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Stats: 3.90-3.95, 169

I will be applying to schools outside of the T14 due to to the decent probability that they will offer me more money than T14 schools, which I can then use to bump up the T14 $$$.

I have a few questions:

-How low can I go?

Obviously, I can't sway NYU with Cardozo. But can I sway them with Fordham (#36)? Or should I limit myself to schools just outside the T14, like UCLA, USC, WUSTL, Vanderbilt, Emory?


- How many schools should I apply to for these purposes?

1, 5, 10?


Do I need to write "Why" essays to guard against yield protection?


Thanks!

What are your career goals?

Without knowing that, it's hard to say which schools might be worth targeting outside the T13. But to generally respond to your other question: no, NYU will not care about Fordham's scholarship offer. T13 schools tend to not be persuaded very strongly in scholarship negotiations by anything outside of another T13 offer/scholarship. For example, Northwestern's formal negotiation process only allows you to report scholarship offers from T20 schools (with a strong implication that lower-ranked schools carry less weight). And most admissions departments have very specific ideas of who they consider "peer" institutions.

DOJ/SEC. I want to go to the T14 for this reason and am applying outside of it strictly to leverage their offers

T-13 or bust. Maybe Vanderbilt because your scores are in range for their full tuition plus a 5K stipend scholarships and their hiring numbers are okay, but definitely no lower than that.

Justtrying2help wrote:T-13 or bust. Maybe Vanderbilt because your scores are in range for their full tuition plus a 5K stipend scholarships and their hiring numbers are okay, but definitely no lower than that.

My question was not where should I go but where I should apply outside of the T14 in order to leverage those schools' offers to gain $$$ at T14 schools.

THe correct answer is to apply and see what you get and then decline and retake if you don't get much money, no reason not to have a 171+

I'd rather sit out and get a full ride, then work an extra 4 years to pay back the same amount of tuition. You're not going to leverage much with your non t-13 acceptance.

WilliamFaulkner wrote:

Justtrying2help wrote:T-13 or bust. Maybe Vanderbilt because your scores are in range for their full tuition plus a 5K stipend scholarships and their hiring numbers are okay, but definitely no lower than that.

My question was not where should I go but where I should apply outside of the T14 in order to leverage those schools' offers to gain $$$ at T14 schools.

Schools outside the t-13 don't give you leverage inside the t-13. A full ride to Vanderbilt is a respectable offer that may get you more money from the lower t-13 but that's it. A full ride to WUSTL is useless for negotiations because many people with your lsat score get full tuition scholarships there. There are very few ways to leverage a t-13 school outside of using a scholarship from another top-13 school.

TLDR: You are likely wasting your time and money if you apply to schools outside of the t-13 with your numbers. Very little to no leverage can be gained by doing so. This is what I meant by my previous post.

Justtrying2help wrote:

WilliamFaulkner wrote:

Justtrying2help wrote:T-13 or bust. Maybe Vanderbilt because your scores are in range for their full tuition plus a 5K stipend scholarships and their hiring numbers are okay, but definitely no lower than that.

My question was not where should I go but where I should apply outside of the T14 in order to leverage those schools' offers to gain $$$ at T14 schools.

Schools outside the t-13 don't give you leverage inside the t-13. A full ride to Vanderbilt is a respectable offer that may get you more money from the lower t-13 but that's it. A full ride to WUSTL is useless for negotiations because many people with your lsat score get full tuition scholarships there. There are very few ways to leverage a t-13 school outside of using a scholarship from another top-13 school.

TLDR: You are likely wasting your time and money if you apply to schools outside of the t-13 with your numbers. Very little to no leverage can be gained by doing so. This is what I meant by my previous post.

thank you for your help. this thread was started after speaking to a UVA student who leveraged a BU offer to get some more money. i suppose she was an exception to the rule. appreciate you!