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I just remembered I had a speeding ticket that cost $205 which means I should have included a disciplinary addendum. Am I screwed? Do you think schools are going to boot me now? Should I send an addendum or just call them?

Below, is the addendum. What do you think?

Dear law school admissions committee:
Unfortunately, I have a traffic violation from 2005 that I didn’t account for in my application. It was a minor traffic violation where I was speeding on an interstate road my freshman year of college. I disregarded it because I believed the ticket was less then the required $200 needed to disclose it on the application. I found my copy of the ticket today and I was fined $205. I paid the ticket and I enrolled and completed a helpful defensive driving course.

1 - Is there really a $200 floor on the speeding tickets (in the school's application itself) or are you just going by some unofficial rule of thumb? In my apps I seem to recall that traffic violations were specifically excluded from needing to be disclosed except for maybe GWU, who inquired about all tickets in excess of $100 (which is why I didn't apply to GWU).

2 - have you already been accepted to the school to which you are writing the addendum?

Yes, I just checked the school I put my deposit in at and the 2 schools I am pending or waitlisted at and they all require you to disclose if you have a traffic ticket of $200 or more

You're fine - don't stress. If anything, say you just received the speeding ticket (after applying) and you felt it was necessary to inform the schools. But seriously, it's a speeding ticket - not like you killed someone

Send it in ASAP. Also, it's probably a good idea to call someone on the admissions committee and apologize for your oversight. It's not like you forgot to mention a felony, so there shouldn't be a problem.

1 - don't worry. Call the admissions people and ask for their advice/guidance -- I can't see them really dinging you over $5.

2 - If the adcoms want a letter for your files, I would rework the letter a little bit and also be sure to include all information that you would have been required to give at the time you initially applied -- the application should set forth everything they need to know about the ticket.

Just send an email with the addendum. Apologize for the oversight and be done with it. A speeding ticket isn't going to get you dinged.

Admissions Committee,

After submitting my application, I realized that I made an error in not including a traffic ticket that I received on 1/1/2099.
I have attached an application addendum with details about the ticket. Please add this information to my file.

I apologize for any inconvenience this oversight may have caused.

Best Regards,

Sangiovese wrote:Just send an email with the addendum. Apologize for the oversight and be done with it. A speeding ticket isn't going to get you dinged.

Admissions Committee,

After submitting my application, I realized that I made an error in not including a traffic ticket that I received on 1/1/2099.
I have attached an application addendum with details about the ticket. Please add this information to my file.

I apologize for any inconvenience this oversight may have caused.

Best Regards,

Do this, and you will be fine.

ylwbellysloth wrote:If anything, say you just received the speeding ticket (after applying) and you felt it was necessary to inform the schools.

Horrible advice. Don't lie on top of accidentally omitting the incident. If they require a copy of the ticket for your files, they will notice that you were ticketed four years ago and not "after applying" to their school.

I also like Sangiovese's letter.

Thanks, sent it out