JD Applicants
There are two portions of the law school application: the Credential Assembly Service law school report (CAS report) and the electronic application (E-app) portion. See below for the requirements in each section.
CAS Report
Each applicant must register with the Credential Assembly Service. Your CAS report will be requested as soon as you submit your application, and Baylor Law will receive updated CAS reports.
1. Baccalaureate Degree and Transcripts
Each applicant must have earned a baccalaureate degree from an accredited U.S. university (or its equivalent from a foreign institution). You should arrange to have all post-secondary transcripts included with your CAS report when you apply.
Every Baylor Law student is required to submit official transcripts from each institution of higher education in which the student was enrolled prior to matriculation at Baylor Law, so that we may verify all academic credits undertaken and all degrees conferred. The deadline for each entering class is listed below. Unless an exception is approved by the Associate Dean on the basis of extraordinary circumstances, any student who does not submit all required transcripts by the deadline will be administratively withdrawn from all classes and prohibited from attending any class until all transcripts are submitted.
Deadline for submission of official transcripts:
Fall entering classes – October 15
Spring entering classes – March 1
Summer entering classes – June 5
2. Law School Admission Test (LSAT) Score(s)
Each applicant must take the LSAT. The Admissions Committee will see all reported scores from the prior 5 test years. You should take the LSAT (and have a reported score) prior to the application deadline for the quarter for which you are applying.
3. Letters of Recommendation
We require one letter of recommendation but will accept up to three letters. Letters from professors, employers, or other individuals who can attest to your ability to enter a rigorous, professional program are beneficial. A letter from someone who does not know you well is of no value and does not enhance your file.
You should request your letter(s) in advance of the application deadlines, and your letter(s) must be submitted through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service. We cannot accommodate any requests to hold application files awaiting additional letters of recommendation.
E-app
1. E-app Form and Character and Fitness Questions
Each application must fill out the e-app form with basic information. Additionally, each applicant must fill out a series of questions regarding the applicant's character and fitness to practice law. If you answer affirmatively to any of these questions, you must submit an addendum explaining your affirmative answer. More details are included on the law school application.
2. Personal Statement
Each applicant must submit a personal statement, which should be approximately two to three pages in length, double-spaced, in 12-point font. Your personal statement must be a product of your own work and must be prepared without the assistance of other people or professional writing services.
The personal statement is your opportunity to persuade the Admissions Committee that you should be admitted to Baylor Law. Through your personal statement, the Admissions Committee hopes to get a sense of you as a person, as well as evaluate your writing ability. What you choose to write about is up to you. Any number of factors could be helpful to the Admissions Committee, including: your motivation to study law; evidence of academic achievement, leadership, responsibility, or community involvement; your educational, social, or economic background; and any special skills that you possess, such as bilingual language skills or advocacy skills. We are particularly interested in any aspect of your background that would allow you to distinctively enrich the law school environment.
2. Addenda
In addition to your personal statement, you may submit addenda that discuss aspects of your academic background, LSAT performance, or life experiences that you believe will enhance your application for admission. Your addenda should not exceed two pages in length and should not be used as an extension of your personal statement. You can submit your addenda either by including them with your personal statement and uploading the one document with your e-app or by submitting them directly to Sam Smith at Samantha_Smith6@baylor.edu.
3. Résumé
You must submit a résumé with your application. Your résumé should reflect all full-time and part-time employment, as well as all extra-curricular activities, honors, and community activities. Your résumé should not exceed two pages in length.
Other Considerations
1. Application Fee
Baylor Law does not have an application fee.
2. Applying for Admission to More than One Quarter
Baylor Law operates on a quarter system and enrolls entering students in three of its four quarters: Spring (February), Summer (May), and Fall (August). The application pool for the Fall class is larger than the application pool for the Spring and Summer classes, making admission into the Fall class more competitive. An applicant can apply for admission to more than one quarter at a time. To apply to more than one quarter, submit a separate application for each quarter for which you want to be considered.
There is one slight exception to the requirement that you apply for each quarter separately: our Fall application asks if you would like to be considered for the following Spring if you are not admitted to the Fall term. If you answer “yes," your Fall file is reactivated (i.e. copied) at some point in June or July, and you will receive separate consideration for the following Spring term. The copy is a point-in-time process, so if you are planning on submitting CAS report (e.g., a new LSAT score or new transcript), you will need to let us know prior to the reactivation point and must submit a new application.
3. Interview
Baylor Law offers optional interviews. Click here for more information.
3. Additional Character and Fitness Considerations
In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting that jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
4. Licensure Requirements
Since you are applying for admission to a program that may prepare you for an occupational license, Texas law requires that Baylor notify you of your potential ineligibility to obtain a license due to prior criminal convictions. Additional information can be found at https://www.baylor.edu/admissions/index.php? id=948617 or statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/OC/htm/OC.53.htm.
See additional information about licensure here: https://www.baylor.edu/professionaleducation/index.php?id=975337.
5. Non-Discrimination Policy
Baylor University complies with all applicable federal and state nondiscrimination laws. Baylor University admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
Baylor University is controlled by a predominantly Baptist Board of Regents and is operated within the Christian-oriented aims and ideals of Baptists. The University is also affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, a cooperative association of autonomous Texas Baptist churches. As a religiously-controlled institution of higher education, the University is exempt from compliance with some provisions of certain civil rights laws. As such, the University prescribes standards of personal conduct that are consistent with its mission and values. This policy statement is neither intended to discourage, nor is it in fact applicable to, any analytical discussion of law and policy issues involved, or to discussions of any recommendations for changes in existing law. Discussions of these matters are both practiced and are welcomed within our curriculum. Further information may be obtained from the University website at: Student Policies and Procedures.