pacnw1234 wrote:Hey y'all,
I'm a 1L at UW Law freshly off Winter quarter finals. I thought I'd take a peek at this year's forums and see how it's going for everyone.
It seems like scholarships are on everyone's mind, so I thought I'd share my experience. I couldn't provide any specific dates for when it all happened, so sorry in advance for not being able to ease anyone's anxiety in that regard. I remember how taxing this time was.
Basically, it took a long time, but I did end up getting (what I consider) significant money. I applied for both Gregoire and Gates, but wasn't selected for either. From what I can tell, I didn't fit the general description of either, so in hindsight it isn't much of a surprise. But at the time I remember it was bruising. Don't worry about it outside of its financial ramifications--once the scholars and the "common student" arrive in class, 1L year has a way of refocusing everyone's priorities.
I also submitted a general scholarship application. The first thing I heard back was from Dean Le informing that I hadn't been selected during the first round of scholarship awards. That was more bruising than anything, and I seriously considered attending other schools that had already offered me a good deal of money. (Side note: I'm in-state WA and all the others were out-of-state; the money I got to come to UW, while less than others as a gross, makes for a lower net cost-of-attendance)
A few (can't recall how long, but it felt like an eternity) weeks later, I received $10,000/yr. in merit scholarships combined with a $9,000/yr. need-based grant.
So my advice to you all is be patient and know that the process can take a while--and when you're enduring it, I know it feels even longer. As a disclaimer, the school can obviously only give out as much money as it has. I think that admissions prioritizes spreading the pot around to as many students as possible, in lieu of fully funding a small handful, for what that's worth.
UW Law is a fantastic school and I'm happy to answer anyone's questions, if you have any. And good luck! I hope to meet a good number of you in September.
Would you mind sharing where you fell in the admissions class profile?
Also as a general question, I was a little confused about the ABA Standard 509 Disclosures.
https://www.law.washington.edu/admissio ... report.pdfThey list the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile grant amounts as 9K, 12K, and 20K respectively for UW. Are these amounts awarded annually (so x3), or are these simply the total amounts of scholarship money given for all three years? Might be a silly question but I feel you could interpret it both ways.