Becoming a Member

The Virginia Law Review consists of approximately one hundred second- and third-year law students of the University of Virginia. The Law Review seeks students from diverse backgrounds and experiences who are dedicated, collaborative, and exhibit strong analytical skills.

Every year the Virginia Law Review selects 50 first-year law students for membership. All students wishing to apply must participate in the writing competition and submit a personal statement for consideration. Fifteen editors are selected based solely on their writing competition scores. Ten editors are selected based solely on their academic performance, provided they score in the top 90% of the writing competition. Twenty-five editors are selected through an anonymized holistic review process that evaluates their personal statement, academic performance, and writing competition scores.

Important Dates: 

• Late February – Early March: The Unified Journal Tryout traditionally is held over two consecutive weekends.
• July: The new Editorial Board is announced after grades are tabulated and the evaluation of journal tryouts is completed.
• August: Mandatory week-long training in Charlottesville for new members of the Editorial Board. Dates will be provided when invitations are extended to new members.

Note-On Policy

Any student whose Note or Online piece is selected to be published is invited to become a member. The Note must be accepted for publication by March 1 of the student's final year of law school. Information about Notes submission is available here, and information about Online submission is available here.

Transfer Students

Any transfer student who wishes to apply to the Virginia Law Review may participate in the Unified Journal Tryout at the beginning of their first Fall semester.