MSU-DCL College of Law officials said the school had its highest number of applicants ever this school year, keeping with a national trend in law schools.
MSU-DCL also has its highest number of students enrolled since the school was founded in 1891.
About 80 more students are enrolled in MSU-DCL's incoming class this year, MSU-DCL spokeswoman Janet Harvey-Clark said. Increased enrollment comes after a 683-application jump from last year.
Justin Serrano, executive director of Kaplan Test Preparation, said the number of students preparing to take the Law School Admissions Test has risen drastically. This year, the number of LSAT takers is projected to surpass the 1991 record of 152,685. More then 98,000 students have applied to attend U.S. law schools for fall 2003, the largest number since 1991.
"All this together means an increase in competition," Serrano said. "Test scores and GPAs are more important then ever."
At MSU-DCL, LSAT scores are rising. The average has risen a "dramatic" two points since last year, Harvey-Clark said.
MSU-DCL Dean Terrence Blackburn said the college chooses its applicants based on GPA and LSAT scores.
Serrano said the slump in the economy is the factor causing more students to go to graduate school. In a tightening job market, students seek more specialized knowledge to aid in getting a job, he said.
Blackburn also said the economy was a factor but attributes MSU-DCL's rise in applicants to its connection with MSU.
"None of us can ignore the economy," he said. "With MSU, we can provide additional education opportunities to our students."
Serrano said test preparation for other graduate study fields such as business and medicine are rising throughout the nation.
"People are pushing up decisions to go to business and law schools because there is no prerequisite curriculum, whereas medical students lag behind because they need lots of science classes," Serrano said.
Connell Alsup, MSU-DCL assistant dean of students, said some students who are interested in law school aspire to be more diverse and have more specialized knowledge of the law.
"They realize that this is a tough and very competitive job market," Alsup said. "They really know they have to have more than the generic courses. The common thread is they want to be as prepared as they can with dual degrees and concentrations."
Serrano said law school administrators in the nation are beginning to take professional experiences more into account when choosing between applicants.
"They can do that because they have so many applicants," Serrano said. "It makes a more mature student body."
