University of Iowa C/O 2017 Applicants Forum

[DportIA]

I ended up getting 10k/yr
168 splitter in-state

There is a reason why the highest achieving Iowans are leaving the state.

Call and negotiate. What's your GPA?

Edit: Also, what scholarship offers do you have from peer schools?

Your tuition would be $11,000 and change per year. If you're too severe a splitter, that's a pretty good deal. If you can show them scholarships from UW-Madison, UMN, Notre Dame, WUSTL or UIUC (aka the competition), that will help your case.

I have $$ at UMn and WashU so that shouldn't be a problem. What is a problem would be me paying 11k/yr + living expenses for a degree from Iowa. Their apps were down 46% last year and their ranking drops each year. It's sad to see my home state in such a mess like this but I have about 11,000 reasons to leave Iowa.

50% scholarship at Minn and WashU is still between $23,500-$23,800 per year, or double + the Iowa cost. WUSTL may be worth that: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=washu (23% large firm score, aka 6-figure job), and Minnesota is definitely not worth that: http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=minnesota (13% large firm score due to saturated market). I don't know that Iowa would budge from the $11,000 tuition figure--most people would probably take the $36,000 less in loans (before interest) over those two schools.

[jebsterb]

I just created a profile to post this:

I'm out of state LSAT: 160 GPA: 3.74 and was given a full tuition to Iowa.

For reference I also was accepted to Notre Dame (no money whatsoever) and waitlisted at Minnesota (have since withdrawn). I bring this up because they are supposedly the competition and Iowa has blown them out of the water with money. Even though my top choices were BC and BU ($0 and $15,000 per year, respectively) I can't justify going $200,000 in debt for worse employment statistics and larger class sizes so I'll likely be going to Iowa.

[isuperserial]

I just created a profile to post this:

I'm out of state LSAT: 160 GPA: 3.74 and was given a full tuition to Iowa.

For reference I also was accepted to Notre Dame (no money whatsoever) and waitlisted at Minnesota (have since withdrawn). I bring this up because they are supposedly the competition and Iowa has blown them out of the water with money. Even though my top choices were BC and BU ($0 and $15,000 per year, respectively) I can't justify going $200,000 in debt for worse employment statistics and larger class sizes so I'll likely be going to Iowa.

Dude, Iowa is not a peer school for ND or BC and BU. I agree with you that going to Iowa for free is a smart move, but all things being equal, Iowa is a step down from those three. Iowa has a 15% Fedclerk/Biglaw rate. ND, BC, and BU all have about 30% for those while maintaining about the same overall employment. I don't think that extra 15% of students getting those opportunities is something to scoff at.

I also worry about Iowa's trends. They really seem to be hurting more than their peers, what with their quickly descending standards and their evaporating class sizes. Lowering standards and reducing class sizes by a small amount makes me happy because it means more scholarship money and more individual focus. The amount of reduction they've seen though shows me a school that may be swiftly dying.

Just to qualify, I do think you're making the right decision to go to Iowa. It's a solid choice, a good school, and I just wanted to play devils advocate for a minute. But I do think it's important to look at the whole picture and approach the situation from all angles.

[SparkyZZZ]

I just created a profile to post this:

I'm out of state LSAT: 160 GPA: 3.74 and was given a full tuition to Iowa.

For reference I also was accepted to Notre Dame (no money whatsoever) and waitlisted at Minnesota (have since withdrawn). I bring this up because they are supposedly the competition and Iowa has blown them out of the water with money. Even though my top choices were BC and BU ($0 and $15,000 per year, respectively) I can't justify going $200,000 in debt for worse employment statistics and larger class sizes so I'll likely be going to Iowa.

Dude, Iowa is not a peer school for ND or BC and BU. I agree with you that going to Iowa for free is a smart move, but all things being equal, Iowa is a step down from those three. Iowa has a 15% Fedclerk/Biglaw rate. ND, BC, and BU all have about 30% for those while maintaining about the same overall employment. I don't think that extra 15% of students getting those opportunities is something to scoff at.

I also worry about Iowa's trends. They really seem to be hurting more than their peers, what with their quickly descending standards and their evaporating class sizes. Lowering standards and reducing class sizes by a small amount makes me happy because it means more scholarship money and more individual focus. The amount of reduction they've seen though shows me a school that may be swiftly dying.

Just to qualify, I do think you're making the right decision to go to Iowa. It's a solid choice, a good school, and I just wanted to play devils advocate for a minute. But I do think it's important to look at the whole picture and approach the situation from all angles.

Totally agree ^

[jebsterb]

I just created a profile to post this:

I'm out of state LSAT: 160 GPA: 3.74 and was given a full tuition to Iowa.

For reference I also was accepted to Notre Dame (no money whatsoever) and waitlisted at Minnesota (have since withdrawn). I bring this up because they are supposedly the competition and Iowa has blown them out of the water with money. Even though my top choices were BC and BU ($0 and $15,000 per year, respectively) I can't justify going $200,000 in debt for worse employment statistics and larger class sizes so I'll likely be going to Iowa.

Dude, Iowa is not a peer school for ND or BC and BU. I agree with you that going to Iowa for free is a smart move, but all things being equal, Iowa is a step down from those three. Iowa has a 15% Fedclerk/Biglaw rate. ND, BC, and BU all have about 30% for those while maintaining about the same overall employment. I don't think that extra 15% of students getting those opportunities is something to scoff at.

I also worry about Iowa's trends. They really seem to be hurting more than their peers, what with their quickly descending standards and their evaporating class sizes. Lowering standards and reducing class sizes by a small amount makes me happy because it means more scholarship money and more individual focus. The amount of reduction they've seen though shows me a school that may be swiftly dying.

Just to qualify, I do think you're making the right decision to go to Iowa. It's a solid choice, a good school, and I just wanted to play devils advocate for a minute. But I do think it's important to look at the whole picture and approach the situation from all angles.

That all makes sense and I agree with you. Frankly however I'm not looking for a biglaw job and if you look at percentage employed at graduation Iowa beats all three of those schools by 15%. Better to have any lawyer job than NEEDING a biglaw job to pay off the debt you end up in.

That said, I've got those three schools in the back pocket and could always use Iowa's scholarship to whittle them down (maybe). I'm curious to see what Iowa does in the new rankings.

[SparkyZZZ]

I just created a profile to post this:

I'm out of state LSAT: 160 GPA: 3.74 and was given a full tuition to Iowa.

For reference I also was accepted to Notre Dame (no money whatsoever) and waitlisted at Minnesota (have since withdrawn). I bring this up because they are supposedly the competition and Iowa has blown them out of the water with money. Even though my top choices were BC and BU ($0 and $15,000 per year, respectively) I can't justify going $200,000 in debt for worse employment statistics and larger class sizes so I'll likely be going to Iowa.

Dude, Iowa is not a peer school for ND or BC and BU. I agree with you that going to Iowa for free is a smart move, but all things being equal, Iowa is a step down from those three. Iowa has a 15% Fedclerk/Biglaw rate. ND, BC, and BU all have about 30% for those while maintaining about the same overall employment. I don't think that extra 15% of students getting those opportunities is something to scoff at.

I also worry about Iowa's trends. They really seem to be hurting more than their peers, what with their quickly descending standards and their evaporating class sizes. Lowering standards and reducing class sizes by a small amount makes me happy because it means more scholarship money and more individual focus. The amount of reduction they've seen though shows me a school that may be swiftly dying.

Just to qualify, I do think you're making the right decision to go to Iowa. It's a solid choice, a good school, and I just wanted to play devils advocate for a minute. But I do think it's important to look at the whole picture and approach the situation from all angles.

That all makes sense and I agree with you. Frankly however I'm not looking for a biglaw job and if you look at percentage employed at graduation Iowa beats all three of those schools by 15%. Better to have any lawyer job than NEEDING a biglaw job to pay off the debt you end up in.

That said, I've got those three schools in the back pocket and could always use Iowa's scholarship to whittle them down (maybe). I'm curious to see what Iowa does in the new rankings.

It looks like they dropped to 27. Might give folks angling for money a little more leverage, since chopping class size wasn't enough to stop dropping.

[jebsterb]

Where did you get the new numbers?

[SparkyZZZ]

Where did you get the new numbers?

http://spiveyconsulting.com/blog/2014-u ... h-changes/

[Frothingslosh]

Where did you get the new numbers?

http://spiveyconsulting.com/blog/2014-u ... h-changes/

It's doubtful that dropping 1 spot in the rankings is going to give anyone an appreciable boost in leverage. Plus, Iowa's peer schools didn't see a whole lot of positive movement themselves--not sure what you'd leverage that against other than UIUC.

[DportIA]

They've gone 26-26-27-29-26-27(now), so I wouldn't say they were in dire need to "stop dropping." Employers' perceptions of Iowa aren't going to change if they are ranked between 15th to 50th--the Iowa, Omaha, MSP, KC, StL, Milwaukee, and Chicago firms that hire from Iowa always will and those that never have will continue not to.

The recent ranking fluctuations to geographic peer schools Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois and ranking-peers BC, BU, W&L, W&M, Emory, etc. make Iowa's ranking movement seem pretty tame.

[chrisbru]

Where did you get the new numbers?

http://spiveyconsulting.com/blog/2014-u ... h-changes/

It's doubtful that dropping 1 spot in the rankings is going to give anyone an appreciable boost in leverage. Plus, Iowa's peer schools didn't see a whole lot of positive movement themselves--not sure what you'd leverage that against other than UIUC.

Yeah one spot really isn't that bad. I don't think its been above 24 in recent memory.

[jthomas.7489]

Dude, Iowa is not a peer school for ND or BC and BU. I agree with you that going to Iowa for free is a smart move, but all things being equal, Iowa is a step down from those three. Iowa has a 15% Fedclerk/Biglaw rate. ND, BC, and BU all have about 30% for those while maintaining about the same overall employment. I don't think that extra 15% of students getting those opportunities is something to scoff at.

I also worry about Iowa's trends. They really seem to be hurting more than their peers, what with their quickly descending standards and their evaporating class sizes. Lowering standards and reducing class sizes by a small amount makes me happy because it means more scholarship money and more individual focus. The amount of reduction they've seen though shows me a school that may be swiftly dying.

Just to qualify, I do think you're making the right decision to go to Iowa. It's a solid choice, a good school, and I just wanted to play devils advocate for a minute. But I do think it's important to look at the whole picture and approach the situation from all angles.

I disagree. Iowa's numbers are not descending rapidly in comparison to its peers. First, your claim that Iowa's standards are falling more than its peers is blatantly wrong. Both Minnesota and Notre Dame's median LSAT scores fell 3 points, while Iowa's fell 1 (granted, they are still above Iowa's, just not as much). Iowa's class size has shrunk more, but it is debatable whether that is a good or bad thing. Maybe it it indicates that maintaining class standards is futile, or maybe it means that Iowa has the resources to shrink its class size to maintain standards and job prospects will dramatically improve for Iowa students. Ultimately, jobs are more important than rankings.

See for stats. http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=215104

I do agree that Iowa is not the best choice if OP is dead set on biglaw or getting out of the Midwest, and retaking may be the best option regardless (even an Iowa small firm may hire a Harvard/Yale grad over Iowa). But, assuming OP will not retake, I think Iowa is clearly the best choice among the current options. Neither of the current available choices are good options if OP wants biglaw (which he/she says is not important regardless), and choosing to go into major debt is therefore a mistake at any of them.

[chrisbru]

FWIW, the 1L class (which is half the size of my 3L class) is faring VERY well for 1L summer jobs compared to my class, and the 2L class also did very well IIRC. I obviously can't predict the future, but it appears employment statistics are strengthening every year by noticeable amounts.

[BankruptMe]

Still waiting.

Called the office and they said that I have been in review since the 3-5th, even though status checker doesnt say anything.

How was Admitted Students day?

[DportIA]

Still waiting.

Called the office and they said that I have been in review since the 3-5th, even though status checker doesnt say anything.

How was Admitted Students day?

I attended the reception Thursday night and sat on the student panel for admitted students on Friday afternoon. Dean Byrd provided some statistics to a parent's question at the panel on the 2016 class admission cycle that I thought might be helpful for people:

Numbers: 1250 applications, 522 acceptances sent out. Anticipating a class of 115-125 students (currently 95 in the 1L class). Iowa is apparently one of 3 or 7 (I forgot) schools to see an increase in applications this year.

Why did this happen: Iowa changed their scholarship appropriation method so now they are giving out more partial tuition scholarships than in previous years--where it was more "all or nothing." Couple the new partial scholarship amounts with the lower tuition across the board ($20,000 less for an OOS student across 3 years) and I think they have reduced the price of attendance for a much larger swath of people. That is very positive trend in this legal economic environment where the job market & salaries are stagnant.

[jebsterb]

.... Someone brought their parents?

[Nova]

.... Someone brought their parents?

that's pretty normal
http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... 8&t=223826

[BankruptMe]

Still waiting.

Called the office and they said that I have been in review since the 3-5th, even though status checker doesnt say anything.

How was Admitted Students day?

I attended the reception Thursday night and sat on the student panel for admitted students on Friday afternoon. Dean Byrd provided some statistics to a parent's question at the panel on the 2016 class admission cycle that I thought might be helpful for people:

Numbers: 1250 applications, 522 acceptances sent out. Anticipating a class of 115-125 students (currently 95 in the 1L class). Iowa is apparently one of 3 or 7 (I forgot) schools to see an increase in applications this year.

Why did this happen: Iowa changed their scholarship appropriation method so now they are giving out more partial tuition scholarships than in previous years--where it was more "all or nothing." Couple the new partial scholarship amounts with the lower tuition across the board ($20,000 less for an OOS student across 3 years) and I think they have reduced the price of attendance for a much larger swath of people. That is very positive trend in this legal economic environment where the job market & salaries are stagnant.

Yep, guess that means I am on an informal waitlist then. But its almost a 50% chance of admission, so I am not mad.

EDIT: Nope, my application has been complete for almost two weeks, and hasnt even been reviewed...

[ellayo]

Still waiting.

Called the office and they said that I have been in review since the 3-5th, even though status checker doesnt say anything.

How was Admitted Students day?

I attended the reception and most of the events the following day.

What impressed me most was the commitment and approachability of the faculty and staff. Everyone seemed genuinely excited to be interacting with the admits. I asked a question of one of the administrators during a panel and was not satisfied with the answer. I approached her afterwards and she took me back to her office to talk more. She was great, and gave me a few email addresses of current students who she thought I would relate to.

Beyond that, everyone seemed to really stress the freedom given to 2 and 3Ls as far as shaping their curriculum/experience.

I'd say it was a positive experience overall, even if the building itself leaves a lot to be desired.

Best of luck. Hope you get good news soon!

[DportIA]

Iowa just released class of 2013 job numbers. If I am doing the LST calculation correct ("Full Time, long-term legal jobs except solo practitioners") then Iowa should have a 75.7% LST score. ((146-2)/190).

http://www.law.uiowa.edu/documents/cso_ ... y_2013.pdf

Compare previous year:

http://www.law.uiowa.edu/documents/cso_ ... y_2012.pdf

[wisc130]

Withdrawn. Good luck to anyone still waiting.

[gta]

Withdrew today as well. Should have some more $ available for negotiators now. Good luck to all.

[jthomas.7489]

Numbers: 1250 applications, 522 acceptances sent out. Anticipating a class of 115-125 students (currently 95 in the 1L class). Iowa is apparently one of 3 or 7 (I forgot) schools to see an increase in applications this year.

A class of 115-125 students sounds about right. Hopefully they keep numbers at that level even if law applications eventually recover.

[amh]

Anyone else still waiting on scholarship information?

[chrisbru]

Numbers: 1250 applications, 522 acceptances sent out. Anticipating a class of 115-125 students (currently 95 in the 1L class). Iowa is apparently one of 3 or 7 (I forgot) schools to see an increase in applications this year.

A class of 115-125 students sounds about right. Hopefully they keep numbers at that level even if law applications eventually recover.

I think 115-125 is a great size for a class, but it could even go up to 150 and not be too much of a problem. My class (2014) is about 180 and it seems pre-graduation employment offers are going really well.