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3 Tips for Selecting a Safety-Net Law Schools

By George Khoury, Esq. on August 08, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Applying to law school is an exciting time for prospective law students. And for those applicants that are more interested in starting law school than going to a particular law school, applying to a couple "safety-net" schools isn't the worst idea.

Of course, minimally, you need to ensure that every school you apply to is ABA accredited. However, there are a few benefits to carefully selecting your backup schools. Below you can read three tips on figuring out which backup school is right for you.

Stay Close to Home

If your safety school is across the country and you do have your eyes set on attending a particular school, picking up and transferring to the school you wanted to be at will be much more difficult the further you are from home. Staying close to home might make it easier, or provide you with more motivation to transfer. Or it might help you develop or mature the roots you've already laid down in your community.

Target Specific Programs

If you dream of becoming a public interest attorney, or know which field you want to practice in, you might want to look at which schools with less competitive admissions have programs that cater to your interests. You might find that a school you might not expect has a specialization, or well-regarded program, for what you want to do. Targeting a few specific programs could help you narrow down your list of safety net schools.

Consider Merit Scholarship/Grant Money

If you're in a position to be picking and choosing among top law schools, you might be surprised to learn that some of those not-so-top law schools might offer you significant merit scholarships to attend. And while going to a prestigious law school may be the best route to getting debt free post-law school, so does not having to worry about paying tuition or other expenses (even if there is a slight moral dilemma).

But be careful with this last option, as your safety school could end up giving you too attractive of an offer to say no to.

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