Admission Information
Greetings from the Office of Admissions!
The Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law seeks to attract and retain a very talented, inquisitive, energetic and passionate cohort of students from all walks of life. Thus, the Office of Admissions, the Admissions Committee and the faculty and staff will actively seek out prospective students from varied backgrounds; socioeconomic and family educational attainment levels; and various perspectives, life experiences and world-views.
We offer two programs of study: a traditional full-time, three-year legal program of courses completed during the day (Monday-Friday) and a part-time, four-year program completed four nights per week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) between 6:15 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Both programs are 88 credit hours in length.
Admission to the Duncan School of Law is competitive. For our inaugural class which matriculated in Fall 2009, nearly 250 applicants sought admission into the 80 spaces in the class.
Prerequisite Admission Requirements
To be considered for admission to the Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law, an applicant must hold the baccalaureate degree prior to matriculation. The baccalaureate degree must be earned from an accredited college or university. All offers of admission are contingent upon conferral of the baccalaureate degree prior to matriculation.
While no particular major program of study is required, applicants would be well served to pursue an undergraduate major that emphasizes certain skill sets. The American Bar Association recommends a curriculum that emphasizes "analytic and problem-solving skills, critical reading abilities, writing skills, oral communication and listening abilities, general research skills, task organization and management skills, and the values of serving faithfully the interests of others while also promoting justice." (Taken from the Statement of Skills and Values contained in the 1992 Report of the American Bar Association Task Force on Law Schools and the Profession, Legal Education and Professional Development—An Educational Continuum) There are no prerequisite course requirements.
How to Apply for Admission
Each applicant must complete the Application for Admission which is located on the Law School's web page. The application should be printed and mailed to the Office of Admissions. The mailing address of the Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law is 601 W. Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902.
An applicant must take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and have the resulting score reported to the Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law. The LSAT is offered four times each year (September, December, February and June) at various testing centers throughout the country. Registration and other pertinent information can be found on the Law School Admission Council's (LSAC) website at www.LSAC.org. Also, we will only accept LSAT scores that are less than three years old. We will not accept scores beyond the February 2007 test administration.
All applicants must register with the Credential Assembly Service (LSDAS). Registration and other pertinent information can be found on the Law School Admission Council's (LSAC) website at www.LSAC.org. Our four-digit LSAC code is 1977. Prospective students will be able to use this code to have LSAT scores and LSDAS information sent directly to us from LSAC.
Contact the Registrar's Office at all colleges that you have attended and request to have sealed, original transcripts of your academic record sent to the LSDAS. (If an applicant is subsequently offered admission and accepts the offer of admission, then another official transcript from all colleges attended will need to be sent to the Duncan School of Law as well.)
Additionally, each applicant must submit two letters of reference. These items should be submitted to LSDAS. They can also be mailed directly to the Duncan School of Law. The Admissions Committee prefers letters of recommendation from professors under whom you have studied and who are familiar with your academic ability, work ethic and potential for success in law school. If you are a working professional and it has been five years or more since you graduated from college, then letters from employers, colleagues and others familiar with your character are acceptable.
You are encouraged to create a work résumé or curriculum vita and submit it along with your application for admission. Although not a requirement for admission, these items provide greater detail about your work history and scholarship.
Prepare a personal statement detailing why you want to be a lawyer, why you are interested in attending the Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law and any experience that you may have in the legal profession. You may also wish to describe any particular areas of the law which interest you. Please address what you hope to contribute to the legal profession and to the needs of the people of the southern Appalachian region. Additionally, describe your personal and cultural background, any obstacles that you have overcome and any extenuating circumstances that may have had an impact on your academic performance. Please state anything that you feel is not adequately covered in the information that you provided in the previous sections of this application.
The priority application deadline for enrollment in the Class of 2013 (fulltime program) or Class of 2014 (part-time program) is January 31, 2010. The application processing fee is waived if the application is completed in its entirety and post-marked by this date.
The application deadline is July 1, 2010. Applications postmarked between February 1, 2010, and July 1, 2010, must be accompanied by an application processing fee. Please attach a non-refundable application processing fee in the amount of fifty-dollars $50 (USD by personal check, money order or cashier's check) and made payable to Lincoln Memorial University
We will, however, continue to accept applications beyond the July 1, 2010, application deadline. Because the Duncan School of Law operates on a rolling admission program, the likelihood of garnering an offer of admission beyond the deadline decreases as the class begins to fill.
How We Review Applications
We believe that prospective students who have an interest in becoming lawyers are mature individuals that are inquisitive, highly motivated, compassionate and eager to serve humanity. With this in mind, we believe the application process is a meeting amongst professionals with the ultimate goal being mutual acceptance for mutual advantage. That is, we seek to learn about one another to determine if our goals are similar. Lincoln Memorial University-Duncan School of Law seeks to attract and retain students whose goals are consistent with the mission of the institution.
Statement on Discrimination
Lincoln Memorial University admits students of any race, sex, handicap, religion, nationality and ethnic origin to all rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to its students. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, sexual orientation, handicap, religion, national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, or athletic and other college-administered programs.
Law students have committed themselves to one of the most demanding of professions. The decision to pursue such a profession is not, nor should it be, quick and easy. The decision-making process should be a long maturation process by which an applicant becomes educated about the legal profession, professional school training and — most importantly — oneself. The application process will help the applicant and the Duncan School of Law to understand if a particular applicant has the requisite academic preparation, temperament and desire to become an attorney.
Following receipt of the application for admission with supportive documents and Law School Admission Test (LSAT) scores, the Admissions Committee will review the application file. The Admissions Committee is composed of members of the faculty. The Admissions Committee will determine whether to extend an offer of admission. Applicants will be notified in writing of the decision of the Committee. Applicants who are offered admission will be notified of the deadline for accepting the offer of admission and other pertinent information.
Ordinarily, the Admissions Committee does not conduct interviews with prospective students as part of the application process. However, there may be situations where it would be advantageous for both the Admissions Committee and the applicant to meet face-to-face to further discuss the prospective student's application file. This may provide some insight into the application for admission that may not be readily available on the paper (text-only) application. If you believe there may be some additional insight into your background that may be gleaned from meeting face-to-face, then please contact the Director of Admissions to discuss.
The Admissions Committee will select students for admission based on a variety of factors. When reviewing application files, the Committee will consider the applicant's overall grade-point average (GPA); grades in individual courses; undergraduate curriculum; exposure to the legal profession; participation in volunteer experiences; background; LSAT scores; and any other pertinent information. The preceding factors are not and should not be considered exhaustive. Its decision will be based on a complete review of the application file.
No one piece of evidence presented by an applicant will, in and of itself, determine whether the Admissions Committee will extend an offer of admission. The decision to extend an offer of admission will be based on the totality of the evidence presented by the applicant to the Committee. Some factors will carry more weight than others. For example, the overall GPA* — based on a careful examination of the undergraduate transcript (and post-baccalaureate, graduate and professional, if any) — and the LSAT score(s), will carry the most weight in the decision-making process. Other factors, such as individual grades in all courses attempted, experience in the legal field, letters of recommendation, the applicant's overall "fit" with the mission of the Duncan School of Law, changes in academic performance over time due to age and maturity, major accomplishments, etc., will also be considered.
The number of applications for the class will exceed the number of seats in the class. The level of competition for seats in each class will be determined by the number of applications received during the application cycle and the academic competitiveness of the applicant pool. The admissions process is fluid and changes from year-to-year. No college knows with certainty how many applications for admission it will receive in a given year, and we are no different. Thus, it is impossible for us to give exact figures for GPAs, LSAT scores and other factors considered which would make one competitive for admission.
Applicants who have demonstrated — through a rigorous undergraduate program of study, competitive LSAT scores, experience related to the legal profession, community service, high ethical standards and career aspirations that match the mission of the Duncan School of Law at Lincoln Memorial University — that they possess those qualities and characteristics that will enable them to achieve success in law school and the legal profession may be selected for admission. Applicants who do not appear to meet these standards will not be selected for admission. The focus of this decision-making process will be academic strength, evidence of moral character and future success on the state bar examination.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Paul Carney, Director of Admissions, at 865-524-5286 or paul.carney@lmunet.edu
*as calculated by the Law School Credential Assembly Service
We believe that Knoxville is an excellent place to live, and Lincoln Memorial University is an excellent place to study law.
ShareThis