Iowa Class of 2019 Applicants (2015-2016) Forum

[Shib26]

Admitted today via e-mail. The e-mail caught me off guard since the status checker hadn't moved since I went complete two weeks ago and thought it was just another fee waiver email, glad I opened it though.

Not sure what the odds of me actually enrolling are, it'll come down to money. But as a late in the cycle applicant this was my first acceptance which is pretty damn exciting!

Congrats! When did you submit your application?

Thanks! I submitted on 1/5.

[robertwabisabi]

Checking in to the thread. In via email today.

Submitted: 1/16/2016
Received: 1/19/2016
Complete: 1/25/2016
Accepted: 2/9/2016

[alopez93]

For those who were offered RA positions what do you mean? Like was it guaranteed that you would get one or did the scholarship offer simply mention that if you get one they will give you in state tuition etc etc?

Thanks in advance!

[SamTarly]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

[Shib26]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

[CJRpnw]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

I received my acceptance email on Day 1, and the financial aid email on Day 2. Did you check your spam or promotions folder?

[Shib26]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

I received my acceptance email on Day 1, and the financial aid email on Day 2. Did you check your spam or promotions folder?

I don't think I've missed it. I've gotten several other e-mails from the school, and I did get a very generic financial aid e-mail that among other things said that everyone admitted is automatically considered for scholarships on a rolling basis after the offer of admission.

So I guess that means either I am not being offered anything, or they just haven't decided yet. Do you think I should email them to ask for clarification?

[chad255]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

I received my acceptance email on Day 1, and the financial aid email on Day 2. Did you check your spam or promotions folder?

I don't think I've missed it. I've gotten several other e-mails from the school, and I did get a very generic financial aid e-mail that among other things said that everyone admitted is automatically considered for scholarships on a rolling basis after the offer of admission.

So I guess that means either I am not being offered anything, or they just haven't decided yet. Do you think I should email them to ask for clarification?

Looks like I was accepted around the same time you were. I have yet to receive scholarship information. The financial aid email that we all got a day after the acceptance email says that we can expect scholarship info to come by email within 4 weeks of our acceptance. Give it another week or so.

[SamTarly]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

I received my acceptance email on Day 1, and the financial aid email on Day 2. Did you check your spam or promotions folder?

I don't think I've missed it. I've gotten several other e-mails from the school, and I did get a very generic financial aid e-mail that among other things said that everyone admitted is automatically considered for scholarships on a rolling basis after the offer of admission.

So I guess that means either I am not being offered anything, or they just haven't decided yet. Do you think I should email them to ask for clarification?

Looks like I was accepted around the same time you were. I have yet to receive scholarship information. The financial aid email that we all got a day after the acceptance email says that we can expect scholarship info to come by email within 4 weeks of our acceptance. Give it another week or so.

Thanks guys! and yeah I got accepted like two weeks ago, and got several generic financial aid emails. But okay, I guess we just have to wait it out.

[Shib26]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

I received my acceptance email on Day 1, and the financial aid email on Day 2. Did you check your spam or promotions folder?

I don't think I've missed it. I've gotten several other e-mails from the school, and I did get a very generic financial aid e-mail that among other things said that everyone admitted is automatically considered for scholarships on a rolling basis after the offer of admission.

So I guess that means either I am not being offered anything, or they just haven't decided yet. Do you think I should email them to ask for clarification?

Looks like I was accepted around the same time you were. I have yet to receive scholarship information. The financial aid email that we all got a day after the acceptance email says that we can expect scholarship info to come by email within 4 weeks of our acceptance. Give it another week or so.

Thanks guys! and yeah I got accepted like two weeks ago, and got several generic financial aid emails. But okay, I guess we just have to wait it out.

Glad to see others in the same boat. Hopefully we hear something soon!

[yenisey]

Checking in. Did anyone who got accepted in the last couple weeks or so get scholarship information?

This Thursday will be 3 weeks since I was accepted and I have yet to hear anything about scholarships.

==============================
Same boat. I was accepted on 1/12.

[sheboygan!]

I'm a current 1L here at Iowa. For what my opinion is worth, y'all can hit me up with any questions about law at Iowa.

Hi Sheboygan, I realize that you are a 1L and the legal clinic is open to students after 3 semesters. I'm curious if you have heard any gripes about the lottery system to get into the clinic? Is it pretty competitive to get in? Are there a bunch of unhappy 2Ls who did not get in? Any idea how many students they take in a given semester? It seems like a great way to get experience but I'm a little dismayed that there is a chance I wouldn't get to work there. Thanks!

I have heard comparatively few gripes about the lottery system- yes, it sucks that sometimes it won't work out, but at the end of the day it is pseudo-random and folks here seem to realize that. Part of the reason that people aren't too upset is there are a decent number of off campus pro bono activities, such as working with Iowa Legal Aid or the Public Defenders office or misdemeanor prosecutions at the courthouse that offer the same sort of practice options for 3+ semester students that the clinic might offer in some capacity.

I'm unsure of how many they take in a given semester, but I don't know that it's many.

Sorry for the delay- I've been flitting around the Midwest for OCI-related things and haven't been on TLS a whole lot!

[sheboygan!]

Anyone here familiar with Iowa City?

yes

What do you know about Aspire grad student housing? Also how bad are the winters? (where I live, it snows maybe 4/5 times per winter, usually 2 or 3 inches, and we have usually only 2 or 3 weeks in January below 30 degrees)

I do not know much about Aspire grad student housing. I never knew anyone who lived there. But I do know that it is very far removed from campus/the downtown area and you would be driving to school every day. I briefly researched it and it honestly enrages me that they advertise this as "on campus housing." It's pretty much out in the boondocks of Iowa City and isn't within walking distance of anything significant. You would be driving or taking the Cambus to the law school every day.

Especially at Iowa, I would not choose to live here. The only way I would choose to live here is if you absolutely are the kind of person who enjoys living in a backwater, likes quiet space, and likes living in an area removed from people. 1L and law school in general is a lot more social than people think. There will be bar reviews and social events that mainly take place in the downtown area, and it will be very nice to be able to walk to the downtown area and not have to worry about getting back/being able to control when you can and can't get downtown. Almost everything in Iowa City revolves around the downtown area, and I would find it very annoying and unnecessary to live too far removed. Especially since the law school is within walking distance of the downtown area.

I strongly recommend living downtown or near downtown if you have an option. Check out the Telluride apartments, the Villas, or anything else really within the immediate downtown vacinity. I would trade the convenience afforded by Aspire Housing for the location of living downtown in a heartbeat, although the cost for Aspire Housing looks pretty reasonable for everything that's included. I still just can't get over that they claim this is on campus housing.

Winters are brutal, as you would expect. The cold starts to move in about Halloween time, and November is sort of a toss up month. The cold during this month can either be biting and completely stifling or November can be more mild, as it seemed to be this year. Winter will last until about Spring Break. So I usually think it's pretty bitterly cold from the beginning of November to the middle of March. It can be really harsh because the campus is open and I walked everywhere, exposing myself to the wind. That was the hardest part at least. But I would still recommend living downtown and walking to the law school if you have any choice whatsoever. Maybe live on the West Side of the river if you want to be around more grad students over near the hospital, but don't go as far out as Aspire.

There will be a couple major snowfalls a year. By major I mean snowfalls over like one foot.

So you're saying trade the rear wheel drive Mustang in for AWD
How is parking on campus, terrible like everywhere else I expect? I pay $600/school year to park in a campus garage. I assume it's the same there - living within walking distance would be great. Thanks for the info, I'll check out those other places.

Sorry for the atrocious catch-up here: the law school's lot is a paid per semester basis lot OR you can get a permit that allows you to pay per hour. I believe that the semester based option is $200/semester or so and that allows you to simply park in the lot without feeding the meter. If you get the non-prepaid permit, you can park, but it costs $.70/hour (no partial hours) to park. Parking is only enforced from 0830-1630 a day (8 hours, total of $5.60 a day) so if you're parking at the law school fewer than 35 whole days it's worth it to get the prepaid (which I do, since I'm about 20 minutes walking distance from the school).

Everywhere else on campus is awful- if you show up before a certain time, the rate for parking is something like $3-4 an hour with a daily cap at $25; otherwise it's about a dollar an hour after about 0900-1000. Downtown ramps are best since they're $1/hr with the first hour free but that's a bit of a walk to the law school. In general, the University parking sucks due to their design and locations, as they'll get full or otherwise backed up really quickly. I like the downtown parking ramps, but again, they're far.

As far as Aspire goes- it's far away. A good chunk of the law students do live there because it's a guaranteed lease, but they're driving or Cambus-ing in every day and it takes a toll. A lot of other students live on W Benton Dr, at complexes like Seville or Benton Villa/Benton Manor. There's plenty of apartments at the intersection of Greenwood and Benton that are both close to the law school and decently priced (500-800/mo price range, variety of utilities included for each).

[sheboygan!]

For those who were offered RA positions what do you mean? Like was it guaranteed that you would get one or did the scholarship offer simply mention that if you get one they will give you in state tuition etc etc?

Thanks in advance!

If it's at all similar to last year's offer, it's along the lines of this:

1L year: Full out of state tuition

2L/3L: Full in-state tuition rate and a guaranteed RA position (it is possible however that it may not be in the law school if you apply late). Having an RA position drops you to in-state tuition levels, which the scholarship then covers. The RA position does pay but it's a 10 hour appointment at minimum wage, so it's roughly $1000/semester. The real benefit is in getting the instate tuition to keep your overall cost of attendance at mostly free.

That said, the scholarships last year didn't cover fees (e.g. stadium fees, student services fees, etc) and it comes out to about $900/semester. So that's something worth noting.

[fliptrip]

I gotta say, I think the whole RA position thing that's attached to Iowa's scholarships really sucks. I would probably be working during 2L/3L anyway, but to be forced to work for the University to keep my scholarship? How in the world is this competitive with other full-tuition scholarships that are exactly that, scholarships, or money to study.

[d237]

I gotta say, I think the whole RA position thing that's attached to Iowa's scholarships really sucks. I would probably be working during 2L/3L anyway, but to be forced to work for the University to keep my scholarship? How in the world is this competitive with other full-tuition scholarships that are exactly that, scholarships, or money to study.

Glass half full version: it's not like the law school is asking you to sweep the floor for 10 hours- it's an opportunity to work closely with a law professor who may give you credit for helping write an article/book, may have connections to firms and may help you find a job.

[yenisey]

I gotta say, I think the whole RA position thing that's attached to Iowa's scholarships really sucks. I would probably be working during 2L/3L anyway, but to be forced to work for the University to keep my scholarship? How in the world is this competitive with other full-tuition scholarships that are exactly that, scholarships, or money to study.

Glass half full version: it's not like the law school is asking you to sweep the floor for 10 hours- it's an opportunity to work closely with a law professor who may give you credit for helping write an article/book, may have connections to firms and may help you find a job.

I received the acceptance letter on 1/12 but have heard nothing about scholarship since then. Is it a normal situation? May I Email the Admission office asking them about it?

[lnblair]

I gotta say, I think the whole RA position thing that's attached to Iowa's scholarships really sucks. I would probably be working during 2L/3L anyway, but to be forced to work for the University to keep my scholarship? How in the world is this competitive with other full-tuition scholarships that are exactly that, scholarships, or money to study.

Glass half full version: it's not like the law school is asking you to sweep the floor for 10 hours- it's an opportunity to work closely with a law professor who may give you credit for helping write an article/book, may have connections to firms and may help you find a job.

I received the acceptance letter on 1/12 but have heard nothing about scholarship since then. Is it a normal situation? May I Email the Admission office asking them about it?

You might want to wait a little bit longer. I am in a similar situation and when I met with a professor at the college last week he told me the admissions committee is getting through all the January applications before focusing on scholarships.

[CPAlawHopefu]

In today via email. No scholly notice but will wait.

[CJRpnw]

Iowa real talk for a minute here: I'm trying to find a time to fly down and visit, but oh my GOD, tickets are expensive coming from the West Coast! Cheapest I've seen are $500-$800, depending on the day and airport, and that's before I even consider the rental car I'd have to get, and the hotel room, and the multiple days I'd have to take off work for travel...

[sheboygan!]

Iowa real talk for a minute here: I'm trying to find a time to fly down and visit, but oh my GOD, tickets are expensive coming from the West Coast! Cheapest I've seen are $500-$800, depending on the day and airport, and that's before I even consider the rental car I'd have to get, and the hotel room, and the multiple days I'd have to take off work for travel...

That's the downside of being near a regional airport like CID- getting in/out is expensive.

If you really want to visit, flying into ORD, DSM, or OMA are options and you can jump the megabus or grab your rental car from there and go.

If you do want to visit though, shoot me a pm and I can put you up for a few nights to save on hotels and the like.

[lnblair]

Just thought I would check in again and see if anyone has finally heard word of their financial aid package?

[SamTarly]

Just thought I would check in again and see if anyone has finally heard word of their financial aid package?

Nope, not a peep on the financial package front. But someone said earlier in this thread that the committee makes decisions on all the admissions first before making financial aid decisions.

[Shib26]

Just thought I would check in again and see if anyone has finally heard word of their financial aid package?

Nothing for me either. It would be nice to have soon though if the first deposit is due April 1.

[melyfig]

Hey guys checking in! Accepted at Iowa about a week ago!! Whoop hoooo! Am looking to visit sometime in March before deposits are due. Also looking to visit Nebraska around the same time. Anyone interested in coordinating and splitting perhaps splitting a rental car and or room ? Please let me know! I'm coming in from CA and everything is going to kill my wallet.