Law school applicants without experience in a professional legal internship still have hope for admission into law school, according to a recent Kaplan survey. The survey, which was conducted in July and August, indicated that 61 percent of the 152 law school admissions officers surveyed said that law internships fail to provide students with any significant advantage in the admissions process.

But at Cornell, two-thirds of the current entering class has at least a year of work experience.

“I would’t say it offers no advantage,” said Sarah Busse, associate director of admissions at Cornell Law School. “It doesn’t really make an impact one way or the other, but as a general rule it is part of one’s experience. We look at everything.”

While the survey indicated that internships may not directly increase a student’s likelihood of getting accepted to a law school, they may provide other crucial advantages. Ben Litchfield law had two law-related internships before his senior year of college: one at a personal injury firm and one at a two-lawyer firm that specialized in real estate, he stated via e-mail. Although both internships were unpaid, Litchfield formed connections that provided him with “outstanding letters of recommendation.”

“I think it is this value that likely was not quantified in the Kaplan survey,” Litchfield stated via e-mail. “The two letters of recommendation from lawyers — which I wouldn’t have obtained without these internships — definitely played an influential role in my law school admission.”

While most law schools only require two faculty letters of recommendation, many accept up to two additional letters. This gives students who have made connections to legal professionals through work experience a significant advantage.

Legal internships can also help students determine whether they really want to be lawyers.

“Legal experience can be invaluable to students to confirm that law school is the right place for them,” said Jeff Thomas, Kaplan’s director of pre-law programs.

Emily Cusick ’12, secretary of Phi Alpha Delta, Cornell’s pre-law fraternity, worked at an intellectual property law firm the summer before coming to Cornell.

“I worked with accounts payable, proofread patent applications, and managed document retention,” Cusick said. “I really enjoyed the experience and it helped me realize that I would like to go into the legal field.”

But last summer, Cusick focused on a different area. Her job in human relations for General Electric Energy, as well as her position next summer in the Women’s Outreach division of the Republican National Committee, has little, if any, correlation to her intended profession.

“I actually do not plan on doing another law-related internship before going to law school,” Cusick said. “But if something comes up, I will certainly consider it.”

While these internships outside of a legal forum may seem extraneous, Gregory Alexander, A. Robert Noll Professor of Law at Cornell Law School, stressed that they could still be worthwhile. “Follow your passion,” Alexander said. “Do whatever you really want to do, not on the basis of whether it’s going to increase your chances of getting into law school.”

Thomas agreed that a student’s “passion” matters more than doing specifically legal work.

“It doesn’t matter whether a student spends time with a law internship or business internship as long as they’re passionate about it,” Thomas said.

One student suggested that expressing an interest in working for a non-profit might give applicants an advantage.

“A lot of law students at Ivy League law schools want the lucrative law firm job after law school, with all the luxuries that come with it,” said Ricardo Henriquez law. “Law students who want to enter public service are rare and very appreciated by admission boards.”

Northwestern University’s law school places an unusual emphasis on spending time in the real world. According to the admissions website, 95 percent of entering students have at least one year of work experience.

Last year 556 Cornell students applied to law school. While most applicants follow the traditional path of studying for the LSAT and searching for legal internships, other students are resorting to more creative methods. In the Kaplan survey, 48 percent of law admissions officers reported that they or a fellow admissions officer at their school had received a friend