****Urgent**** Need advice Forum

[soaponarope]

10 yrs ago I began my undergrad... My grades were inadequate. On law school applications, they ask have you ever been put on academic probation, warned, or disciplined for violation of a code of honor, etc...

That said, I can't remember if I was ever warned about an academic probation, or if I was even put on academic probation. I called the school and spoke with those who are in charge of records. This is what they said (verbatim)...

"Technically, we warned you about your grades, however, you were never put on academic probation. There is no indication on your transcripts of said probation, and there are no holds in any of your files."

He then said,

"in order to see if you ever had any written formal warning we would need some special software to look into the database. If any college of law were to call we would tell them that you have never been put on any kind of probation. Additionally, anyone wanting access to the database would need a subpoena, because we do not release information that is not on your transcript."

He then told me to mark NO for the question regarding academic warning/probation yada, yada, yada.

But, I asked him what about the "warned" part of the question. He just told me, "mark no".

I don't have his words in writing, and honestly, I feel a little uneasy. I want to be 100% forthright in my application. I need some advice. Please...

[booboo]

You were told by a University official that you were not put on academic probation. Applications only require that you write information that reflects the best of your knowledge. I don't see a problem here.

[kbeth18]

I really respect your desire to have integrity.

Perhaps you should mark "yes" and then in the "space provided explanation" section explain what you have just explained. I doubt any law school will care that you were basically unofficially warned about your grades. They can see what your grades are, so it probably won't come as a surprise. Otherwise, I would call the admissions offices of the school(s) to which you are applying and explain what you have just explained...that your undergrad actually told you to mark no, and see what they suggest. This way you won't have any sort of guilty conscious.

However, I feel as though your conscious is the only issue here. It seems as though you couldn't possibly run into problems if you checked "no."

Hope this helps!

[pollaclc]

i think some schools have official warnings that are equivalent to other schools official probation.

[jks289]

The good faith answer to the question is "Yes" you have been warned about your grades. I think anytime you are asking yourself "It is possible for them to find out the truth" you have entered the area in which you need to disclose.

[ogman05]

I really respect your desire to have integrity.

Perhaps you should mark "yes" and then in the "space provided explanation" section explain what you have just explained. I doubt any law school will care that you were basically unofficially warned about your grades. They can see what your grades are, so it probably won't come as a surprise. Otherwise, I would call the admissions offices of the school(s) to which you are applying and explain what you have just explained...that your undergrad actually told you to mark no, and see what they suggest. This way you won't have any sort of guilty conscious.

However, I feel as though your conscious is the only issue here. It seems as though you couldn't possibly run into problems if you checked "no."

Hope this helps!

This is you want to be super safe. I advise calling a couple schools and asking what they think about it. Otherwise I would mark no imo.

[HBK]

I was put on "secret probation" (yes, it actually exists- at a major university) for a discipline incident. The dean told me that I avoided any future incidents over the next year or so, it would not be on my transcript. If I was involved in a similar incident, I would be put on official probation. When I called the registrar, they told me that there was a note on my file but it could not be disclosed to anyone. I disclosed the incident on all of my applications and don't think it hurt me.

I really didn't care because the whole thing was a pretty minor deal, and didn't really reflect too negatively on my character (plus it was over eight years ago).

When in doubt, disclose. You don't want to spend $$$ and hard work on law school just to find out you can't be a lawyer because you failed C&F.

[soaponarope]

I was put on "secret probation" (yes, it actually exists- at a major university) for a discipline incident. The dean told me that I avoided any future incidents over the next year or so, it would not be on my transcript. If I was involved in a similar incident, I would be put on official probation. When I called the registrar, they told me that there was a note on my file but it could not be disclosed to anyone. I disclosed the incident on all of my applications and don't think it hurt me.

I really didn't care because the whole thing was a pretty minor deal, and didn't really reflect too negatively on my character (plus it was over eight years ago).

When in doubt, disclose. You don't want to spend $$$ and hard work on law school just to find out you can't be a lawyer because you failed C&F.

I hear ya... the problem is deadlines for the apps. I have to get my apps out asap, and I already applied to some schools. Anyway, if you were ever put on any kind of academic (probation/warning), the schools that I'm applying to want an official letter from the University from which the aforesaid incident occurred. That would really use up valuable time (I live in Fl, old University is in PA)... but, what's more is, the University official told me there is nothing for them to report, because there is nothing on my file/transcripts.

Then again, if you were to look at my transcripts and see my first two semesters at the University, you would probably ask yourself how was he not on academic probation. Although, like I said, there is simply no record/notes on my transcripts of any "warning" or academic probation, and I was told to mark no.

I guess I'm just worried that somewhere, someplace, there is a little note/warning in my file... deep, deep, within the database that if properly searched would make me look as though I wasn't honest. If I had that University Official's word in writing, this wouldn't be a big deal, but he told me that such exchange of information via email is not feasible.

[friendofthedevil]

Just disclose it and don't worry about it. It won't hurt you that much and the school will appreciate your forthrightness. I had to write several addenda explaining my low GPA, multiple suspensions for disciplinary reasons, and an honor code violation, and still got into good (top 50) law schools. The ones that rejected me were reaches even without the supplementary packet of shame.

It matters even less if it happened years ago. You'll be fine.