UMiami vs. UF Forum

[msv5010]

Thanks for your response and sorry I should have clarified what I meant by all other things equal. I'm from NJ but I have a home in Naples (which apparently could qualify me for residency at FSU but not UF according to both admissions offices). In other words, I'm very familiar with both areas and would be open to working in either location. I consider the two schools pretty similar in prestige in their respective locations, so I'm thinking about the pros and cons of each. The biggest con for Miami is the potential to pay 38k if I were to lose the scholarship as opposed to 20k at Rutgers if I lost it there.

With that said, I've heard people mention negotiating the GPA minimum, but never someone saying they had done it. I was hoping if anyone on here has had success, I could get some advice as to strategy. Thanks

[GatorStudent]

I am interested to hear if anyone has actually heard of the GPA maintenance requirement attached to a scholarship being negotiated away. I would love to give such negotiation a shot myself if it is known to have been done successfully and recently.

I've seen quite a few people on LSN do it. When I was a 0L, I had quite a few places give more more money when I asked (actually, Miami went from giving me 0 to 25k, incredibly), but I found that (for me, at least) the GPA requirement was harder to get rid of. I think they plan on so many people losing it, and saving money.

[sarlis]

I am interested to hear if anyone has actually heard of the GPA maintenance requirement attached to a scholarship being negotiated away. I would love to give such negotiation a shot myself if it is known to have been done successfully and recently.

I've seen quite a few people on LSN do it. When I was a 0L, I had quite a few places give more more money when I asked (actually, Miami went from giving me 0 to 25k, incredibly), but I found that (for me, at least) the GPA requirement was harder to get rid of. I think they plan on so many people losing it, and saving money.

what were the kinds of things you said to UMiami to get them from 0 to 25k if you don't mind sharing?

if u feel more comfortable PMing, then don't hesitate!!

[GatorStudent]

I've seen quite a few people on LSN do it. When I was a 0L, I had quite a few places give more more money when I asked (actually, Miami went from giving me 0 to 25k, incredibly), but I found that (for me, at least) the GPA requirement was harder to get rid of. I think they plan on so many people losing it, and saving money.

what were the kinds of things you said to UMiami to get them from 0 to 25k if you don't mind sharing?

if u feel more comfortable PMing, then don't hesitate!!

No, I don't feel uncomfortable sharing on here. I'm a 2L, and my cycle is long-over!

IIRC, I kept my scholarship requests (I did this for more than one school) short-and-sweet, and was very polite. I said that Miami was one of my top choices, and I (quite boldly, but what did I have to lose? They offered me nothing, and it wasn't realistic that I would go there with no scholarship money) noticed that quite a few people with similar "stats" got a lot of money. I think I also mentioned that UF was one of my top choices, and I wish I could remember if I missed anything. (Sorry, my cycle seems so long ago!)

[sarlis]

I've seen quite a few people on LSN do it. When I was a 0L, I had quite a few places give more more money when I asked (actually, Miami went from giving me 0 to 25k, incredibly), but I found that (for me, at least) the GPA requirement was harder to get rid of. I think they plan on so many people losing it, and saving money.

what were the kinds of things you said to UMiami to get them from 0 to 25k if you don't mind sharing?

if u feel more comfortable PMing, then don't hesitate!!

No, I don't feel uncomfortable sharing on here. I'm a 2L, and my cycle is long-over!

IIRC, I kept my scholarship requests (I did this for more than one school) short-and-sweet, and was very polite. I said that Miami was one of my top choices, and I (quite boldly, but what did I have to lose? They offered me nothing, and it wasn't realistic that I would go there with no scholarship money) noticed that quite a few people with similar "stats" got a lot of money. I think I also mentioned that UF was one of my top choices, and I wish I could remember if I missed anything. (Sorry, my cycle seems so long ago!)[/quote]

Thank you, that is great advice!

[Cupidity]

Ok, I know this is three pages in, but I hope you read this.

As a floridian, I had a skewed understanding of the value of UM, because they are in many ways the top undergrad in the state, and they have nationally ranked programs in pre-med and other areas. However, their law school is terrible. I can't find the article, but last year they actually paid about 10-15% of their incoming class to defer because of problems at the school. UF's instate tuittion is probably cheaper than whatever you are looking at for your after $$ price to Miami, and you can achieve instate after first year if you get on it.

[sarlis]

Ok, I know this is three pages in, but I hope you read this.

As a floridian, I had a skewed understanding of the value of UM, because they are in many ways the top undergrad in the state, and they have nationally ranked programs in pre-med and other areas. However, their law school is terrible. I can't find the article, but last year they actually paid about 10-15% of their incoming class to defer because of problems at the school. UF's instate tuittion is probably cheaper than whatever you are looking at for your after $$ price to Miami, and you can achieve instate after first year if you get on it.

I heard they paid people to defer because they had too many people try to matriculate; which I can see happening anywhere.

[Pleadthe5th]

Ok, I know this is three pages in, but I hope you read this.

As a floridian, I had a skewed understanding of the value of UM, because they are in many ways the top undergrad in the state, and they have nationally ranked programs in pre-med and other areas. However, their law school is terrible. I can't find the article, but last year they actually paid about 10-15% of their incoming class to defer because of problems at the school. UF's instate tuittion is probably cheaper than whatever you are looking at for your after $$ price to Miami, and you can achieve instate after first year if you get on it.

I think you may have misunderstood my situation. I already have in state tuition for Florida and the $$ from Miami makes the tuition equal to Florida's. I'm curious as to what your reasons are for saying Miami Law is "terrible". Is it the professors, classes, employment prospects???

[sarlis]

Ok, I know this is three pages in, but I hope you read this.

As a floridian, I had a skewed understanding of the value of UM, because they are in many ways the top undergrad in the state, and they have nationally ranked programs in pre-med and other areas. However, their law school is terrible. I can't find the article, but last year they actually paid about 10-15% of their incoming class to defer because of problems at the school. UF's instate tuittion is probably cheaper than whatever you are looking at for your after $$ price to Miami, and you can achieve instate after first year if you get on it.

I think you may have misunderstood my situation. I already have in state tuition for Florida and the $$ from Miami makes the tuition equal to Florida's. I'm curious as to what your reasons are for saying Miami Law is "terrible". Is it the professors, classes, employment prospects???

I am interested in this, too.

[Bmg08d]

in terms of ranking best law schools, FSU has the highest bar passage rate.

[sarlis]

in terms of ranking best law schools, FSU has the highest bar passage rate.

That statistic alone would not get me to chose one school over another