前回（4/21)の投稿に続き、Columbia Law Schoolの出願サイトを確認していきたいと思います。https://www.law.columbia.edu/admissions/llm/apply-llm-program

Holistic review. No one factor on your application is more important than another; we approach each application individually and holistically, and carefully review each component.

• Holisticは「全体の」という意味を表します。各書類やテストスコアは入学審査においてそれぞれの役割を持ちます。たとえば、TOEFLスコアは英語力/やコミュニケーション力を入学審査官へ伝えるための効果的なツールとなるものの学力は指し示しません。そのため、テスト以外の各書類（Application Form, CV/Resume, Essay, Letter of Recommendation, Transcript)の役割を把握してください。

We do not have quotas by country or area of practice. Our process seeks candidates with the strongest credentials representing diverse backgrounds, areas of the world, and legal practice.

• ここで述べている”the strongest credentials”を証明するため、テストスコア、各出願書類のクオリティーを高めることが求められます。

Academic strength is essential. Columbia is first and foremost an academic institution. We look for factors in your application that indicate that you will be able to keep up with the academic discourse at Columbia, including your prior academic transcripts and letters of recommendation. (This does not mean you should worry about a mistake you made during your first law degree; in fact, what you have learned from your mistakes is helpful to our process.)

• 学力を表す書類として成績表と推薦状について言及しています。特に推薦状の内容は「構成」、「表現」、「具体性」といったチェックポイントを設けてはいかがでしょうか？さらにはLL.M.課程で活躍するに際して必要なアカデミックスキル（例：分析力や問題解決力）なども把握しておきましょう。

Work experience matters. Most LL.M. students have several years of work experience when they enroll, and we strongly encourage applicants to obtain at least one year of full-time, post-law school work experience prior to applying. Experience gives you a better sense of what you want from your LL.M. experience and enhances your ability to participate in classroom and extracurricular activities.

• Essayでは上述箇所にあるWhat you want form your LL.M. experienceに対する自分の回答を述べます。さらにはLL.M.をColumbiaで取得したい理由も同時に考えていきましょう。

Candidates in the final year of their first law degree will only be accepted under exceptional circumstances. If you are in this category, your personal statement must demonstrate that admission to the program would enable you to realize an immediate and specific career objective you otherwise could not obtain if you waited at least one additional year.

上述箇所のimmediate and specific career objectiveを考える際には、Columbia卒業後に就く仕事、職位、役割、責務、そしてその仕事を通じて達成したいことも併せて考えましょう。

English language skills are essential. As lawyers, you are advocates first and foremost. Columbia Law School has the highest Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) minimum for a reason: We want you to engage and perform at a level commensurate with your native English speaking peers both in and out of the classroom.

総合スコアも大切ですが、特にListeningとSpeakingセクションのスコアバランスにも注意を払ってください。

先日当ブログにて紹介しましたHarvard LL.M. Programに続き、Columbia Law Schoolでも2020-21年シーズンの出願締め切り日が発表されました。
https://www.law.columbia.edu/admissions/llm/apply-llm-program

〇　Early Review Program（早期出願用締め切り日）

Applicants for admission to our 2021-2022 LL.M. Program, except those who are in the final year of their first law degree and reapplicants who were not originally granted admission, have the option of applying through the Early Review Program. The advantage of applying early is that you will have a decision by late December. We encourage early applications from those who feel they have compiled their strongest possible application by November 1, 2020. To be considered under the Early Review Program, you must:

1. Submit your online application by November 1, 2020;
2. Submit your transcripts, TOEFL scores, and letters of recommendation to LSAC at least one week in advance of the November 1 deadline so that they have time to process your full Credential Assembly Service (CAS) report and forward it to us during the Early Review period; and
3. Specify that you wish to be considered for early review by answering “yes” to the Early Review question in the “Application Deadlines” section of this application.

ここでは締め切り日を遵守することに加え、TOEFLスコアの提出も11月1日に間に合うよう時間的に余裕を持って対応するよう指示が出されています。そうしますと、10月20日前後には出願に必要なスコアを揃えておく必要が出てきます。

If you do not meet the above criteria, we will automatically defer your application for consideration as part of the regular admission cycle. If you have not taken the TOEFL by November 1, 2020, you will automatically be considered in the regular admission cycle; no exceptions will be made.

たとえ、11月1日の早期締め切り日に間に合わなかったとしても慌てる必要はありません。出願書類を提出することが大切ではなく、合格するにふさわしいクオリティーに満ちた出願書類とスコアを準備することを優先して考えていきましょう。

We will provide a decision for early applicants by the end of December. Applicants will be admitted, rejected, or deferred to the regular admission cycle. If you are admitted through the Early Review Program, you will not be required to withdraw your applications to other LL.M. programs. Admitted candidates will be given a deadline upon admission to confirm their intention to matriculate.

Regular Application Deadline

The Columbia online application, available through LSAC, must be submitted by December 18, 2020. All application materials for the CAS report, including supporting documents, transcripts, and letters of recommendation, must be postmarked to LSAC by December 18, 2020. Applicants who are required to submit a TOEFL score (see our Application Components page for more information) must take the test no later than December 18, 2020 in order to be considered for admission for the 2021-2022 LL.M. Program.

must take the test no later than December 18と書かれていることから、締め切り日以降にテストを受験してスコアを差し替える戦略は適用することはできません。

Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis, in most cases no later than late April. Rolling admissions means that we evaluate applications randomly; the date you submitted your application often has no bearing on when you will receive a decision. Some candidates will have a decision in early January, others in late April. (If you submit your application well before the December 18 deadline, for example, you will not necessarily have an earlier decision.) If you have not yet received a decision, it most likely means that the Committee simply has not yet reviewed your application (so you should not worry!). We strive to give every candidate a decision by the end of April.

今年はコロナウィルスの状況でテストの受験が制限される機会が増えております。テスト対策を継続することも大切ですが、しっかりとした受験計画を立て、レジュメ、エッセイ、推薦状といった出願書類を早い時期から準備していくことをお勧めいたします。