Q: You'll sleep better and wake up more refreshed if you set up a consistent sleep schedule for every dayweekdays, weekends, even summer vacation! If you stay up late and sleep late on weekends, for instance, your body has more trouble figuring out when it's "sleep" time and "awake" time. In the best case scenario, you'll be able to convince everyone in your family to adopt their own consistent, year-round sleep schedules. Otherwise, see if everyone can agree to slowly adjust their schedules (for instance, from the school year to summer vacation) over several days or a couple of weeks. That way, the entire household routine isn't changed dramatically overnight. If you sleep on a consistent schedulesay, 9:00 pm to 7:00 amand are getting enough sleep for your body's needs, you should rarely if ever need an alarm clock. If you struggle to get up at the right time, it nearly always means you're not getting enough sleep. Move your bedtime back by 15-minute increments every 3 nights until you start waking up on your own at the right time. Then use this as your consistent sleep schedule. Even small amounts of caffeine can affect peopleespecially kidsfor hours after drinking it. Try to keep your caffeine intake to a minimum anyway, but especially avoid things like energy drinks and soda after mid-afternoon. If you need caffeine to help you wake up or stay awake, you aren't getting enough sleep. Sugar will make you more energetic and make it harder for you to fall asleep. Instead of having a sugary nighttime snack, try having lightly seasoned popcorn or nuts. Exercise is great for your health, but working out too late in the day can give you a burst of energy and alertness that will keep you awake at bedtime. Instead, aim to fit in your hour or more of daily exercise anytime before dinner. The goal is to do moderate exercise, which means you're breathing heavier but can still carry on a conversation. Gym class, recess, and play time after school can all count towards your 60 minutes. Exercising earlier in the day will help to tire you out for bedtime! The "blue light" emitted by electronic devices with screens affects your body's internal sleep mechanisms and can keep you awake at night. Turn off the TV and put away your phone and tablet well before you start your bedtime routine. Reading an old-fashioned paper book is a far better choice for bedtime! Develop a consistent routine that signals to your mind and body that it's time to calm down, slow down, and prepare to sleep. A warm bath, maybe with some calming bubbles added, could serve as the first signal that your bedtime routine has begun. You might also try deep breathing exercises, meditation, prayer, or simply having a calming chat with a loved one. Reading something that's calming and pleasing can help push your worries away for bedtime. Sometimes, though, it's even better to write in order to clear your mind. Pull out a journal and pencil and jot down what you accomplished today and what you look forward to doing tomorrow. It's great to be able to focus on happy things in your journal, but it's also OK to write about your concerns or fears. Taking the time to put them down on paper can help to get them out of your head. Just try to end your writing session on a positive note. Put on a CD of your favorite soothing songs or sounds if that's what helps you drift off to sleep. Or, try one of the time-honored tricks like counting sheep or counting backward from 100believe it or not, they really can work! Focusing on something simple and inconsequentiallike "...62, 61, 60, 59"will help clear your mind of distractions and might make falling asleep happen much quicker.
A: Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Move your bedtime back until you can wake up on time without help. Don't drink any caffeine within 5 hours of bedtime. Avoid eating sugar before bed. Exercise for at least 60 minutes each day, but not after dinner. Stop looking at electronics screens at least an hour before bedtime. Take a soothing bath or do other relaxing activities. Read happy stories and write in a journal to clear your mind. Play relaxing music or count backward in your head.

Q: International law is a highly-competitive field. Attorneys who practice in this area often work for international organizations, such as the United Nations or the World Bank. Alternately, international lawyers can work for large firms on cross-border deals involving corporations in different countries. These kind of jobs are difficult to get. Even if you graduate law school and pass the bar, you very well might not be able to get one of these jobs. Competition to get a job with an international non-governmental organization (NGO) will be fierce. There are very few international human rights jobs, period. In fact, breaking into this field is extremely challenging. Furthermore, most cross-border deals are done by large law firms, which are the most selective. You are expected to be near the top of your class and to have graduated from a selective law school in order to be hired at international law firms. Against your job prospects you also should weigh how you will finance your legal education. The cost of a legal education has exploded in the past decade. Students routinely pay over $30,000 a year in tuition alone, which does not include additional costs for living expenses. If you are not careful, you could graduate law school $200,000 in debt. CAS is used by all law schools. You send them your transcripts, letters of recommendation, and evaluation; they create a packet and send it to the law school. The service requires a fee. Register early and make sure to get your transcripts to CAS in a timely manner. Now is the time to draw on the relationships you have built up with faculty during your undergraduate career. Ask your professors if they can write you a strong letter of recommendation. Only follow through if that professor says "yes." If you didn't build strong relationships with faculty, don't despair. You can also ask for recommendations from present and past employers, as well as from people associated with church or volunteer organizations. Some recommenders may need to be prompted to complete the letter. Send a friendly email reminder, or stop in to chat. Law schools require that you write a short statement, typically on a topic of your choosing. The statement is usually only 500 words. Follow the directions. If the school wants you to write on a specific topic, write on that topic. Also, if they give you a word limit, stick to the limit. Going over, by even a few words, can harm your chances of admission. Feel free to write about your interest in international law. You may want to write about your experience studying abroad. Whatever you write about, make sure that it is fresh, engaging, and memorable. You also should feel free to write about any subject that you want. You do not have to explain why you want to be a lawyer (unless the prompt specifies that you should write about that subject). An addendum can be a great way to explain something that looks bad in your application. A solid addendum will provide context for any information that might raise "red flags." Red flags include criminal convictions, punishment for cheating or plagiarism, or semesters with very low grades. An addendum might also clarify why one LSAT score is much higher than another. Remember to explain in your addendum, not make excuses.
A:
Decide if being an international law attorney is really for you. Register with the Credential Assembly Service (CAS). Solicit letters of recommendation. Draft a personal statement. Think about writing an addendum.