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For the last few years, we have released the JDP cycle timeline on our blog to increase transparency and to help applicants plan ahead. Here is our expected timeline for the 2022 Junior Deferral Program cycle.

Like a good New England team, we closed out this week with a Yankee swap gift exchange. The most coveted prize? Definitely not the hand lotion - it was the Taylor Swift 2022 calendar.

This week, we close out our series and highlight some of the overrated approaches that we recommend applicants avoid as they craft their applications. 

Continuing our Overrated/Underrated series, this week, we shift our focus to highlight some of the overrated approaches that we recommend applicants avoid as they craft their applications. 

November is suddenly upon us, and that means the J.D. Admissions team is preparing to begin interviews. If you have already submitted your application, you might be wondering about this as well. Here’s some more information to help you prepare.

This week, we continue our Underrated Approaches to the Application series with some additional advice.

The J.D. Admissions team is looking forward to meeting applicants virtually this year, but before we get too far into recruitment season, we wanted to look back at 2020–2021 by the numbers.

Sydney Montgomery, HLS '18, is the CEO of S. Montgomery Admissions Consulting, where she specializes in working with first-generation and minority college and law school applicants. 

The J.D. Admissions team recently came together to offer their thoughts on some underrated and overrated approaches that applicants might take towards their HLS application. We hope you’ll find some of these nuggets useful.

Xiaoli Jin and Alice Chen are members of the Junior Deferral Program (JDP) Class of 2024 and co-authors of the pilot Alumni Conversations series. In this post, Xiaoli and Alice chat about their own experiences applying to JDP, navigating the deferral period, and talking with HLS alumni.

I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling ’22 – as in, Fall Term 2022. If you are also looking ahead to the upcoming admissions cycle, read on to learn more about our anticipated dates and deadlines for the year.

We thought we would take this chance to preview our upcoming recruitment activities, which will once again be entirely virtual. For those interested in having the J.D. Admissions office join your group, school, or organization for an open Q&A on the admissions process, we’d also like to share details on how to get in touch.

Deven Hurt is a rising 2L at Harvard Law School and CEO of PredictionStrike. 

Marty Linsky ’64 was a politician, journalist, co-founder of Cambridge Leadership Associates, and for 40 years taught at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, among many other roles spanning a wide range of fields. He reflected on his life stories in a Zoom chat with Xiaoli and Alice and was hopeful that the three would eventually catch up in person at the end of the pandemic.

Amanda Bello is a rising 3L who transferred to HLS after spending her 1L year at Cornell Law School. 

Junior Deferral Program admit John Casey reflects on his time at the University of Pennsylvania, as a member of the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), and shares why embracing setbacks has been vital to developing his vision for a legal career. 

As a General Partner at Founders Fund, Keith tags himself as an entrepreneur, investor, and contrarian on social media. In a Zoom call with Keith and his Chief of Staff Matt Lanter, Xiaoli and Alice sought to trace Keith’s entrepreneurial roots back to his time at HLS.

Many students are actively working on their Junior Deferral Program applications, so we asked five recent admits to share their advice on the application process. We hope you find their insights helpful as you complete your application.

A little over a year ago, I got a call around 11am from a number I didn’t fully recognize. The area code, however, was not unfamiliar; by now, I knew that 617 meant Massachusetts. Like many other admits might tell you, it was a moment I don’t think I’ll ever forget.

Amaka is the head of Eurasia Group’s Africa practice, where she helps clients understand the interaction of politics, policy, and markets across sub-Saharan Africa. Amaka had a joyful conversation with Xiaoli and Alice via Google Hangout on a Thursday afternoon. They talked about everything from HLS, to geopolitical consulting, to Amaka’s beloved homeland, Nigeria.

We recently sat down with current 3L Brice Ngameni to learn more about his work as president and co-founder of Pembe, a non-profit organization focused on supporting students of African descent trying to get into — and succeed at — American law schools. 

Back in September, we set out our expected timeline for the 2020–2021 application cycle on this blog. I’m writing today to share one update to the September blog post: we plan to interview and admit candidates in April this year.

The  Junior Deferral Program (JDP) application is now open, so we asked five recent admits to share their thoughts and reflections on why they chose to apply to HLS through the Junior Deferral Program. We hope you will find their insights helpful as you consider this option.

Dear Future Colleague (DFC)  is a national nonprofit that provides encouragement, mentorship, and guidance  to underrepresented students applying to law school. We spoke with Nancy Fairbank (2L, HLS) and Melody Zargari (1L, University of Florida Levin College of Law) about how DFC was founded, what issues it seeks to address, and what’s in store for the future.

Over the last two years, we have attempted to demystify the application process by releasing the dates for each application cycle early. With that in mind, we wanted to share the important dates and deadlines for the upcoming Junior Deferral Program (JDP) application timeline.

With the turn of the calendar to January, we often wish one another a happy new year. But it has been hard to do so in the past week. As we all reflect on the first days of 2021, I wanted to share a message from our student body co-presidents to the HLS community. I found Noelle and Billy’s words meaningful, and I hope you do too. - Dean Jobson

Our final entry in the "Real Talk" series covers the "holistic" admissions process at HLS.

Sitting in his home office with a couple of basses and three Joel Daniel Phillips pencil drawings in the background, David looks no different than he did in videos from other interviews. In this Zoom call with Xiaoli and Alice, David reflects on his career path, from being a Computer Music undergrad to a venture capitalist.

Wondering if you are eligible to apply? Have a question about our application requirements? Just want to say hello? Feel free to contact the J.D Admissions Office.

As a Partner at Gunderson Dettmer, Randall Clark works closely with entrepreneurs and investors in various fields. He had a delightful conversation with Xiaoli and Alice over Zoom, chatting about how he transitioned from a film major in college to a HLS student, then to a law firm partner. It all started with a $2,000 scholarship...

Each year, HLS students join our community from around the country, and the world. This year's 1L class includes a contingent of students from West Virginia - J.R., Patrick, Arka, and Travis. They connected on Zoom before the semester started. We thought we'd pass along their insight and reflections here on our blog. 

Phebe Hong is a 3L at Harvard Law School. She graduated from Harvard College with a degree in Human Developmental and Regenerative Biology. Prior to law school, she worked as a consultant advising pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. She is a Research Assistant at the Program on Regulation, Therapeutics, and Law (PORTAL) and an Articles Editor for the Journal of Law and Technology. Her research interests include FDA regulation of biologics and pharmaceutical patent law.

Reggie Chambers ’01 is a Managing Director and Chief Administrative Officer of the Consumer Bank of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Previously, he worked in Big Law, investment banking, private equity, the White House, and management consulting. Outside of work, he teaches the development of economic policies at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.