Just checking in

Rigid Designator

Hi everyone,

Been a while since I posted. How's everyone doing? Just wanted to check in, say how my cycle is going, and send love to anyone else out there riding this slow, slow cycle.

I ended up with a 169 LSAT, which was disappointing given my PT average and my last fresh PT. The LSAC engaged in some last minute shenanigans and changed our exam from an afternoon one to a morning one, which didn't exactly calm me down. And I was unwell the week of the test, right through to test-day. In the U.K. we call this Sod's Law.

As for applications, I almost blanketed the T-14, and also Vanderbilt. Let me just say, I was naïve to think GULC, Cornell and Vandy were safety schools. Lord, have mercy. So far I've had 4 waitlists (GULC, Cornell, Michigan, Columbia) and 4 rejections (Penn, NYU, Chicago, Harvard). The Cornell waitlist stung the most as I really liked the school and didn't think my interview went badly. Was pleasantly surprised by Columbia. For context, I don't have a GPA as my undergrad is international.

Hope everyone on here is doing well. Whatever you're doing, just remember that you're a beautiful, valued person who isn't defined by a number!

Leah M B

It's so great to hear updates! This cycle is certainly slow and painful lol. I didn't apply until mostly January though, so I've been waiting less time than a lot of people. But since the deposit dates are in April, I'm feeling a lot of stress about hearing back with enough time to make an informed decision. 😬

So far I'm 5 for 6 - in at Seattle U, U of Washington, UCI, WUSTL and (my big win) Cornell. Just got WL at USC. 😑 Those "safety schools" can sneak up on you haha. Still waiting to hear back from Berkeley, Northwestern, Michigan (just applied a couple days ago though so no expectations hah), UCLA, Lewis & Clark, and U of Oregon. I may throw out another last minute app or 2, but that is probably just my anxiety and lack of confidence talking haha.

Would love to hear from more folks who are in the middle of this craziness!

FixedDice

So far I've had 4 waitlists (GULC, Cornell, Michigan, Columbia)... Was pleasantly surprised by Columbia.

I am not a fan of breaking bad news, but Columbia is infamous for its waitlist admittance rate: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=225363

This is not to imply, of course, that getting waitlisted by Columbia is an insignificant feat. It is entirely impossible for some Reserve applicants to be admitted off the waitlist. If you turn out to be one of those people, feel free to point your finger at my ID and laugh at me.

BinghamtonDave

Congrats @"Leah M B" !

Leah M B

@BinghamtonDave said:
Congrats @"Leah M B" !

Thank you! 😁 How is your cycle going?

kpj744___

So I'm not up there with you Big League-ers, but I can share stories. I have applied to 7 schools so far, and thinking about 2 more. The first was back at the end of January. I heard back already from one of my schools, literally 11 days after I submitted the app, with some money. I was BLOWN away by that because it wasn't the first submitted app so I didn't expect to hear anything for another couple weeks, at least. I'm thinking positive vibes for all you T14 people!!!

PutABirdOnIt

@"Leah M B" said:
So far I'm 5 for 6 - in at Seattle U, U of Washington, UCI, WUSTL and (my big win) Cornell. Just got WL at USC. 😑 Those "safety schools" can sneak up on you haha. Still waiting to hear back from Berkeley, Northwestern, Michigan (just applied a couple days ago though so no expectations hah), UCLA, Lewis & Clark, and U of Oregon. I may throw out another last minute app or 2, but that is probably just my anxiety and lack of confidence talking haha.

Are you NW based? I’m at the start of the LSAT process, studying for the fall 2020 cycle, and I’m really curious what the experience for NW schools- UW, UO, and Lewis and Clark- is like, and what they offer for scholarships. I have heard from alum that Lewis and Clark is stingy, though, I don’t know what their admittance stats were.

Best of luck to you! If you want to practice in the NW, you can’t beat UW for a school in the region, so kudos on that acceptance.

Leah M B

@PutABirdOnIt said:

@"Leah M B" said:
So far I'm 5 for 6 - in at Seattle U, U of Washington, UCI, WUSTL and (my big win) Cornell. Just got WL at USC. 😑 Those "safety schools" can sneak up on you haha. Still waiting to hear back from Berkeley, Northwestern, Michigan (just applied a couple days ago though so no expectations hah), UCLA, Lewis & Clark, and U of Oregon. I may throw out another last minute app or 2, but that is probably just my anxiety and lack of confidence talking haha.

Are you NW based? I’m at the start of the LSAT process, studying for the fall 2020 cycle, and I’m really curious what the experience for NW schools- UW, UO, and Lewis and Clark- is like, and what they offer for scholarships. I have heard from alum that Lewis and Clark is stingy, though, I don’t know what their admittance stats were.

Best of luck to you! If you want to practice in the NW, you can’t beat UW for a school in the region, so kudos on that acceptance.

Thank you! And yep, I’m in Seattle. I’m a little on the fence about if I want to go to a NW school or focus on going to the best overall school that I can. The NW is a pretty insular place with a small legal market. So, if you 100% want to work in the area, it’s best to go to a local school. But I feel like going to NW schools limits your employment prospects elsewhere. So, it’s a tough call for me. Kind of blanketing all the schools I can and seeing what shakes out.

UW is a great school and by far the best in the area. They have the lowest tuition, but also generally give very small scholarships, which ends up with it being much more expensive. Seattle U and L&C I think are similar, not sure if they give anyone full tuition scholarships. But I think at the top end they give close to full tuition.

Oregon is I think the school that gives out the most in scholarships and Eugene has a crazy cheap cost of living. I think financially it could be my best option. I don’t know a ton about Willamette, but it’s in my hometown which is sort of a pro and a con and I have very mixed feelings about haha. At this point, not planning on applying there. But I’ve heard they place really well for government jobs (they’re in the state capital) and the cost of living there is again suuuuper low.

The Oregon schools are I think all sort of interchangeable, but they all have some kind of scary employment stats. For Washington, UW is obv the leader, but I hesitate to think it’s worth how much it costs since their scholarship offers are usually crazy low and Seattle is a super expensive city. I don’t know a ton about Gonzaga, but from what I’ve heard, it’s hyper local. Once you graduate, you are almost guaranteed to only find work in the Spokane area. Very difficult to leave the area. But if you want to work in Spokane, it can be a good option.

Happy to answer if you have any more specific questions! I’m not really well versed in these, but I’m applying for the 2nd time this year so I’ve just been hanging out on these law school forums and researching for quite a while haha. Hope some of that helps!

PutABirdOnIt

@"Leah M B" said:
Happy to answer if you have any more specific questions! I’m not really well versed in these, but I’m applying for the 2nd time this year so I’ve just been hanging out on these law school forums and researching for quite a while haha. Hope some of that helps!

Your analysis of NW schools and employment are very on point and similar to what I’ve gleaned as well. Definitely agree that going to a NW school could make it hard to find employment elsewhere. As an Oregonian, I am jealous of your potential in-state tuition for UW! Having lived in both states, I internally cry at the lack of reciprocity for residents of border states.

Do you think you want to stay in the NW, or practice elsewhere? I have lived in the NW my whole life, and know I’ll eventually want to practice here, whether it ends up being WA or OR. Having said that, my inclination would be to attend the very best school I possibly can, unless a local school would offer significant financial aid. If you maybe want to end up practicing in a different state, I would definitely prioritize national ranking and employment prospects.

It seems like you’ll have some great options this cycle- exciting stuff! 😄