Top Law Schools

Dear All,

Intro:

Yesterday I spoke to the Dean at my school about getting Dean's Certification letters / letters of good standing for my transfer applications. When I told her that I was thinking of transferring, she was VERY negative about the whole thing. She gave me about a 1 1/2 hour lecture about how she does not believe in law school transfers, how she "hates" people that transfer, and how the process "robs [my current school] of its top students." At the end of this LONG lecture (which was basically her lecturing me in a very angry tone, and me sitting there and nodding), she *reluctantly* said that, of course, if I needed her to fill out some forms, she would do it as part of her administrative capacity.

I was basically shocked by this, and went home feeling like sh*t. I talked to my fellow transfer hopefuls (who had to deal with the same lady), and they said they completely had no problem with her / she was very nice to them / she took their Dean's Cert. requests with no questions asked. Possibly I caught her on a bad day, or possibly I was the last of a string of people requesting transfers? I'm just not sure.

My problem:

Some of the schools that I am applying to, as part of their Dean's Certification form, give the administrator / Dean the option to "rate" the student on intelligence / enthusiasm / etc. This Dean made it VERY clear to me that she is 110% against transfers. She is the only one in the school that fills out these kinds of forms, so I can not go to another Dean or administrator (this is a small school). I am very afraid that she will either check some negative ratings, or just put all average or below avg ones, instead of the "no basis for opinion," and that this will negatively effect my transfer apps.

Question:

Would it be a good idea NOT to waive my right to look at the Dean's Certification forms? Would that possibly keep her in "check" from writing something negative or untrue? Should I waive my rights to look at the form anyway? Does the waiver impact the law school admission board's decision in any way?

I realize that this is a very paranoid question, but this lady was very adamant about not having people transfer, and although I do not like to question people's integrity without cause, I realize that there IS a chance that I could get screwed by a negative rating.

Any input on this would be a *great* help, as I am very confused at this point.

Thank you!

Maybe she's a cougar and didn't want to lose a potential cub. (in other words she likes you).

Either way, I'd be a little wary. But, I'd have her sign the forms. You talked to her and that's good. She knows what she has to do. I'd consider not checking the box that makes it anonymous. She said she would sign it and if she knows you can look at it she might, in the words of Minor Threat, "Think again".

What would the repercussions of not waiving be?

Will the school that I'm applying to look at this negatively or with skepticism for some reason?

I have no clue, but that's your right. I don't think the schools would look down on you. They know that some schools making transferring hell. I think they'd care more about your credentials either way.

In your case, I wouldn't waive my rights to look at them and make sure to look and see what she says. I doubt it will affect your transfer chances.

Maybe you could try again to comfort her via an email and get your cert signed in a positive manner. Best of luck.

Hey, is there someone in her office who is nicer? A secretary? Someone you can make friends with? They usually handle these things anyway...

Do not waive your rights. Which law school do you attend ?

I am thinking of just waiving. I figure that a mediocre evaluation (From a Dean who doesn't even know me / who is expected to be annoyed with ppl transfering out of their school) is better than not waiving and to have the school I'm applying to question what my reasons were for not waving the Dean's Cert.

This is a tricky situation for sure. For example, with LORs, waiving is no big deal, as the professor writing the LOR most likely would like to see you go to the best school possible and succeed. They also have an incentive for writing a very good recommendation if they think you can hack it at a top school, because presumably, in the future, you will have $$$ to donate to your alma mater. In this case, however, the Dean has an incentive to NOT have you transfer, so there is a definite conflict of interest.

I do appreciate all of the responses, but would anyone who has thoroughly considered this subject / someone who has experienced this same scenario care to share their analysis / opinion with me. I'm *sure* I'm not the only one who had to go through a similar situation....

Do you think waiving your right to see the dean's cert. will in any way affect the responses she will put down?