2011 - 2012 URM Application Cycle Forum

[1212]

Thanks everyone!

I'd like to echo Keystone. TLS gets a lot of criticism for being counterproductive and awful, but threads like this are supportive and useful for a process as challenging as this. Thank you guys!

[Geneva]

Thanks everyone!

I'd like to echo Keystone. TLS gets a lot of criticism for being counterproductive and awful, but threads like this are supportive and useful for a process as challenging as this. Thank you guys!

+100
congrats to everyone!!! good luck to those still waiting! there is still hope:)

[Geneva]

My cycle exceeded my stats, and even without a score bump, there was a decent chance I would have been accepted to Harvard - or wl'd. Then would have come the tough decision of choosing prestige or happiness. So, I decided to avoid that potential decision all together.

smart decision. i haven't heard back from harvard, which makes my decision so much easier. now, to convince myself that i would have been miserable at yale...

[sharktankdean]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

[fingerscrossedxx]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

Praying and hoping for this. But you're right they dont seem to have admitted a whole lot. I'm hoping they're just waiting to surprise us with a whole bunch of acceptances right before May 1st cuz they want to see who'll REALLY come

[cylon_clone]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

Praying and hoping for this. But you're right they dont seem to have admitted a whole lot. I'm hoping they're just waiting to surprise us with a whole bunch of acceptances right before May 1st cuz they want to see who'll REALLY come

Of course Harvard had to be the one hurting for URMs while Stanford is probably overloaded with them. I see my chances getting off the Stanford wl decreasing everyday...

[alpha kenny body]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

I hope so for next cycle. The only woman I love lives in Beacon Hill so Harvard and Cambridge would be bliss.

[amc987]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

It's interesting that you say this. I think our perspective is obviously skewed because not everyone who applies is on LSN. I know that Harvard has a bigger class size, so it would probably take more URMs than Stanford would. That said, I feel like I personally know way more URMs who are accepted at Harvard than at Stanford. LSN seems to confirm your view in terms of sheer numbers, but it seems like Stanford's URM count might be closer to a full class than Harvard's. I'm guessing this is all moot at this point anyway because we're so late in the cycle. Regardless of what LSN says, it's unlikely that either school would be bereft of URMs. There are plenty who applied and didn't get in, and if H and S really needed more, they wouldn't have rejected those candidates. Anyway, here goes. Someone let me know if I'm missing anyone from TLS or LSN.

Harvard: Spek (Withdrawn), Bruno2012, MyLegendLives, luffychoppa (Attending), shakeandbake (A), Proverbs3189 (W), LondonCalling (A), MissFlo, Beeveekay, Barca10, Angels6578, and Vincanity1 (W). I also know that of people who post on here--Ish531, DavidBentley, Tiger11, blessedassurance, Hull_At_The_House, cj03, Dake!, and Syme (and potentially others I'm forgetting ATM)-- have been accepted in addition to however many others we don't know. I left out lbtgnn and hotchkisses because I think they created fake profiles.

Stanford: 121212 (A), Bruno2012, Spek (W), shakeandbake (W), Tiger11, Beeveekay, omnibus, drizzle12 (A), operagrl71, mmkitkat (W), piemaker, MyLegendLives, and mgutt. I know that Geneva, Dani B., ThurgreatMarshall, MichelFoucault, JF215, whenwin, and kindaklueless were also admitted.

[sharktankdean]

Is it just me that feels like Harvard is gonna be begging URMs to come. If tls and LSN are representive samples it does not look like they have admitted many URMs. But Stanford has admitted a good chunk. Most of these URMs have prob convinced themselves that they are going to Stanford by now and even with a late Harvard acceptance may not change their minds.

It's interesting that you say this. I think our perspective is obviously skewed because not everyone who applies is on LSN. I know that Harvard has a bigger class size, so it would probably take more URMs than Stanford would. That said, I feel like I personally know way more URMs who are accepted at Harvard than at Stanford. LSN seems to confirm your view in terms of sheer numbers, but it seems like Stanford's URM count might be closer to a full class than Harvard's. I'm guessing this is all moot at this point anyway because we're so late in the cycle. Regardless of what LSN says, it's unlikely that either school would be bereft of URMs. There are plenty who applied and didn't get in, and if H and S really needed more, they wouldn't have rejected those candidates. Anyway, here goes. Someone let me know if I'm missing anyone from TLS or LSN.

Harvard: Spek (Withdrawn), Bruno2012, MyLegendLives, luffychoppa (Attending), shakeandbake (A), Proverbs3189 (W), LondonCalling (A), MissFlo, Beeveekay, Barca10, Angels6578, and Vincanity1 (W). I also know that of people who post on here--Ish531, DavidBentley, Tiger11, blessedassurance, Hull_At_The_House, cj03, Dake!(W), and Syme (and potentially others I'm forgetting ATM)-- have been accepted in addition to however many others we don't know. I left out lbtgnn and hotchkisses because I think they created fake profiles.

Stanford: 121212 (A), Bruno2012, Spek (W), shakeandbake (W), Tiger11, Beeveekay, omnibus, drizzle12 (A), operagrl71, mmkitkat (W), piemaker, MyLegendLives, and mgutt. I know that Geneva, Dani B., ThurgreatMarshall, MichelFoucault, JF215, whenwin, and kindaklueless were also admitted.

you have a point..it might be false hope but i still think the Harvard group is lacking more people...and i think we would be the best candidates to help them out and fill the class lol

[cylon_clone]

Hi all,

I just woke up a few hours ago with an idea and would like some advice. This thread (as some has mentioned) is pretty supportive, so I came here:

I've been accepted to a few t14s with money, but wl'd at Stanford - my dream school. Right now, Michigan is my likely destination, but the scholarship money they're offering is relatively small and definitely wasn't a deciding factor. So, I'm considering retaking the June LSAT in order to either: get off the Stanford wl and/or 2. get more money out of Michigan. I don't want to sit out for another cycle but will if absolutely necessary.

Leading up to taking the LSAT for the first time, I got a job working about 6-7 days/week, 10-12 hrs/day proofreading tiny print. I also had other hectic things going on and didn't feel like studying after work, so only had about 10 days of real studying for the test. Of course my first score was not great.

I took the LSAT a second time, but since the time between getting a score and taking the LSAT again was about a month, I still didn't get much studying in. I did better, but the score report showed that the several points lost in the logic games section could have put me in the 170s.

The June LSAT is almost 6 weeks away, so if I took a quick class with a focus on LGs and reacquaint myself with the other sections, I think I could land in the 170s.

Would you guys recommend this strategy?

[Alltheirsplendor]

Hi all,

I just woke up a few hours ago with an idea and would like some advice. This thread (as some has mentioned) is pretty supportive, so I came here:

I've been accepted to a few t14s with money, but wl'd at Stanford - my dream school. Right now, Michigan is my likely destination, but the scholarship money they're offering is relatively small and definitely wasn't a deciding factor. So, I'm considering retaking the June LSAT in order to either: get off the Stanford wl and/or 2. get more money out of Michigan. I don't want to sit out for another cycle but will if absolutely necessary.

Leading up to taking the LSAT for the first time, I got a job working about 6-7 days/week, 10-12 hrs/day proofreading tiny print. I also had other hectic things going on and didn't feel like studying after work, so only had about 10 days of real studying for the test. Of course my first score was not great.

I took the LSAT a second time, but since the time between getting a score and taking the LSAT again was about a month, I still didn't get much studying in. I did better, but the score report showed that the several points lost in the logic games section could have put me in the 170s.

The June LSAT is almost 6 weeks away, so if I took a quick class with a focus on LGs and reacquaint myself with the other sections, I think I could land in the 170s.

Would you guys recommend this strategy?

Retake. ESPECIALLY if it was logic games that gave you trouble. Don't let that terrific GPA go to waste. If you can feel that you could have done better on the test, then go for it. But only do it if you seriously believe you can do better.

[amc987]

The June LSAT is almost 6 weeks away, so if I took a quick class with a focus on LGs and reacquaint myself with the other sections, I think I could land in the 170s.

Would you guys recommend this strategy?

Are you thinking of retaking the LSAT and applying again next cycle? Or, are you wondering whether an increase to the 170s in June might help you get off the WL at Stanford during this cycle?

If it's the first, and you're fairly sure you can crack the 170s, and you have enough mental/emotional fortitude to sit through another application cycle, then godspeed. One thing you might want to think about, though, is that the LSAT is its own beast. Once you get to a certain level of understanding, what you score on the day is going to be about how you're feeling/ whether the test plays more to your strengths or your weaknesses. Even if you're scoring in the 170s consistently before the test, you could run into some bad luck and not get that on test day. I took about 12 tests before I retook the LSAT last June, and had an average of about 176. On the actual test, I ran out of time on reading comprehension (which had never happened before), and ended up missing 7 on that section. As a result, I ended up with a 169, and I don't think I could have possibly been more prepared to do well. If you search the boards, you'll find lots of people who have similar sob stories about not fulfilling their potential when it counts most. It would really suck for you to put in the time and energy only to end up with a very similar score or a lower score in June. The other thing you might want to consider is how other schools will view you if you re-apply after you were already accepted. I don't know enough about this to give an informed response, but if a bunch of the schools that already accepted you are going to hold a grudge because you decided to decline their acceptance and retake the LSAT, it might not be worth it. If I were an admissions officer, the only conclusion I could draw would be that you didn't really want to go to my school, and that you re-took the LSAT because you were hoping to land a bigger fish. Even if that's true, it's not the best note to start your new admissions cycle on.

If you're thinking that your improved June LSAT score will help get you off of Stanford's WL this year, you might be SOL. Stanford is so into soft factors that it's unlikely that a simple LSAT bump is going to take you from the WL (where they already sort of like your application anyway) to a straight acceptance. I think this is especially true because of the lateness of the June LSAT. Most wait list movement tends to happen pretty soon after the deposit deadline--schools want to fill any holes in their classes and finalize their rosters as soon as possible. By the time you get your score back, it will already be late-June/early-July. Very few people get off of wait lists that late. Even if you did, there's no way to know whether you would have gotten off anyway, or whether you got off because of your new LSAT score.

Good luck! Whatever you end up deciding, I hope that Stanford works out for you.

[cylon_clone]

Thank for the advice guys. After some consideration, I don't think I'll be retaking the LSAT. I know I could do better on the LSAT. But taking the October LSAT would be the smarter choice instead of trying to rush for the June test. However, I'm not willing to sit out another cycle because I hate my current location and having a frustratingly inefficient job that barely pays above minimum wage. Besides, I'll be attending a school that's in my top 3 so can't complain. And though a higher LSAT would get me more scholarship money, if I sit out another year, that'd mean a later graduation and losing out on a year's worth of lawyer salary - which more than balances out scholarship money.

[Geneva]

Thank for the advice guys. After some consideration, I don't think I'll be retaking the LSAT. I know I could do better on the LSAT. But taking the October LSAT would be the smarter choice instead of trying to rush for the June test. However, I'm not willing to sit out another cycle because I hate my current location and having a frustratingly inefficient job that barely pays above minimum wage. Besides, I'll be attending a school that's in my top 3 so can't complain. And though a higher LSAT would get me more scholarship money, if I sit out another year, that'd mean a later graduation and losing out on a year's worth of lawyer salary - which more than balances out scholarship money.

Hm, that makes sense. Also, never know what might happen with Stanford's wait list. It seems like a lot of URMs are deferring! Rooting for you:)

[TheIdealist]

Guess, I should check in.

160 lsat
3.8+ gpa
male MA urm

Accepted:
Columbia (3 days ago)
UCLA (withdrew)
USC (withdrew)

W/L:
UChi
NYU
Upenn
Umich
Georgetown

Rejected
Boalt

Pending
Harvard (held in April)

Been a crazy cycle, but I am beyond thrilled to be going to Columbia. Withdrew from all waitlists. Still waiting on Harvard just to see what they say. When I read about URM cycles being unpredictable...they were not kidding. Lol.

[Geneva]

Guess, I should check in.

160 lsat
3.8+ gpa
male MA urm

Accepted:
Columbia (3 days ago)
UCLA (withdrew)
USC (withdrew)

W/L:
UChi
NYU
Upenn
Umich
Georgetown

Rejected
Boalt

Pending
Harvard (held in April)

Been a crazy cycle, but I am beyond thrilled to be going to Columbia. Withdrew from all waitlists. Still waiting on Harvard just to see what they say. When I read about URM cycles being unpredictable...they were not kidding. Lol.

haha. congrats on CLS!

[twenty]

Idealist, that's amazing -- great job! Are you fully MA? Did you write a diversity statement? Feel free to PM me.

I have hope for this next cycle!

[cj03]

My cycle is over! I will be attending Harvard in the fall. Good luck to everyone still waiting on schools! Here is how my cycle went...

166 LSAT
3.82
MA Male

In:
Harvard
University of Chicago
Berkeley
Michigan
Northwestern
Cornell
USC

Waitlist:
UCLA

Reserve:
Columbia

Rejected:
Virginia

[TheIdealist]

Thanks Geneva! Congratulations on Stanford!! California is amazing, but I am biased as a Californian. Lol.

[cylon_clone]

Withdrew from Georgetown and am feeling some stirrings of regret. It stems more from the turned down money than not going there though... DC is great but I know I did the right thing. I would have been unable to really focus and study there. Sometimes having too many awesome options to choose from in a bustling city can be a negative academically...

Will be riding out the UChi and Stanford WLs. But at this moment, it looks like Michigan - in the small college town of Ann Arbor - will be my home for the next 3 years.

[Geneva]

I would just like to thank everyone ITT for being so amazing and supportive. I feel like the Under Represented Law Student Forum probably has the most encouraging upbeat posts of any forum on TLS. It is a pleasure to come here. I wish you all the best in the rest of your cycles!

[Aqua]

I would just like to thank everyone ITT for being so amazing and supportive. I feel like the Under Represented Law Student Forum probably has the most encouraging upbeat posts of any forum on TLS. It is a pleasure to come here. I wish you all the best in the rest of your cycles!

Thanks for the URM love! I feel the same way!

[tiger11]

Okay! Hi guys! I've been lurking this place forever and I love what you've done with the place but I think it's time I check in since my cycle is (un)OFFICIALLY OVER!!!!!

LSAT: 165
GPA :3.85
Male AA


Accepted:
UC-Berkeley (W)
Chicago (W)
Duke (W)
Georgetown (W)
Emory (W)
Harvard
Michigan (W)
Stanford (Deposit Sent in )

Waitlist:
Yale
Virginia (Withdrawn)
Columbia (Withdrawn, technically they asked for my fall grades)
Penn (Withdrawn)

[whenwin]

Whoa, tiger11 we had very similar cycles. Same four WLs and I'm currently deciding between H/S.

[JDflowergirl]

its looking like Stanford is winning the URM tug of war.