Seat Deposit Fees. What are they?

Pride Only Hurts

Hey guys, applying to law school is really expensive. More expensive than I realized. The LSAC CAS fee really through me for a loop and with Christmas around the corner I'm sure other were also crushed by all these fees. I recently saw someone mention Seat deposit fees on a reddit thread and I'm curious if anyone can clarify what these are and if this is something I need to consider when crunching numbers.

LSATcantwin

They’re freaking expensive. They are like a down payment on your spot at the school. Each school you are accepted to will have a “deadline” where you need to submit a seat deposit securing your spot in the class.

This becomes and issue for people who are waitlisted at “better” schools or at schools they want to attend. They end up having to pay the seat deposit at the school that took them, but then if the waitlisted school accepts them they lose that seat deposit money, AND have to pay the new deposit at the school they have been accepted off the waitlist at.

Pride Only Hurts

@LSATcantwin said:

This becomes and issue for people who are waitlisted at “better” schools or at schools they want to attend. They end up having to pay the seat deposit at the school that took them, but then if the waitlisted school accepts them they lose that seat deposit money, AND have to pay the new deposit at the school they have been accepted off the waitlist at.

Got it. So do most students who blanket t-14 end up paying for multiple seat deposits while you're negotiating scholarship money/waiting to get off a waitlist? Or is a seat deposit a commitment?

LSATcantwin

Yep, many people pay 2-3 deposits or more. And some are up to like $1000

Pride Only Hurts

@LSATcantwin said:
Yep, many people pay 2-3 deposits or more. And some are up to like $1000

Wow. This is really good to know. At least I'm not finding out a month before the deposits are due.

Leah M B

FYI, be careful if you decide to deposit at multiple places. I know some people do it, but it also is looked on very negatively by many schools. LSAC issues a report to schools on May 15th that shows if students have deposited at multiple schools. Make sure to read fine print and go by the rules for what schools ask for or they could rescind your spot. This part of the process gets really tricky and in the weeds, but I'm sure there will be many conversations around here about it as the time gets closer.

Schools are not allowed to ask for seat deposits any earlier than April 1. Most schools' deposit deadlines are around early to mid-April. Some are May or later. So you have a little while to save up for it, but it is good to be aware of that cost for sure.

Here is a good post with information on multiple deposits:

https://www.annaivey.com/iveyfiles/is-it-ok-to-put-down-multiple-deposits