So you want to go to Law School? After being among the 4.5% who passed the UP LAE (Law Aptitude Exam) and the Ateneo Entrance Exam, I thought, "Well, why not write something for those who were in my position a few months back?" First, let’s get a few things straight:
- Law School will not be glamorous
– Based on the curriculum, UP has fewer subjects but Ateneo places all major subjects in the first three years, then has thesis and bar review in senior year. Any which way you go, you will have to deal with terror professors who assign 900 cases for a three unit subject, graded recitation and bar-exam type midterms and finals.
- Classes in Law School = Daily recitation
– That’s a given fact. Professors don’t lecture, they hold class using the modified Socratic method, which means only one thing, and that is recitation. And you prepare for recitation everyday, reading texts and cases.
Still interested? Let’s go through the supposed "top three" law schools one by one:
- Ateneo Law School
– I am applying to Ateneo Law School in a few days. This decision was based on its more rigorous curriculum which leads to a Juris Doctor title, rather than the usual LL B. Those applying to Ateneo need to fill up an application form which will ask you the usual stuff: Why go to Law School? Why Ateneo? Then there are three recommendation letters (which my Philo teacher recommends that you give to someone with a Ph D), and the entrance test. The entrance test isn’t too difficult, just problem solving (non-math), data interpretation, logic and the like. But the test has a unique part called "Principles and Cases" where a situation is given and you are asked whether the given "law" applies to it. No interviews for the top 250 applicants, interviews for those wait-listed.
- UP Law School
– If you were impressed by the shopping mall-like façade of Ateneo, you’ll be shocked in UP. But then, UP boasts a good faculty, and is reputed to produce "practice-ready" lawyers, rather than the "bar-ready" lawyers of Ateneo. No application form in UP but there’s the long and difficult UP LAE, complete with English, Math, Logic & Reading Comprehension. After you pass, (only 300 are taken in, although in my batch, only 225 were accepted) you go through the torturous interview where a panel of six professors ask you crazy and stupid questions. If you really want to go to UP, you’ll have to wait until June for the results. By this time, Ateneo will have finished enrollment already.
- San Beda Law School
– This institution has the easiest application process. Take the test (not so difficult, but quite long) and results come out in three weeks. I passed here too, but from the stories I’ve heard, like having no exclusive law classrooms and having poor facilities, I opted for Ateneo. San Beda is still reputed for bar top-notchers and high passing rates though.
There it is! Remember that in all three universities (and probably all others), college grades will be important. The entrance test score and the cumulative grade average are given weights, from which a figure is computed, which would logically be used in evaluating applicants.
Good luck and see you all in court!
