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Reviewed: 10/17/23
If you’re hoping to get off the waitlist and want to learn more about how to write a letter of continued interest for law school to do so, read on to find out more!
Putting time and effort into applying to your dream law school and getting waitlisted can be disheartening. Luckily, there are ways to increase your chances of getting off the waitlist and into your dream law program. One effective way is writing a letter of continued interest (LOCI)!
If you’ve never heard of LOCI or are wondering why and how to write an LOCI, this guide will tell you everything you need to know!
An LOCI intends to demonstrate your interest in attending a law school that has deferred or waitlisted you. Using this letter, applicants can restate their interest, update their application, and convince the admissions committee they’re still competitive candidates.
By the time you have to write a college waitlist letter, you would’ve already written your personal statement and any other supplementary essays required by your selected law schools. Much like these other essays, your letter of continued interest can help you stand out as an applicant and humanize your application.
You should write LOCIs for law schools you were waitlisted for or deferred by that you’re still interested in attending. If you have new accomplishments that you’d like the admissions team to know about, you should definitely write a LOCI.
Some accomplishments might include:
If you feel as though you weren’t able to express your genuine interest and passion for law in the other components of your application, you should write a LOCI as your final chance to express your interest.
Now that you know what this letter is and when to write one, it’s essential to know how to write one to maximize your chances of gaining admission to law school.
To make the process as simple as possible, you can follow this step-by-step guide when writing your LOCI.
Since the LOCI is purely for your own benefit and can help you get off the waitlist, it’s important you thank the admissions team for taking the time to consider your application.
There is no need to make this opening long or complicated; a simple thank you for considering my application is all that is required to express your gratitude.
Whether you were waitlisted or deferred, you should make mention of this at the beginning of your letter.
The admissions committee wants to know you are committed to their school. You should mention that the school you’re writing to is your top choice and explain why. Do your research and ensure you mention the programs, extracurriculars, or mission statements specific to your desired law school.
You don’t want the committee to think you are sending out the same copied and pasted letter of continued interest to every law school that waitlisted you, so be specific when expressing your interest in each law school.
Once you’ve explained your interest in attending the law school you are writing to, demonstrate why you’d be a good fit by providing any impressive updates to your application. This should be the longest part of your letter, as it’s the part most likely to get you off the waitlist.
Do your best not to exaggerate your accomplishments or only focus on what you’ve achieved. You should spend equal time linking these accomplishments back to the law school(s) you applied to and how your accomplishments make you the best candidate.
Considering there are several components to writing this college waitlist letter, you may be wondering, “how long should an LOCI be?” Fortunately, the LOCI format is short and simple. Your letter should not exceed one page and should be written in 11 or 12-point font.
While writing an LOCI can increase your chances of getting off the waitlist, it can also increase your chances of being rejected if you include the wrong information.
To prevent this, you should avoid the following in your LOCI:
You should only be updating your application with new and relevant information through your LOCI. Don’t repeat information you submitted months ago when you first applied to law school.
For instance, don’t reiterate your LSAT score if it has remained the same. The admissions committee already has this information on hand.
Similarly, if you’ve already detailed your most recent job on your resume, cover letter, or personal statement, don’t repeat it unless you’ve been promoted. The committee already knew about this job when they made their decision to waitlist you, so it likely won’t have a different effect now.
You shouldn’t be using your LOCI to question the admissions team for putting you on the waitlist in the first place – you won’t get an answer.
You want to completely avoid trying to convince the committee that your original application should’ve been accepted. The reality is it wasn’t for whatever reason, so you’ll need to show your application has improved.
Don’t ask for criticism or feedback on your application to know where you went wrong. Prove you’ve improved as a candidate since you applied and demonstrate how you’d be the perfect fit for the law school you’re writing to.
Even if you’ve somehow managed to acquire 100 new accomplishments between the time of your initial application and your LOCI, the admissions team isn’t interested in reading another resume.
Do your best to focus on the most relevant accomplishments that you can directly relate to your law aspirations. As always, prioritize quality over quantity.
One or two accomplishments that you can adequately describe and relate back to your candidacy are more likely to get you into law school than simply listing various accomplishments without substantiating them.
A surefire way to turn the admissions committee away from your application is to try using reverse psychology by mentioning the numerous other options and offers you have. Law schools want to know how passionate you are about their community and that they’re your number one choice.
You don’t need to mention how many other law schools want you to prove you’re a desirable candidate. Your accomplishments and sincerity should speak for themselves!
While you want to mention particular aspects of the law school you’re interested in, you want to specify what those aspects mean to you.
For instance, if your school lists diversity as a significant commitment, rather than just saying you appreciate this commitment, you can offer some insight into how you’re a diverse applicant yourself and how this commitment relates to you.
Depending on when you’re able to submit your LOCI, you’ll want to do it as soon as possible, preferably within a few weeks of being notified about your position on the waitlist. You want to show you’re eager to prove your candidacy and gain admission to your desired law school.
Reviewing letters of continued interest examples can help you get started on your own and get inspired! Let's break down an LOCI sample together to begin!
“NAME
ADDRESS
LSAC#: LXXXXXX
February 14, 2019
New York University School of Law
40 Washington Square South New York, NY 10012
To the Admissions Committee of New York University School of Law:
I am writing to you to reiterate my strong desire to attend NYU School of Law. I believe that in addition to being an elite institution, the programs available at the law school align perfectly with my interest in Immigration law. The experiential learning opportunities of the Immigrant Rights Clinic and the Immigrant Defense Clinic both appeal to me, and would provide the opportunity to engage in direct legal representation of immigrants, an opportunity that greatly excites me. Gaining experience working with immigrants who would not usually be afforded representation falls directly in line with my desired career path. In this way, NYU offers unparalleled opportunities for the kind of work that I aim to pursue.
I also want to take this opportunity to provide an update regarding my application. Last semester, I earned a 4.0 which brought my overall GPA to 3.812. I also successfully planned numerous events for the student organizations I led. Most notably, I organized an event for the Cuban American Student Association called “Una Noche en Havana” where we shared Cuban culture and history while raising money for a service trip to Jamaica, as well as coordinating a Paint Night with the council I lead in the Residence Hall Association, which raised money for service trips to poor and marginalized areas of the United States. Participating in these organizations has heightened my ability to interact with diverse groups of people, often finding commonalities and seeking to find understanding. At NYU, I would love to join organizations such as these, specifically the Latinx Law Students Association, among others.
After receiving acceptances to the University of Chicago, Georgetown, and Duke, I am still certain that I would attend NYU over any of those options. The programs offered at the law school match extremely well with my interests, and I believe that it would be a great fit. I am from New York, and it is where my family currently resides. In addition, I plan to work in New York after law school. I would be honored to take a place in the New York University School of Law class of 2022 and attend next Fall if given the opportunity. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely, NAME”
First, you should title your document “Letter of Continued Interest” and write your name, address, and LSAC number on the right. Then, include the date, followed by the full address details of the law school you’re writing to.
When writing your letter, it is the safest option to address it to the admissions committee of your law school unless a specific contact is provided.
As this student has done, you’ll want to focus on proving how the program aligns with your interests and what you can offer the school. You’ll also want to spend the majority of your letter updating the committee on your new accomplishments.
This student does an excellent job of this by dedicating an entire paragraph to their improved GPA and successful extracurriculars while expressing their desire to continue joining similar extracurriculars at NYU.
If you’re still stuck, it’s not uncommon for students to email a professor about their waitlist sample letter or rough draft. If they helped with your letters of recommendation, they can help you write your LOCI and provide feedback on your clarity and writing!
This LOCI example does a great job of expressing the student’s interest in NYU’s School of Law while mentioning their acceptance into other schools. While they do so in a tasteful way by arguing they still would like to go to NYU over these other schools, it’s better to avoid this entirely.
You can still express that the school you’re writing to is your top choice without listing and discounting the other schools you got accepted into. Focus on what makes your desired law school unique and why it interests you.
If you have any remaining questions about writing an LOCI, read on to find your answers.
Yes! If you’re given the opportunity to write a letter of continued interest, you should, as it can increase your chances of getting off the waitlist.
A LOCI is self-explanatory in the sense that the most important factor to consider when writing one is demonstrating your sincere interest in joining the specific law school you are writing to.
While demonstrating your interest, you must also express why the law school should be interested in you. What can you bring to their community that makes you the best candidate?
In your letter, you’ll want to highlight any new accomplishments that weren’t in your original application, as these will make you a more desirable candidate.
You should only send letters of continued interest to law schools that have waitlisted or deferred you. The purpose of these letters is to tell the admissions committee you are still interested in joining their school, even after being waitlisted/deferred.
No, if a law school rejects your application, a letter of continued interest cannot help and will not be read.
Don’t include information the committee already has, irrelevant accomplishments or experiences, or all of the other schools that have accepted you.
It should be under one page long, so you’ll want to ensure you write clearly and concisely.
Getting waitlisted by your dream law school can feel like the sky is falling and the world is ending. But, a letter of continued interest for law school can be your beacon of light in an otherwise demoralizing situation.
Despite being only a page long, this letter can turn your “maybe” into a “yes” and help you get started on your journey toward becoming an excellent lawyer!
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