Do I Have a Hidden Waiver?! A Pictorial Guide Forum

[Dany]

Updated for Fall 2011 applicants and the new LSAC applications. Please let me know if there are any issues or other steps I should include, and best of luck to those applying this cycle.

[094320]

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[soj]

Awesome!

Of course, being stickied means now no one will read it.

But we'll still link to it and chide n00bs for not reading it.

[boalthopeful]

Sorry, but what's CRS?

*catching up*

[Dany]

Sorry, but what's CRS?

*catching up*

The Candidate Referral Service (CRS) is a free service that makes information about law school candidates available to law schools. Law schools may recruit potential applicants on the basis of specific characteristics; for example, LSAT score, undergraduate grade-point average (UGPA), age, citizenship, race or ethnicity, and geographic background. If you establish an LSAC.org account for any purpose, you may authorize release of your credentials to law schools participating in the CRS. LSAC recommends that you authorize release. CRS is an opportunity to be found by law schools you might not otherwise have considered.

[Sh@keNb@ke]

Hidden waivers from the following schools:

UPenn
Cornell
UChicago
NYU

[tonton]

page-holder

[naw]

So far, hidden waivers from:
Michigan
Lewis & Clark

Damn, I wish I knew this before submitting all my other apps.

[MormonChristian]

Catholic University does hidden fee waivers. If you don't get into Georgetown or GW, and you have to stay in DC, why not try Catholic?

[warplan]

I think it is not applicable to international applicant....
I can't see that message.

[denvieboco]

I received hidden fee waivers from UVA, Michigan, Penn, Duke, NYU.

[Yugihoe]

What's a hidden fee waiver? I'm a noob.

Also, the LSAC site pretty much does not give any details about fee waivers except that it is in given in cases of REAL NEED. What's real need? Not being able to eat? I guess if you have a job making 50k this disqualifies you, even though you barley save any money after expenses.

[Dany]

What's a hidden fee waiver? I'm a noob.

Also, the LSAC site pretty much does not give any details about fee waivers except that it is in given in cases of REAL NEED. What's real need? Not being able to eat? I guess if you have a job making 50k this disqualifies you, even though you barley save any money after expenses.

A waiver that the school doesn't notify you of - you just find it when you submit an application on LSAC.

This has nothing to do with LSAC need-based waivers.

[Yugihoe]

What's a hidden fee waiver? I'm a noob.

Also, the LSAC site pretty much does not give any details about fee waivers except that it is in given in cases of REAL NEED. What's real need? Not being able to eat? I guess if you have a job making 50k this disqualifies you, even though you barley save any money after expenses.

A waiver that the school doesn't notify you of - you just find it when you submit an application on LSAC.

This has nothing to do with LSAC need-based waivers.

Ok, so if this has nothing to do with LSAC need-based waivers, what is the basis for these waivers. In other words, how do these schools distribute these hidden waivers? Is it based on need or some other factor? If need, how is that determined? Since you said it has nothing to do with LSAC need-based waivers, I'm assuming not qualifying for one of those does not preclude one from getting a hidden application waiver at these schools?

[Dany]

They're "merit" waivers.

[lynch]

Thanks for your post this is very helpful!

[mewalke1]

good stuff thanks

[lynch]

Thanks for sharing this!

[enidwexler]

.

[timfa]

I took the June LSAT in 2011 and 2012 and scored 170 and 174 respectively. I haven't received a single email from any school regarding a fee waiver. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

[amycompton]

This is great. Anyone have a sense as to how long it'll take for these to show up post-November LSAT? I had like to save money, but I don't want to wait for weeks for them to come in.

[Ozymandias]

This is great. Anyone have a sense as to how long it'll take for these to show up post-November LSAT? I had like to save money, but I don't want to wait for weeks for them to come in.

http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... 2&t=135295

[cannibal ox]

Is it necessary to go all the way through an application to find out if you have a hidden waiver, or does the box showing fees before you start the application tip you off?

Example: I have an unsolicited fee waiver to W&L, and no fee waiver to Michigan. These are the screens before I start each application:

W&L: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... no_fee.png
Notice the $0 application fee

Michigan: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... pp_fee.png
Notice the $75 application fee

So my question is, if I theoretically had a hidden waiver from Michigan, would that $75 fee be listed as $0, saving me the trouble of going through an entire application just to find out if I have a hidden waiver?

[TheMostDangerousLG]

Is it necessary to go all the way through an application to find out if you have a hidden waiver, or does the box showing fees before you start the application tip you off?

Example: I have an unsolicited fee waiver to W&L, and no fee waiver to Michigan. These are the screens before I start each application:

W&L: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... no_fee.png
Notice the $0 application fee

Michigan: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... pp_fee.png
Notice the $75 application fee

So my question is, if I theoretically had a hidden waiver from Michigan, would that $75 fee be listed as $0, saving me the trouble of going through an entire application just to find out if I have a hidden waiver?

No, it would not. Hence the "hidden" part.

[Typhoon24]

Is it necessary to go all the way through an application to find out if you have a hidden waiver, or does the box showing fees before you start the application tip you off?

Example: I have an unsolicited fee waiver to W&L, and no fee waiver to Michigan. These are the screens before I start each application:

W&L: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... no_fee.png
Notice the $0 application fee

Michigan: http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/ ... pp_fee.png
Notice the $75 application fee

So my question is, if I theoretically had a hidden waiver from Michigan, would that $75 fee be listed as $0, saving me the trouble of going through an entire application just to find out if I have a hidden waiver?

I'm not so sure if it was a fee waiver that they offered us, I think w and l is just not charging for apps this year like UCI and WashU.