Status Check with Spivey

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco speaks with three Spivey consultants—Tom Robinson, former Harvard Law Director of Admissions; Sir Williams, former Wisconsin Law Director of Admissions; and Anne Dutia, former Michigan Law Assistant Director of Admissions—about the relatively new category of law school admissions essays that we're calling " experience/perspecti...

In this special episode of Status Check with Spivey directed toward parents of law school applicants, Anna Hicks-Jaco and two Spivey consultants—Danielle Early, former Harvard Law Associate Director of Admissions, and Shannon Davis, former Assistant Dean for Admissions and Communications at Lewis & Clark Law—discuss how parents can best support their children through the application process. T...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike has a conversation with Mitch Leff, author of My Addiction, My Superpower , about his experiences overcoming addiction at a young age, the lessons he learned, and how others can use his insights to improve themselves. As attorneys suffer significantly higher rates of substance abuse and depression relative to the wider public, Mitch's insights...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco speaks with two Spivey consultants—Karen Buttenbaum, former Director of Admissions at Harvard Law School, and Nathan Neely, former Associate Director of Admissions and Director of Global and Graduate Programs at the University of Houston Law Center—about the law school application resume: what to include and what not to include, differe...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco has a conversation with three Spivey consultants—Anne Dutia, Paula Gluzman, and Derek Meeker, former law school admissions officers at Michigan, UCLA, Penn, and more—diving deep into the law school personal statement. They discuss the brainstorming and topic selection process, how to structure a personal statement, writing tips, broad-l...

In this episode of  Status Check with Spivey , SCG Pre-L Consultant and Fordham Law professor  Jordana Confino  has a conversation with legal writing coach and  Dear 1L  author Amanda Haverstick about legal writing and tackling your 1L year. You can learn more about  Dear 1L  here , connect with Amanda via LinkedIn  here , or email her directly at amanda@dear1L.com. You can listen and subscribe to...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey, Ann Perry, the University of Chicago Law School's Associate Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid, joins Mike Spivey and Anna Hicks-Jaco to tier-rank law school admissions strategies sourced from the folks over on the r/LawSchoolAdmissions subreddit. They talk about a huge range of topics, including personal statements, letters of recommendation, re...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco speaks with Pre-L consultants Rob Cacace and Jordana Confino (bios here ) about the growing importance of work experience in admissions, why the impact of being a "KJD" (going "from Kindergarten through law school" without full-time work experience) has increased over time, and—importantly—how work experience (or a l...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike discusses the various factors that play into any given applicant's chances of admission coming off the waitlist. He also gives a quick preview of our (very early) predictions for next cycle. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ , and  ⁠⁠Google Podcasts⁠⁠ . You can read...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey, Anna Hicks-Jaco has a conversation with Paula Gluzman—a Spivey consultant and former law school admissions officer at UCLA and UW—as well as two of her past clients who successfully transferred law schools: Katie, who transferred from a regional law school in Texas to Columbia, and Melissa, who transferred from a regional school on the west coast to Har...

In this brief episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike discusses the changes U.S. News made to their methodology this year. You can view the full list of new law school rankings (with +/-) here . You can listen to Mike's last podcast, "Why Rankings Matter to People (& Why They Should Not)," here . You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco has a conversation with PowerScore Founder & CEO Dave Killoran about the removal of the Logic Games section of the LSAT, the new writing section, and what all this might mean for the future of the law school admissions. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ ,...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , five Spivey consultants discuss their experiences as first-generation college students, law students, and lawyers, with a particular focus on passing along advice and knowledge that they wish they had known. The episode includes Sir Williams, Derek Meeker, Sam Kwak, Peter Cramer, and Rob Cacace, who, among their numerous other accomplishments, have ser...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike discusses some of the psychological and societal reasons that rankings seem to matter so much to people—then explains the reasons that they shouldn't matter as much as they do. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ , and  ⁠⁠Google Podcasts⁠⁠ . You can read a full transcr...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco has a conversation with two Spivey consultants, Peter Cramer and Tom Robinson (you can read their bios here ), on differences in the admissions process for international applicants, how law school admissions has changed for international students over time, and our best advice for strategically navigating the current realities of the ap...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna has a conversation with Joe Pollak —one of Spivey's consultants and a former admissions officer at the University of Michigan Law School—about differences and similarities in law school admissions today vs. ten years ago. Anna brings the perspective of someone who was applying to law school a decade ago, while Joe brings his perspective as a M...

In this episode of  Status Check with Spivey , Mike interviews Dr. Peter Grinspoon—physician, Harvard Medical School instructor, and author of  Free Refills: A Doctor Confronts His Addiction , in which he writes about his struggles with and recovery from opiate addiction. Mike and Dr. Grinspoon discuss mental health and wellness for high performers, why lawyers have such high rates of addiction an...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , current applicant and Redditor Extension_Ad_1432, who we call "Julia," interviews Spivey Consulting's new President, Anna Hicks-Jaco—unscripted and unprepared, "Ask Me Anything"-style—on anything and everything that was on her mind. They discuss factors impacting this cycle, advice for applicants who applied early but still have...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Anna Hicks-Jaco , Spivey Consulting's new President, discusses common mistakes that applicants make in the second part of their admissions cycle—after they've submitted their applications. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Stitcher⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ , and  ⁠⁠Google Podcasts⁠⁠ ....

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike interviews best-selling author Brad Stulberg (whose books include Master of Change, The Practice of Groundedness, Peak Performance, and The Passion Paradox ) on how to make real and lasting change in your life. Brad and Mike discuss why we resist change, elective vs. forced change, identity, and how to actually make your New Year's Resolution...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike interviews Dr. Daniel Z. Lieberman, MD, a psychiatrist and best-selling author of The Molecule of More . Mike and Dr. Lieberman discuss tenacity, goal-setting, and both achieving and finding contentment in success—all as they relate to not just law school admissions (Dr. Lieberman gives some excellent personal statement advice), but a variety of t...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike interviews UVA Law Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer on differences between this year and past years in admissions, special factors influencing this cycle, AI in admissions, and an insider look into UVA Law's application review process (including why some applicants hear back sooner than others). For more law school admissions advice from Dean Bl...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike interviews Ellen Cassidy, author of the acclaimed Loophole in LSAT Logical Reasoning and founder of Elemental Prep , on LSAT strategies, handling expectations (both from others and self-imposed), trends in law school applicants/LSAT-takers over time, and more. Ellen, as an LSAT expert and former applicant who was admitted to Harvard Law but turned...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike discusses the reasons that this law school admissions cycle will be the slowest one ever (or at least within our admissions careers)—and, perhaps more importantly, what you should do about it if you're a current applicant. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠Stitcher⁠⁠ ,  ⁠⁠YouT...

In this episode of Status Check with Spivey , Mike gives his top 5 pieces of advice from his 20+ years working in law school admissions. You can listen and subscribe to  Status Check with Spivey  on  ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠ ,  ⁠Spotify⁠ ,  ⁠Stitcher⁠ ,  ⁠YouTube⁠ , and  ⁠Google Podcasts⁠ . You can read a full transcript of this episode  ⁠here⁠ .