One component that often comes up late in the law school application process is a letter of continued interest (LOCI). A letter of continued interest is a letter sent to a school to which you have already applied.
After submitting so much information about yourself earlier in the application process, you might be at a loss regarding what to include in a LOCI. In this post, we at Stratus share how to submit a successful LOCI.
In What Situations Should I Write a Letter of Continued Interest?
- If you are waitlisted: Applicants typically write LOCIs when they have been waitlisted. If you are waitlisted, it usually means the school sees something promising about you but is not quite settled on accepting you. Therefore, if you are waitlisted, you should almost always write a LOCI. The only time you should not is if the school explicitly says not to. If this is the case, the school will likely say so in the email and/or status update that you received informing you about being waitlisted.
- If you are not accepted via early decision: Alternatively, you should write a LOCI if you apply early decision and then are placed in the regular decision pool. This is similar to being waitlisted, as the school did not outright reject you but has not accepted you.
When Should I NOT Write a Letter of Continued Interest?
- If a school does not respond as quickly as other schools: Some applicants also submit a LOCI if it has been a while since they have heard from a school. For example, if someone applies to several schools in September and receives decisions from all schools but one in January and February, they might be tempted to submit a LOCI to the one school that has not responded. Generally, this is not a good idea unless the school indicates that it wants to receive updates from applicants.
- If your application is put on hold: Similarly, applicants sometimes receive an update from a school saying that their application is “on hold.” This usually means that the school is taking longer than expected but does not want you to lose interest. Again, it is not a good idea to submit a LOCI in this situation unless the school says otherwise.
You should avoid submitting a LOCI in these two situations because the admissions staff are likely already overwhelmed and do not want to receive any unnecessary communications. Although submitting one probably won’t be fatal to your application, you do not want to ruffle any feathers or waste time writing a letter that will not help you.
How Does a Letter of Continued Interest Help My Candidacy?
- It demonstrates your interest in the school. Given all of the information you’ve already submitted in your application, you might think it is pointless to submit a LOCI. However, a solid LOCI could be the difference between an acceptance and a rejection.
Sometimes applicants are waitlisted to help protect a school’s yield rate, which is the percentage of people admitted to a school who ultimately enroll there. Because many applicants have “safety” schools, a school might not admit someone who they feel is unlikely to actually be interested in attending. So, if a school is unsure of your interest, it might place you on the waitlist. In this situation, a LOCI can help demonstrate that you are genuinely interested in attending that school. In contrast, not submitting a LOCI might lead the school to believe you are not truly interested.
What Should My Letter of Continued Interest Include?
- “Thank you”: First, be gracious and thank the school for its continued interest in you. This can consist of a sentence or two saying that you appreciate the school’s consideration.
- Why you are interested: Next, you should express your continued interest in attending the school. If the school is your top choice, say so. If it is not, say that you are very interested in attending. In both of these situations, you should share the reasons why you are interested. Although you might have covered some of these details in your application, focusing on your interest can help you seem more genuine. If you visited the campus and/or attended an info session, and doing so increased your interest in the school, mention that here as well.
- Your fit for the school: After outlining your reasons for wanting to attend, explain why you feel you are a strong fit for the school. If the school has a strong commitment to criminal law and you want to be a criminal lawyer, you should discuss that. If you appreciate the school’s values, you could share that and explain why. However, do not go overboard.
- Academic, personal, and career updates: You should also include any updates. For example, if you have new undergraduate grades and/or test scores, be sure to mention them. Although the school will receive those updates anyway, including them in your LOCI helps magnify any new accomplishments. Finally, if you have any personal or career updates to share, such as academic awards or work accomplishments, you should mention those.
What Should I NOT Include in My Letter of Continued Interest?
- Decision time frame: Do not ask when you will receive a school’s decision. Schools will not answer this question, and they might take offense.
- Other law schools: Also, do not mention other law school acceptances you have received. A school does not want to hear about your interest in other schools.
When Should I Send the Letter?
- Within a week of getting waitlisted: You should send a LOCI no more than a week after learning that you were waitlisted. If you need a little more time, that is okay, as you want to be sure to submit a solid letter. However, some applicants make the mistake of waiting until more than a month later to send a LOCI. During this time, the school could make a decision. Plus, sending one relatively quickly makes you seem more genuinely interested.
How Many Letters Should I Send?
- Only one… Given how long it can take to receive a final decision, you might be tempted to send multiple LOCIs to a school. However, most of the time, this will be a bad idea. Once you send your first letter, do not send another one until you receive a status update.
- …unless you remain on the waitlist: If you receive an update that either admits or rejects you, then obviously you should not send another letter. But sometimes a school will send an update saying it is continuing to keep you on the waitlist. Every time this happens, you should send another LOCI. It may get repetitive, and that is okay as long as you do not send literally the same letter. In this scenario, it is important to keep sending LOCIs because the later it gets in the cycle, the more it becomes about a school’s yield rate. If an applicant gets off the waitlist in the summer and into a school they were interested in, they still might not accept because of financial concerns, for example. Law schools will want to avoid as many rejections as possible, so reaffirming your interest in attending is crucial.
Although being waitlisted or having your decision deferred is not fun, it is better than being rejected. Many applicants go on to thrive at a school that had waitlisted them. If you are still interested in a school, you should do what you can to strengthen your candidacy, and submitting a strong LOCI is one of the best ways to do so.