Law schools see boom in incoming-student numbers

　　Recent Boston College graduate Melissa Calvo isnt taking much time off before heading back to the classroom: Shell enter Harvard Law School this fall.
　　Calvo, 21, who graduated with a bachelors in French on May 20, has had her eye on law school for two years now.
　　Although shes not sure what type of law shell pursue once she earns her juris doctor degree, shes confident she wont have trouble landing a job. Shes not concerned about todays reported layoffs at big firms and static starting salaries.
　　"The major firms are going to keep recruiting regardless of the economy," she said. Calvos optimism seems to be the norm. Like many other graduate programs, law schools are experiencing a boom in applications.
　　Applicants believe the sour economy, with its limited advancement opportunities, presents the perfect chance to pursue advanced degrees.
　　The bump in applications wont mean more lawyers in three years, however. Area colleges arent increasing the size of their first-year classes to accommodate the demand. As a result, admissions officers are more selective in choosing the next batch of law students, leaving some aspiring counselors locked out of their top choices for schools.
　　The Law School Admissions Council indicates that applications for next year are up nationwide about 24 percent.
　　"One can speculate what the reasons for that are," said Carl Monk, executive director for the Association of American Law Schools in Washington, D.C. "Its certainly true that, in the past, when the economy has not been as strong, applications have generally gone up. And sometimes, when the economy is quite strong, applications go down."
　　The numbers at Northeastern University School of Law are particularly telling. The school experienced its highest application jump in six years, receiving 2,817 applications for fall 2002 enrollment vs. 1,947 applications for fall 2001 enrollment - a 45 percent increase.
　　M.J., Knoll, assistant dean and director of admissions, attributes the jump to two factors: "There was a demographic downturn in the 90s of students graduating from high school into college and then college into law school. ... Now theres more students graduating from college."
　　The other factor was the economy, he said.
　　"With a hot economy, people werent willing to forgo making huge salaries to go back to school," he said. "Now a lot of companies arent hiring young college grads right now. That combination has created this group of people who thought they might as well keep going."
　　Other area law schools are also seeing leaps in their application numbers, although not quite as dramatic as Northeasterns numbers.
　　Boston University, for example, received 7,300 applications this year 2,000 more applications than last years numbers. Harvard Law School received 7,000 applicants for fall enrollment, up from 6,000 a year ago and 5,600 two years ago.
　　Like many other law sch[FS:PAGE]ools, Suffolk University, which had a 30 percent increase in applications over last year, isnt increasing its class size.
　　"If anything, were trying to downsize it a little bit. We want to make sure we stay competitive," said Gail Ellis, dean of admissions at Suffolk University Law School. The school expects to enroll about 350 day students and 170 evening students.
　　That means there are some people who would have gotten in several years ago, when application numbers were down, who probably wont be accepted today, Ellis added.
　　Boston University School of Law reports a similar trend. Joan Horgan, director of admissions and financial aid, said the school will admit about 1,000 students from its 7,300 applicants to get a class size of about 265. She expects the median LSAT scores to rise as a result of the increased competition.
　　"I anticipate that the quality of the incoming class in terms of their life experience, their community service and their grades from their undergraduate work will also be enhanced this year, so were obviously very excited about that," she said.
　　Even with most students taking on tens of thousands of dollars in debt to finance law school, admissions officials said students dont seem discouraged by the current economy and its impact on firms.
　　Thats not to suggest, however, that the economy hasnt affected law students. The economy, and current events as a whole, seem to influence which careers students want to pursue, with some schools reporting an increased interest in specialties, notably intellectual property, that are particularly hot even in this down economy.
　　"I do think people respond to whats going on in the world," said Joyce Curll, Harvard Law Schools assistant dean for admissions and financial aid. "There is an increased interest in biotech and IP. ... Theres also an increase in public service. Thats due in part to post-Sept. 11, because people want to make their careers meaningful."
　　But not everyone sees law students being swayed by todays events.
　　"My sense is that people are going to pursue (careers) according to their interests," Horgan said. And, she said, even those worrying about todays slow economy are optimistic that three years is enough time for a turnaround.
　　"The legal job market is softening with the rest of the economy," Horgan said. "But people are hopeful that the legal job market will pick up."