I'M IN A GLASS CASE OF EMOTION!!!! Forum

[willyj]

I'm anxious as hell about this whole process, and I'm not sure if I'm doing the right thing here. Here's the situation:

167/3.9 at moderate to highly ranked public university with moderate to strong softs (eagle scout, fully bilingual, study abroad w/ scholarship, lots of campus charity involvement, internships, fraternity president, etc.). I really want an elite school- my top 2 two choices are UVa and Michigan- but my parents are putting a lot of pressure on me to consider cost, since I will be funding my legal education personally, and, being that I really have no personal finances, I will be going into debt for any amount not covered by scholarships. I honestly have little desire to go to any of my second choices (UCLA, UGA, a few others), and I really feel I should just ED to Virginia; I visited and believe it to be the place for me, and I think that with every passing day until RD, my application becomes a little less valuable to Virginia as they continue to compile more and more applications. Given the way my semester is going, I think my GPA may come down a little bit, although it wouldn't go lower than 3.85; at any rate, I do not think my numbers can afford to drop any at all if I am to secure an admission to either of these two institutions. I am a person whose personal prestige is integral to maintaining happiness, so I think that the debt would be worth paying sticker price for one of these schools. Furthermore, I think I'm justified in thinking that a degree from either institution would tend to find its way towards paying off the debt.

Anyone have any advice? Anything to consider that I've overlooked? I feel like my dilemma is leaving me powerless to determine my own future, and it's terribly unsettling.

[IAFG]

evaluate your options once you've applied and gotten scholarships. speculating you'll get money at lower schools is sort of pointless. if you have gotten scholly offers, share the schools and consider the job prospects. a half-ride at a school that doesn't place well isn't all that useful if you have admission to a school that does. you still have to find a way to pay back the (smaller) loans.

[vanwinkle]

If you're willing to pay sticker for it (and many are), ED to UVA and be done with it.

Nearly everyone goes into debt to pay for law school. The financial aid scheme is set up that way; most people take loans on the assumption they'll get a job that lets them service their loans when they graduate. If you can't get a high-paying job, the government now has Income-Based Repayment or IBR which can fix your loan repayment to a percentage of your income, regardless of how much you owe, so that you won't be overwhelmed by loan payments. Read up on IBR, it could be your backup plan.

That only applies to federal loans, but you should be eligible for GradPlus and Stafford loans up to the full estimated cost of attendance. If you're willing to take on that much debt, and you think the odds of success are so much higher at a place like UVA that it's worth paying sticker for, ED is the way to go. Many people make that choice.

[Mike12188]

Just ED unless you want to try and get money from a lower ranked school (which doesn't sound like you want to). Where do you wanna work, from what I read on here UVA is better for NY/DC, whereas Mich is better for Chi.

p.s. great movie

[kurla88]

If you're dead set on UVA or Michigan, I don't really see you getting into either without ED.

That said, I don't think it's a good idea to take on a t10 at full price ITE, especially when you're going straight through from college. Us straight-through types suffered the worst at OCI. Having the t10 on your resume might be worth it in the long run even if you don't make your dream job straight out of law school? But it also might not, it seems like after the first job or two, it's really only your prior experience that counts.

Your decision to make, though. I would apply to lower t-14s/t20s etc and look for at least a partial scholarship.

[willyj]

I've already applied to UVa, Michigan, UGA, UCLA, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Bama, Duke, and William and Mary, as a side note.

In all honesty, I'm overwhelmed by how big of a decision this is, and my biggest fear is that making a decision to take a lower ranked school based on financial reasons will be something I'll regret for the rest of my life. Which is obviously undesirable. Anyone out there already in law school face my dilemma as they navigated the admissions process?

[CanadianWolf]

How does your LSAT score of 167 compare to your practice tests ? How did you prepare for the LSAT ? Are you willing to sit for another LSAT ?

[vanwinkle]

I've already applied to UVa, Michigan, UGA, UCLA, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Bama, Duke, and William and Mary, as a side note.

In all honesty, I'm overwhelmed by how big of a decision this is, and my biggest fear is that making a decision to take a lower ranked school based on financial reasons will be something I'll regret for the rest of my life. Which is obviously undesirable. Anyone out there already in law school face my dilemma as they navigated the admissions process?

Is there a chance you can get a job and work for a year or two? That'll be advantageous for a few different reasons:

1) It would give you time to study and retake the LSAT, which could lead not only to getting into more T14 schools but also getting scholarship money there.

2) Work experience is valuable on law school applications at top schools, and could help you get into one.

3) Work experience is valuable for a reason; the maturity and change in perspective that you get from working between UG and law school tends to lead to greater success both in law school and job hunting. Employers seem to like people with work experience and it's a real plus to have when job-hunting.

4) It will give you more time to decide what a law degree is worth to you and how much you're willing to borrow to pay for it. You'll have a frame of reference in terms of what life without the law degree will be like, and it'll give you more time to look at the legal job market (which is still in flux) and determine whether it's worth it to pay sticker at a T14 or not.

There's huge advantages to waiting, if you can afford to do so. Instead of focusing on this, if it's nerve-wracking you that much, you should be focusing on finding a job to do for the next couple years that'll be fun and interesting and give you real world employment skills that will make you more valuable once you go to law school. That way you can put this off and know that when you do finally decide you'll have a greater chance of success either way.

[Ginj]

The man on the motorcycle! The man punted Baxter!!

[moopness]

I've already applied to UVa, Michigan, UGA, UCLA, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Bama, Duke, and William and Mary, as a side note.

In all honesty, I'm overwhelmed by how big of a decision this is, and my biggest fear is that making a decision to take a lower ranked school based on financial reasons will be something I'll regret for the rest of my life. Which is obviously undesirable. Anyone out there already in law school face my dilemma as they navigated the admissions process?

Is there a chance you can get a job and work for a year or two? That'll be advantageous for a few different reasons:

1) It would give you time to study and retake the LSAT, which could lead not only to getting into more T14 schools but also getting scholarship money there.

2) Work experience is valuable on law school applications at top schools, and could help you get into one.

3) Work experience is valuable for a reason; the maturity and change in perspective that you get from working between UG and law school tends to lead to greater success both in law school and job hunting. Employers seem to like people with work experience and it's a real plus to have when job-hunting.

4) It will give you more time to decide what a law degree is worth to you and how much you're willing to borrow to pay for it. You'll have a frame of reference in terms of what life without the law degree will be like, and it'll give you more time to look at the legal job market (which is still in flux) and determine whether it's worth it to pay sticker at a T14 or not.

There's huge advantages to waiting, if you can afford to do so. Instead of focusing on this, if it's nerve-wracking you that much, you should be focusing on finding a job to do for the next couple years that'll be fun and interesting and give you real world employment skills that will make you more valuable once you go to law school. That way you can put this off and know that when you do finally decide you'll have a greater chance of success either way.

TITCR
If you can't wait, then ED to your choice. It's really that simple

[CanadianWolf]

Alabama may offer full out-of-state tuition & books. May really depend upon your geographical preferences.