UC Hastings c/o 2016 Applicants (2012-2013) Forum

[lisavj]

Go to UCH this cycle, transfer next year.

Never never never go to a law school intending to transfer. There are no guarantees you will do well. No matter how smart/hardworking/etc you are.

[claudenm]

Thank you all for the quick replies!

I don't have any other options this year; I applied just to UCH and Boalt, as I'm committed to the Bay Area for 2013-14 (girlfriend has another year for her masters at SFSU). No luck with Boalt (not a surprise).

That being said, my current job pays decently well (nothing great, but could add a bit to my savings if I stayed on another year), and I could try the LSAT again...I think a 167-170 isn't impossible for me. In the next admissions cycle I could also expand my applications to include DC, Boston, and other area schools.

Anyway, I feel very ready and motivated to start law school, and while UCH isn't my dream school I do feel I could do well there. I'm just stuck on deciding whether the ~$100K would be the wisest decision, especially considering the employment outlook.

Man, I feel like quite the whiner agonizing and complaining over a deal that's above average.

On another note, do you feel the IP and Int'l Law programs are strong at UCH?

Take the year off. I promise you law schools will still be there next year. Earn money. Enjoy life in the bay.

[kapital98]

Go to UCH this cycle, transfer next year.

I hope you are joking. Never go to law school expecting to transfer.

[CO2016YEAH]

Go to UCH this cycle, transfer next year.

Never never never go to a law school intending to transfer. There are no guarantees you will do well. No matter how smart/hardworking/etc you are.

Good advice. As an unrelated question (seriously), did you say before that you transferred to Standford?

[lisavj]

Go to UCH this cycle, transfer next year.

Never never never go to a law school intending to transfer. There are no guarantees you will do well. No matter how smart/hardworking/etc you are.

Good advice. As an unrelated question (seriously), did you say before that you transferred to Standford?

Yes.

I went biglaw or bust. For me a year and 20k was acceptable risk. I had drop out slots at ech semester (cut losses and run). For me it worked. If you're comfortable taking on debt for a 2/433 shot at an SLS transfer that's your call. It's slimmer chances than biglaw. (Not much slimmer and the way I did it would be seen by many as stupid as well. (It just worked for some reason).

[CO2016YEAH]

Good advice. As an unrelated question (seriously), did you say before that you transferred to Standford?

Yes.

I went biglaw or bust. For me a year and 20k was acceptable risk. I had drop out slots at ech semester (cut losses and run). For me it worked. If you're comfortable taking on debt for a 2/433 shot at an SLS transfer that's your call. It's slimmer chances than biglaw. (Not much slimmer and the way I did it would be seen by many as stupid as well. (It just worked for some reason).

Right. I'm not banking on those odds (for BigLaw or transferring). I think I would take a transfer up to Stanford at that price.

I'll be attending (wherever it is I end up attending) with the presumption that I will likely be graduating from that school. I will submit transfer apps, though. Getting the grades is one hurdle and getting a spot is a second; I think it's a smart $100 (or whatever) to try, though.

Would you have bailed out of LS altogether after 1L if you didn't get a transfer offer?

[seamus86]

Thanks again for all this input...even with a brother as a USA, an uncle retired from insurance law, and my girlfriend's father a lawyer as well, I've found the advice here to be the most helpful (not surprising, I suppose, considering it relates directly to UCH).

As far as the recommendations for transfer, I'm inclined to agree with kapital. I don't want transferring to be part of my initial LS plan - I'm interested in a school that I actually want to attend. If it comes up later, so be it, but law school debt seems risky enough now without the added bet of a transfer.

A 4 point increase in the LSAT is possible, but wouldn't be easy. Increasing my LSAT score isn't out of the question (169 may be an outside chance), though and, as has been pointed out, a few points higher would land me in somewhat safer territory for reapplying. Perhaps even a few points would help with financial offers; ideally, I'd like to work in social justice or human rights policy/advocacy, and $100K+ in debt makes that difficult to imagine without a few years of BigLaw (it seems unclear what would or wouldn't qualify for PICAP).

Thanks again for all the advice and information...I'd say at this point I'm 60/40 for waiting a year and retaking/reapplying, due to the employment outlook. After 5 years working in the Bay Area, one more wouldn't be too bad! (although entering at the age of 28 is a bit daunting)

Do you all think there's a good chance that UCH would grant a similar offer next year? My last real worry about waiting is that I find I have only worse offers next year.

Anyway, it's a beautiful day here - time to blow off some steam and let all of this data simmer. I wouldn't be surprised if I find myself on the way to Polk St, walking past UCH!

[lisavj]

Would you have bailed out of LS altogether after 1L if you didn't get a transfer offer?

I would have bailed if I struck out at OCI (wherever I did it).

(although entering at the age of 28 is a bit daunting)

Hey! I'm 28! "old" lawl students be da bomb .

[bettercallsaul91]

Go to UCH this cycle, transfer next year.

I hope you are joking. Never go to law school expecting to transfer.

ESPECIALLY HASTINGS (apparently). Haven't you heard about Hastings' reputation for being super cutthroat-competitive? GLHF

On another note, just withdrew so somebody else can fall in love with my city by the bay. I'll always love SF, but it's time for a change.

[Ceasar]

I was wondering if anyone who has applied to Hastings in late February near the March deadline has received a decision yet?

[WhiskeynCoke]

Can anyone justify shouldering ~$150k in loans from Hastings?

I really want to go, I truly do, but when I'm honest with myself about the weight of that debt—and sooo much grad plus...—I find myself sadly, slowly beginning to cross Hastings off the list of possibilities...

Am I missing something? I hope so...

+1,000

This doesn't help me, as I`m not BigLaw-or-bust, but some solace might come from the fact that Hastings grads have a real shot at it- even more than UCLA/USC, from a geography standpoint (re: SF is where it's at)

Um.... WTF? Are you seriously suggesting that Hastings grads have a better shot at Big Law than UCLA/USC grads? (Also, LA is a much bigger legal market than SF.) You shouldn't drink the bong water......

- UCLA = 34.2% landed big law (c/o 2012): http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=ucla
- USC = 30.8% landed big law (c/o 2012): http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=usc
- UC Hastings = 13.3% landed big law (c/o 2012): http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=hastings

You also need to take into account the fact that many of the top UCLA/USC grads end up going to boutique firms doing things like entertainment law. These often pay market rates and are more desirable/competitive. All things considered, you have around a 3x better chance of landing big law from UCLA/USC than from Hastings.

Hastings Grads have it rough because there are two far better schools in their over-saturated home market for firms to choose from (Boalt/Stanford). UCLA/USC are the top schools in So-Cal.

[WhiskeynCoke]

Thank you all for the quick replies!

I don't have any other options this year; I applied just to UCH and Boalt, as I'm committed to the Bay Area for 2013-14 (girlfriend has another year for her masters at SFSU). No luck with Boalt (not a surprise).

That being said, my current job pays decently well (nothing great, but could add a bit to my savings if I stayed on another year), and I could try the LSAT again...I think a 167-170 isn't impossible for me. In the next admissions cycle I could also expand my applications to include DC, Boston, and other area schools.

Anyway, I feel very ready and motivated to start law school, and while UCH isn't my dream school I do feel I could do well there. I'm just stuck on deciding whether the ~$100K would be the wisest decision, especially considering the employment outlook.

Man, I feel like quite the whiner agonizing and complaining over a deal that's above average.

On another note, do you feel the IP and Int'l Law programs are strong at UCH?

Only applying to 2 schools was a HUGE mistake.

- It doesn't matter if you're Bay Area or bust. You need to apply to AT LEAST 10-20 schools for SCHOLARSHIP LEVERAGE.
- You can apply to schools without ever having the intention of attending (*shock*). Request fee waivers.
- The reason for applying to all these schools is that it's hard to predict who's gonna give you $$$, but once you have the $$$ you can use it to leverage your favorite school into giving you some $$$.

To illustrate my point... Berkeley has an official scholarship matching program. If you received a scholarship from one of 12 schools, you can show Boalt and they'll consider giving you a counter offer. If you don't apply to any of these peer schools and get in to Boalt, you're likely SOL when it comes to merit aid because you have NO LEVERAGE.

You see, attorneys and law students do this thing called research..... It helps them learn stuff.........

[lisavj]

Thank you all for the quick replies!

I don't have any other options this year; I applied just to UCH and Boalt, as I'm committed to the Bay Area for 2013-14 (girlfriend has another year for her masters at SFSU). No luck with Boalt (not a surprise).

That being said, my current job pays decently well (nothing great, but could add a bit to my savings if I stayed on another year), and I could try the LSAT again...I think a 167-170 isn't impossible for me. In the next admissions cycle I could also expand my applications to include DC, Boston, and other area schools.

Anyway, I feel very ready and motivated to start law school, and while UCH isn't my dream school I do feel I could do well there. I'm just stuck on deciding whether the ~$100K would be the wisest decision, especially considering the employment outlook.

Man, I feel like quite the whiner agonizing and complaining over a deal that's above average.

On another note, do you feel the IP and Int'l Law programs are strong at UCH?

Only applying to 2 schools was a HUGE mistake.

- It doesn't matter if you're Bay Area or bust. You need to apply to AT LEAST 10-20 schools for SCHOLARSHIP LEVERAGE.
- You can apply to schools without ever having the intention of attending (*shock*). Request fee waivers.
- The reason for applying to all these schools is that it's hard to predict who's gonna give you $$$, but once you have the $$$ you can use it to leverage your favorite school into giving you some $$$.

To illustrate my point... Berkeley has an official scholarship matching program. If you received a scholarship from one of 12 schools, you can show Boalt and they'll consider giving you a counter offer. If you don't apply to any of these peer schools and get in to Boalt, you're likely SOL when it comes to merit aid because you have NO LEVERAGE.

You see, attorneys and law students do this thing called research..... It helps them learn stuff.........

Wow dude. Chill. You are clearly smarter than those of us who applied to only two schools. Yeesh.

[unclepete]

Thank you all for the quick replies!

I don't have any other options this year; I applied just to UCH and Boalt, as I'm committed to the Bay Area for 2013-14 (girlfriend has another year for her masters at SFSU). No luck with Boalt (not a surprise).

That being said, my current job pays decently well (nothing great, but could add a bit to my savings if I stayed on another year), and I could try the LSAT again...I think a 167-170 isn't impossible for me. In the next admissions cycle I could also expand my applications to include DC, Boston, and other area schools.

Anyway, I feel very ready and motivated to start law school, and while UCH isn't my dream school I do feel I could do well there. I'm just stuck on deciding whether the ~$100K would be the wisest decision, especially considering the employment outlook.

Man, I feel like quite the whiner agonizing and complaining over a deal that's above average.

On another note, do you feel the IP and Int'l Law programs are strong at UCH?

Only applying to 2 schools was a HUGE mistake.

- It doesn't matter if you're Bay Area or bust. You need to apply to AT LEAST 10-20 schools for SCHOLARSHIP LEVERAGE.
- You can apply to schools without ever having the intention of attending (*shock*). Request fee waivers.
- The reason for applying to all these schools is that it's hard to predict who's gonna give you $$$, but once you have the $$$ you can use it to leverage your favorite school into giving you some $$$.

To illustrate my point... Berkeley has an official scholarship matching program. If you received a scholarship from one of 12 schools, you can show Boalt and they'll consider giving you a counter offer. If you don't apply to any of these peer schools and get in to Boalt, you're likely SOL when it comes to merit aid because you have NO LEVERAGE.

You see, attorneys and law students do this thing called research..... It helps them learn stuff.........

Wow dude. Chill. You are clearly smarter than those of us who applied to only two schools. Yeesh.

He is very upset right now. How dare us

[lisavj]

Technically I applied to three schools (my grandpa went to uw Madison and I wanted to show him an acceptance from there). Berkeley did not appreciate my post rejection request that they match my $0 scholarship offer from Madison.

[CO2016YEAH]

Technically I applied to three schools (my grandpa went to uw Madison and I wanted to show him an acceptance from there). Berkeley did not appreciate my post rejection request that they match my $0 scholarship offer from Madison.

Ha! Did you actually do this? Despite their reaction, I say doing this was commendable.

[lisavj]

Technically I applied to three schools (my grandpa went to uw Madison and I wanted to show him an acceptance from there). Berkeley did not appreciate my post rejection request that they match my $0 scholarship offer from Madison.

Ha! Did you actually do this? Despite their reaction, I say doing this was commendable.

Sadly no. My creative sarcasm is more ballsy than my real self.

[WhiskeynCoke]

I was trying to give constructive yet stern advice, urging the poster to wait a cycle and apply a different strategy that will greatly benefit them. Sorry if I offended. Being on TLS, answers to all this shit are everywhere, you just need to look.

[kapital98]

I was trying to give constructive yet stern advice, urging the poster to wait a cycle and apply a different strategy that will greatly benefit them. Sorry if I offended. Being on TLS, answers to all this shit are everywhere, you just need to look.

Did you apply to Hastings? Have you gone to Hastings? I'm sure there are plenty of people who can give advice that fit within these two groups. Otherwise, this thread would be in a "which school should I pick" thread.

Btw, the advice was already given before your inflammatory remarks.

[immikeyiiirock]

I was wondering if anyone who has applied to Hastings in late February near the March deadline has received a decision yet?

[Ceasar]

immikeyiiirock ~ would you mind sharing your stats? I am trying to be patient, but I haven't heard anything and it is driving me in insane.

[SFSpartan]

I was wondering if anyone who has applied to Hastings in late February near the March deadline has received a decision yet?

I applied March 2. I was accepted on March 20.

[dan k]

withdrew yesterday, good luck to those on waitlist

[lawschoolwoohoo]

Withdrew almost a month ago but just got the Hastings law review in the mail for some reason??

[seamus86]

I'm curious - for those of you who withdrew, are you going elsewhere, waiting a year, or reconsidering LS plans? I'm just wondering, as I'm debating attending, delaying until next year, and/or looking at entirely different options.