Berkeley c/o 2015 Applicants (2011-2012 cycle) Forum

[thelawschoolproject]

I called them about matching scholarship. (The deadline I gave with the matching scholarship request has already passed.) The woman on the phone told me that it's possible I'm still in consideration but "chances aren't as great as they were before." I'm taking that to mean that we aren't necessarily going to be notified if we don't get a scholarship and that most of the money has been given out. I'm planning then to withdraw. Columbia here I come.

Their policy is to notify you if you don't receive a matching scholarship, fwiw.

Where are you getting that from? Is it up on their website?

1). I called earlier this week and asked and the woman in charge of scholarships told me they e-mail you if you haven't received a matching scholarship.


2). I just received my matching scholarship e-mail which said that I did not receive a matching scholarship.

[FavoriteColorGRUE]

Does anyone know about the non-matching, other merit scholarships? Have those pretty much all been given out??

[ViennaGraben]

Just withdrew. Hope my spot goes to someone awesome! Best of luck to everyone on your decisions!

[Kronk]

Does anyone know about the non-matching, other merit scholarships? Have those pretty much all been given out??

They basically don't exist / go to diverse applicants.

[jim-green]

Can anyone who successfully deferred pm me please? i need to defer and would like to talk about the best way to do this, and when to ask them.

[FavoriteColorGRUE]

Does anyone know specifics re: the need to withdraw from WLs when you select the "will attend" response (which I know we need to do by June 1st)?

From the site: "I accept admission to Berkeley Law School. I will definitely enroll as a member of the Class of 2015 in August. I will withdraw my application and remove myself from waiting lists at all other law schools immediately. I agree to notify the Admissions Office if my plans change subsequently so as to affect my enrollment in August."

Sorry if this has been asked before.... but is it actually true that we cannot stay on other WLs??

[jim-green]

Does anyone know specifics re: the need to withdraw from WLs when you select the "will attend" response (which I know we need to do by June 1st)?

From the site: "I accept admission to Berkeley Law School. I will definitely enroll as a member of the Class of 2015 in August. I will withdraw my application and remove myself from waiting lists at all other law schools immediately. I agree to notify the Admissions Office if my plans change subsequently so as to affect my enrollment in August."

Sorry if this has been asked before.... but is it actually true that we cannot stay on other WLs??

It looks pretty clear on its face. It appears to me that they look entitled to the commitment because they don't require a seat deposit. I think we definitely cannot stay on another WL. Serious ethical implications in that. It could become a misconduct issue, right, and we could lose both spots, right?

[pupshaw]

Does anyone know specifics re: the need to withdraw from WLs when you select the "will attend" response (which I know we need to do by June 1st)?

From the site: "I accept admission to Berkeley Law School. I will definitely enroll as a member of the Class of 2015 in August. I will withdraw my application and remove myself from waiting lists at all other law schools immediately. I agree to notify the Admissions Office if my plans change subsequently so as to affect my enrollment in August."

Sorry if this has been asked before.... but is it actually true that we cannot stay on other WLs??

It looks pretty clear on its face. It appears to me that they look entitled to the commitment because they don't require a seat deposit. I think we definitely cannot stay on another WL. Serious ethical implications in that. It could become a misconduct issue, right, and we could lose both spots, right?

http://blogs.law.yale.edu/blogs/admissi ... rency.aspx

Whether you feel right about doing it is a separate issue, of course, since Berkeley asks you to make a commitment and asks you to honor it. But I don't think you could lose either spot.

[jim-green]

It looks pretty clear on its face. It appears to me that they look entitled to the commitment because they don't require a seat deposit. I think we definitely cannot stay on another WL. Serious ethical implications in that. It could become a misconduct issue, right, and we could lose both spots, right?

http://blogs.law.yale.edu/blogs/admissi ... rency.aspx Whether you feel right about doing it is a separate issue, of course, since Berkeley asks you to make a commitment and asks you to honor it. But I don't think you could lose either spot.

I've read the Yale blog before and it is about scholarships, not the June 1 deadline. The Cal language is pretty clear for June 1. If you do not withdraw other WLs, it violates the terms of the offer, you can lose the offer altogether and also be subject to misconduct proceedings, in which case you risk the possibility of losing all your offers. It is not about feeling right, but the terms of the offer.

[pupshaw]

It looks pretty clear on its face. It appears to me that they look entitled to the commitment because they don't require a seat deposit. I think we definitely cannot stay on another WL. Serious ethical implications in that. It could become a misconduct issue, right, and we could lose both spots, right?

http://blogs.law.yale.edu/blogs/admissi ... rency.aspx Whether you feel right about doing it is a separate issue, of course, since Berkeley asks you to make a commitment and asks you to honor it. But I don't think you could lose either spot.

I've read the Yale blog before and it is about scholarships, not the June 1 deadline. The Cal language is pretty clear for June 1. If you do not withdraw other WLs, it violates the terms of the offer, you can lose the offer altogether and also be subject to misconduct proceedings, in which case you risk the possibility of losing all your offers. It is not about feeling right, but the terms of the offer.

Asha makes it pretty clear that it's not just about scholarships: "law schools may not require applicants to withdraw from schools from which they have not yet received a decision as a condition of accepting a scholarship or any other type of offer."

But I don't really have a dog in this race, as I'm going elsewhere either way. Best of luck with your decisions, all!

[houng89]

i wouldn't risk it given that the top law schools share a master list of people who have deposited at their schools, also LSAC informs the schools of people who have double deposited as well

[jim-green]

i wouldn't risk it given that the top law schools share a master list of people who have deposited at their schools, also LSAC informs the schools of people who have double deposited as well

The question is not whether to deposit at multiple schools, but whether to accept at Cal thus saying you followed the language on their website, while you did not actually do it.

[FavoriteColorGRUE]

i wouldn't risk it given that the top law schools share a master list of people who have deposited at their schools, also LSAC informs the schools of people who have double deposited as well

The question is not whether to deposit at multiple schools, but whether to accept at Cal thus saying you followed the language on their website, while you did not actually do it.

...exactly.

And I'm worried about calling their Admissions office to ask...

[jim-green]

Man, this is bad...I called LSAC and they said Cal is allowed to do this. I think LSAC's rule is not a rule, but guideline. Cal can do what it likes. Not sure if Asha will help us since it is not Yale that I am WL at but another school. And if we go to ATL, we'll definitely be kicked out of Cal.

[FavoriteColorGRUE]

Man, this is bad...I called LSAC and they said Cal is allowed to do this. I think LSAC's rule is not a rule, but guideline. Cal can do what it likes. Not sure if Asha will help us since it is not Yale that I am WL at but another school. And if we go to ATL, we'll definitely be kicked out of Cal.

PMing you

[umar20036]

Hey guys,

I am in a similar dilemma - has anyone called the admissions office to ask?

[jim-green]

Hey guys, I am in a similar dilemma - has anyone called the admissions office to ask?

I wish all of us could organize and tell Cal. If they know 50 or so admits are unhappy and will decline Cal, they will wake up. If we call individually, we will get, "NO," for an answer.

[quintessence]

Anyone else know if it's safe to remain on any waitlists? I am interested in staying on for one or two longshots, but if there's any risk of losing my Berkeley offer it obviously wouldn't be worth it.

[EvelynS]

Anyone else know if it's safe to remain on any waitlists? I am interested in staying on for one or two longshots, but if there's any risk of losing my Berkeley offer it obviously wouldn't be worth it.

Someone from this forum called LSAC and asked this specific question:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... &start=700

[moneybagsphd]

Anyone else know if it's safe to remain on any waitlists? I am interested in staying on for one or two longshots, but if there's any risk of losing my Berkeley offer it obviously wouldn't be worth it.

Someone from this forum called LSAC and asked this specific question:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... &start=700

Relevant:

I called LSAC and spoke with a higher-up. They said Cal is allowed to do this becuase they have a June 1 date for the 2nd response form and they do not ask for a $$$ deposit. LSAC cannot do anything about it. They said I should talk to my pre-law advisor. He said I have 4 options.

I wonder if more law schools will adopt this model in the future given the problems adcomms have had this cycle re getting students to commit. This is one way to ensure students truly commit. But I think it's highly problematic. Potentially, at least one student would have been better off declining Berkeley's offer and staying on their first choice school's WL. I was rejected by Berkeley so I am not facing this dilemma. However, I was also accepted off the WL last week at Columbia... Just saying, who knows how WL will shake out this cycle?