Status Check with Spivey

Content Warning: This interview includes content related to suicide and the guest's experience with a school shooting. In this episode, Mike interviews best-selling author and storyteller Mishka Shubaly about personal creative writing. Mishka holds an MFA in Fiction from Columbia University and teaches writing at the Yale Writer's Conference. You can find his new book, The Long Run & Other Tru...

In this episode, Mike interviews law school strategy coach Angela Vorpahl about some of the most common mistakes that 1Ls make and how to set yourself up to get great grades. Prior to starting her own firm to assist law students, Angela graduated from law school in the top 1% of her class, clerked for a federal judge, worked in biglaw, and practiced as a human rights attorney. You can find Angela...

This is a brief podcast on being denied from law school. For more on rejection, listen to our podcast with Dr. Guy Winch , renowned psychologist, author, and speaker. You can listen and subscribe to Status Check with Spivey on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Stitcher , YouTube , SoundCloud , and Google Podcasts . spiveyconsulting.com | spiveyblog.com | myrankbyspivey.com

In this episode, Mike gets together with PowerScore CEO and LSAT expert Dave Killoran to discuss the closing months of this current 2021-2022 cycle, early indicators and predictions for next cycle 2022-2023, and the development of the LSAT over time as it has shifted from a five-section, in-person, pencil-and-paper exam, to a three-section, at-home, virtual exam, then back to its current four-sect...

In this episode, Mike discusses the recently released 2023 edition (2022 release) U.S. News & World Report law school rankings. You can view the full rankings (including +/- from last year) here . As always, we want to disclaim that it is our strong opinion that rankings should not be a major factor in where you decide to attend law school. You can watch our video on how best to use rankings t...

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Judson Brewer about proven, concrete strategies to manage anxiety, including how to apply them for LSAT-related test anxiety and the stress of waiting for admissions results. Dr. Jud Brewer is a New York Times best-selling author, neuroscientist, addiction psychiatrist, and thought leader in the field of habit change. He is the director of research and innovation...

In this episode, Mike speaks again with "Barb," an applicant this 2021-2022 cycle with a ~177 LSAT, a ~3.3 GPA, and ten years of work experience. The last time we spoke with Barb, which was in December, she had submitted most of her applications but hadn't yet heard back from any schools, and her anxiety was mounting. She now has six admits (in addition to one waitlist, one priority hold, and thre...

We have been asked multiple times in the last 24 hours about how the recent Russian invasion into Ukraine may impact law school, admissions, and legal employment, so we wanted to post this brief, unedited podcast addressing those questions. We want to disclaim that this is analysis discusses far from the most important and impactful effects of the invasion, and we fully recognize that relative imp...

In this episode, Mike gives an update on the data for the 2021-2022 cycle as of early February. He discusses what to expect for median increases/decreases after this cycle, what's going to happen this waitlist season, what to expect for transfer admissions this year, and some early preliminary predictions for next cycle. Note: You may notice that the data Mike references in this episode is slightl...

In this episode, Mike speaks with an applicant from Reddit who we'll call "Ryan Reynolds" (you know, just for fun). Ryan has a 178 LSAT and a 3.8 undergraduate GPA, and while he blanketed the top 20 law schools, he has received only waitlists and denials so far this cycle (as of February) despite having applied early on. Mike and Ryan discuss the factors that have likely contributed to this, both...

In this episode, Mike and one of our Spivey consultants Karen Buttenbaum (former Director of Admissions at Harvard Law School) catch up with u/lightningmcboops (who we call "Megan"), one of r/lawschoolsadmissions' regular posters from last cycle, who went through the most difficult cycle we have ever seen without receiving a single rejection. After ultimately choosing Stanford Law over Harvard, Me...

In this episode, we continue our interview series with "Barb," a current applicant. Barb is a splitter with a 176 LSAT and a 3.1 GPA, and she's also a non-traditional applicant with 10+ years of full-time work experience after college. In this interview, she and Mike discuss the many emotions and anxieties that come up after you hit that "submit" button, what to expect as far as a timeline for hea...

In this episode, Mike has a conversation with Spivey Consulting's Business Intelligence Director Justin Kane (current 2L and data genius) about where this current admissions cycle (2021-2022) stands so far in terms of applicant volume, what that means, what we predict for the rest of the cycle, and some actionable admissions advice based on what we know so far. They also touch on why our numbers a...

In this episode, Mike and our consultant Danielle Early (former Associate Director of Admissions at Harvard Law School) talk about safety schools and back-up plans. How do you choose the right range of schools where your worst-case scenario is an outcome you can live with? For some that might be a law school where they're well above both medians; for others that might be taking a year off to conti...

In this episode, Mike has a conversation with our consultant Karen Buttenbaum (former Director of Admissions at Harvard Law School) about how to prepare for law school admissions interviews, best practices, common pitfalls, and other advice for the interviewing process. You can listen and subscribe to Status Check with Spivey on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , SoundCloud , and Google Podcasts...

In this episode, Mike predicts whether law schools will be able to maintain their high medians from last year, and how we expect that to play out across the course of the cycle. He also discusses how this will impact splitters and reverse splitters. You can find the spreadsheet Mike mentions in this podcast with schools' medians from the 2020-2021 cycle here . For a full transcript of this episode...

In this episode, Mike interviews a current applicant (who we'll call "Barb") about her application process so far. Barb is a splitter with a 176 LSAT and a 3.1 GPA, and she's also a non-traditional applicant with 10+ years of full-time work experience after college. In this interview, we talk through her motivations for going to law school, her school list, the three different personal statement t...

Dr. Anna Lembke is a Stanford University psychiatrist, author of the New York Times best-seller Dopamine Nation , and a featured expert on the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma. In this episode, Dr. Lembke discusses the effects of dopamine on our motivation and overall happiness, talks about the degree to which society today sets us up for depression and anxiety and lack of motivation, and of...

In 2001, Justin Ishbia was the last person Vanderbilt Law admitted off of their waitlist. He had been practice testing in the 170s and aiming for a top three law school, but when he ended up with a mid-150s LSAT score instead, he had to adjust his expectations. After visiting, Vanderbilt became his top choice, and he ended up being admitted off the waitlist in August (with his furniture already on...

In this episode, Mike has a conversation with our consultant Derek Meeker (former Dean of Admissions at Penn Law) and Sydney Montgomery (founder of S. Montgomery Admissions Consulting) about the role of diversity and adversity in law school admissions. Derek's YouTube video on how to choose a personal statement topic was mentioned in this podcast; you can watch that video here . You can listen to...

In this podcast, Mike discusses the factors to consider when you receive an invitation to interview for a law school you've applied to.  For a full transcript of this episode, please see our blog post: blog.spiveyconsulting.com/podcast-should-you-do-a-law-school-admissions-interview You can listen and subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , SoundCloud , and Google Pod...

In this episode, world-renowned author, speaker, teacher, and therapist Terry Real — who has been featured on Oprah, The Today Show, Good Morning America, and many more — discusses the emotional health hazards of grad school and law school and how to stay human during these stressful and highly evaluative periods of life. Law school can feel a lot like high school at times, and this is so often ex...

In this episode, Spivey Consulting's Derek Meeker — a former Penn Law Associate Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid — interviews Renee Post, Penn Law's current and long-standing Associate Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid. Derek and Dean Post walk through the components of the law school application, including the personal statement, resume, addenda, and Penn's "Core Strengths, Goals, and Va...

In this episode, Mike has a conversation with Dean Sarah Zearfoss (also known as "Dean Z") about a number of admissions topics, including the prevalence of bad admissions advice and how to identify and avoid it. You can find Dean Z and much more admissions advice on her podcast, A2Z . You can listen and subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , SoundCloud , and Google Podcas...

In this episode, Mike speaks with long-time legal education reporter Karen Sloan about her experiences and stories and the future of the legal field. You can listen and subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , SoundCloud , and Google Podcasts . You can read a full transcript of this podcast here . spiveyconsulting.com | spiveyblog.com | myrankbyspivey.com