URM 2013-2014 Cycle Thread Forum

[Black_Swan]

Just got $110,000 scholarship from Vandy! This has been such a good day.

Haha Pretty Eyes, you always keep me giggling. Thank you! I'm so grateful for the financial aid awards I've received lately. Just last week I came to terms with the possibility of being in debt for a long time, but it's great to know that that doesn't have to happen. God has blessed me immensely this cycle.

Am I hearing u say u would take a full ride at a Lower ranked school?

[applelover]

Just got $110,000 scholarship from Vandy! This has been such a good day.

Haha Pretty Eyes, you always keep me giggling. Thank you! I'm so grateful for the financial aid awards I've received lately. Just last week I came to terms with the possibility of being in debt for a long time, but it's great to know that that doesn't have to happen. God has blessed me immensely this cycle.

Am I hearing u say u would take a full ride at a Lower ranked school?

Probably. The ruby is pretty hard to say no to. SLS and HLS would have to do something remarkable at their ASWs for me to feel the need to attend either one over Chicago as of right now.

[Black_Swan]

Am I hearing u say u would take a full ride at a Lower ranked school?[/quote]
Probably. The ruby is pretty hard to say no to. SLS and HLS would have to do something remarkable at their ASWs for me to feel the need to attend either one over Chicago as of right now.[/quote]

What is the need based aid like at HYS? I assumed most students would be eligible for some form of aid?

[mt2165]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

[teampeeta]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

I think I am. The debt still worries me, though. I feel like it's harder to get PI jobs right out of school than firm jobs. So what if you can't get one or if you hate the one you get? What if you aren't as committed to whatever ideal inspired you to do it in the first place as you thought you were when you started law school? What if you just don't like having less money? What if you want to be able to support a family? And in that case you still have debt. A LOT OF IT.

I'm obviously still working out how this applies to me. I guess I have to get into HYSCCN before it really becomes an issue.

But I'm super neurotic about law school stuff, so maybe it's just me.

[Black_Swan]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.
On the other hand I could not pay too much to attend HLS. Ever.

[mt2165]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

I think I am. The debt still worries me, though. I feel like it's harder to get PI jobs right out of school than firm jobs. So what if you can't get one or if you hate the one you get? What if you aren't as committed to whatever ideal inspired you to do it in the first place as you thought you were when you started law school? What if you just don't like having less money? What if you want to be able to support a family? And in that case you still have debt. A LOT OF IT.

I'm obviously still working out how this applies to me. I guess I have to get into HYSCCN before it really becomes an issue.

But I'm super neurotic about law school stuff, so maybe it's just me.

Peeta I have had literally all of those exact same worries. It's worrisome I think in the two regards you pretty much mentioned because if you commit to public interest you pretty much are stuck at making within the confines of the LRAP or else you will be destroyed by the debt, and vice versa if you can't get a PI job and move to a firm job you're in the same situation as everyone else and even if you decide to go into PI later (which I guess isn't the eaisest) any money you saved during your biglaw days (if a lot of it didn't go to loan repayment) will be used against you if you try to initiate the LRAP. Idk what to think!!

[mt2165]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.
On the other hand I could not pay too much to attend HLS. Ever.

Yeah that makes some sense but in reality for most people I feel like the career opportunities post CLS and H really aren't that different. Maybe if the need based aid at H was substantially better...

[Black_Swan]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.
On the other hand I could not pay too much to attend HLS. Ever.

Yeah that makes some sense but in reality for most people I feel like the career opportunities post CLS and H really aren't that different. Maybe if the need based aid at H was substantially better...

They are different when u take your degree overseas, at least in public interest.

[logicspeaks]

I'm also dedicated to PI. I think I would take HYS at sticker, NYU close to sticker, and anywhere else with 3/4 ride or more. I also know I want to work in SoCal unless I get a position I reallllllly like, so my decision is going to be kind of tough.

[mt2165]

Is anyone in this thread pretty much devoted to PI/gov work? I am, do you think if you are it's worth taking HYSCCN at sticker assuming you'll qualify for LRAP?

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.
On the other hand I could not pay too much to attend HLS. Ever.

Yeah that makes some sense but in reality for most people I feel like the career opportunities post CLS and H really aren't that different. Maybe if the need based aid at H was substantially better...

They are different when u take your degree overseas, at least in public interest.

Right right, sorry I wasn't thinking internationally....

[EvMont]

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.

I've never understood why this is such a big deal for people. The aggregate projected COA for the class of 2016 for Columbia is only 8k more that Stanford's. NYU's is equal to Stanford's, and Harvard's is only 3k less that those two. So, the crazy cost of living in NYU or Columbia probably should be the deterrent. Paying sticker anyway should be.

Source: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?r=other

[sunsheyen]

Probably. The ruby is pretty hard to say no to. SLS and HLS would have to do something remarkable at their ASWs for me to feel the need to attend either one over Chicago as of right now.

First of all, congratulations on all your acceptances and scholarship offers! I am kind of new here, so bear with me if this stuff has been explained before. You seem to indicate that Chicago is your first choice (I guess based on a full ride scholly). Since you know this, what would the protocol/best course of action be for notifying the other schools that you will not be attending and returning their admission offers/scholarship $$ back to the pot? Is there a generally accepted/"ethical" timeframe for this wrt making opportunities available to others? Anyone else can feel free to chime in as well. I am just wondering about this sort of thing once you get what you REALLY wanted...how quickly should this withdrawal be done, or do most people hang on for a while, just in case?

Oh and what does mean? This isn't something I've seen on other forums I frequent (not Law related).
Thanks!

[August Wilson]

Probably. The ruby is pretty hard to say no to. SLS and HLS would have to do something remarkable at their ASWs for me to feel the need to attend either one over Chicago as of right now.

First of all, congratulations on all your acceptances and scholarship offers! I am kind of new here, so bear with me if this stuff has been explained before. You seem to indicate that Chicago is your first choice (I guess based on a full ride scholly). Since you know this, what would the protocol/best course of action be for notifying the other schools that you will not be attending and returning their admission offers/scholarship $$ back to the pot? Is there a generally accepted/"ethical" timeframe for this wrt making opportunities available to others? Anyone else can feel free to chime in as well. I am just wondering about this sort of thing once you get what you REALLY wanted...how quickly should this withdrawal be done, or do most people hang on for a while, just in case?

Oh and what does mean? This isn't something I've seen on other forums I frequent (not Law related).
Thanks!

Withdraw when you've made a final decision. You don't owe any other applicants any courtesy by withdrawing before you've fully weighed the costs vs. the benefits at each school you've been accepted to. If they're going to get in, they're going to get in. If they're going to get scholly money, they're going to get scholly money. There's no ethical timeline to withdraw other than the deadline imposed by schools to submit a deposit.

[toshiroh]

I don't know... I'm in the same boat as far as being focused on PI/Government work. Then I think about paying sticker.... and then I read the vale of tears... and then I'm like no that wouldn't be me.... and then I read people contemplating suicide... and I'm like but no I'll find something, right? Idk Idk.... I just think the worst in general.

[okaygo]

I don't know... I'm in the same boat as far as being focused on PI/Government work. Then I think about paying sticker.... and then I read the vale of tears... and then I'm like no that wouldn't be me.... and then I read people contemplating suicide... and I'm like but no I'll find something, right? Idk Idk.... I just think the worst in general.

Since you're PI/GOV focused anyway can't this problem be mitigated by making sure you're attending a school with a solid LRAP?

[applelover]

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.

I've never understood why this is such a big deal for people. The aggregate projected COA for the class of 2016 for Columbia is only 8k more that Stanford's. NYU's is equal to Stanford's, and Harvard's is only 3k less that those two. So, the crazy cost of living in NYU or Columbia probably should be the deterrent. Paying sticker anyway should be.

Source: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?r=other

Harvard's housing is significantly cheaper than NYU's. You could live in gropious for around 8-10k. On the other hand the NYU housing options are about 10k more. I have no ties to NY or Cambridge, so if I were to attend either, I would want to live on campus my first year until I'm familiar with the area, meaning that my COL for NYU is going to be 10k+ more than my COL for Harvard. That's not appealing at all.

[toshiroh]

I don't know... I'm in the same boat as far as being focused on PI/Government work. Then I think about paying sticker.... and then I read the vale of tears... and then I'm like no that wouldn't be me.... and then I read people contemplating suicide... and I'm like but no I'll find something, right? Idk Idk.... I just think the worst in general.

Since you're PI/GOV focused anyway can't this problem be mitigated by making sure you're attending a school with a solid LRAP?

That's assuming you qualify for it. I talked to a NYU 3L the other day and he said you have to be careful with their LRAP program. It states that you have to be in a position that involves law, as determined by NYU. According to him, it's easy to think you have something covered under LRAP, when in reality, it really isn't according to NYU. But he's going into big law, so I don't know how accurate his info was.

[AAJD2B]

I'm BIGLAW focused and still scared shitless of the debt. My cap is 150k in student loan debt. If I can have a firm placement both my 1L and 2L summers, I can help mitigate debt. I intend to live cheaply in law school.

That said, I still need to find money to start law school for the moving, books and buying a laptop. To save on costs, I won't be bringing a car. For food, I will try and eat at receptions.

There is so much financial planning g that goes into this process. It can be so daunting. No wonder there are less of us in law school.

[EvMont]

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.

I've never understood why this is such a big deal for people. The aggregate projected COA for the class of 2016 for Columbia is only 8k more that Stanford's. NYU's is equal to Stanford's, and Harvard's is only 3k less that those two. So, the crazy cost of living in NYU or Columbia probably should be the deterrent. Paying sticker anyway should be.

Source: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?r=other

Harvard's housing is significantly cheaper than NYU's. You could live in gropious for around 8-10k. On the other hand the NYU housing options are about 10k more. I have no ties to NY or Cambridge, so if I were to attend either, I would want to live on campus my first year until I'm familiar with the area, meaning that my COL for NYU is going to be 10k+ more than my COL for Harvard. That's not appealing at all.

My understanding is that all of this is considered/included in the cost of attendance numbers the university are required to produce. So, I'm pretty sure those things are accounted for in the LST reports I linked to. But, idk. Maybe I'm missing something.

[okaygo]

I'm BIGLAW focused and still scared shitless of the debt. My cap is 150k in student loan debt. If I can have a firm placement both my 1L and 2L summers, I can help mitigate debt. I intend to live cheaply in law school.

That said, I still need to find money to start law school for the moving, books and buying a laptop. To save on costs, I won't be bringing a car. For food, I will try and eat at receptions.

There is so much financial planning g that goes into this process. It can be so daunting. No wonder there are less of us in law school.

Exactly, to everything that you're saying here. It's all such a daunting task. It legitimately stresses me out.

I know you're heavily considering Cornell. You won't need a car in Ithaca?

[AAJD2B]

That's a pretty broad range for sticker. I would only pay that for the top 3. I would consider Columbia but the insane cost of living is scary.

I've never understood why this is such a big deal for people. The aggregate projected COA for the class of 2016 for Columbia is only 8k more that Stanford's. NYU's is equal to Stanford's, and Harvard's is only 3k less that those two. So, the crazy cost of living in NYU or Columbia probably should be the deterrent. Paying sticker anyway should be.

Source: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?r=other

Harvard's housing is significantly cheaper than NYU's. You could live in gropious for around 8-10k. On the other hand the NYU housing options are about 10k more. I have no ties to NY or Cambridge, so if I were to attend either, I would want to live on campus my first year until I'm familiar with the area, meaning that my COL for NYU is going to be 10k+ more than my COL for Harvard. That's not appealing at all.

My understanding is that all of this is considered/included in the cost of attendance numbers the university are required to produce. So, I'm pretty sure those things are accounted for in the LST reports I linked to. But, idk. Maybe I'm missing something.

You're not missing anything. It is included.

Living in Cambridge is not much cheaper than living in NYC. And in NYC, you have many more options. Lots of those figures assume you'll live in the Village, one of the most expensive areas in Manhattan.

[AAJD2B]

I'm BIGLAW focused and still scared shitless of the debt. My cap is 150k in student loan debt. If I can have a firm placement both my 1L and 2L summers, I can help mitigate debt. I intend to live cheaply in law school.

That said, I still need to find money to start law school for the moving, books and buying a laptop. To save on costs, I won't be bringing a car. For food, I will try and eat at receptions.

There is so much financial planning g that goes into this process. It can be so daunting. No wonder there are less of us in law school.

Exactly, to everything that you're saying here. It's all such a daunting task. It legitimately stresses me out.

I know you're heavily considering Cornell. You won't need a car in Ithaca?

I spoke to three black students from Cornell who raved about it, so yes, it's a top choice for me. Just waiting on the $$$$.

Two of those students don't have a car and said I can get around by bus without it. In my first year, the bus pass is free and the nearest shopping area is accessible by bus. Can't beat that!

[mandyjay11]

I'm BIGLAW focused and still scared shitless of the debt. My cap is 150k in student loan debt. If I can have a firm placement both my 1L and 2L summers, I can help mitigate debt. I intend to live cheaply in law school.

That said, I still need to find money to start law school for the moving, books and buying a laptop. To save on costs, I won't be bringing a car. For food, I will try and eat at receptions.

There is so much financial planning g that goes into this process. It can be so daunting. No wonder there are less of us in law school.

Exactly, to everything that you're saying here. It's all such a daunting task. It legitimately stresses me out.

I know you're heavily considering Cornell. You won't need a car in Ithaca?

I spoke to three black students from Cornell who raved about it, so yes, it's a top choice for me. Just waiting on the $$$$.

Two of those students don't have a car and said I can get around by bus without it. In my first year, the bus pass is free and the nearest shopping area is accessible by bus. Can't beat that!

I am with you on all these points. I am selling my car, too! It will lessen the distractions and save me some cash on insurance.

And at law school there is always food.... ALWAYS. It's just everywhere, so your day should be covered with meals and even sometimes firms have night time events so you can get dinner.

I am so scared of just the "start up costs" I hope that they disburse the money well ahead of time so I can use some for housing and moving.

Also, Some people have "jobs" 2L/3L year like during the semester so that's a way to get easy side cash. I know a girl who just calls alumni to thank them for money for 10-15 hours a week and gets like $12/hr plus food.

We can do this! We have come tooo far to be scared now.

[AAJD2B]

I'm BIGLAW focused and still scared shitless of the debt. My cap is 150k in student loan debt. If I can have a firm placement both my 1L and 2L summers, I can help mitigate debt. I intend to live cheaply in law school.

That said, I still need to find money to start law school for the moving, books and buying a laptop. To save on costs, I won't be bringing a car. For food, I will try and eat at receptions.

There is so much financial planning g that goes into this process. It can be so daunting. No wonder there are less of us in law school.

Exactly, to everything that you're saying here. It's all such a daunting task. It legitimately stresses me out.

I know you're heavily considering Cornell. You won't need a car in Ithaca?

I spoke to three black students from Cornell who raved about it, so yes, it's a top choice for me. Just waiting on the $$$$.

Two of those students don't have a car and said I can get around by bus without it. In my first year, the bus pass is free and the nearest shopping area is accessible by bus. Can't beat that!

I am with you on all these points. I am selling my car, too! It will lessen the distractions and save me some cash on insurance.

And at law school there is always food.... ALWAYS. It's just everywhere, so your day should be covered with meals and even sometimes firms have night time events so you can get dinner.

I am so scared of just the "start up costs" I hope that they disburse the money well ahead of time so I can use some for housing and moving.

Also, Some people have "jobs" 2L/3L year like during the semester so that's a way to get easy side cash. I know a girl who just calls alumni to thank them for money for 10-15 hours a week and gets like $12/hr plus food.

We can do this! We have come tooo far to be scared now.

AMEN. So we can work-study during the semester too?? Sweet!!!

It's all a hustle, ain't it? I hope we all keep in touch to serve as encouragement for each other.