Waitlist Hell Forum

[crit_racer]

I'm up to 7!

What a shame. You have a solid LSAT and GPA. What's up w/the discrepancy between your LSDAS GPA and actual?

Transferred schools after sophomore year. 3.85 is the gpa from my degree granting institution. I got a few Ds and Fs before I transferred, though.

[wiseguy33]

I've got 6 waitlists, 1 deferral, and 2 no response since fall. Hello, splitter cycle.

WL bites.

[am0rfati]

Currently on 4 waitlists. Meh. What's meant to be, will be. Right?

Best of luck everyone. Be persistent and stay positive. People DO get off of these waitlists, each and every year.

[unc0mm0n1]

I guess... but at least with the hold you get the impression that if you send in extra material, it could help - you have a shot.

Me? I could be #1000 on their WL and send in some extra things (transcript, LOCI) and it would be a wasted effort...I'd like to know if they'd consider me again or if they just didn't want to send out rejections so early (I was WLed in December).

I know Berkeley will tell you your general location on the wait list. (like what quarter you're in). Do most schools do this?

[unc0mm0n1]

The WL option seems like a racket by schools to pull in some extra hundreds of dollars in seat deposits from applicants that they are fairly certain won't be accepted.

Wait what? Waitlisted people usually don't have to put down seat deposits do they? I was under the impression that riding a WL was almost always free?

I've had 5 so far and all have been free. Would be crazy if they wanted you to make a deposit without even having a spot for you. Doesn't really make any sense.

I've certainly never heard of a school asking for money to stay on the WL. I think somebody's been dipping into the peyote...

I don't think you guys understand the OP. I think what he's saying is if you apply to schools A (reach) B (want) C (safety) you get accepted to school C but wait listed at school A and B. April 15 comes around and you're still wait listed at A and B but your seat deposit is do at C. You make the seat deposit but then you get into B. So now you lose the initial seat deposit to C and then you put a seat deposit down at B. June comes around and you make the second seat deposit to B but then you get into A from the wait `list. If you decide to go to A you just lost well over a thousand dollars. Thus the OP feels it's a scam perpetrated by the law schools as a whole to get extra money from seat deposits. I'm not saying I agree or disagree but you can make an argument for it.

[bigjinjapan]

The WL option seems like a racket by schools to pull in some extra hundreds of dollars in seat deposits from applicants that they are fairly certain won't be accepted.

I don't think you guys understand the OP. I think what he's saying is if you apply to schools A (reach) B (want) C (safety) you get accepted to school C but wait listed at school A and B. April 15 comes around and you're still wait listed at A and B but your seat deposit is do at C. You make the seat deposit but then you get into B. So now you lose the initial seat deposit to C and then you put a seat deposit down at B. June comes around and you make the second seat deposit to B but then you get into A from the wait `list. If you decide to go to A you just lost well over a thousand dollars. Thus the OP feels it's a scam perpetrated by the law schools as a whole to get extra money from seat deposits. I'm not saying I agree or disagree but you can make an argument for it.

Hm, if that's what he was trying to say then he certainly worded it poorly. The schools using the WL aren't the ones profiting, and the applicants they're not profiting from aren't the ones they are certain won't be accepted (to where?).

The only way to argue that schools are scamming for deposit money is to say that these schools that accept people expect them to be accepted at more desirable schools after their own deposit deadlines. In that case, it would be more accurate to say: "Schools use early deposit deadlines as a way of scamming money from people they're sure will be accepted at better schools later on."

I have sort of gotten this impression about GWU...

[SCJD2014]

Has anyone started sending out LOCIs? I'm wondering when the right time would be considering most waitlist reviews don't start until May 1st.

[zla2014]

I'm up to 7!

What a shame. You have a solid LSAT and GPA. What's up w/the discrepancy between your LSDAS GPA and actual?

Transferred schools after sophomore year. 3.85 is the gpa from my degree granting institution. I got a few Ds and Fs before I transferred, though.

Did you write an addendum explaining the upward trend? Hopefully in your pending apps they will realize that you worked really hard since those couple of bad grades you got. Still though, your LSDAS GPA isn't that bad!

[zla2014]

Has anyone started sending out LOCIs? I'm wondering when the right time would be considering most waitlist reviews don't start until May 1st.

Call the school. I've had some schools tell me right away, and have had others tell me to call them Apr 30th and ask them again so they could let me know if they were taking people of the waitlist yet. (Santa Clara said that by the way)

[ffffffff]

2 pending
2 rejected
5 waitlist


sup

[zla2014]

2 pending
2 rejected
5 waitlist


sup

at Hastings? Really? got a criminal background goin on there? lol

[zla2014]

oops

[Magnolia]

2 pending
2 rejected
5 waitlist


sup

at Hastings? Really? got a criminal background goin on there? lol

That joke is even funnier when you tell it twice.

[noncontributingzero]

Checking in!

2 long shot rejections
2 pending
4 WL
1 acceptance

[crit_racer]

I'm up to 7!

What a shame. You have a solid LSAT and GPA. What's up w/the discrepancy between your LSDAS GPA and actual?

Transferred schools after sophomore year. 3.85 is the gpa from my degree granting institution. I got a few Ds and Fs before I transferred, though.

Did you write an addendum explaining the upward trend? Hopefully in your pending apps they will realize that you worked really hard since those couple of bad grades you got. Still though, your LSDAS GPA isn't that bad!

Yeah I wrote an addendum, but I don't think it matters much. Even though my upward grade trend was very strong, I don't think it's helped me this cycle.

[Emma1]

Is anybody else livid at the amount of waitlists they received. Man they suck and are total blow to ones ego....

Part of the problem is that people are applying early to too many schools...some have over 20 apps.

[nkra]

Is anybody else livid at the amount of waitlists they received. Man they suck and are total blow to ones ego....

Part of the problem is that people are applying early to too many schools...some have over 20 apps.

I agree that this is a major part of the problem. I'v received 5 waitlists so far, and am expecting 3-4 more. If anything, the fact that people applied to 20+ schools should help some of us stuck in waitlist hell. At least one would imagine.

In fact, I received an email today from one of my waitlist schools saying they are expecting to take 30 people off the waitlist at the end of April, and an additional 30 in May. Is it just me, or does this seem like quite a lot fairly early in the Spring/Summer? Or is that number pretty average?

[zla2014]

Is anybody else livid at the amount of waitlists they received. Man they suck and are total blow to ones ego....

Part of the problem is that people are applying early to too many schools...some have over 20 apps.

I agree that this is a major part of the problem. I'v received 5 waitlists so far, and am expecting 3-4 more. If anything, the fact that people applied to 20+ schools should help some of us stuck in waitlist hell. At least one would imagine.

In fact, I received an email today from one of my waitlist schools saying they are expecting to take 30 people off the waitlist at the end of April, and an additional 30 in May. Is it just me, or does this seem like quite a lot fairly early in the Spring/Summer? Or is that number pretty average?

What school was that? Seems pretty early to me! The schools I've talked to said don't expect any movement until end of April/May

[bigjinjapan]

I also feel like people are applying to too many schools. The LSAC system really makes it almost too easy to carpet bomb the whole T20 plus whatever safety schools give you a fee waiver. From LSAC's perspective there's no downside, but the result is a lot of schools just get inundated with apps from people who may or may not really be committed to their school, and I feel like their having to make more active use of the waitlist is the unfortunate outcome.

I have to admit I'm guilty of this myself (16 apps) but if I had to do it all again I'd definitely try to keep the number smaller, and submit targeted apps only to the schools I was really committed to.

[ArthurDigbySellers]

I also feel like people are applying to too many schools. The LSAC system really makes it almost too easy to carpet bomb the whole T20 plus whatever safety schools give you a fee waiver. From LSAC's perspective there's no downside, but the result is a lot of schools just get inundated with apps from people who may or may not really be committed to their school, and I feel like their having to make more active use of the waitlist is the unfortunate outcome.

I have to admit I'm guilty of this myself (16 apps) but if I had to do it all again I'd definitely try to keep the number smaller, and submit targeted apps only to the schools I was really committed to.

For me at least, I was a borderline applicant with few solid ADMITs, and a whole lot of pride, so I reached high and carpet bombed virtually everything in the T20 in the hopes of getting in somewhere. Thankfully I did, because I have no Plan B...

[flgator10]

6 waitlists so far...still waiting to hear back from 5 schools.

[bigjinjapan]

I also feel like people are applying to too many schools. The LSAC system really makes it almost too easy to carpet bomb the whole T20 plus whatever safety schools give you a fee waiver. From LSAC's perspective there's no downside, but the result is a lot of schools just get inundated with apps from people who may or may not really be committed to their school, and I feel like their having to make more active use of the waitlist is the unfortunate outcome.

I have to admit I'm guilty of this myself (16 apps) but if I had to do it all again I'd definitely try to keep the number smaller, and submit targeted apps only to the schools I was really committed to.

For me at least, I was a borderline applicant with few solid ADMITs, and a whole lot of pride, so I reached high and carpet bombed virtually everything in the T20 in the hopes of getting in somewhere. Thankfully I did, because I have no Plan B...

Well, as a splitter NT applicant I was sort of in the same position: unpredictable outcome based on numbers alone. It may have been the right decision for both of us, but I still think that as a whole the system is open to abuse, and might be in need of some reform to discourage this sort of practice.

[ArthurDigbySellers]

I also feel like people are applying to too many schools. The LSAC system really makes it almost too easy to carpet bomb the whole T20 plus whatever safety schools give you a fee waiver. From LSAC's perspective there's no downside, but the result is a lot of schools just get inundated with apps from people who may or may not really be committed to their school, and I feel like their having to make more active use of the waitlist is the unfortunate outcome.

I have to admit I'm guilty of this myself (16 apps) but if I had to do it all again I'd definitely try to keep the number smaller, and submit targeted apps only to the schools I was really committed to.

For me at least, I was a borderline applicant with few solid ADMITs, and a whole lot of pride, so I reached high and carpet bombed virtually everything in the T20 in the hopes of getting in somewhere. Thankfully I did, because I have no Plan B...

Well, as a splitter NT applicant I was sort of in the same position: unpredictable outcome based on numbers alone. It may have been the right decision for both of us, but I still think that as a whole the system is open to abuse, and might be in need of some reform to discourage this sort of practice.

No doubt. I feel like timely withdrawals are key. I know some people want "to know" but really, if you get into Chicago the only reason you care about Vandy or GW is ego.

[wiseguy33]

I also feel like people are applying to too many schools. The LSAC system really makes it almost too easy to carpet bomb the whole T20 plus whatever safety schools give you a fee waiver. From LSAC's perspective there's no downside, but the result is a lot of schools just get inundated with apps from people who may or may not really be committed to their school, and I feel like their having to make more active use of the waitlist is the unfortunate outcome.

I have to admit I'm guilty of this myself (16 apps) but if I had to do it all again I'd definitely try to keep the number smaller, and submit targeted apps only to the schools I was really committed to.

For me at least, I was a borderline applicant with few solid ADMITs, and a whole lot of pride, so I reached high and carpet bombed virtually everything in the T20 in the hopes of getting in somewhere. Thankfully I did, because I have no Plan B...

Well, as a splitter NT applicant I was sort of in the same position: unpredictable outcome based on numbers alone. It may have been the right decision for both of us, but I still think that as a whole the system is open to abuse, and might be in need of some reform to discourage this sort of practice.

No doubt. I feel like timely withdrawals are key. I know some people want "to know" but really, if you get into Chicago the only reason you care about Vandy or GW is ego.

Or if you really want to play the scholly negotiation game. Pit Vandy and GW against each other. Use best packages to ask for more money at GULC and Cornell. And so on and so forth.

[ArthurDigbySellers]

Or if you really want to play the scholly negotiation game. Pit Vandy and GW against each other. Use best packages to ask for more money at GULC and Cornell. And so on and so forth.

Whatever floats your boat I guess. People turn down Harvard for Tufts, after all. If I got into Chicago I'd put down my deposit, and wipe my ass with the rest of my acceptances and mail them back.