Michigan's Summer Start Unique Among Top Law Schools
by Erica Winter
Summer Start at University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor, is such a simple concept—start law school early—that it is not even considered to be a "program," really. Its impact on a law student's overall educational experience, however, is pivotal.
Michigan Law divides its entering law school classes into four groups of about 90 students. One of these groups, or one quarter of first-year law students, is accepted to do Summer Start each year, explains Sarah Zearfoss, Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions.
The system is simple. A summer starter at Michigan Law begins law school around June 1 and takes two assigned classes and a legal writing course. For the fall semester, he or she takes three assigned classes and legal writing. Then, in the winter semester, he or she takes one assigned class, and three electives.
With fewer courses to contend with at once, summer starters can "perform to the best of their abilities," says Professor Philip Frost, Associate Director of Michigan Law's Legal Practice Program. Frost will teach Legal Practice I and Legal Skills to first-years this coming summer.
All the other Michigan Law first-years start in the fall semester taking three assigned classes plus a legal writing course; in the winter semester, they have three required courses, one elective, and legal writing.
Summer Start is a "slow ramping up" of law school, says Zearfoss, and is especially beneficial to those who have been out of school for a few years and need some time to get acclimated to academic life.
All students who are accepted early decision to Michigan Law do summer start. In addition, regular applicants who want to do summer start indicate this on their applications and are considered for the early start.
Two things weigh in students' favor for Summer Start admission: flexibility and time out of college. There are three boxes available for an applicant to check off when applying for regular admission to Michigan Law: fall start, summer start, or either one. Those who prefer a fall start will not be considered for summer start. Those who select "either one" give a good impression, says Zearfoss, being flexible and demonstrating their desire to come to Michigan Law at any possible time.
Those who indicate "summer start" are considered for the program, but can hurt their images if they are accepted for summer and then bargain for a fall start instead, warns Zearfoss. Doing this "is not a good tactic," says Zearfoss. Michigan Law Admissions staff members "don't like bargainers."
Few summer starters are coming right out of undergrad. Doing five semesters in a row is a tough job, and there is a potential for burnout. Plus, on a more practical level, it's hard to move to another state and get settled—let alone trying to do it in two weeks between undergraduate graduation and the beginning of the summer start semester.
The law school does not have a year-round calendar; only the first-year summer starters take law classes in Ann Arbor in the summer.
Summer starters get a break from classes the summer after their first years, along with their fall-starting colleagues. They work or do internships, return for two semesters the next year, and work again the next summer. Many summer starters take one more semester of classes in their third years and graduate in December. Some take a semester off in the middle of their law school studies—to have children, work on a political campaign, or do an extended externship—and graduate in May with the rest of their class.
Michigan Law, like most top law schools, only ranks its students after graduation. Summer starters are ranked in late May, along with the other members of their class who have just graduated. Class rank is de-emphasized at Michigan Law, since all of those admitted are talented. "You have a really smart student body," says Zearfoss.
Students do know their GPAs throughout their Michigan Law careers, however, and this can be an arena where the summer starters are at an employment advantage, says Frost. By the end of their first year, summer starters have three semesters worth of classes and grades to show employers, not just two. Summer starters will have completed all of their required first-year courses and progressed deeper into their electives.
This can give summer starters an advantage as employers come to campuses "earlier and earlier," says Frost, recruiting for 2L summer jobs in the fall of students' second year—most with only two semesters of law school under their belts. For many, this 2L summer job will be their first job offer out of law school, so "this is why students get so anxious" about their first-year performance, says Frost. The summer start "makes sense," says Frost, allowing a slower pace with fewer courses.
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