Rutgers Camden c/o 2017 Applicants Forum

[wlee1220]

Just got my acceptance email today so I'm pretty excited!!!! I honestly haven't been keeping up with the status checker though, but I know I went complete around 1/6.

I grew up literally 5 minutes away from the law school and have just recently returned to Camden. I live on the other side of town, but I'm from Camden, have deep roots here and I know how to get around pretty well. However, I'm not really familiar with the larger firms in South Jersey. Where do most students who go into biglaw end up going?

Also, will I miss out on the camaraderie of living in 330 Cooper if I decide to keep my current place?

[CU44BMD]

Got the Dean's Academic Excellence Scholarship for 18k (in-state), which according to the e-mail is the highest academic awarded scholarship. Does this mean that R-C will not offer full rides? Just wondering.

[Nucky]

Got the Dean's Academic Excellence Scholarship for 18k (in-state), which according to the e-mail is the highest academic awarded scholarship. Does this mean that R-C will not offer full rides? Just wondering.

http://camlaw.rutgers.edu/academic-exce ... ship-terms

"This award carries a Full tuition stipend that will be applied directly against your tuition (it does not cover fees) and it contemplates that you will move into and continue to reside in the state of New Jersey."

Should be full-tuition according to the above link. That's odd.

[CU44BMD]

Got the Dean's Academic Excellence Scholarship for 18k (in-state), which according to the e-mail is the highest academic awarded scholarship. Does this mean that R-C will not offer full rides? Just wondering.

http://camlaw.rutgers.edu/academic-exce ... ship-terms

"This award carries a Full tuition stipend that will be applied directly against your tuition (it does not cover fees) and it contemplates that you will move into and continue to reside in the state of New Jersey."

Should be full-tuition according to the above link. That's odd.

Thanks Nucky! That's the first webpage I pulled up ha-ha, which is why I also posted. Maybe it's not updated to account for this cycle? It also says top 40% on the R-C site, and in the email i received it stipulates top 60%? It also would be my luck to get the same exact amount from both R-N & R-C? Can't even leverage one over the other.

[XxMVPxX]

Thanks Nucky! That's the first webpage I pulled up ha-ha, which is why I also posted. Maybe it's not updated to account for this cycle? It also says top 40% on the R-C site, and in the email i received it stipulates top 60%? It also would be my luck to get the same exact amount from both R-N & R-C? Can't even leverage one over the other.

If you don't mind me asking, when did your application go complete? I've been complete and haven't heard anything and it still says complete in the status checker.

[Snowboarder1588]

Complete since 10/18/13 forever..

[CU44BMD]

Complete since 10/18/13 forever..

wait what? Have you received a decision? That's crazy if you haven't.

Submitted-11/27
Complete-12/2
Admitted-12/18

[transferror]

It also says top 40% on the R-C site, and in the email i received it stipulates top 60%? It also would be my luck to get the same exact amount from both R-N & R-C? Can't even leverage one over the other.

Same thing happened to people last cycle. After the confusion, they dropped everyone's stip to top 60%, which is ridiculously easy to maintain. It's also much lower than other schools require. If they e-mailed you top 60%, they will abide by it. They did for me.

Also, the admissions office will be looking to fill seats for the summer Contracts class (Jumpstart Program). There are some big pros and some big cons, so I'd be willing to flesh them out if anyone is interested.

[Adventureisoutthere]

I was awarded the Dean's Academic Excellence Scholarship as well. My email states top 60% so I'm guessing we both would be able to have that stick.

[Snowboarder1588]

Complete since 10/18/13 forever..

wait what? Have you received a decision? That's crazy if you haven't.

Submitted-11/27
Complete-12/2
Admitted-12/18

yup...no decision yet...it really stinks...I hope I hear something by Friday.

Also, please do share pros and cons of the Summer jump start program. It seems like a good idea, did you enroll in it?

[XxMVPxX]

wait what? Have you received a decision? That's crazy if you haven't.

Submitted-11/27
Complete-12/2
Admitted-12/18

lol I still haven't heard anything.

[jagnut]

Complete 11/5 here, still nada. What fun

[transferror]

Also, please do share pros and cons of the Summer jump start program. It seems like a good idea, did you enroll in it?

Yes I did. Dennis Patterson taught it the last several summers but may not this summer since he currently lives in Italy. He has made the trip to the US to teach that one class over the last few summers but I think he mentioned wanting to take a break because he was getting burned out. He is exceptional. Well spoken, brilliant, clear with material, and fun.

Pros: You get to take a class "piece-meal" instead of having 4 finals at once. You will gain valuable insight from taking the exam and brief and outline more effectively. You get to meet your peers and you won't feel "new" in the fall when everyone else arrives. Logistically, you'll have more time to complete immunization forms and convert to in-state residency and handle all of the paperwork associated with starting school (including getting a student ID before the fall rush and lines out the door). Obviously you will only have 3 classes in the fall, which means you can spend more time getting involved in clubs and pro bono and networking. You can send out a resume in December with a reportable GPA and don't have to wait for the rest of your transcript in mid to late January (even though it is only 1 grade, if you set a high benchmark, you will get callbacks based on that grade alone. You will also have to update the transcript once the other grades are available so don't bomb).

Cons: You will pay more per credit hours because you will be considered a "part-time" student during both the summer and fall. You will not be eligible for work study for the duration of your 1L year. You will likely be put in a section of your jumpstart peers during the fall, which is nice from a social perspective but you essentially "lose" the advantage of only having 3 exams because the peers you're graded against have the same lightened workload. One of the main reasons I enrolled in jumpstart was to have an advantage in the fall, and that was essentially negated when my section turned out to be all jumpstart students. If you need insurance through the school you have to go through a slightly different process to get it since you are considered "part-time" due to the fact you only have 10.5 credit hours in the fall. Your summer grade does not count towards first-semester "honors" or "high honors" (top 20% and 5%). I am unclear about whether it factors into honors at the end of the year.

I was not made aware of ANY of these cons prior to attending (other than the cost), so read them carefully before deciding. Overall, though, I don't regret the experience. Especially if you have to come from out-of-state or you are moving, it gives you a chance to acclimate.

PM with any additional questions. I'm writing a brief and would welcome a break from the work.

[transferror]

I should mention that not all jumpstart students ended up in sections composed entirely of other "jumpstarters." Some ended up mixed and some ended up in sections with very few summer students. Just know that it's a possibility.

[mach9zero]

Just got my acceptance email today so I'm pretty excited!!!! I honestly haven't been keeping up with the status checker though, but I know I went complete around 1/6.

I grew up literally 5 minutes away from the law school and have just recently returned to Camden. I live on the other side of town, but I'm from Camden, have deep roots here and I know how to get around pretty well. However, I'm not really familiar with the larger firms in South Jersey. Where do most students who go into biglaw end up going?

Also, will I miss out on the camaraderie of living in 330 Cooper if I decide to keep my current place?

Course not! Look how expensive 330 Cooper is! If camaraderie costs starting $950 month, I think I'll be taking the lonesome road across the bridge at least give everyone a Friday night starting point for Philly.

[jagnut]

No signs of movement. They admitted some on Monday it seems, and then awarded some scholly money this week as well. Maybe tomorrow next week they'll get to the rest of us.

I can't be the only one checking my status 6 times a day.

Congrats to those admitted!

[XxMVPxX]

Waiting over two months now....

[Snowboarder1588]

Waiting over two months now....

I feel for you, but I'm going on 3.5 months, what do I win?

[Nucky]

ALSO: I can't say this enough. Take advantage of the in-state Tuition that Rutgers offers to ANYONE who moves into NJ. That is why I ended up at Rutgers. I am from Pennsylvania, but I moved to NJ (got a NJ license) and they gave me in-state tuition. Combine that with my scholarship and Rutgers was a great deal.

Also, I want to second the Rutgers alumnus above about Clerkships. Rutgers is great at getting clerkships in NJ. I know a lot of 3L's right now that have clerkship jobs lined up after graduation.

Second this, I'm an 0L considering Rutgers(both) and though the scholarship offer was initially underwhelming, when I discovered that I could qualify for instate immediately it turned an underwhelming offer into a full-ride.

Question about the clerkships though, is there any data on what happens to those clerks once they are done clerking?

Rutgers is certainly a clerk producing machine, but I want to know what becomes of those clerks.

[jagnut]

Waiting over two months now....

I feel for you, but I'm going on 3.5 months, what do I win?

Another 3 weeks of waiting

[XxMVPxX]

Waiting over two months now....

I feel for you, but I'm going on 3.5 months, what do I win?

You think this is good or bad for us?

[jagnut]

.

[Snowboarder1588]

The funny part is that I'm at 25% GPA but LSAT>75%...go figure.

[cberg]

I got my acceptance email last week, but I still haven't gotten an actual letter in the mail or any scholarship info… how long did it take for everyone else? Newark offered me $18,000 and I want to see how Camden compares...

[nick417]

Also, please do share pros and cons of the Summer jump start program. It seems like a good idea, did you enroll in it?

Yes I did. Dennis Patterson taught it the last several summers but may not this summer since he currently lives in Italy. He has made the trip to the US to teach that one class over the last few summers but I think he mentioned wanting to take a break because he was getting burned out. He is exceptional. Well spoken, brilliant, clear with material, and fun.

Pros: You get to take a class "piece-meal" instead of having 4 finals at once. You will gain valuable insight from taking the exam and brief and outline more effectively. You get to meet your peers and you won't feel "new" in the fall when everyone else arrives. Logistically, you'll have more time to complete immunization forms and convert to in-state residency and handle all of the paperwork associated with starting school (including getting a student ID before the fall rush and lines out the door). Obviously you will only have 3 classes in the fall, which means you can spend more time getting involved in clubs and pro bono and networking. You can send out a resume in December with a reportable GPA and don't have to wait for the rest of your transcript in mid to late January (even though it is only 1 grade, if you set a high benchmark, you will get callbacks based on that grade alone. You will also have to update the transcript once the other grades are available so don't bomb).

Cons: You will pay more per credit hours because you will be considered a "part-time" student during both the summer and fall. You will not be eligible for work study for the duration of your 1L year. You will likely be put in a section of your jumpstart peers during the fall, which is nice from a social perspective but you essentially "lose" the advantage of only having 3 exams because the peers you're graded against have the same lightened workload. One of the main reasons I enrolled in jumpstart was to have an advantage in the fall, and that was essentially negated when my section turned out to be all jumpstart students. If you need insurance through the school you have to go through a slightly different process to get it since you are considered "part-time" due to the fact you only have 10.5 credit hours in the fall. Your summer grade does not count towards first-semester "honors" or "high honors" (top 20% and 5%). I am unclear about whether it factors into honors at the end of the year.

I was not made aware of ANY of these cons prior to attending (other than the cost), so read them carefully before deciding. Overall, though, I don't regret the experience. Especially if you have to come from out-of-state or you are moving, it gives you a chance to acclimate.

PM with any additional questions. I'm writing a brief and would welcome a break from the work.

Another CON: The summer jumpstart students missed out on Professor Afilalo. Professor Afilalo did not assign readings and made the class very enjoyable. Us non-summer jumpstarters essentially only had 3 classes also in the Fall.