U. of Florida c/o 2015 Applicants (2011-2012 cycle) Forum

[LSATmakesMeNeurotic]

I don't think I would mind 100 person 1L classes. I've actually hear people on TLS stress and complain about smaller LRW classes which apparently have 8-10 people and grade on a steep curve. I've never been graded on a curve and not familiar with how the law school curve works, but I'm under the impression that more people = better chance of a good grade. If there are a limited amount of A's based on class size, I'd rather be in a bigger class. Statistically I know that the larger class size shouldn't improve your chances, but I would be more comfortable competing for 1/10 A's rather than 1/2.

There are about 30 people in each LRW class here. 100 in the substantive classes, and one of them is divided into two 50 person classes. I think also that in classes with fewer people the curve is more generous. <-- that could be wrong though. I haven't gotten any grades yet

[pinkcamellia]

I don't think I would mind 100 person 1L classes. I've actually hear people on TLS stress and complain about smaller LRW classes which apparently have 8-10 people and grade on a steep curve. I've never been graded on a curve and not familiar with how the law school curve works, but I'm under the impression that more people = better chance of a good grade. If there are a limited amount of A's based on class size, I'd rather be in a bigger class. Statistically I know that the larger class size shouldn't improve your chances, but I would be more comfortable competing for 1/10 A's rather than 1/2.

There are about 30 people in each LRW class here. 100 in the substantive classes, and one of them is divided into two 50 person classes. I think also that in classes with fewer people the curve is more generous. <-- that could be wrong though. I haven't gotten any grades yet

LSAT, you're right - the curve is more generous in smaller classes Someone asked that the other day in the office.

[UMiamiCane]

I totally saw you in the office! Glad you had a good tour.

You'll see pretty huge 1L sections at most schools - it's just the way it is. I like it because I got to know a lot of people very quickly.

Thanks! Was that you leaving the admissions office?

My undergrad is a pretty small school and one of my majors was really small too, so I had a lot of classes with 25 or less students. I did have large classes too and though I preferred the smaller classes, they weren't too bad. I didn't even think about the curve.

I'm going through last year's thread, a lot of people (who submitted around October 12th) starting having their status changed to "under review" on October 26th. November 4th people got "review complete, final decision pending."

The first guy in the thread got "Letter issued" (acceptance) on November 16th. More on Nov. 19th. Nov 23rd, etc. Seems like all or most letters issued before February/March were acceptance letters.

Just wanted to post and give people last year's time frame as a reference, at least for early applicants with above median numbers. Hopefully some of us will see our status change this week!

Thanks for info!

[MichNole19]

Just curious, did most of you write the optional Diversity Statement?

[UMiamiCane]

Just curious, did most of you write the optional Diversity Statement?

I did not.

[seancris]

Just curious, did most of you write the optional Diversity Statement?

I did. UF seems to have an almost uncomfortable (for me anyway, as a middle class non-urm) obsession with diversity, based on all of the lip-service that I've heard from the admissions people. It seemed to be a consistently recurring theme. I think that Stephen Zack and others have donated a lot of money recently to UF Law in order to advance their goal of increasing diversity in the legal profession. Considering that, and considering that fostering a broadly-defined "diverse" student body seems to be a genuine goal of theirs, it seemed like a good idea to take the time and submit a DS.

[UMiamiCane]

Hmmm, good point. I did talk about why I would be unique in my personal statement, so I hope that's good enough.

[seancris]

Hmmm, good point. I did talk about why I would be unique in my personal statement, so I hope that's good enough.

I'm sure it'll be fine either way. At the end of the day I don't think that softs count nearly as much as admissions people say, it seems like lip service to me. At best, I think the only time the softs will come in to play will be when they're deciding who gets admitted from the waitlist. Hopefully we'll be in before then.

[gatorlaw]

.

[seancris]

Agree. Then again, if your numbers are below median, I would definitely submit everything you can to bolster your application.

BTW, when it's all about the numbers as law school admissions is supposed to be, why does it take months to get a response? js

[FeelTheHeat]

Just to add my $.02, I go to UF undergrad and my pre law adviser knows a lot of the adcomm at the law school here. Take it as you may, but he always tells me UF 99% of law schools just care about the numbers...

[LSATmakesMeNeurotic]

Agree. Then again, if your numbers are below median, I would definitely submit everything you can to bolster your application.

BTW, when it's all about the numbers as law school admissions is supposed to be, why does it take months to get a response? js

Because they want to give you the impression that they're thinking about your entire application? Also, they don't want to admit too many people at the beginning because they are hoping for better candidates to apply later in the process. It's a cynical view, but I'd be willing to bet on it.

[kwais]

I think it is important to remember that these two things are not mutually exclusive. Many schools, especially T1 schools generally have more apps at the numbers level they than they can admit. UF gets what, like 3500-4000 applications for 300 spots. They have more than 300 applications at or above their medians so this is where softs count. Write a DS if it is sincere and well-written. Don't if it is not. But don't get too carried away with numbers oriented thinking. Put it this way, if I'm wrong and you put together a stellar application, you win. If I'm right and you put together a "good enough for my numbers" application, you lose. good luck

oh and fish-avatar guy, I had a male pre-law advisor at UF who was the shit. I bet he's the same guy because I think there was only one.

[seancris]

Just out of curiosity, when did everyone here complete their applications? Because last year's applicants were under review by the 26th and I'm curious if some people who applied earlier than I did have gone under review as well. If we all applied pretty recently we may be out of loop in terms of when UF starts reviewing applications and sending letters. Did anyone here apply in September? And if so I assume that your status hasn't changed since you went complete?

I applied on Oct 18th btw.

[littleredlaw]

Just out of curiosity, when did everyone here complete their applications? Because last year's applicants were under review by the 26th and I'm curious if some people who applied earlier than I did have gone under review as well. If we all applied pretty recently we may be out of loop in terms of when UF starts reviewing applications and sending letters. Did anyone here apply in September? And if so I assume that your status hasn't changed since you went complete?

I applied on Oct 18th btw.

I applied in mid september and there has been no update to my status since then. (Still not under review)

[justonemoregame]

applying to UF, Gainesville resident. Also, I requested a fee waiver, but was told the fee is mandatory (only $30 anyway)

[justonemoregame]

Aaaaaand the information I just posted is right there on the UF admissions page. Boom. First impressionz.

[imatryhard]

.

[MichNole19]

Just some food for thought…

Average LSAT score of those who apply to UF = 158
Average LSAT of those accepted= 164
Average LSAT of those who attend= 162

and told they would not begin reviewing any applications till the first week of November.

[UMiamiCane]

More food for thought
I copied this from last year's thread:

Index for currently “Review complete, decision Pending”:
5.70
5.70
5.70
5.70
5.60
Index for the Last admitted batch (compiled by Barbie):
5.818(5.80)
5.755(5.80)
5.792(5.80)
5.790(5.80)
5.785(5.80)
5.733(5.70)
5.708(5.70)

The obvious difference is that the LSAT index is rounded. So I went ahead and round Barbie's data and enclosed it in parenthesis for direct comparison with my data above it.

How to calculate your index:
Last year's formula 0.029*LSAT + 0.282*GPA + 0.05
THIS YEAR'S formula .026*LSAT + 0.347*GPA + .254

[Its Always Sunny]

Just some food for thought…

Average LSAT score of those who apply to UF = 158
Average LSAT of those accepted= 164
Average LSAT of those who attend= 162

and told they would not begin reviewing any applications till the first week of November.

hmm that's interesting. Was it the average or median?

[MichNole19]

Sorry I meant Median!

UMiamiCane: I calculated my index, now what excatly do these numbers mean?

[UMiamiCane]

The index is a number that schools use for admissions. You can calculate yours and see where you fall in with last year's admits.

My index is 5.788

[MichNole19]

What is the difference between (Index for currently “Review complete, decision Pending”) numbers and the
(Index for the Last admitted batch (compiled by Barbie):) numbers?

I have a 5.738, if I'm reading this right using last year's numbers I would be "in" assuming they don't discriminate againts Noles? Any idea if those number include those who were admitted off the waitlist?

Thanks!

[Its Always Sunny]

I wonder if you have an admission index rounded towards 5.8 if you can expect an acceptance early in the cycle assuming you applied now or they will hold on a decision for you until March