Fordham c/o 2015/16 (2011-2012 Cycle) Forum

[Lapetite7]

Why do chances decrease if u haven't heard back yet? Isn't it better than reject?

[shroeder]

Why do chances decrease if u haven't heard back yet? Isn't it better than reject?

True it's better than a ding, but If you look at the chart it's getting to the point where most of the admits have gone out.
http://www.top-law-schools.com/images/d ... ordham.jpg

[Lapetite7]

crossing fingers for both of us

[dingbat]

Why do chances decrease if u haven't heard back yet? Isn't it better than reject?

True it's better than a ding, but If you look at the chart it's getting to the point where most of the admits have gone out.
http://www.top-law-schools.com/images/d ... ordham.jpg

I wouldn't read too much into that.
A lot of it is causal - admissions / rejections / waitlists come in waves. The following is true not only for Fordham, but for most schools.
A chunk of people (good or bad) hear in back december, because that's when Early Decision is due
There's a second wave in January, which is the people who applied early, but had to wait for early decisions to go out first
After those have been reviewed, they get to the applicants with a December LSAT, or who were a bit later getting their apps in (not everyone is an early bird)
This is broken up because into pieces because they also need to plan/prepare admitted student days.

toward the end of that wave, a lot of slots are filled up. Once the February LSAT scores are in, there's a final wave. What your chances are depends on two things: the strength of the February LSAT and the size of the admitted applicant pool

Basically, if you haven't heard back yet, it's not because you're probably not getting in, it's because they've got you in a maybe pile; you are going to be competing against the February LSAT takers, so if that's a really strong group, you're SOL. But, if the February results aren't that great, then you've got a good chance.

Also, this year has been a very weak year overall (total number of applicants is down significantly from last year and the year before), so I think a lot of schools are putting more people into the maybe pile and hoping that things will pick up. No school wants their standards to drop (e.g. having the average LSAT score decrease), but they also don't want empty seats. So while their acceptance standards will pretty much be the same for the first few months (read: before February LSAT), they will be pulling more applicants off the maybe list, after the February results are in (read: number of well-qualified applicants stays low)

Schools usually hold open some slots for the February results, because they don't want to turn away a good candidate, simply because a lesser applicant was accepted early. Once the February results are in, and the deposit deadline approeaches, schools will take another look at people in their maybe pile.

I've seen (all conjecture, of course) that a lot of schools are being tardy with a lot of applicants. Presumably it's all for the reasons above.
Not having heard back yet means you're a weak, but viable candidate (good enough to not get dinged or waitlisted off the bat). Because this is a very weak year, there's a good chance you'll sneak in.

[Jimbola]

Why do chances decrease if u haven't heard back yet? Isn't it better than reject?

True it's better than a ding, but If you look at the chart it's getting to the point where most of the admits have gone out.
http://www.top-law-schools.com/images/d ... ordham.jpg

I wouldn't read too much into that.
A lot of it is causal - admissions / rejections / waitlists come in waves. The following is true not only for Fordham, but for most schools.
A chunk of people (good or bad) hear in back december, because that's when Early Decision is due
There's a second wave in January, which is the people who applied early, but had to wait for early decisions to go out first
After those have been reviewed, they get to the applicants with a December LSAT, or who were a bit later getting their apps in (not everyone is an early bird)
This is broken up because into pieces because they also need to plan/prepare admitted student days.

toward the end of that wave, a lot of slots are filled up. Once the February LSAT scores are in, there's a final wave. What your chances are depends on two things: the strength of the February LSAT and the size of the admitted applicant pool

Basically, if you haven't heard back yet, it's not because you're probably not getting in, it's because they've got you in a maybe pile; you are going to be competing against the February LSAT takers, so if that's a really strong group, you're SOL. But, if the February results aren't that great, then you've got a good chance.

Also, this year has been a very weak year overall (total number of applicants is down significantly from last year and the year before), so I think a lot of schools are putting more people into the maybe pile and hoping that things will pick up. No school wants their standards to drop (e.g. having the average LSAT score decrease), but they also don't want empty seats. So while their acceptance standards will pretty much be the same for the first few months (read: before February LSAT), they will be pulling more applicants off the maybe list, after the February results are in (read: number of well-qualified applicants stays low)

Schools usually hold open some slots for the February results, because they don't want to turn away a good candidate, simply because a lesser applicant was accepted early. Once the February results are in, and the deposit deadline approeaches, schools will take another look at people in their maybe pile.

I've seen (all conjecture, of course) that a lot of schools are being tardy with a lot of applicants. Presumably it's all for the reasons above.
Not having heard back yet means you're a weak, but viable candidate (good enough to not get dinged or waitlisted off the bat). Because this is a very weak year, there's a good chance you'll sneak in.

This is encouraging and informative. Thank you!

[shroeder]

Why do chances decrease if u haven't heard back yet? Isn't it better than reject?

True it's better than a ding, but If you look at the chart it's getting to the point where most of the admits have gone out.
http://www.top-law-schools.com/images/d ... ordham.jpg

I wouldn't read too much into that.
A lot of it is causal - admissions / rejections / waitlists come in waves. The following is true not only for Fordham, but for most schools.
A chunk of people (good or bad) hear in back december, because that's when Early Decision is due
There's a second wave in January, which is the people who applied early, but had to wait for early decisions to go out first
After those have been reviewed, they get to the applicants with a December LSAT, or who were a bit later getting their apps in (not everyone is an early bird)
This is broken up because into pieces because they also need to plan/prepare admitted student days.

toward the end of that wave, a lot of slots are filled up. Once the February LSAT scores are in, there's a final wave. What your chances are depends on two things: the strength of the February LSAT and the size of the admitted applicant pool

Basically, if you haven't heard back yet, it's not because you're probably not getting in, it's because they've got you in a maybe pile; you are going to be competing against the February LSAT takers, so if that's a really strong group, you're SOL. But, if the February results aren't that great, then you've got a good chance.

Also, this year has been a very weak year overall (total number of applicants is down significantly from last year and the year before), so I think a lot of schools are putting more people into the maybe pile and hoping that things will pick up. No school wants their standards to drop (e.g. having the average LSAT score decrease), but they also don't want empty seats. So while their acceptance standards will pretty much be the same for the first few months (read: before February LSAT), they will be pulling more applicants off the maybe list, after the February results are in (read: number of well-qualified applicants stays low)

Schools usually hold open some slots for the February results, because they don't want to turn away a good candidate, simply because a lesser applicant was accepted early. Once the February results are in, and the deposit deadline approeaches, schools will take another look at people in their maybe pile.

I've seen (all conjecture, of course) that a lot of schools are being tardy with a lot of applicants. Presumably it's all for the reasons above.
Not having heard back yet means you're a weak, but viable candidate (good enough to not get dinged or waitlisted off the bat). Because this is a very weak year, there's a good chance you'll sneak in.

You are my sunshine on a cloudy day!!!

[mcdeeremitch]

Who should we send LOCIs to?

[dingbat]

Who should we send LOCIs to?

I hope I'm not screwing her over by saying Espiritu, but she's probably your best bet

[mcdeeremitch]

Who should we send LOCIs to?

I hope I'm not screwing her over by saying Espiritu, but she's probably your best bet

Ok perfect...that was my first guess...she seemed like the perfect one to send it to

[mcdeeremitch]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

[mijenks]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

Why don't you just send it to lawadmissions@law.fordham.edu -- you know, the email listed on the JD admissions page?

[30-Something]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

Why don't you just send it to lawadmissions@law.fordham.edu -- you know, the email listed on the JD admissions page?

Because Espiritu is the most responsive and helpful.

I would wait for her to come back from the conference and send it to her then.

[dingbat]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

Why don't you just send it to lawadmissions@law.fordham.edu -- you know, the email listed on the JD admissions page?

Because its always better to send correspondence to a specific person, hopefully establishing some sort of rapport while you're at it.
I try never to send a "to whom it may concern" email.
Do you even open a letter addressed to "current resident"? (bit more extreme, but hopefully you get my drift)

[dingbat]

Who should we send LOCIs to?

I hope I'm not screwing her over by saying Espiritu, but she's probably your best bet

Ok perfect...that was my first guess...she seemed like the perfect one to send it to

I will amend this by saying that if you have been corresponding with someone else (eg dean brown) you should send the email to him/her.
Establishing/maintaining regular correspondence is a good thing (as long as it's legitimate correspondence)

[dingbat]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

I doubt it makes a difference. I've had days where I've received 200+ emails, or where I come back after a week out of the office and there are over 1000 emails. I just go through them one by one, and any new emails (that aren't urgent) end up at the back of the que.

If you plan to work in certain fields (eg anything related to ibanking), you're going to have to develop similar habits.

[mcdeeremitch]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

Why don't you just send it to lawadmissions@law.fordham.edu -- you know, the email listed on the JD admissions page?

Because Espiritu is the most responsive and helpful.

I would wait for her to come back from the conference and send it to her then.

Thanks for the advice you and dingbat....I do feel if I am going to get off the wl that it is best to establish some kind of rapport with Espiritu

[fakemoney]

You could always address a LOCI with "To the Admissions Committee:"

[dingbat]

You could always address a LOCI with "To the Admissions Committee:"

Who will then think, oh, another loci, add it to the file and we'll look at it when we go through our waitlist. The trick now is to differentiate yoursel from everyone else on the waitlist, people who probably have similar numbers and similar chances.

When they decide to go back to the waitlist, you don't want them to think, ok, what's the deal with this app, you want them to go "fakemoney, that's the one who...".
You want them to think of you as a person, not a file. Sending generically addressed paperwork to a general account doesn't make your LOCI stand out from any other LOCI (which all say more or less the same thing)

[mijenks]

One more thing...through Espiritu's twitter I learned that she is at a conference that runs till tomorrow...should I send my LOCI today and have it maybe get lost in the hundreds of emails she receives or just wait till wednesday

Why don't you just send it to lawadmissions@law.fordham.edu -- you know, the email listed on the JD admissions page?

Because its always better to send correspondence to a specific person, hopefully establishing some sort of rapport while you're at it.
I try never to send a "to whom it may concern" email.
Do you even open a letter addressed to "current resident"? (bit more extreme, but hopefully you get my drift)

Want to establish rapport and show real initiative? Call admissions directly, either ask whom to address a LOCI to or to speak with an admissions officer that can tell you where to send it if the secretary can't.

Further, usually an admissions officer will reply to you from the general admissions account and have you send it to them. You can build your relationship from there. Emailing an individual because you heard on TLS to email that person just seems a bit spammy. Were I an admissions officer, I would be interested in seeing who can read or is interested enough to look through the website for the "Contact Us" link.

I kinda see dumping all LOCIs from TLS folks onto Kathryn as taking advantage of her visibility and pleasant nature.

[dingbat]

Because its always better to send correspondence to a specific person, hopefully establishing some sort of rapport while you're at it.
I try never to send a "to whom it may concern" email.
Do you even open a letter addressed to "current resident"? (bit more extreme, but hopefully you get my drift)

Want to establish rapport and show real initiative? Call admissions directly, either ask whom to address a LOCI to or to speak with an admissions officer that can tell you where to send it if the secretary can't.

Further, usually an admissions officer will reply to you from the general admissions account and have you send it to them. You can build your relationship from there. Emailing an individual because you heard on TLS to email that person just seems a bit spammy. Were I an admissions officer, I would be interested in seeing who can read or is interested enough to look through the website for the "Contact Us" link.

I kinda see dumping all LOCIs from TLS folks onto Kathryn as taking advantage of her visibility and pleasant nature.

While I disagree with the conclusion, there's a valid point here. If you've never dealt with her before, make sure the email says something along the lines of that you hope she's the right person to send it to; if not, please forward to the appropriate person. Big you can say you found her email through a valid source, that's even better.
For possible bonus points, find an assistant director of admissions and address the letter to him/ her.
Bonus points for finding someone less visible, and as said person probably gets a lot less such emails s/he will take a kinder view to you.

In the other hand, don't feel bad for sending the letter to Espiritu, its her job and as director of admissions she's most visible. Also. It wouldn't surprise me if her assistants (help) go through her email for her.

[JenDarby]

Honestly, it doesn't make a difference. They all end up in the same place. You guys really should not stress about burdening Espiritu or having your emails get lost in the shuffle if you send them to the standard admissions email.

I sent everything to Espiritu directly, as she got in contact with me regarding the WL before I ever sent any LOCI. I love her and find her extremely helpful, so I continued sending all communications to her. She never once seemed bothered.

[30-Something]

Honestly, it doesn't make a difference. They all end up in the same place. You guys really should not stress about burdening Espiritu or having your emails get lost in the shuffle if you send them to the standard admissions email.

I sent everything to Espiritu directly, as she got in contact with me regarding the WL before I ever sent any LOCI. I love her and find her extremely helpful, so I continued sending all communications to her. She never once seemed bothered.

This.

[dingbat]

Honestly, it doesn't make a difference. They all end up in the same place. You guys really should not stress about burdening Espiritu or having your emails get lost in the shuffle if you send them to the standard admissions email.

I sent everything to Espiritu directly, as she got in contact with me regarding the WL before I ever sent any LOCI. I love her and find her extremely helpful, so I continued sending all communications to her. She never once seemed bothered.

Key point: don't overthink it.
While establishing a rapport would be beneficial, just sending a LOCI doesn't do that (but may lay the groundwork for further contact - just make sure any further correspondence has a purpose; you don't want to waste her time)

[nygrrrl]

Who should we send LOCIs to?

I hope I'm not screwing her over by saying Espiritu, but she's probably your best bet

This. And also, thanks for posting the great bit about admissions and why people should NOT give up - 5.10.10 admit, here!

[JenDarby]

5.10.10 admit, here!

5.11.11, here