Getting accepted as a write-on after you've been dinged Forum

[solidsnake]

The only reason a, say, Emory transfer >>>> a Cooley transfer is the fear that the Cooley guy is not up to snuf and that there is still a risk that he will underperform or just suck at your new school. HOWEVER, if dude is at the very top of his class at Cooley AND wrote onto your most prestigeous journal, beating out your own school's best....uh, hello? ADMIT HIM. Geesh.

I disagree; I bet even HYS adcomms are concerned about a transfer applicant's employability rather than solely the ability to compete academically in 2/3L classes (unless by "under[-]perform or just suck" you meant both). A (no offense) tier 3 student who isn't at the very top of his class is likely going to be shunned by the overwhelming majority of employers at OCI ,and this can be a strain on the administration. Admitting proven commodities (say, for instance, applicants hailing from reputable tier 1 schools) is much less riskier for them at no extra cost (aside from perhaps school diversity), so why bother? As for your LR fetish, LR is a fantastic soft, but it won't magically make up for an otherwise lackluster or generally unimpressive academic record (which includes pedigree -- even top of the class at Cooley usually can't significantly overcome the fact that it's Cooley).

[traydeuce]

But to be fair, a'nold, a write-on is just one essay. Your position is like saying that I deserved to get into Duke law last year because as a Duke undergrad I got an A in a Duke law class, proving I could outsmart their 2Ls. Well yeah, in that class I did, but it was just one class and outside of my lsat the rest of my record wasn't very impressive.

You were graded on the curve, were you?

No idea. Like I say, it's just one essay and although it says a lot about OP that he made this school's law review, it can't entirely erase the doubts about how well his Cooley success would transfer to Berkeley or Michigan or whatever school we're talking about.

[tamlyric]

The only reason a, say, Emory transfer >>>> a Cooley transfer is the fear that the Cooley guy is not up to snuf and that there is still a risk that he will underperform or just suck at your new school. HOWEVER, if dude is at the very top of his class at Cooley AND wrote onto your most prestigeous journal, beating out your own school's best....uh, hello? ADMIT HIM. Geesh.

I disagree; I bet even HYS adcomms are concerned about a transfer applicant's employability rather than solely the ability to compete academically in 2/3L classes (unless by "under[-]perform or just suck" you meant both). A (no offense) tier 3 student who isn't at the very top of his class is likely going to be shunned by the overwhelming majority of employers at OCI ,and this can be a strain on the administration. Admitting proven commodities (say, for instance, applicants hailing from reputable tier 1 schools) is much less riskier for them at no extra cost (aside from perhaps school diversity), so why bother? As for your LR fetish, LR is a fantastic soft, but it won't magically make up for an otherwise lackluster or generally unimpressive academic record (which includes pedigree -- even top of the class at Cooley usually can't significantly overcome the fact that it's Cooley).

Is it fair to assume that you've been doing research about how employable the top students at Cooley generally are?

Edited: for clarification in light of solidsnake's credited comment.

[trialjunky]

God, CMR that must have been a blow!

[solidsnake]

The only reason a, say, Emory transfer >>>> a Cooley transfer is the fear that the Cooley guy is not up to snuf and that there is still a risk that he will underperform or just suck at your new school. HOWEVER, if dude is at the very top of his class at Cooley AND wrote onto your most prestigeous journal, beating out your own school's best....uh, hello? ADMIT HIM. Geesh.

I disagree; I bet even HYS adcomms are concerned about a transfer applicant's employability rather than solely the ability to compete academically in 2/3L classes (unless by "under[-]perform or just suck" you meant both). A (no offense) tier 3 student who isn't at the very top of his class is likely going to be shunned by the overwhelming majority of employers at OCI ,and this can be a strain on the administration. Admitting proven commodities (say, for instance, applicants hailing from reputable tier 1 schools) is much less riskier for them at no extra cost (aside from perhaps school diversity), so why bother? As for your LR fetish, LR is a fantastic soft, but it won't magically make up for an otherwise lackluster or generally unimpressive academic record (which includes pedigree -- even top of the class at Cooley usually can't significantly overcome the fact that it's Cooley).

Is it fair to assume that you've been doing research about how well the number one student at Cooley generally does?

0L noob: It is a qualified statement, e.g., "usually," "significantly" (also "top of the class" in TLS-usage usually refers to the top few people or even percentile, certainly more than #1 alone); I could rather easily define "significantly" to mean t6 transfer>COA clerkship>V10.

Qualified generalizations do not always require meticulous research because they are sometimes based on common knowledge and custom from which the generalization is induced. But, hey, find me some counterfactuals and we'll see if that warrants downgrading "usually" to "sometimes."

[A'nold]

I'll admit that I see this from more than one angle, especially solidsnake's employability example. This would definitely make sense for OCI reasons.

Bottom line: OP, petition for reconsideration.

[selfloathingtransfer]

I know nobody cares what I think, but I just don't think it can hurt anything for OP to petition for reconsideration. There are only two possibilities. They do it or they don't. If they allow him in, his request is the story of his life. If they don't, big deal.

[webbylu87]

I know nobody cares what I think, but I just don't think it can hurt anything for OP to petition for reconsideration. There are only two possibilities. They do it or they don't. If they allow him in, his request is the story of his life. If they don't, big deal.

+1

It's a dog-eat-dog world, man. Do what it takes to get where you want. You're not doing any harm by asking. Worst they can say is no. If you like the school and would really like to attend, you might as well try. But that's just my opinion.

[dresden doll]

petition for reconsideration - I disagree with. This sets up really vulgur incentives for people to have the worst summer of their lives after their 1L year - applying to HYS with no stats to back it up, and writing on like their lives depended on it.

Don't see that happening, at least not in droves. Transfers don't get on LR at their schools of choice in droves, if for no other reason than the fact that they face stiff competition from their potential classmates for the few coveted spots.

OP's situation is relatively uncommon. He ought to petition for reconsideration.

[traydeuce]

^^ I agree. I had assumed the committee knew of his making the Law Review, but that's probably, now that I think about it, not even the case.

[tamlyric]

The only reason a, say, Emory transfer >>>> a Cooley transfer is the fear that the Cooley guy is not up to snuf and that there is still a risk that he will underperform or just suck at your new school. HOWEVER, if dude is at the very top of his class at Cooley AND wrote onto your most prestigeous journal, beating out your own school's best....uh, hello? ADMIT HIM. Geesh.

I disagree; I bet even HYS adcomms are concerned about a transfer applicant's employability rather than solely the ability to compete academically in 2/3L classes (unless by "under[-]perform or just suck" you meant both). A (no offense) tier 3 student who isn't at the very top of his class is likely going to be shunned by the overwhelming majority of employers at OCI ,and this can be a strain on the administration. Admitting proven commodities (say, for instance, applicants hailing from reputable tier 1 schools) is much less riskier for them at no extra cost (aside from perhaps school diversity), so why bother? As for your LR fetish, LR is a fantastic soft, but it won't magically make up for an otherwise lackluster or generally unimpressive academic record (which includes pedigree -- even top of the class at Cooley usually can't significantly overcome the fact that it's Cooley).

Is it fair to assume that you've been doing research about how well the number one student at Cooley generally does?

0L noob: It is a qualified statement, e.g., "usually," "significantly" (also "top of the class" in TLS-usage usually refers to the top few people or even percentile, certainly more than #1 alone); I could rather easily define "significantly" to mean t6 transfer>COA clerkship>V10.

Qualified generalizations do not always require meticulous research because they are sometimes based on common knowledge and custom from which the generalization is induced. But, hey, find me some counterfactuals and we'll see if that warrants downgrading "usually" to "sometimes."

I'll take that as a no. I might add that the common wisdom about Cooley being a joke seems to have less to do with the employability of its top students--especially those who transfer and write on to Law Reviews at T14 schools--than with the way in which it markets itself to prospective students through such means as its preposterous law school rankings. So whether your generalization is warranted on the basis of "common wisdom" is far from clear. And, yes, you could define "significantly" to mean "t6 transfer>COA clerkship>V10," but this would make your point largely irrelevant to the question at hand.

OP should kindly ask for reconsideration.

Yours truly, - 0L noob

[Bankhead]

If I were an adcomm here is my line of thought following a reconsideration:

1) Attending Cooley, not a smart or logical decision.

2) Getting a DUI, not a smart or logical decision.

3) Expending energy on the write-on before acceptance, not a smart or logical decision.

Rejected.

I mean no offense -- that is simply my line of reasoning. I'm sure CMR is a great guy/girl, I just don't agree with certain choices they have made lately and I think the adcomms might not either.

[traydeuce]

^^ The law reviews at many of these schools encourage you to write-on before acceptance; it's the only way you can make law review at such schools unless you write a publishable note your 2L year.

[solidsnake]

I'll take that as a no. I might add that the common wisdom about Cooley being a joke seems to have less to do with the employability of its top students--especially those who transfer and write on to Law Reviews at T14 schools--than with the way in which it markets itself to prospective students through such means as its preposterous law school rankings. So whether your generalization is warranted on the basis of "common wisdom" is far from clear. And, yes, you could define "significantly" to mean "t6 transfer>COA clerkship>V10," but this would make your point largely irrelevant to the question at hand.

OP should kindly ask for reconsideration.

Yours truly, - 0L noob

My point dealt only with whether "the only reason a, say, Emory transfer >>>> a Cooley transfer is the fear that the Cooley guy is not up to snuf and that there is still a risk that he will underperform or just suck at your new school."

That being said, I don't really have a conclusive argument for/against OP's petition to reconsider. If it fails, I suppose he's in the same place he's in now; on the other hand, that potential double rejection and the emotional/ego blow that something like that entails might not be worth the small chance at success. I don't know what OP's expectations are, but coming from Cooley (and, no, it's not just their preposterous rankings that make their students appear dubious relative to other applicants) I certainly hope they are tempered.