to this school, if applicable; official results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), if applicable.
ARE THERE "LATEST ACCEPTABLE DATES" FOR THE LSAT AND THE TOEFL FOR FALL 2008? Yes. The latest acceptable test date for the LSAT is February 2008; scores prior to 2005 will NOT be accepted. The latest acceptable test date for the TOEFL is January 2008; scores older than two years will not be accepted.
WHAT IS THE APPLICATION DEADLINE AND HOW STRICTLY IS IT ADHERED TO? The application MUST be postmarked by March 1, 2008; connecting materials (letters of recommendation, LSDAS Report, graduate transcripts) will be accepted with a postmark no later than March 15, 2008. These deadlines are very strict. In order to be fair to all applicants, the Admissions Committee will not grant exceptions to the application deadlines stated above. Each year, a small number of applicants are disappointed because their incomplete files are not reviewed.
HOW CAN I AVOID AN INCOMPLETE APPLICATION? Apply early and follow up when you receive a notice from the school that your file is incomplete. Until you receive a notice saying that your file is complete and being sent to Committee, you should assume that your file is still missing some required application materials. You should call the Admissions Office to determine the problem. The most common problems occur in two areas; transcripts not sent in time to LSDAS or letters of recommendation either not sent or sent late to LSDAS. Each applicant is held responsible for assuring a complete file. To avoid unreliability on the part of a recommender, ask for an extra letter from a third party. To avoid late or missing transcripts, be sure to request them by late January, send the correct fee(s) when you request them from your schools and follow up with phone calls to the schools or LSDAS.
HOW LARGE IS THE FIRST-YEAR CLASS? THE SCHOOL? We seat about 90 new students in each entering class. The school has a total enrollment of about 330 students.
HOW COMPETITIVE IS ADMISSION? We received more than 12 applications for each seat in the class for 2007. About 190 admission offers are initially made for the 90 seats. A short waiting list is also made. Of those admitted for 2007, the median LSAT was 160; the median undergraduate GPA was approximately 3.46.
HOW ARE MULTIPLE LSAT SCORES VIEWED? LSAT reports for applicants include scores for all tests taken since June 1,1996; For admission purposes, the Committee's inclination is to consider the highest of all valid scores.
HOW IMPORTANT ARE "THE NUMBERS" IN AN ADMISSION DECISION? Academic ability, as shown on the LSAT and undergraduate record, plays a major role in the decision to admit an applicant. These constitute about two-thirds of the evaluation of an applicant's file. There are times, however, when even a very strong file can be eliminated by compelling negative factors in the files. Likewise, a marginal file might be successful because of strong personal factors (about one-third of the evaluation). Among the latter considered are: writing ability, work experience, volunteer or community involvement, letters of recommendation, unusual achievement, honors/awards, etc. The Admissions Committee also considers such factors as class diversity, hardship, previous attendance at another law school, criminal record or academic discipline. The undergraduate academic record may be adjusted by factors such as trend of grades, school, major, or completion of graduate level work.
IS THERE ANTHING SPECIAL I SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ADMISSION TO THIS SCHOOL? Because this is the only law school in the state of Hawai`i, admission preference is given to those who are currently residents and to those non-residents who have strong ties to the State or who have backgrounds and interests relevant to the oceans, the environment or the Pacific Asian region. Non-residents are about 25-30% of each entering class and they come from the U.S. mainland, Asia and the Pacific. Approximately 90 different undergraduate schools are represented in the student body.
WHEN WILL I KNOW IF I HAVE BEEN ADMITTED?The Admissions Committee (comprised of faculty and third-year law students) begin reviewing files in early January and complete initial reading of all completed files in late March or early April. Most decisions are mailed out in mid-April. A few strong files that have been completed early may receive an admission invitation as early as February. Please do not call the Admissions Office for decisions, as we are unable to give this information over the phone.
WHEN DOES SCHOOL BEGIN AND CAN I ATTEND PART-TIME? New students are admitted once a year to begin in the fall semester only (mid-August). This school does not offer either an evening or part-time program. Those admitted must be committed to a full-time three-year program of study.
HOW MUCH IS TUITION? 2007-2008 tuition and fees for Hawai`i residents will be approximately $6,540.20 per semester; non-residents will pay about $11,412.20 per semester. These figures will rise in future years. Books cost about $800 per year. While the cost of living in Hawai`i is high, it is generally not much higher than in such U.S. cities as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York or Washington, D.C. Tuition and fee levels are subject to change.
WHAT ABOUT FINANCIAL AID? Nearly all University of Hawai`i financial aid is need-based and is administered by a central office of the University of Hawai`i. Applicants should request a separate financial aid application from the Financial Aid Office, University of Hawai`i, 2600 Campus Road, Honolulu, Hawai`i 96822. Although final decisions on the amount of aid awarded are not given until an applicant has been admitted, applicants should NOT wait to apply. The priority deadline for making financial aid application is March 1.
WHAT ABOUT HOUSING? There is limited dormitory-type housing on the University campus for professional students. However, most law students prefer to live in the neighborhoods near campus in shared houses or apartments. For both on- and off-campus housing information, write to Housing Office, University of Hawai`i, 2555 Dole Street, Honolulu, Hawai`i 96822.
WHAT ABOUT CAREER PLACEMENT? About 80-85% of the graduates each year elect to stay in Hawai`i for employment. Therefore, the school's placement efforts are focused on the Hawai`i legal market, where the school's graduates enjoy tremendous success. For the Classes of 1993 to 2004, 90-96% found employment within six months of graduation. Enrolled students find that their employment prospects are greatly enhanced by the school's excellent relationship with the legal community; the contacts made through adjunct professors; the networking among over 2,000 alumni; the school's externship and clinical courses; and the ability to take advantage of part-time employment during the second and third academic years. In sum, Richardson graduates enjoy clear placement advantages in the Hawai`i market over graduates of other schools.
IS THERE ANYTHING UNIQUE ABOUT THIS LAW SCHOOL? The University of Hawai`i School of Law distinguishes itself in several ways: 1) It is one of the youngest law schools in the country (established 1973); 2) it is one of the smallest law schools in the country (faculty 20, students 330), thus allowing for close and frequent interaction among faculty and students; 3) the law school has admitted women in high percentages (40%-62%) for more than twenty five years; 4) it is the only law school in Hawai`i; 5) it has one of the highest percentages of female faculty members (44%) in the country; 6) it has the largest and most diverse minority student population in the country (over 70%); 7) it is one of only a few schools in the country offering resources in Pacific-Asian legal studies, ocean law studies, and environmental studies.
ARE THERE ANY SPECIAL ADMISSIONS PROGRAMS?The Ulu Lehua Program was established to address concerns about the experiences of those applicants who have been disadvantaged. There is no separate application process; the Admissions Committee selects Ulu Lehua students from among the regular law school applications. Twelve students are invited to participate each year as unclassified graduate students and to demonstrate their ability and potential for the study of law in a specially designed one-year curriculum. Upon successful completion of the one-year program, students are admitted to the regular law school class the following year.
CAUTIONARY NOTE: The State of Hawai`i Office of the Attorney General has ascertained that applicants have a personal privacy interest in the admissions process. Therefore, we are unable to communicate with anyone other than the applicant about the status of the file. This prohibition extends to family members. If you would like us to confirm the existence of your application or communicate about your application with anyone else, you must so advise us in writing.
Phone: (808) 956-7966
Email: lawadm@hawaii.edu
