Top Law Schools

Hey guys, I need some advice here. I was offered a conditional transfer acceptance into a top 20 law school (which means that I would be accepted as long as I reach top 50%). As a result, I applied early and got accepted. I was so excited that I paid the deposit immediately (btw I was from a middle of the pack t2 school, and I don't see any future there).
Because my acceptance was based solely on my first semester grade, I think the school might reevaluate my position based on the final transcript. And this is what my concern is, cause I did badly this semester. I got a few Bs (think B+ and B-)and a C this semester. I emailed to my professor about the C grade and he said he will check the grade book, cause I thought I did well in his class and there might be a miscalculation. But nonetheless, would a grade like mine affect my transfer? I think I am around top 60-65% this semester, and my overall gpa for the whole year is around top 50% (might be slightly below that). Would the school take away my seat if I get bad grades? Any experience or advice would be appreciated. I am thinking about sending the transcript late (maybe in august, the deadline to turn in is the first day of class, which is in early Sept), after the transfer cycle is over so the school may ignore my situation.
Btw I was so happy that I moved near the law school now and even made a student ID... And now this happens

If the target school made your acceptance contingent upon maintaining a certain rank and your grades force you below that cutoff, I'd say yes, it is likely it will have an effect. But, it's entirely up to the target school how much latitude they want to exhibit. My guess it would depend on the strength of their other transfer applications, how much of the transfer class they need to fill, etc.

That said - and I don't mean to pile on, just food for thought - my biggest concern at this point would be the effect on recruiting, not transferring. That'll be the major issue regardless of where you end up. It's one thing for grades to start low and then go up, but moving in the contrary direction is...rough.

SiRR wrote:If the target school made your acceptance contingent upon maintaining a certain rank and your grades force you below that cutoff, I'd say yes, it is possible it is likely it will have an effect. But, it's entirely up to the target school how much latitude they want to exhibit. My guess it would depend on the strength of their other transfer applications, how much of the transfer class they need to fill, etc.

That said - and I don't mean to pile on, just food for thought - my biggest concern at this point would be the effect on recruiting, not transferring. That'll be the major issue regardless of where you end up. It's one thing for grades to start low and then go up, but moving in the contrary direction is...rough.

Yeah, I know. That's why I am thinking about sending in my transcript later in August, so the school may not find a replacement (and I don't think the school is very popular in terms of people who want to transfer in). With the grade I have in a mid T2 school, it is likely that I would be screwed if I don't transfer. The new law school brand would help me out for sure, even if I do badly in the new school (seriously though, 10 years from now, no one will ask me what grade I have, but only what law school I went). And I plan to study harder and use a different strategy in the fall.

Did your school rank after the first semester and what was your rank/percentile? If you dropped like 50% then they may wonder what's going on.

That being said most schools usually base conditional acceptance on "consistant performance" or "maintaining good standing" or something nebulous so they can do whatever they want. But if they gave you are hard % then you should probably let them know ASAP so you don't get surprised at the last minute if the pull the offer.

lixinempire wrote:

SiRR wrote: That's why I am thinking about sending in my transcript later in August, so the school may not find a replacement (and I don't think the school is very popular in terms of people who want to transfer in).

I would strongly recommend against playing that game for a number of reasons (mostly ethical, integrity, etc.). Even those reasons aside, that would put you in a precarious situation, and would be torture to live under for a while.

DasEggs wrote:Did your school rank after the first semester and what was your rank/percentile? If you dropped like 50% then they may wonder what's going on.

That being said most schools usually base conditional acceptance on "consistant performance" or "maintaining good standing" or something nebulous so they can do whatever they want. But if they gave you are hard % then you should probably let them know ASAP so you don't get surprised at the last minute if the pull the offer.

I was around the top 30-35% in the first semester (so I wasn't great to begin with). The target school gave me a top 1/2 class requirement to transfer in, but never says anything about it after I get in. On the acceptance letter, it says "the committee reserves the right to reconsider its decision based on the final transcript." So yes, I think it is nebulous.
Letting them know ASAP might screw my chance of saving the spot, as I explained above. But some of you seem to believe that letting the school know early is good... (this is pretty much a life decision for me haha, and is indeed a torture)

How much more debt would you take on to go to the T20? Getting into a T20 isn't really going to make getting a job easier since you won't be getting one through OCI so you really shouldn't be taking on additional debt.

scottidsntknow wrote:How much more debt would you take on to go to the T20? Getting into a T20 isn't really going to make getting a job easier since you won't be getting one through OCI so you really shouldn't be taking on additional debt.

I am not getting much scholarship from the old school. And with the grade I have now, I don't think I can get a lot next year. So there isn't much difference in debt.This is why I was so eager to transfer. I know I am pretty much screwed for OCI this year.

Ethical qualms aside, it is extremely risky to bank on a school holding your spot. The difference one transfer makes is probably nothing to a school (they can just take more next year).

DasEggs wrote:Ethical qualms aside, it is extremely risky to bank on a school holding your spot. The difference one transfer makes is probably nothing to a school (they can just take more next year).

Any suggestions on what I should do? Of course, there is a possibility that the school wouldn't care, after all they only required top 50% from me for acceptance, so it is very lenient on my grades. (I want to stress that I have paid my deposit after the acceptance, I moved near the school, and I got a school ID already) But I want to maximize my chance to study here in the fall.