Howard University School of Law 2013 Forum

Share Your Experiences, Read About Other Experiences. Please keep posts organized by school and expected year of graduation.
sjones1909

New
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun May 31, 2009 11:09 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by sjones1909 » Mon Mar 22, 2010 5:36 pm

People really need to do their research. I have been to a number of law school admissions forums and talked to enough students to know that at Howard you do not have to be in the top 10% of your class to go into Big Law. If you check out the NALP Directory you will see that Howard has more law firms recruiting there than some T14 schools. They continue to recruit there because HUSL students typically do well when recruited. I've talked to a number of students who said that their friends were not in the top of the class by any means and still are making $150,000 a year. Howard has an amazing vibe and great recruitment/employment opportunities. What more are you asking for???

User avatar
Jules Winnfield

Bronze
Posts: 170
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 4:32 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Jules Winnfield » Mon Mar 22, 2010 6:47 pm

sjones1909 wrote:People really need to do their research. I have been to a number of law school admissions forums and talked to enough students to know that at Howard you do not have to be in the top 10% of your class to go into Big Law. If you check out the NALP Directory you will see that Howard has more law firms recruiting there than some T14 schools. They continue to recruit there because HUSL students typically do well when recruited. I've talked to a number of students who said that their friends were not in the top of the class by any means and still are making $150,000 a year. Howard has an amazing vibe and great recruitment/employment opportunities. What more are you asking for???

C'mon, son!

I know you can see the potential logical fail in your response. My question, which still hasn't been answered, is: would a student finishing at median at Howard be better or worse off, generally speaking, than a student finishing at median at a T1 school (barring T14s)?

sjones1909

New
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun May 31, 2009 11:09 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by sjones1909 » Tue Mar 23, 2010 4:51 pm

USNWR reports that the 25th-75th percentile for starting salaries at Howard Law in the private secter is $120,000-$160,000. The median is $145,000. The numbers don't lie.

User avatar
Jules Winnfield

Bronze
Posts: 170
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 4:32 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Jules Winnfield » Tue Mar 23, 2010 4:53 pm

sjones1909 wrote:The numbers don't lie.
They don't. The people who make them up do lie, though.

Aqualibrium

Gold
Posts: 2011
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2009 5:57 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Aqualibrium » Tue Mar 23, 2010 5:10 pm

sjones1909 wrote:USNWR reports that the 25th-75th percentile for starting salaries at Howard Law in the private secter is $120,000-$160,000. The median is $145,000. The numbers don't lie.
Lol of the 23% who report (i.e. the top 25 students in the class) the median is 145,000. The numbers don't lie, but they tend to confuse...

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


sjones1909

New
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun May 31, 2009 11:09 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by sjones1909 » Wed Mar 24, 2010 10:02 am

So is anyone attending the Information Session this weekend? I was told by the admissions office that it will be for accepted students also which is great since they I don't think they have an accepted students day. Hope of see of you there!

sjones1909

New
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun May 31, 2009 11:09 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by sjones1909 » Wed Mar 24, 2010 10:20 am

hombredulce wrote:
sjones1909 wrote:USNWR reports that the 25th-75th percentile for starting salaries at Howard Law in the private secter is $120,000-$160,000. The median is $145,000. The numbers don't lie.
Lol of the 23% who report (i.e. the top 25 students in the class) the median is 145,000. The numbers don't lie, but they tend to confuse...
In the USNWR ultimate guide to law schools it says 54% which is twice what you are suggesting and pretty consistent with other schools outside of T14 schools but seriously its not that deep and if it makes you feel better we can say the numbers are wrong because it really doesn't matter that much.

Now on to another matter, why did you feel the need to PM me and ask me to please please please keep in touch with you so you can see where I am this time next year??? I have no idea who you are and you don't know me. Why does it even matter to you where I am in a year? Despite the debating that we do on these discussion boards about the numbers and rankings, ultimately I hope that we all end up at a school that we enjoy and will help us reach our career goals. Would it really bring you pleasure to know that I was wrong? Would it bring you dismay to know that I was right?

I hope this board will allow those of us who are attending Howard this fall to connect with one another. Other than that, I think we can debate numbers on any of the other many forums where the same conversation is happening. Let's move on to the positive which may result in you having to keep quiet :)

Aqualibrium

Gold
Posts: 2011
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2009 5:57 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Aqualibrium » Wed Mar 24, 2010 12:13 pm

sjones1909 wrote:
hombredulce wrote:
sjones1909 wrote:USNWR reports that the 25th-75th percentile for starting salaries at Howard Law in the private secter is $120,000-$160,000. The median is $145,000. The numbers don't lie.
Lol of the 23% who report (i.e. the top 25 students in the class) the median is 145,000. The numbers don't lie, but they tend to confuse...
In the USNWR ultimate guide to law schools it says 54% which is twice what you are suggesting and pretty consistent with other schools outside of T14 schools but seriously its not that deep and if it makes you feel better we can say the numbers are wrong because it really doesn't matter that much.

Now on to another matter, why did you feel the need to PM me and ask me to please please please keep in touch with you so you can see where I am this time next year??? I have no idea who you are and you don't know me. Why does it even matter to you where I am in a year? Despite the debating that we do on these discussion boards about the numbers and rankings, ultimately I hope that we all end up at a school that we enjoy and will help us reach our career goals. Would it really bring you pleasure to know that I was wrong? Would it bring you dismay to know that I was right?

I hope this board will allow those of us who are attending Howard this fall to connect with one another. Other than that, I think we can debate numbers on any of the other many forums where the same conversation is happening. Let's move on to the positive which may result in you having to keep quiet :)

1. I'm a little confused by what you are saying re: the numbers. I don't have the USNEWS ultimate guide to law schools so I'll ask that you clarify. Is the 54% number you are reading listed as the actual survey response rate or is it listed as the percentage of students employed in law firms/private practice.

If it is the actual response rate, you'd have to take Howard's class size, multiply it by the .54, then take the # you came away with and divide it by the number of students who reported working in private practice.

So lets hypothesize that Howard has 140 students. 140 x .54 (response rate) = 76 students that responded to the survey.

You then must take 76 and multiply it by the percentage of students who indicated that they worked in law firms/private practice in their survey response. So lets hypothesize again that 50% of those who responded indicated that they worked in law firms/pp. 76 x .5 = 38 students. So 38 students out of 140 students in the class worked in law firms/pp. 38/140 = .27 meaning 27% of the students in the class work in law firms/pp. The median salary for those 27% of students is $145,000.

If the 54% number you listed refers not to the response rate, but to the percentage of students who indicated in their survey response that they worked in law firms/pp, you would do a calculation which is very similar to the one I did above. The difference would be that you'd probably have to guess the response rate. 50-60% is probably an accurate guess. You'd then run through the entire process I went through above, which would lead you to a similar 25% (+/- 1 or 2) of students who make $145,000.


2. I never said anything negative. I never said do not go to Howard. I never said Howard is a bad school. I simply said don't rely too much on the numbers, and advocated for a deeper look into the statistics that Howard (and other schools) list. Like I said before, a top 10-15% scholarship requirement is ridiculous, and those 500-600 firms at OCI aren't there to talk to you if you aren't in top 25% of your class (this is generally true at most schools actually; why would you think it was any different at Howard?).

If you can't get into a t30 with a scholarship, go to Howard. If you can though, the choice is clear imo.

reece

New
Posts: 7
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 5:43 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by reece » Fri Mar 26, 2010 10:05 am

They do have an accepted students day.

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


Aqualibrium

Gold
Posts: 2011
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2009 5:57 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Aqualibrium » Sat Mar 27, 2010 8:42 pm

sjones1909 wrote:People really need to do their research. I have been to a number of law school admissions forums and talked to enough students to know that at Howard you do not have to be in the top 10% of your class to go into Big Law. If you check out the NALP Directory you will see that Howard has more law firms recruiting there than some T14 schools. They continue to recruit there because HUSL students typically do well when recruited. I've talked to a number of students who said that their friends were not in the top of the class by any means and still are making $150,000 a year. Howard has an amazing vibe and great recruitment/employment opportunities. What more are you asking for???

http://pdfserver.amlaw.com/nlj/law%20sc ... page12.pdf

17.8% or 26/146 Howard students in the class of 2009 were hired by Big Law firms...

All things considered, these numbers are great. Just make sure you're one of those people in the top 20% of the class.

User avatar
revrocksteady

New
Posts: 63
Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 10:01 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by revrocksteady » Sun Mar 28, 2010 1:04 pm

I was wait listed at Howard early this month (161, 3.3, Asian). I would just like to encourage anyone who was accepted and doesn't plan on attending to please withdraw.
Last edited by revrocksteady on Sun Mar 28, 2010 8:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Shot007

New
Posts: 95
Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 1:46 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Shot007 » Sun Mar 28, 2010 7:52 pm

Howard is still a great choice for URM (Black) Not accepted in the T20....I am happy to be amongst those people, and I do agree, Median at Howard is going to be worse than median at a T30 school...but I hope not to be finishing median, and appreciate the 24,000 tuition even though I will be coming from out of state, thats pretty good imo (not even considering my scholarship either)

User avatar
BasketCaseBrief

New
Posts: 50
Joined: Sun Oct 11, 2009 12:52 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by BasketCaseBrief » Sun Mar 28, 2010 11:57 pm

Shot007 wrote:Howard is still a great choice for URM (Black) Not accepted in the T20....I am happy to be amongst those people, and I do agree, Median at Howard is going to be worse than median at a T30 school...but I hope not to be finishing median, and appreciate the 24,000 tuition even though I will be coming from out of state, thats pretty good imo (not even considering my scholarship either)
The only problem I have with Howard Law is that even though the tuition is low, the cost of attendance skyrockets because they don't have any housing. The cost of living in Washington, D.C. is otherworldly compared to, say, Chicago, Raleigh, or Baltimore. You will be attending full-time, because there is no part-time division, and you will not be working, unless it's part-time work. How will you afford to live? I love this school and will apply there myself, but with the lack of housing, I'm reconsidering whether it would be worth it to attend if I were accepted and could get into American or Maryland otherwise.

Register now!

Resources to assist law school applicants, students & graduates.

It's still FREE!


User avatar
PDaddy

Gold
Posts: 2063
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2010 4:40 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by PDaddy » Mon Mar 29, 2010 12:06 am

Jules Winnfield wrote:
sjones1909 wrote:People really need to do their research. I have been to a number of law school admissions forums and talked to enough students to know that at Howard you do not have to be in the top 10% of your class to go into Big Law. If you check out the NALP Directory you will see that Howard has more law firms recruiting there than some T14 schools. They continue to recruit there because HUSL students typically do well when recruited. I've talked to a number of students who said that their friends were not in the top of the class by any means and still are making $150,000 a year. Howard has an amazing vibe and great recruitment/employment opportunities. What more are you asking for???
C'mon, son!

I know you can see the potential logical fail in your response. My question, which still hasn't been answered, is: would a student finishing at median at Howard be better or worse off, generally speaking, than a student finishing at median at a T1 school (barring T14s)?
I believe the Howard median graduate would be at least as well-off as, a median student at a top-30. Remember, firms do dig deeper into the pool to get URM's at those schools, but Howard is the top URM pipeline to BigLaw outside of T18. Howard grads don't go into as much debt as does the typical law grad. That said, there are some pitfalls to Howard's system. They want your blood in return for the money they offer you. I have a very well respected top-25 school giving me 2.5 GPA minimum and another well respected school offering me a 2.75 minimum. Medians at both are about 3.0-3.1. Those are good deals. I haven't gotten all of my aid offers yet, but Howard's offers feel like traps. I still love the school, though.
poeticjustice88 wrote:Howard is my top choice as well!

P.S. Considering it is so late in the admissions cycle, what do you guys think my odds are of getting accepted (and more importantly getting some $$$) I'm black/hispanic female 155/3.67
You'll be knocking on the door for a full scholly, provided that you have at least decent softs.

Dchambe

New
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Mar 30, 2010 7:50 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Dchambe » Tue Mar 30, 2010 7:55 pm

About to send in my seat deposit in the next couple days!

How significantly (if at all) do you think my career chances are diminished as a non-URM coming out of Howard?

poeticjustice88

New
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 4:48 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by poeticjustice88 » Tue Mar 30, 2010 9:19 pm

I got in with a merit scholarship today and it's my top choice so I'm turning down UMKC, American, and UDC and withdrawing my app from GWU and FSU. Can't wait to see everyone in the Fall!

omgitsjo

New
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:17 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by omgitsjo » Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:20 pm

I got my acceptance yesterday! I'm an undergrad from Howard, graduating in May and I can't wait to meet y'all!

Get unlimited access to all forums and topics

Register now!

I'm pretty sure I told you it's FREE...


Generic20101L

Bronze
Posts: 180
Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2009 4:00 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Generic20101L » Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:53 pm

Shot007 wrote:
reece wrote:
reece wrote:what is the scholly requirement?
You have to be in the top 15% to keep the full $20k and it trickles down from there... you never end up with nothing though.
The Scholly requirement is not that bad, and I think that there are many worse ones out there. Its top 15% as stated...but even if you are top 20% you get 75% of your scholarship back, and 50% of the scholarship with median. In addition you can also regain a scholarship if lost, however, you can never regain the original scholarship value...

What I was wondering is if anyone knew how they section the classes, is it random? Or do they section all the people with big scholarships in the same classes?
I visited and loved Howard and they said that they spread the sections out by race, gender, LSAT, GPA, so each section will be diverse.

The only thing that REALLY concerns me is the bar passage rate which is deplorable. Is anyone else really concerned about that?

As a white person, I didn't feel out of place for one half second and the instant I stepped foot on campus all I got were smiles.

User avatar
heavyliesthehead

New
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Apr 01, 2010 6:27 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by heavyliesthehead » Thu Apr 01, 2010 6:45 pm

I just found this site...Pretty cool how the internet can bring folk together...

I got accepted to HUSL on 30 December 2009...

I applied at the end of October...

I can't say enough how much of a blessing it is to get accepted to my first, last and only choice for school. I didn't apply anywhere else. Figured if it wasn't going to be HUSL it wasn't going to be nothing at all...How many of you actually feel that way? I went to a PWS for undergrad...Visited Howard back in the summer of '04. Howard was was the host for the annual Association of Black Psychologists convention. I fell in love with the undergrad campus over those two weeks I was in DC...Felt like home right off the bat...Visited the law school...wrote my initials on tree nearby... inscription said, "SLT class of 2008" Well, I'm a few years behind...Life stepped in...Experienced stepped up...and I got accepted to my dream school...got my soundtrack picked out for when I arrive in DC in June...Gonna lead off with Jay's (aside...with the rise of Jay Electronica can Jay still be used to mean Jay? neither here nor there I suppose) "I'm already home"

Getting accepted so early in the process has been a relief...but also kind of a depressant..I mean I've been amped up to meet the next three years of my life...Been wanting to meet all of you who will be sharing in the dream...

To me, that's whats important...I never really cared about stats this, rank that...the folk I worked with did/do...You know getting hit with the, "You sure you want to go to Howard? I think you have more options than that," gets annoying...First thing out my mind to that be, "b**** please!" But my mouth remember to try and keep the b in subtle and just forms a smile...I don't even bother to defend...why defend my dream?

That said...folk out there...I look forward to meeting you in August...maybe even rooming with you...because Lord know DMV gotta way of raising the status quo up...


Oh yeah me:

AA/M Chi-town...

User avatar
heavyliesthehead

New
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Apr 01, 2010 6:27 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by heavyliesthehead » Thu Apr 01, 2010 6:54 pm

Jph408 wrote:For those of you still waiting, I think Howard is pretty fast at getting back to you. I went complete beginning of December and got my acceptance notification (w/ $20K scholarship) the day after Christmas.

I just got a form in the mail today about the scholarship that is pretty cool. To keep the full scholarship amount, you only need to be in the top 1/3 of your class. Even if you don't make that cut, you won't lose your entire scholarship, just a prorated amount.

Also, I asked the assistant dean about an accepted students day and he told me they had something tentatively scheduled for the end of March. So far I haven't received any notification about it. Has anything regarding an ASD been communicated to any of you who have been accepted?

Howard is definitely my front-runner, but I still haven't heard back from all my schools yet.

I haven't received anything about an accepted students day...I got in the same time as you...But I guess its all well..We are going to see each others faces for 3 years (hopefully) come August...for some people that will be 3 years to many... :D ...But I have to admit...I'm just as anxious as you...congrats on the scholarship...I knew who to lean on when pizza and drink money get lean in December...

Jph408

New
Posts: 14
Joined: Tue Jun 16, 2009 11:19 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Jph408 » Fri Apr 02, 2010 2:09 am

heavyliesthehead wrote:Jph408 wrote:
For those of you still waiting, I think Howard is pretty fast at getting back to you. I went complete beginning of December and got my acceptance notification (w/ $20K scholarship) the day after Christmas.

I just got a form in the mail today about the scholarship that is pretty cool. To keep the full scholarship amount, you only need to be in the top 1/3 of your class. Even if you don't make that cut, you won't lose your entire scholarship, just a prorated amount.

Also, I asked the assistant dean about an accepted students day and he told me they had something tentatively scheduled for the end of March. So far I haven't received any notification about it. Has anything regarding an ASD been communicated to any of you who have been accepted?

Howard is definitely my front-runner, but I still haven't heard back from all my schools yet.



I haven't received anything about an accepted students day...I got in the same time as you...But I guess its all well..We are going to see each others faces for 3 years (hopefully) come August...for some people that will be 3 years to many... :D ...But I have to admit...I'm just as anxious as you...congrats on the scholarship...I knew who to lean on when pizza and drink money get lean in December...
I got an email about a week ago from HUSL inviting admitted students to a cocktail reception on 4/9 (hosted by Fried Frank) and a law school tour and info session on 4/10. If you haven't gotten that, you may want to call them and ask about it.

Anyone out there attending? I'm going to stay in Bethesda Court Hotel 4/8-4/11. Right now they have a special going for $99 a night and the hotel is on the metro red line just a few stops from HUSL.

Communicate now with those who not only know what a legal education is, but can offer you worthy advice and commentary as you complete the three most educational, yet challenging years of your law related post graduate life.

Register now, it's still FREE!


1njennie

New
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 12:16 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by 1njennie » Sun Apr 04, 2010 12:23 pm

Hey! Just got accepted to Howard $$ but also got $$ to Notre Dame and accepted to UGA so far. Im super confused on where to go because I never expected to get in and DEFINITELY didnt expect $.

Aqualibrium

Gold
Posts: 2011
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2009 5:57 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Aqualibrium » Mon Apr 05, 2010 5:24 pm

1njennie wrote:Hey! Just got accepted to Howard $$ but also got $$ to Notre Dame and accepted to UGA so far. Im super confused on where to go because I never expected to get in and DEFINITELY didnt expect $.
How much did you get at ND, and what is the requirement to keep it?

User avatar
Lord Quas

New
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Feb 22, 2010 11:42 am

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by Lord Quas » Mon Apr 05, 2010 6:29 pm

In March 30 via email. Happy and probably accepting. For those who received scholarships, were you informed with your initial acceptance email, or with the official package? My email didnt mention any $$ and my package is taking forEVER!!

Thanks

reece

New
Posts: 7
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 5:43 pm

Re: Howard University School of Law 2013

Post by reece » Thu Apr 08, 2010 3:08 pm

Congrats to all who have been accepted! I look forward to meeting you tomorrow night... I'm beyond excited!

:D :D :D

Seriously? What are you waiting for?

Now there's a charge.
Just kidding ... it's still FREE!


Post Reply

Return to “Law School Acceptances, Denials, and Waitlists”