Seats Open in WGS 203, Winter Session

Prerequisites may be able to be waived, if appropriate.

Free LSAT Practice Tests Online from Kaplan

Note, the CSI Legal Studies Institute has no formal relationship or financial relationship with the Kaplan Company.  Free resources are obviously marketing tools.  MP.

Your students might be looking ahead to their semester or simply enjoying their time off, but the winter break can actually be a great time to start prepping. I recommend that they start with a practice test, which can help them set a goal score and get a realistic idea of how they would do. Our online practice test includes answers and explanations as well as a detailed recommendation of where they can focus their attention as they set up their 2020 prep plan.

Copy & paste the link below to send to your students: How would you score if you took the LSAT today? Kaplan can help you get familiar with what to expect on test day with our free, online practice tests.

CSI Student Newspaper, The Banner, Covering LSI Lifetime Achievement Award Ceremony

Celebrating Legal Studies On Campus And In New York

BY BANNER STAFF ON 12/13/2019• ( LEAVE A COMMENT )

Following the Law at CSI

By: James M. Bitetzakis

Honoree Yolanda Rudich was a prominent lawyer of the State and City of New York. Credit: James M. Bitezakis

On October 25th, the Legal Studies Institute (LSI) of CSI held their first ever Lifetime Achievement Awards Ceremony and Fundraiser for New York renowned lawyer Yolanda Rudich.

The ultimate goal of this event was to raise funds for the LSI of CSI and to honor an amazing lawyer who graduated from CSI in 1979.

“We are about a fair shot at the American Dream,” said Professor and Pre-Law Advisor Michael Paris at the event. “We take it seriously, I take it seriously.” 

 Many different New York lawyers all with roots to CSI attended and donated to the LSI, including Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon.

The honoree, Yolanda Rudich, was a prominent lawyer in the State and City of New York. She served in the Richmond County Special Victims Unit and was President of the Staten Island Women’s Bar Association. 

Professor Paris helped establish the LSI in 2014 as a subsection of the Department of Political Science and Global Affairs, and the Department of Philosophy. The LSI has multiple aspects to it which aim to assist any students interested in law across the campus.

Before 2014, law specialization at CSI was lacking, and it put students at a disadvantage compared to other New York schools. The creation of the LSI opened the door for students interested in going to law school, and even led to the college’s Pre-Law Society Club.

At the core of the LSI is a new program of study, a 16-credit minor in legal studies. The LSI also hosts countless workshops for students interested in law school, an annual lecture in law, philosophy and public policy, and pre-law advising and career counseling for all CSI students.

One opportunity the LSI offers students is the chance to intern. There are CSI students currently interning with the Staten Island District Attorney’s Office and the Legal Aid’s Criminal Defense. 

These internships provide future law students with relevant experience and even builds their rapport with other lawyers they work with. 

The LSI is the parent of the Pre-Law Club, with Professor Paris as the club facilitator. The Pre-Law Club was founded last year by student Maxwell Velikodny.

“Back in my freshman year, I went to the club fair to join a Pre-Law club, but there was actually none,” said Velikodny. “I decided I had to start one, and I wanted to create a place for anyone interested in Pre-Law to come and enjoy the subject.”

The Pre-Law Club strives to be a welcoming place where any student can come to talk and learn about law. The club also works to prepare students for law school after CSI. 

“As a freshman, the thought of law school and the LSAT is an overwhelming thought,” explains club member Stephanie Pisano. “But being involved in the Pre-Law Club is helping me soak this all in.”

Just recently, the Pre-Law Club went over the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). The LSAT is one of the most important tests a future law school student can take, as it can make or break their admission application. 

The club devoted an entire meeting to test practice and gave countless tips for handling each section. 

The Pre-Law Club is fairly new compared to other clubs at the college, and everyone in the club has a desire to see it grow in the coming years.

“We are trying to recruit people on campus to join via word of mouth, email, and social media,” said Velikodny. “I am genuinely excited about the future of the club.”

The Pre-Law club meets every Tuesday at 2:30pm in Building 2N, Basement Room 005. 

Free Weekend LSAT Prep Bootcamp at St. John's Law School, March-Oct 2020; Deadline to Apply: Jan. 10

Do you know anyone who has always dreamed of going to law school but never had the support or resources?  Maybe a former student or a paralegal at your firm?  Maybe you? Thanks to a generous grant from AccessLex Institute, the Ronald H. Brown Law School Prep Program at St. John’s Law proudly announces a new program dedicated to helping adult learners achieve their dreams: the new Weekend LSAT Boot Camp.  This freeprogram aims to serve working professionals, recent college graduates, and college seniors in the New York City area from historically underrepresented groups who want to pursue a career in the law. Participants will take a comprehensive, customized LSAT prep course and have workshops on the law school admissions process, essays, professionalism, networking, time management, and workplace diversity. There will also be one-on-one mentoring and professional admissions advising and mental and emotional health counseling. The program takes place at St. John’s Law in Queens (8000 Utopia Parkway, Queens, NY 11439).  It begins in late March 2020 and culminates in October 2020 with an event where participants meet one on one with admissions officers from law schools across the country. See our 2020 brochure for more details! To date, over 300 Ron Brown Prep Program alumni have attended more than 50 top law schools across the country, including: Harvard; Yale; Boston College; Columbia; Cornell; Fordham; Emory; Georgetown; Howard; NYU; St. John’s; UC Berkeley; UCLA; U of Michigan; and Vanderbilt. The Weekend 2020 application period opens on December 2, 2019 and closes on Janaury 10th, 2020. In the meantime, we invite you to learn more about us by visiting our website, Twitter, and Instagram. If you have questions, please contact us at stjlawschool11@gmail.com or at 718-990-6653. Together, we’ll further the Ron Brown Prep Program’s mission of increasing racial and socioeconomic diversity in law schools and in the legal profession.  The world is diverse.  The law should be too.