Law School Preparation Institute
Participants of the Law School Preparation Institute (LSPI) receiving legal education from the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project (ProBAR), a project of the American Bar Association Commission on Immigration, Texas State Bar, and American Immigration Lawyers Association.
History of LSPI
Perhaps there is some irony to be found in the origins of the Texas Law School.
Preparation Institutes. Had Cheryl Hopwood and her colleagues not prevailed in their suit against the University of Texas College of Law, the need for such institutes might not have been established. But, in point of fact, she did prevail. Following the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Hopwood v. State of Texas decision in 1996, prohibiting the use of race/ethnicity in admissions procedures, the University of Texas System created the Law School Partnership Task Force to suggest strategies that might increase the number of minority students applying to law school in general and the University of Texas Law School in particular. The LSPTF was composed of representatives from System, UT Law School, and the four System components with predominantly Hispanic and Latino/a/x student populations: UTEP, UTPA, and UTSA (UT-Austin added a LSPI in 2022). Dr. Jerry Polinard represented UTPA on the LSPTF.
UTEP proposed and implemented the first Law School Preparation Institute (LSPI) in 1998. UTPA began its institute in 2001 and UTSA the following year. The program continued upon the creation of UTRGV in 2015, and – despite the COVID-19 pandemic and operational challenges – LSPI has been held at UTRGV every summer. Dr. Polinard was the director of the program from its inception until his retirement in 2018. Upon Dr. Polinard’s retirement, Dr. Charles Olney served as director until 2022. Dr. Andrew Smith took over LSPI in 2022 and is the current director.
Program Overview
We are pleased to invite you to apply to participate in the UTRGV Law School Preparation Institute (LSPI). This is a summer program designed to provide rigorous coursework that will introduce students to the expectations and techniques of law school. It is ideally suited to those students who are strongly committed to pursuing a legal career and would like the challenge of engaging the legal process.
Recent LSPI students have gone on to law school at the University of Texas, Baylor, the University of Colorado, St. Mary’s University School of Law, Southern Methodist University, Texas Tech, the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Creighton University School of Law, and South Texas College of Law, among others. If your ambition is to go to law school, there is no better program on campus than LSPI. We hope you will take this opportunity to join us.
LSPI is offered in connection with UTRGV Political Science courses POLS 4390/4391. Successful applicants will be enrolled in these courses and will receive the normal 6 advanced credit hours upon successful completion of the term. For those who are Legal Studies minors, these courses also fulfill 6 of the required 15 elective hours for the minor.
The institute focuses on the following goals:
- Developing analytical and critical reading and writing skills
- Introducing UTRGV students to legal research and writing
- Guiding UTRGV students in selecting and applying to law schools
- Preparing UTRGV students for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT)
- Providing prospective law schools with a substantive account of an applicant’s abilities to succeed as a law student
LSPI is scheduled for the second summer session (July 17 – August 22, 2025). LSPI students participate in intensive classes designed to give them the opportunity to build the analytical skills, problem solving skills, critical reading skills and writing skills to become better candidates for law school and better students generally. Although preparation for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) will comprise a portion of the course, LSPI is not meant to be only an LSAT prep course. It is instead an introduction to the law school curriculum and a primer on the practice of being a lawyer.
There will be morning and afternoon sessions Monday through Friday, and all sessions (save select off-campus site visits) will take place in person on the Edinburg campus. There are no options for remote sessions. Daily attendance is mandatory for every day of the session. For this reason, you should plan to significantly limit other commitments during the five weeks of LSPI, and you may not take additional classes during LSPI.
Requirements for Admission
Admission to the institute is very competitive. No more than fifteen to twenty students (depending on the application pool) are selected to participate in the program. Students of all majors are eligible, but they must have completed 45 hours of college credit by the start of the program. Students will be selected based on academic achievement and promise, maturity of interest in law school, and likelihood that the program will make a significant difference in their ability to be accepted and succeed in law school. Generally, students admitted to the program have at least a 3.0 GPA, but we do look at the totality of a student’s application. Students who would be the first in their immediate family to attend law school are especially encouraged to apply.
Students will be responsible for all tuition and fees. Scholarships will defer some of these fees, but the amount of available scholarship money is not yet certified, and we can only guarantee scholarships for US citizens and lawful permanent residents. Books will be provided for free.
Application Process Overview
If you choose to apply, please complete the online application, available at this link (LSPI Application). The priority deadline for applications is Friday, February 14th, by 11:59 PM. Applications will be accepted after the priority deadline, but admission may only be awarded if space is available.
A completed application will have the following:
- The completed application form through the link above.
- A copy of all college transcripts (unofficial are fine) must be sent to Dr. Andrew Smith (andrew.smith@utrgv.edu)
- Your response to the personal essay question
- Your resume or CV, with relevant work/extracurricular activities
- 2 letters of recommendation from faculty members, employers, etc. who know you and can attest to your capabilities. These letters must be sent separately to Dr. Andrew Smith (andrew.smith@utrgv.edu)
Applications received after February 14th will only be considered if there are spots left. If you have any questions, please email the LSPI Program Director, Dr. Andrew Smith, at andrew.smith@utrgv.edu.
For more information, contact:
Dr. Andrew H. Smith, Pre-Law Advisor for Edinburg, Director of the Law School Preparation Institute (LSPI)
Office: Edinburg, ELABN 204
Phone: 956-665-8854