Deposited at HYS. Having doubts. Forum

[Mack.Hambleton]

If you were accepted to at least one of Harvard, Yale & Stanford law schools, then you should have been offered substantial scholarship money from other T-14 law schools. If so, have you considered taking a full-tuition scholarship to a T-14 law school ?

This is an annoyingly persistent myth

How is this a myth lol. People with 169s are getting full rides at UVA this cycle, if they applied broadly they should have big money at at least one of MVPDCNG

[jbagelboy]

If you were accepted to at least one of Harvard, Yale & Stanford law schools, then you should have been offered substantial scholarship money from other T-14 law schools. If so, have you considered taking a full-tuition scholarship to a T-14 law school ?

This is an annoyingly persistent myth

How is this a myth lol. People with 169s are getting full rides at UVA this cycle, if they applied broadly they should have big money at at least one of MVPDCNG

wasn't true when cicero and I applied

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

Depends on what you mean by "substantial" scholarship. HYS admits with a GPA over 3.7 ordinarily can get at least a half-ride at a lower T14. I would say that given the choices that top applicants have, HYS is usually not the right choice, but of course it depends on the need aid there.

[albpert]

update:

Ended up getting >$35k in aid for 1L (so much for those PMs saying I'd get nothing) and have determined I want to be a lawyer, unicorn outcome or not, so I'm going. Did better this year than I thought, and will have solid savings so debt shouldn't be too big of an issue if I'm frugal .

Anyone have experience with the best way to minimize the impact of summer earnings on 2L & 3L fin aid? Does HYS count summer income that is deducted via Traditional IRA etc? Do any big firms allow SAs to contribute to their 401k plan?

[Tiago Splitter]

update:

Ended up getting >$35k in aid for 1L (so much for those PMs saying I'd get nothing) and have determined I want to be a lawyer, unicorn outcome or not, so I'm going. Did better this year than I thought, and will have solid savings so debt shouldn't be too big of an issue if I'm frugal .

Anyone have experience with the best way to minimize the impact of summer earnings on 2L & 3L fin aid? Does HYS count summer income that is deducted via Traditional IRA etc? Do any big firms allow SAs to contribute to their 401k plan?

How did you avoid having your 75k+ savings count towards the financial aid calculation?

[jbagelboy]

update:

Ended up getting >$35k in aid for 1L (so much for those PMs saying I'd get nothing) and have determined I want to be a lawyer, unicorn outcome or not, so I'm going. Did better this year than I thought, and will have solid savings so debt shouldn't be too big of an issue if I'm frugal .

Anyone have experience with the best way to minimize the impact of summer earnings on 2L & 3L fin aid? Does HYS count summer income that is deducted via Traditional IRA etc? Do any big firms allow SAs to contribute to their 401k plan?

I think anyone in your shoes (more than half tuition scholarship to harvard) would have gone as well

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

OP if you don't WANT to be a lawyer don't go to law school, even HYS
if you do want to practice law you are almost guaranteed to have a legal job and unless you do PI you will make more than your current salary
but keep in mind there is basically no legal job where you make $75k and don't have long hours and stress

[PeanutsNJam]

update:

Ended up getting >$35k in aid for 1L (so much for those PMs saying I'd get nothing) and have determined I want to be a lawyer, unicorn outcome or not, so I'm going. Did better this year than I thought, and will have solid savings so debt shouldn't be too big of an issue if I'm frugal .

Anyone have experience with the best way to minimize the impact of summer earnings on 2L & 3L fin aid? Does HYS count summer income that is deducted via Traditional IRA etc? Do any big firms allow SAs to contribute to their 401k plan?

Isn't your 2L aid application sent in way before your 1L summer income? You just have to worry about 3L aid. Ship any money you have offshore. Buy a car. Donate it all to charity.

[TheSpanishMain]

At what CoA should I consider going back to school a viable option?

Context: Deposited at HYS. I have around $75k saved up that won't count against my financial aid calculation and don't have rich parents so I should get some need based aid based on the financial aid handbook's formula. Longterm goals are academia and/or mediation/arbitration. Short term goals, other than avoiding debt, are anything that gets me closer my longterm ones (litigation, VAPs, etc). BigLaw scares the shit out of me based on what people post here, but a couple year stint seems doable.

I currently have a pretty low stress job that pays ~$75k/yr. Back when I applied I thought for sure law school was the right move. Now after working a few years I have no clue given that law school performance is impossible to predict, I don't need dat $160k to be happy, and I already make more than most PI jobs pay.

Doesn't sound like you have much of any reason to go to law school.

Depends on the growth potential in the job. 75k a year with low stress is awesome when you're in your early twenties, but if he's topped out then it's going to feel like less and less as he gets older. But yeah, OP, if your current job has growth potential and you don't hate it, I'd think long and hard about law school, even HYS.