Law school is daunting for students from any socioeconomic background. But it is especially difficult for underprivileged students who often do not have the resources for a rigorous admissions process of impending deadlines, time-consuming applications, and the notorious Law School Admissions Test, or LSAT.

These students also face competition of the highest caliber. Last year UC Davis School of Law received 3,493 applications for only 200 slots.

Because of the nature of the application process itself, first generation and economically disadvantaged college students may shy away from law school altogether, said Cristina Gapasin, associate director of admissions for the UC Davis law school. This is something the law school would like to change, she added.

'Take apart admissions process'

"The biggest doubt or concern is that they don't know what to do," said Gapasin. "If no one in your family has ever gone to law school before, let alone college, you have no one to look up to or turn to for advice."

To help those types of students, the law school launched a Pre-Law Boot Camp in 2006. In this program, the law school works with a select group of high-potential undergraduate students from educationally and economically disadvantaged backgrounds to prepare for law school admission. They meet once a month, February through May, for a full-day of workshops, presentations, and field trips on pre-law preparation and law school admission.

"We take apart the admissions process, piece by piece, until they understand what needs to be done," said Gapasin. "We set goals. We prepare for the Law School Admissions Test. We write personal statements and craft resumes."

Current participants are developing strategies and creating a work plan to apply to law school in fall 2009 or 2010. They are building support systems among themselves, as well as finding role models within the law school's diverse faculty and student body.

"Boot Camp exposed me to all the aspects of the law school application proces," said student Michelle Hugard, who is in the class of 2010. "Before I was a participant, I thought that there was some secret to applying to law schools that everyone else but me knew about. Boot Camp provided helpful tips on everything from the LSAT to the application packet."

Gapasin noted, "Not having someone to serve as a role model makes it difficult to aim high. Like everything that is unknown, it seems like the process is overwhelming, but with planning and goal setting, they can get through it."

Each year, Boot Camp helps about 20 students begin the process of realizing their dream of becoming a lawyer. At no cost to the participant, participants earn the benefit of workshops, mentoring, presentations, individual pre-law advising including their own pre-law action plan, critiqued writing assignments, and possible scholarship assistance for an LSAT prep course.

Professors often find the involvement rewarding. "They want the program to succeed, and by sharing their own personal stories, it gives the Boot Campers the motivation to go on this journey," Gapasin said.

For Hugard, the most surprising challenge of the law school application process was the personal statement. It is tough to write about oneself so personally.

"The law school personal statement and addendums were the most difficult part of applying to law schools," she said. "I wanted to make sure my statement really conveyed why I wanted to be admitted to law school. It sounds like a simple task, but it was much harder than I thought."

Hugard, who had wanted to be a lawyer since age 6, was glad the Boot Camp gave her the tools and insights to cope with the process. She understands she is among the fortunate.

"Being in the program," she said, "made me realize that I didn't need to make excuses for my personal and family life. Instead, I needed to focus on how those experiences made me a good candidate for law school and how they would help me to succeed in the future. I think this is an issue that many people with disadvantaged backgrounds worry about."

Above all, motivation counts, she said.

"There were times I doubted that I would be able to become an attorney. Some of my close friends and family members thought it was a silly dream that would never happen. I took those negative remarks as a form of inspiration," said Hugard.

The Boot Camp is one of only a handful of pre-law programs in the country specifically designed to attract diversity to the legal profession, according to the law school.

"People need to be represented by lawyers who look like them and can empathize with their customs and beliefs," Gapasin said.

For more information on the School of Law's outreach efforts: www.law.ucdavis.edu/admissions/outreach.shtml. Charlene Burnett Logan, senior editor in the law school, contributed to this article.