Near/just above median at CLS. Transfer to Stanford? Forum

[Anonymous User]

So my first semester grades came back and put me somewhere near median, or close to top 40%. I may need to move to CA for a pair of personal reasons and would prefer not to transfer down to do so. Assuming I bump up to for sure top 40%, maybe top 33%, would Stanford take me?

If I have to go down, would a school like Berkeley take me/give me money? How much would Hastings give me?

[juzam_djinn]

Based on anecdotal evidence, top 25% at CCN and top 5-10% at MVP have been rejected from S in the past, so it would seem like a real long shot

[UnfrozenCaveman]

Most schools don't give transfers anything unless they do need-based aid.

[smaug_]

I think last year we only had people to HLS. I think they had better grades than that? I don't really know. Find some 2Ls/3Ls on campus and ask around. I think it would be a real long shot unless you destroyed the next semester.

[stillwater]

absolutely no shot at median or near it.

[Anonymous User]

Okay, I get that Stanford is a no go. Anyone care to comment on Berkeley and Hastings? The primary objective isn't trading up, but to get back to in/around those areas so I don't have to handle my home stuff long distance. I'm not on scholly at CLS, so getting more money would be great, but is not a requirement (save for Hastings, but I can't really be choosy given the circumstances).

[stillwater]

Okay, I get that Stanford is a no go. Anyone care to comment on Berkeley and Hastings? The primary objective isn't trading up, but to get back to in/around those areas so I don't have to handle my home stuff long distance. I'm not on scholly at CLS, so getting more money would be great, but is not a requirement (save for Hastings, but I can't really be choosy given the circumstances).

Hastings would be incredibly silly

[brotherdarkness]

.

[rpupkin]

If I have to go down, would a school like Berkeley take me/give me money? How much would Hastings give me?

You have about as good of a chance at Berkeley as you have at Stanford. That is, basically no chance. Based on what I know about Berkeley transfer admissions, they'd much rather take someone who is top of their class at a TTT California school than someone who is median (or even top 25%) at CCN.

I'm sure Hastings would take you as a transfer, but they would do so in order to take your money--I doubt they're going to give you anything. Don't transfer to Hastings.

[smaug_]

Okay, I get that Stanford is a no go. Anyone care to comment on Berkeley and Hastings? The primary objective isn't trading up, but to get back to in/around those areas so I don't have to handle my home stuff long distance. I'm not on scholly at CLS, so getting more money would be great, but is not a requirement (save for Hastings, but I can't really be choosy given the circumstances).

Hastings would be incredibly silly

Agreed. I don't know if you can take a year "off" from law school and come back (and, more importantly, how doing so would affect OCI), but I'd look into that avenue.

This sounds like good advice. Talk to Dean MGK about taking a leave of absence. I'm pretty sure you just need to have completed a term and can take an absence of up to two years. I figure they'd let you do OCI with ℅ 2017? You'd need to find something to do during your "gap" year but maybe you'll be busy enough taking care of the family situation anyway?

[Jchance]

So my first semester grades came back and put me somewhere near median, or close to top 40%. I may need to move to CA for a pair of personal reasons and would prefer not to transfer down to do so. Assuming I bump up to for sure top 40%, maybe top 33%, would Stanford take me?

If I have to go down, would a school like Berkeley take me/give me money? How much would Hastings give me?

Not sure how you'd explain to employers at OCI about the decision to Hasting.

[rpupkin]

So my first semester grades came back and put me somewhere near median, or close to top 40%. I may need to move to CA for a pair of personal reasons and would prefer not to transfer down to do so. Assuming I bump up to for sure top 40%, maybe top 33%, would Stanford take me?

If I have to go down, would a school like Berkeley take me/give me money? How much would Hastings give me?

Not sure how you'd explain to employers at OCI about the decision to Hasting.

For what it's worth, I know someone who transferred from NYU to Hastings because her husband unexpectedly had to move to SF for work reasons. She tried to transfer to SLS and Boalt but both schools rejected her.

She did fine at OCI and got several offers from SF firms. (She had good grades at NYU, btw.) Although she can't be sure, she thinks that transferring to Hastings actually put her in a better position for SF big law. (She was initially very upset about having to "transfer down," but, after seeing how much SF Bay Area firms value ties, she realized that trying to land a SA in SF out of NYU might have been harder.)

[Big Dog]

Doesn't Cal specifically say on their website that transfers get zero money?

[7ED]

Almost definitely out of the question barring a very compelling personal reason.

[brotherdarkness]

.

[solucky]

Based on anecdotal evidence, top 25% at CCN and top 5-10% at MVP have been rejected from S in the past, so it would seem like a real long shot

Meaning for SLS, you must be at or around top 1-2% at MVPB?

[juzam_djinn]

Based on anecdotal evidence, top 25% at CCN and top 5-10% at MVP have been rejected from S in the past, so it would seem like a real long shot

Meaning for SLS, you must be at or around top 1-2% at MVPB?

not necessarily; it's already a black box, as there have been people with lower stats that have been accepted in the past (i.e. 5-10% from a T25)

but when people ask for chances, i think most of the time they should be asking for whether or not it's "probable" as opposed to "possible"

If you're top 1-2% at a T10, you'd probably have a great or near-lock chance at HYS; you could get in with lower but it's going to be much less likely the further you dip down in class rank

[FlanAl]

A number of kids at my school in a similar situation spent a semester externing in their necessary city and then their final year as a visiting student at whatever school in the same city due to a hardship etc.. Each one of them "traded down" but will still get the t14 degree even thought they were only here for 3 semesters. I would guess you could do the same thing at columbia.