Getting into law school can be particularly complicated for many minority applicants — from the expense of test prep courses to the cost of actually applying to schools. There are other knowledge gaps, too (article available here).
Many first generation college grads applying to law school don't know the ins and outs of the application process. They have no personal connections to people who can help guide them through the process and may not know, for instance, the disadvantage of applying to law school late in the application cycle.
A 2015 study by the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the law was the least racially diverse profession in the country, and it remains among the top.
That's not all. As of 2020, the American Bar Association reported that 86% of all lawyers were non-Hispanic whites. To put that in context, while African Americans make up 13.4% of the U.S. population, they make up only 5% of all lawyers. And amazingly, that percentage has not budged in 10 years.
Minority applicants likely do not share the same mentorship and networking relationships that more privileged applicants rely on to learn the importance of applying early. They may not know that as space in the entering class shrinks, competition increases, and admission offers diminish as time goes by. During the 2017-18 admissions cycle, 43% of Black applicants and 36% of Latino applicants applied in March or later — compared to only 29% of white applicants.