Contrary to any chilling effect that the landmark SFFA v. Harvard case may have intended to cause for non-white students considering law school, it appears those fears have been allayed. In fact, law school advisors and administrators have taken proactive measures to counter any potentially negative impact from the case, encouraging students to diligently work on and submit their applications. The message has been clear: the only guaranteed rejection is by self-selecting out of the process and failing to submit an application to law school.
In response, diverse applicants en masse have indeed refused to self-exclude from law school. According to recent
figures from Reuters, the national law school applicant pool has become the most diverse ever, with a record-breaking composition of over 43% people of color. Compared to the same period a year earlier, there’s been an increase of almost 7% in the number of minority applicants.
Susan Krinsky, the executive vice president of operations at the Law School Admission Council, has attributed this increase to the strong message sent by law schools and the council itself, letting candidates know that they are indeed wanted. This encouraging trend serves as a much-needed morale boost to prospective law students from diverse backgrounds, affirming the valued place of diversity within these institutions.
However, while these are encouraging developments in the application stage, close attention will inevitably turn to the conversion rates of these applications to acceptances. Ideally, the increase in applications will be matched with a corresponding rise in acceptances, leading to more diverse law school cohorts. If not, the legal profession can at the very least hope for an acceptance rate in line with those before the impact of SFFA v. Harvard was felt.
For further detailed insights, visit the original analysis on Above The Law.