Application for Transfer Enrollment

Admission to Mitchell Hamline School of Law is based on both academic and nonacademic factors. We encourage you to submit all information that you feel we need to know to make an admission decision. We don’t require admission interviews but encourage applicants to schedule informational sessions with admissions representatives. We look forward to reading your application and hope to meet you soon!

All requirements for admission apply to transfer applicants. To receive credits for previous coursework, an applicant must have received a grade of C or higher. Transfer applicants may be admitted to Mitchell Hamline with advanced standing if they meet the school’s admissions requirements and have satisfactorily completed at least one full year of study at an ABA-approved law school.

Transfer students must satisfactorily complete at least 43 credits of instruction in residence at Mitchell Hamline. Incoming transfer students will have graduation requirements based on their level of standing at the time of matriculation at Mitchell Hamline.

Students transferring into the blended enrollment option must register for the part-time course load that is listed on their transfer plan for their first semester at Mitchell Hamline. Students wishing to diverge from the typical course load must first get permission from the Dean of Students and from the Assistant Dean, Academic Affairs.

The deadline to apply varies depending on the semester in which you plan to begin your studies at Mitchell Hamline.

Semester	Deadline
Spring 2023	December 1, 2022
Summer 2023	March 1, 2023
Fall 2023	June 15, 2023

Complete application for admission

Applications must be submitted online. Mitchell Hamline School of Law does not charge an application fee. We must receive at least an application form by the application deadline even if other pieces needed to complete the application are submitted at a later date.

Attach a personal statement

Your personal statement should be one to three pages in length and must include your reasons for transferring. In addition, it should include any information that will help the Admissions Committee act on your application. We encourage you to tell us why your application should be considered favorably. Please include such information as:

• Life and career goals
• Particular experiences or background applicable to law school
• Academic abilities or special skills, talents, or strengths
• Leadership and interpersonal skills

Attach a values statement

Mitchell Hamline values being a leading law school in civic engagement, public service, social justice, and access to law school and the legal profession.  Your value statement should be one to two doubled-spaced pages in length and explain what it means to you to attend a law school with these values.

Attach a résumé

Your résumé should include a complete history of your post-secondary employment and education, including graduation and employment dates, colleges, and degrees received. Other information that you should list on your résumé includes community service, leadership activities, awards and honors, and internships.

Other Standardized Tests

If you have taken the GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) and would like to include your scores in your application, please use Mitchell Hamline School of Law’s code (4750) to submit them. Mitchell Hamline does not require GRE scores or accept them in place of the LSAT score. However, we will take your GRE scores into consideration if you submit them.

Submit a current law school transcript

Official, certified copies of your law school transcripts must be sent to Mitchell Hamline’s Office of Admissions directly from your previous law school(s).

Request a letter of recommendation

One confidential letter of recommendation is required. Your recommender should be a professor from your current law school who knows you well and is able to assess your personal qualities and your potential for success in law school. He/she should describe at least some of these characteristics:

• Academic ability, including creative thinking, reasoning ability, and oral and written communication skills
• Leadership and interpersonal skills
• Motivation and self-discipline
• Demonstrated ethics

All recommendations should be written on official or personal stationery and should be mailed directly to the Admissions Office at Mitchell Hamline School of Law.

Request a letter of academic standing

The dean of the applicant’s previous law school must send a letter stating that you are in good standing and eligible to continue at that school. A person who is ineligible to continue toward a degree at the previous law school cannot be considered for admission to Mitchell Hamline within two years of the date of his or her dismissal from his or her former law school.

Verify bar exam eligibility

In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Each state or jurisdiction has its own unique requirements, which may include activities to be completed prior to examination or admission to the bar, such as pro bono service, or registration during your first year of law school (as early as within 60 days of starting law school). Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.

National Conference of Bar Examiners

Many Mitchell Hamline applicants plan to sit for the bar in Minnesota. Applicants with questions regarding their past conduct and character and fitness standards in Minnesota are encouraged to call the Minnesota State Board of Law Examiners at 651-297-1857 for a confidential consultation with a Character and Fitness Administrator.