In at Miami! Forum

[nvoight911]

Sorry if this has already been answered, but did your scholarship offers come with the initial acceptance packet or in a separate mailer?

separate

This answers my question...but did it come on the same day or later?

Depends. I got my admission shit in October and scholarship shit in December

[project40]

in there like swimwear

excited to see if theres any $ attached to this

but 2nd acceptance and i feel gooooodddd

[LisandraL17]

Im in at Miami. They are my first reply out of all nine schools I applied to. It only took exacly 12 days. They are efficient! maybe other schools should take some tips from them.

[stickchick]

yayyy my first admit!!!!!!!!!! they were SUPER quick and my numbers aren't even fabulous - how exciting!

[Rocky Estoppel]

I was looking in the view book/admissions packet and it says the priority deadline for getting your application in to be considered for scholarships was Jan. 5th....does this mean less of a chance or no chance at a scholarship since I applied and sent my application on the 15th?

[LisandraL17]

I was looking in the view book/admissions packet and it says the priority deadline for getting your application in to be considered for scholarships was Jan. 5th....does this mean less of a chance or no chance at a scholarship since I applied and sent my application on the 15th?

Well it says that sending your app by the 5th is strongly advised so i dont think you are eliminated from being considered for scholarships. Although maybe you and I both have a lesser chance since we missed that deadline.
Dont lose hope, maybe we will get lucky!

[dreman510]

Just a note, after speaking with admissions about scholarships (and trying to milk them for more), I was told that their endowment/scholarship allowance was severly hit by the economy.

[bella16]

I just went on the UM website, and there was a link to apply for Dean. Do they not have one?
Should I apply for that as well?

HAhahahah. I literally lol'ed on that one. Were we supposed to apply for those "named" scholarships that you called about that are coming out next week? Whew that was a long sentence. Even with 20K a year, it's still looking to be a bit expensive.

[dreman510]

I just went on the UM website, and there was a link to apply for Dean. Do they not have one?
Should I apply for that as well?

HAhahahah. I literally lol'ed on that one. Were we supposed to apply for those "named" scholarships that you called about that are coming out next week? Whew that was a long sentence. Even with 20K a year, it's still looking to be a bit expensive.

No, they choose those based on your app. and let you know. There is a PI scholarship though (I believe its Miami SCholars) that requires an app.

[midrangejumper]

since we've all gotten into miami, i'm sure we've all read the miami TLS profile on here.

do you guys think that the TLS profile on miami absolutely brutal?

i PM'd Ken to ask him when that miami profile was updated. this is what i asked him:

"they have some points on there that confuse me, like this one : "The sense of community boasted by students at many U.S. law schools does not seem to be present at Miami Law, where grading is based on a curve."

doesn't almost every law school grade on a curve?

and "where competition is high, and employment prospects are discouragingly weak." this confuses me because they seem to have almost as much job prowess in florida as UF does. do you think this still holds true?

and i feel like the sense of the profile is very harsh (or maybe just direct)?

im worried because miami might be one of the better schools i get into, yet this profile makes it seem like it's god-awful. id love some advice if you got any!!!"

[jewtangclan03]

they have some points on there that confuse me, like this one : "The sense of community boasted by students at many U.S. law schools does not seem to be present at Miami Law, where grading is based on a curve."

Low curve= tough competition. Combine that w/ the rumor that many scholarship recipients are grouped in the same section, and you can guess why the camaraderie might be lacking.

The tone may be harsh, as it is for a few other similarly ranked schools. Just look at the employment statistics and decide for yourself if they're worth your price of admission.

[chitown825]

In via email 1/22ish, admissions package received 1/30ish. I called the admissions office and was told that scholarship information would be coming in approximately 4 weeks!

[MidwestJosh]

.

[nvoight911]

since we've all gotten into miami, i'm sure we've all read the miami TLS profile on here.

do you guys think that the TLS profile on miami absolutely brutal?

i PM'd Ken to ask him when that miami profile was updated. this is what i asked him:

"they have some points on there that confuse me, like this one : "The sense of community boasted by students at many U.S. law schools does not seem to be present at Miami Law, where grading is based on a curve."

doesn't almost every law school grade on a curve?

and "where competition is high, and employment prospects are discouragingly weak." this confuses me because they seem to have almost as much job prowess in florida as UF does. do you think this still holds true?

and i feel like the sense of the profile is very harsh (or maybe just direct)?


im worried because miami might be one of the better schools i get into, yet this profile makes it seem like it's god-awful. id love some advice if you got any!!!"

On the Ask UM message board on Miami's site, somebody specific asked Therese to comment on the TLS profile, and she gave a very long response.

[jewtangclan03]

Nvoight, would you mind PMing me that response? I logged on the message board but for some reason its completely blank. I'd be interested in reading that.

[labellavita]

In w/ Dean's Scholarship...!!! 60k total!

[midrangejumper]

since we've all gotten into miami, i'm sure we've all read the miami TLS profile on here.

do you guys think that the TLS profile on miami absolutely brutal?

i PM'd Ken to ask him when that miami profile was updated. this is what i asked him:

"they have some points on there that confuse me, like this one : "The sense of community boasted by students at many U.S. law schools does not seem to be present at Miami Law, where grading is based on a curve."

doesn't almost every law school grade on a curve?

and "where competition is high, and employment prospects are discouragingly weak." this confuses me because they seem to have almost as much job prowess in florida as UF does. do you think this still holds true?

and i feel like the sense of the profile is very harsh (or maybe just direct)?


im worried because miami might be one of the better schools i get into, yet this profile makes it seem like it's god-awful. id love some advice if you got any!!!"

On the Ask UM message board on Miami's site, somebody specific asked Therese to comment on the TLS profile, and she gave a very long response.

would you mind posting it on here bro? if not, if you would PM it to me id really appreciate it

[project40]

In w/ Dean's Scholarship...!!! 60k total!

hey congrats! just curious what were your #'s...i got admitted a few days ago and am not sure what to expect...you can PM if you prefer

[nvoight911]

Below is Therese's response:

Sorry for my delayed response. I have been out of the office on recruiting trips and been swamped. In any event, I have no idea why the author of this commentary has twisted the facts so negatively. I believe this unfairly portrays Miami Law and what we have to offer our students and graduates.



96.2% of our 2007 graduates were employed (93%) or enrolled in graduate studies (2.5%) within 9 months of graduation. The majority of our students work in private practice, with about ¼ of those in large firms and ¾ in small and medium firms. One of the primary reasons that our at-graduation employment rate is not higher is because many of our graduates accept jobs with government employers (a little over 10% of the class) and smaller law firms (28% of the class) which do not extend offers until after bar results are received. Therefore a substantial segment of our students are listed as unemployed at graduation. It is true that more graduates than not practice in Florida or in the SE, but in most cases this is by choice and not because the reputation of Miami does not carry over to other regions.



To get a better sense of some of the jobs held by our students and alumni, I encourage you to review the Student (--LinkRemoved--) and alumni (--LinkRemoved--) spotlight pages. FYI, the Student Spotlight page will be updated soon to include a sampling of summer 2008 experiences.

While I am not a fan of rankings - I feel they tend to leave out much of what is relevant in discerning the numbers - it is inevitable that they be used. But consider this: if you found out that you were relying on easily manipulated data or an obscure sampling of data that may be irrelevant to the outcome for a major investment decision, would you still invest in the same fashion? Probably not. If prospective students are going to pander to the rankings, let’s consider Miami’s #18 ranking in Law Dragon (--LinkRemoved--) . Is this relevant? Probably no less relevant than USN&WR. Should you want to get an idea of why USN&WR is such a sore point with many law schools, I suggest you read Brian Leiter’s March 31, 2008 open letter to Bob Morse of USN&WR (--LinkRemoved-- ... index.html) . Further, you can find an enlightening article in the Southern Methodist University Law Review, Spring 2007 written by Theodore P. Seto called UNDERSTANDING THE U.S. NEWS LAW SCHOOL RANKINGS.



Getting back to Miami Law and jobs prospects, let me assure you that students and graduates are not alone in the job search. We have eight attorneys working in our Career Development Office (see --LinkRemoved-- - a staff that I don’t believe can be matched by many other law schools. These advisors are here to assist our students and graduates in figuring out when, where and how to look for the jobs they want. The CDO sponsors on and off-campus interviewing programs regionally and nationally, hosts guest speakers and networking opportunities, actively seeks job opportunities for our students by visiting firms, judges and other legal employers to promote the school, and works with students and alumni on an individual basis, etc. The resources are here for students to utilize. Additionally, our faculty and alumni regionally and nationally strongly support our students and graduates. If you want to connect with Miami alums wherever they may be (DC, LA, Atlanta, Chicago, NYC, Seattle, Boston, Miami…), just let me know.



As the author mentions, our bar passage rate in Florida is strong (July 2008 Miami was highest in the state at 92.4% vs. the state average of 82.5%) . Further, our graduates who take bars in other states have consistently done as well as or better than the state average.



Miami is a large school* and in order to fill our class, the acceptance rate is high. We don't have the application cluster effect that schools in areas like DC or Boston might have as an advantage as far as the number of applications; e.g., if someone wants to be go to law school in DC, they're likely to apply to all, if not most, of the law schools in DC. The applied to acceptance rate is, unfortunately, a fairly large factor in the rankings. The author compares Miami to the University of Hawaii of the same ranking, which is much smaller than Miami, and as stated on the School’s website, the “only ABA-accredited law school in the Pacific-Asia region.” The bottom line is that Miami has a great applicant pool from which to choose and provides a highly accomplished entering class. Our students have strong credentials and many other characteristics and skills that make the classroom and overall student body dynamic and exciting. Students’ intellect, knowledge, backgrounds and experiences drive much of the discussion in and outside of class enriching the life at Miami Law beyond measure. Providing a student body without this mix would be a disservice to all concerned. Further, the interests of the student body are reflected in the 40 or so student organizations, law reviews and community projects that take place here on a daily basis.



The author mentions the high student to faculty ratio and I must agree that this number has been soft in the recent past. Over a year ago, the Law School started focusing on this issue and has recently hired 3 additional faculty members with plans to hire more in the next year or two.



The author writes that “…there are complaints about the quality of teachers and the out-dated status of many programs at the school.” I am truly surprised to read such a comment. I constantly hear otherwise from both current students and alumni who feel they have received a superb legal education from excellent professors. Outdated programs? Again, this is not the case. If the author wants to give specifics, I could address them. Every school, no matter the ranking, is going to have some disgruntled students or alumni; however to characterize Miami’s students, professors and programs in such sweeping statements without clarification is unjustified.



Miami does have palm trees and great weather, but I assure you, Miami Law offers a great deal more, including a strong academic program and job prospects regionally, nationally, and internationally.



Perhaps you find my discourse above defensive in nature. Since I am constantly asked about and judged by our ranking, I readily admit that I am discouraged by how much weight prospective students (and seemingly parents) put on the USN&WR ranking. Even Bob Morse, the person behind USN&World Report, states that the rankings are given too much weight (see question 28 in our 29 Critical Questions brochure at --LinkRemoved--.) As far as blogs, don’t get me started!



Good luck in the application and decision making process.



*Miami’s 2007 entering class was unusually large (489). The 2008 entering class was considerably smaller (379). Our target class is between 375 and 400.

[labellavita]

hey congrats! just curious what were your #'s...i got admitted a few days ago and am not sure what to expect...you can PM if you prefer

164 and 3.6

That's my highest LSAT by the way...took it three times (one cancellation). Good luck!

[nvoight911]

Barring a few waitlists, it's looking more and more likely I'll be attending in the fall.

[jewtangclan03]

Saying that the lawdragon 500 ranking is "no less relevant" than the USNWR one was probably a poor choice of words, but I get the point.

What to make of these employment statistics? 89%? 96%? It's so hard to get accurate info...

[MidwestJosh]

Barring a few waitlists, it's looking more and more likely I'll be attending in the fall.

hey nick:

congrats! How did the rest of your trip go btw?

[project40]

edit

[2009 Prospective]

Saying that the lawdragon 500 ranking is "no less relevant" than the USNWR one was probably a poor choice of words, but I get the point.

What to make of these employment statistics? 89%? 96%? It's so hard to get accurate info...

+1 on the lawdragon ranking. Exaggerated statements like that undermine her overall argument in my opinion and render me skeptical of what Miami might have to say.