University of South Carolina! Forum

[Lawschoolstud25]

I got in in January, just paid my deposit on the deadline, got 17k (out of state) and am living at the woodlands next year. for those who care: UGA grad, 3.26 GPA, 164 LSAT. I hate athens, and am ready for a fresh start, and ive loved every visit to USC so far. got similar offer from CofC, but i honestly think USC is a far better school, and look forward to working in greenville or charleston in three years. SUPER EXCITED haha, and hope you guys are also. and for all the naysayers, id rather be top 10% and law review at a lower school than middle 20% and not at a slightly higher one.

[eandy]

I got in in January, just paid my deposit on the deadline, got 17k (out of state) and am living at the woodlands next year. for those who care: UGA grad, 3.26 GPA, 164 LSAT. I hate athens, and am ready for a fresh start, and ive loved every visit to USC so far. got similar offer from CofC, but i honestly think USC is a far better school, and look forward to working in greenville or charleston in three years. SUPER EXCITED haha, and hope you guys are also. and for all the naysayers, id rather be top 10% and law review at a lower school than middle 20% and not at a slightly higher one.

Just FYI, Charleston School of Law is not affiliated with CofC.

[Janus]

Sent my seat deposit in last week. Look forward to going to Columiba. Scholarship, cheap living, and great business school (I'm going for a JD/MBA) made me not worry about the drop in rankings.

I'm going to look into this option too.

[SAOJD10]

Looks like the slip in the rankings claimed Dean Pratt's job, he is leaving after August 2011

[SAOJD10]

Also any idea if there is a facebook group for the class of 2013?? I saw that the class of 2012 had one so just wondering if there is one created for us already

[utahredsoxfan]

Also any idea if there is a facebook group for the class of 2013?? I saw that the class of 2012 had one so just wondering if there is one created for us already

Good question. I haven't seen one. If one pops up, post a link on here. I'm stoked to be in Columbia this Fall

[Janus]

Looks like the slip in the rankings claimed Dean Pratt's job, he is leaving after August 2011

Did you find this on the law school website? I looked but didn't see anything.

[SAOJD10]

Looks like the slip in the rankings claimed Dean Pratt's job, he is leaving after August 2011

Did you find this on the law school website? I looked but didn't see anything.

google it, its on fitsnews (which is a SC blog) and the state newspapers website

[SAOJD10]

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=110443198998857

made a facebook group for the class of 2013....tell all your friends

[Janus]

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=110443198998857

made a facebook group for the class of 2013....tell all your friends

Joined.

[utahredsoxfan]

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=110443198998857

made a facebook group for the class of 2013....tell all your friends

Joined.

+1

[SAOJD10]

From SC's website

"Response to initial offers of admission was very strong this year. We were looking for 260 deposits, since we want an entering class of 235 in August, and typically about 25 students who make the initial deposit withdraw during the summer. We had 255 deposits after the May deadline. We made a very small number of offers to waitlisted candidates last week; those offers have been accepted, and as of today, the class is filled."

Looks like theres alot of people to join the facebook group now

[GentlemanJim]

I joined.

[rcharles]

Withdrew last week.

Hopefully freeing up some scholly money too...Good luck to all of you!

[SAOJD10]

Anyone know about Park Circle condominums?

[lfgsuperman]

If I withdraw even though I accepted my financial aid package form USC will I have to pay USCLS anything?

[Genericswingman]

If I withdraw even though I accepted my financial aid package form USC will I have to pay USCLS anything?

Are you thinking about something particular (i.e.orginiation fee)?

I'd be surprised if you had to pay the school anything for their part in administering the loan (I assumed the law schools build their cost into the tution/origination fee)

[lfgsuperman]

If I withdraw even though I accepted my financial aid package form USC will I have to pay USCLS anything?

Are you thinking about something particular (i.e.orginiation fee)?

I'd be surprised if you had to pay the school anything for their part in administering the loan (I assumed the law schools build their cost into the tution/origination fee)

I guess what I was trying to ask was whether withdrawing from SC cuts all ties with the school? Would I have any financial ties or any other ties with the school left after withdrawing?

[Genericswingman]

If I withdraw even though I accepted my financial aid package form USC will I have to pay USCLS anything?

Are you thinking about something particular (i.e.orginiation fee)?

I'd be surprised if you had to pay the school anything for their part in administering the loan (I assumed the law schools build their cost into the tution/origination fee)

I guess what I was trying to ask was whether withdrawing from SC cuts all ties with the school? Would I have any financial ties or any other ties with the school left after withdrawing?

Other than possibly losing your deposit, I would guess that withdrawing would cut all ties (I've only withdrawn from one school where I deposited and a simple e-mail did the trick)

[lfgsuperman]

If I withdraw even though I accepted my financial aid package form USC will I have to pay USCLS anything?

Are you thinking about something particular (i.e.orginiation fee)?

I'd be surprised if you had to pay the school anything for their part in administering the loan (I assumed the law schools build their cost into the tution/origination fee)

I guess what I was trying to ask was whether withdrawing from SC cuts all ties with the school? Would I have any financial ties or any other ties with the school left after withdrawing?

Other than possibly losing your deposit, I would guess that withdrawing would cut all ties (I've only withdrawn from one school where I deposited and a simple e-mail did the trick)

Thanks.

[scott88]

I went to USC for undergrad -- graduated in 3 years with a finance degree and a (very upward trending) 3.5 GPA.

I'm trying to find more information on the law school. I'm a Virginia resident (went to undergrad on a nice scholarship). I already know that any scholarship given automatically come off the in-state tuition price.

I'm interested in considering USC for law school, but it would have to be at an exceptional price, as there are some really excellent law schools here in Virginia. I'm trying to gather information about the top scholarships offered by USC Law. With my GPA and an LSAT above 170, would it be possible to get a completely full ride (to include a housing/books stipdend even)?

Given the South Carolina economy and the fact that you (essentially) will only find employment in the state upon graduation, I'd want to make sure I was getting an exceptional price before enrolling here. The place holds a lot of sentimental value for me, but I don't want that to outweigh reason and logic.

A lot of you guys seem pretty sharp. Would love to read some input about the scholarship situation, and also see what you guys are looking to do with a degree from USC Law. Maybe there are some great options, of which I'm just not aware. Additionally, if anyone has some reliable data about where recent graduates are working and/or being paid, that would be most helpful. I wouldn't exactly trust the administration at this law school to be completely honest about that!

Many thanks!

[scott88]

SAOJD10,

I'm new to this board, and am obviously not in the USC Law 2013 class, but I know Columbia like the back of my hand. I enrolled there for undergrad having never lived in the area, and I took it upon myself to learn as much as I could about it. I can give you any rundown of most any neighborhood you're interested in. I could even make some suggestions if you give me a clearer idea of what you're looking for.

Any of the big student apartment communities (most all of these were built within the past 5 years) -- Aspyre, Woodlands, Copper Beech, the Retreat, Stadium Suites, Riverside Estates, etc. will be essentially 100% undergrad students. My advice would be to STAY AWAY. The parking sucks and it's just a boondoggle to live there. Not to mention, living out Bluff Road, past the stadium, completely sucks. It is essentially an industrial highway and there is zero scenery; just some super shitty neighborhoods off the main drag. Not to mention, there are no bars or nightlife anywhere in immediate vicinity. I think you would be much happier to be living right around the campus.

If you still want to go this route, look for some of the older student apartment "communities." These things were massively overbuilt for the area (the nicest, newest ones keep getting better, pushing the others out of the market), and some are absolutely bleeding from the ears on their occupancy rates. I bet you could get a really nice deal at a place like Stadium Suites. Also, for my money, a place like Riverside Estates, right across the river in Cayce/West Columbia is a much more desirable location than the aforementioned cluster of apartments that have been recently built up way out Bluff Road. One other point of note, I believe the only one of these student communities that offers one bedroom apartments is Copper Beech (where you're on the first floor of a three floor townhouse style building).

As it stands though, I'd much more so recommend renting either a single family residence or an apartment/condo in a small building. Check the Olympia or Rosewood areas for the absolute best price (within a reasonable vicinity) on a set up like this. Shandon is a really nice, more upscale neighborhood, and can be especially walkable to Five Points, but you'll pay a bit more to live here. Still lots of good deals to be found if you're willing to look around. If you or anyone else is interested, I could even PM you the number of my old landlord. He was an absolutely great guy -- very accessible as he just manages all his properties himself. Not to mention, he seemed to have some really cool properties. The location of where I was living absolutely could not be beat, and the house was like 120 years old.

Anyway, let me know if there are any further questions I can answer about Columbia.

[Janus]

I went to USC for undergrad -- graduated in 3 years with a finance degree and a (very upward trending) 3.5 GPA.

I'm trying to find more information on the law school. I'm a Virginia resident (went to undergrad on a nice scholarship). I already know that any scholarship given automatically come off the in-state tuition price.

I'm interested in considering USC for law school, but it would have to be at an exceptional price, as there are some really excellent law schools here in Virginia. I'm trying to gather information about the top scholarships offered by USC Law. With my GPA and an LSAT above 170, would it be possible to get a completely full ride (to include a housing/books stipdend even)?

Given the South Carolina economy and the fact that you (essentially) will only find employment in the state upon graduation, I'd want to make sure I was getting an exceptional price before enrolling here. The place holds a lot of sentimental value for me, but I don't want that to outweigh reason and logic.

A lot of you guys seem pretty sharp. Would love to read some input about the scholarship situation, and also see what you guys are looking to do with a degree from USC Law. Maybe there are some great options, of which I'm just not aware. Additionally, if anyone has some reliable data about where recent graduates are working and/or being paid, that would be most helpful. I wouldn't exactly trust the administration at this law school to be completely honest about that!

Many thanks!

Hi, Scott:

Regarding your question about whether it's possible to get a full scholarship + stipend, I really think the answer is no. Go to http://www.lawschoolnumbers.com and look up University of South Carolina. You will find a guy there with a 175, 3.9 who got $12,000/year, which is the same scholarship I got with a 164. Had I thought I could get more by scoring higher, I would have utilized the study guides on this website and retaken the LSAT as I didn't put in an iota of the effort people on this site tend to put in prior to taking the LSAT. Back to the point. I did see someone with a 164 and slightly higher GPA than mine (I think it was 3.9) report a $15,000/year scholarship. I haven't seen anything higher than that though.

Once you have an LSAT score to work with, you can use the LSN website to get an idea of where people with similar numbers are receiving the most financial aid. Weight that against tuition plus COL allowances for each particular school and you will have an idea of the debt load you will need to take on for law school. Weight that against the employment prospects, which is easier said than done since it is difficult to get a good idea from most schools about their employment and corresponding salaries for graduates. In the end if you are having trouble deciding, you can draft a poll on this website and everyone will vote and give you their 0.02 cents.

I really can't weight-in on why I chose SC over other schools. I'm geographically bound to South Carolina right now, and USC is the best school in South Carolina so my choice was obvious. Should I become ungeographically bound sometime in 1L, I may reevaluate my options at that time. Hopefully, the job market will improve. I would also say that you won't necessarily be bound to South Carolina with a degree from USC though it is certainly the biggest market for USC grads. You could go elsewhere in the region, for example, Charlotte or Atlanta. People do it. One thing I'm going to try and focus on is job hunting on my own and not relying on OCI. I think this is where some people fail.

[Generic20101L]

I got 17k scholarship and I got a 159 and have a horrible GPA. They give those out a ton. Not sure where you're hearing or reading this.

[Janus]

I got 17k scholarship and I got a 159 and have a horrible GPA. They give those out a ton. Not sure where you're hearing or reading this.

You are out-of-state, right? I was responding from the perspective of someone in-state w/scholarship. From what I gather, there is an out-of-state equalizer that they give out to out-of-state students so that their tuition is equal to those in-state, then on top of that they give out merit scholarships, if you qualify. In my mind the equalizer is more of a need-based rather than merit-based award though it should probably just remain it's own category: equalizer. For example, some people got an equalizer plus $5,000. I would consider the equalizer need-based (if you had to categorize it, but I think it's better to just say equalizer), and the $5,000 merit aid.

I'm in-state and received a Dean's scholarship. These scholarships went out with the acceptance letters. (At Admitted Students Day, they said they hadn't awarded scholarships yet. It wasn't exactly true.) So, my tuition will be around $8,000. An in-stater who received $15,000 will have a tuition of around $5,000. So far that's the lowest tuition I've seen. The ABA data sheet (not sure what year, but based on tuition, prior to 2009) reports no full scholarships, though it does report 1 more than full scholarship. So I suppose it is possible to receive a full scholarship + stipend though it appears highly unlikely.

So even though an in-stater's scholarship is less, it results in a lower tuition. Since he referenced merit scholarships coming off of the in-state tuition price and accounted for the fact that he is a Virginia resident, I assumed he had already accounted for the equalizer.