Our application for Fall 2023 admission became available on September 1, 2022. We will accept the GRE General Test score in place of or in addition to the LSAT. Please see our GRE & GPA FAQs.
Priority Deadline - February 1, 2023
Final Deadline - April 1, 2023*
*Any applications incomplete after the final deadline may be excluded from consideration.
Note: Please do not send any physical mail to the Law School. Application materials should be sent to and processed by LSAC.
Earn a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning in the United States or an equivalent degree from a university-level institution in a foreign country before August 2023.
Take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Send your GRE scores from all test administrations in the last five years to the University of Hawaii at Manoa Richardson School of Law using the ETS School Code 2381. To register for the GRE, please visit https://www.ets.org/gre/.
ETS is now offering the GRE General Test at Home indefinitely. Visit https://www.ets.org/s/cv/gre/at-home/ to learn more. See Free GRE Test Prep Materials including GRE Khan Academy materials.
NOTE: "ETS provides the GRE® Fee Reduction Program for individuals who can demonstrate financial need, for those who are unemployed and receiving unemployment compensation, and for national programs that work with underrepresented groups." See GRE Fee Reduction Program. If you have any questions about utilizing a fee waiver, please contact GRE Institutional Services at GRE_Fee_Reduction@ets.org or 1-609-771-7092.
If you have already taken a GRE General Test, make sure there is a reportable GRE General Test score in your ETS account and order an Additional Score Report be sent to us. When registering, you may have already designated our Law School as a recipient and a score report may automatically be sent to us.
NOTE: If you have taken multiple GREs, the Admissions Committee will consider each GRE administration in its entirety. We do not superscore the GRE, considering the highest score earned in each score section across multiple GRE administrations. You must send us all reportable scores (both LSAT and GRE). See GRE & GPA FAQs.
Register for the LSAC Credential Assembly Service (CAS). LSAC will combine your writing samples, transcripts, letters of recommendation, and TOEFL score (if applicable) into a CAS report that will be sent to the Law School. You must still register for this even if you will not be applying with an LSAT score.
- Institutions Attended: Provide information about the schools you attended to LSAC. You must list each undergraduate and graduate institution you attended (including community colleges, undergraduate and graduate institutions, law/medical/professional institutions).
To enter your school information, log into your LSAC.org account. Choose the "Credentials and CAS" tab at the top of the page. Then click on the "Transcript Status/Add Institutions" button to add the school. If you receive the message "You cannot add institutions to your file at this time" please send your request to LSACinfo@LSAC.org. Include the name of the school, dates attended, level (graduate/undergraduate), degree expected or awarded if applicable, and your name and LSAC account number. - Transcripts: Make sure all the required transcripts are sent to LSAC. If you currently enrolled in classes, you may send the transcripts now without waiting for this semester's grades. Later, have an updated transcript sent to LSAC. LSAC will automatically forward it to us.
LSAC will not send us your law school report until you enter your school information and they have received and processed the required transcripts.
To request your transcripts, log into your LSAC.org account. Choose the "Credentials and CAS" tab at the top of the page. Then click on the "Transcript Status/Add Institutions" button. Under each institution you have added, you will see a link to download the printable Transcript Request Form. NOTE: Transcript Request Forms will be available in your LSAC.org account only after you register for the Credential Assembly Service (CAS) and enter your school information.
LSAC may take up to two weeks to process your transcripts. For more information, please see Requesting Transcripts at www.lsac.org.
If you are admitted to the Law School, you must have an updated, final official transcript sent to LSAC before August 1 so that your LSAC-generated UGPA will reflect the undergraduate academic work you completed AFTER you applied to law school. - Two Letters of Recommendation: Make sure that two academic or professional letters of recommendation are sent to LSAC. Please do not ask for letters of recommendations from family members or from persons who do not know you well.
LSAC will not send us these letters if you do not assign them to us. To assign a letter to us, log into your LSAC account at http://lsac.org/. Choose the "Credentials and CAS" tab at the top of the page. Then click on the "Manage LORs" button. Be sure you have already added your Recommender. Under "My LOR Assignments" click the blue "Assign" button next to our school's name and select each letter you would like to have included with your law school report.
See Letters of Recommendation at www.lsac.org. - Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) (if applicable): Submit your TOEFL score to LSAC (institution code number 0058, department code 03) if 1) English is not your first or primary language, and 2) you do not have a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, England, or the English-speaking countries in Africa. You must score at least 100 on the iBT or 600 on the paper exam. You must take the TOEFL no later than January 2023. Note: TOEFL scores are valid for two years after the test date. The TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition is now being offered indefinitely. Visit https://www.ets.org/s/cv/toefl/at-home/ to learn more.
- Fee: Pay the fee for the Credential Assembly Service.
After you submit your application (Step 5), we will request your LSAC Credential Assembly Service (CAS) Report from LSAC. LSAC will send it to us when it is complete and free of financial holds. For GRE-only applicants, we will manually waive the LSAT requirement of the CAS Report after the application is received. See Application FAQs.
Apply for financial aid. File the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as soon as possible. It became available on October 1. Need-based scholarships are awarded based upon eligibility, need, and order of FAFSA received. Do not wait to find out if you have been admitted before completing the FAFSA. You may indicate "will file" on tax-related questions and then update this information after you file your taxes. Our priority financial aid deadline is February 1. Our federal school code is 001610. To add our school code to an existing FAFSA, click "Add a school" under "Returning User?". See Tuition and Financial Aid FAQs.
NOTE: We will not be able to access your FAFSA if the name and Social Security Number in the "Biographical" section of this application do not match the name and social security number on your FAFSA.
Apply to the Law School using our online application at www.lsac.org. We do not have a paper application. Everyone must apply online.
- Application Fee: Pay our $75 nonrefundable application fee online at LSAC. See Application Fee Waivers.
- Personal Statement: Compose a 500-word personal statement on a subject of your choice. Many applicants write about their goals, achievements, influences, and their interest in our Law School.
- Why Richardson? Please tell us why you would like to study at our Law School in approximately 250 words.
- Résumé: Write a résumé detailing your education, extracurricular activity, professional experience, and community service.
Decisions
We will email you when we make a decision about your application. We will also update your online status page. Most applicants who apply after November 1 will receive decisions within six to eight weeks. We endeavour to provide decisions to everyone who applies by February 1 by the end of February.
NOTE: The Admissions Committee may decide to hold some applications until the end of the cycle. If you have questions about the status of your application after checking the online status page, please contact us at lawadm@hawaii.edu.
Residency
If you are admitted, we will determine your residency status before you matriculate. See Hawaiʻi Residency.
Transfer and Visiting Students
You must use the online application for transfer and visiting students at LSAC. See Transfer & Visiting Students Application Instructions.
Previous Applicants
If you previously applied to our Law School and did not enroll, you must complete a new application.
Disclosure and Ethical Considerations
Because lawyers and law students are held to high ethical standards, you must be truthful and candid during the entire admissions process. The Law School expects you to furnish requested information in a complete and accurate manner. Failure to disclose an act or event may be more significant and may lead to more serious consequences than the event itself. Failure to provide complete and truthful information, or failure to inform the Admissions Office of any changes to your answers over time, may result in dismissal from or disciplinary action by the Law School, revocation of a degree, or denial of permission to practice law by the state in which you seek bar admission. Your obligation to disclose does not end upon admission and continues throughout your law school career.
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. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners. For example, applicants may not sit for the Hawaiʻi Bar Exam or be admitted to the Hawai‘i Bar if they have not complied with a court order for child support, or a subpoena or warrant relating to a paternity or child support proceeding. Likewise, applicants may not sit for the Hawaiʻi Bar Exam or be admitted to the Hawai‘i Bar if they have not complied with an obligation under a student loan, student loan repayment contract, scholarship contract, or repayment plan. For more information, see http://www.courts.state.hi.us/docs/court_rules/rules/rsch.htm. For requirements for additional states, see the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
Nondiscrimination Policy
The University of Hawaiʻi is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution and is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of race, sex, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and status as a covered veteran. See the University Nondiscrimination Policy.
Accessibility
The University recognizes its obligation to provide equal access to programs, services, and activities to students with disabilities. For accessibility information and services, please contact our office for students with disabilities, the KOKUA Program (Kahi O Ka Ulu ‘Ana - "The Place of Growing").
Social Security Number Usage
The University will issue unique and permanent student identification numbers to all students. The University requires Social Security Numbers for the purpose of tax reporting and reporting of enrollment status for deferment of loans.
