Strong Softs, 164/3.92 December LSAT Forum

[Mickey Quicknumbers]

hahaha oh man i'm still laughing that you made a huge life decision based on a message board.

How do you make decisions? I assume that you do some kind of research before you do things like buy a house, choose a school, or select a career path. I don't see the problem consulting with people who have gone through the exact same process as me when it comes to planning out my own life. Also, you're being ridiculous if you're assuming that TLS unilaterally dictates how I've handled my cycle.

my partner on match.com. my career path in an online questionnaire that told me what best fit my excellent personality traits. and my school on TLS, obviously.

1337!

Oh wonderful, the old he's-obviously-right-so-i'm-going-to-hide-behind-sarcasm-and-try-and-trick-anyone-dumb-enough-into-thinking-I-have-the-upper-hand-in-this-argument-and-then-subtly-insult-him-with-internet-lingo-despite-the-obvious-pot/kettle-hole-in-the-diss

[bluecanary622]

my fave ATR quotes of the evening:
“I scored much higher and got huge scholarships to many schools which did not admit you (check my LSN, which is in my profile)”
“I like GW -- actually received a huge merit scholarship there yesterday”
“We're not haters, we're just trying to help you maximize your potential.”
“TLS posters humbled me”

you're right... he's so obviously correct about everything.

[Mickey Quicknumbers]

my fave ATR quotes of the evening:
“I scored much higher and got huge scholarships to many schools which did not admit you (check my LSN, which is in my profile)”
“I like GW -- actually received a huge merit scholarship there yesterday”
“We're not haters, we're just trying to help you maximize your potential.”
“TLS posters humbled me”

you're right... he's so obviously correct about everything.

Not everything, just against you in this thread. Fantastic reading comprehension you have there.

[Magnolia]

Just received an email of acceptance to GW.

Congratulations, but I would strongly advise against paying sticker.

Any reason for that advise? Besides just the whole less debt thing? Are they a racket? The email said that if I am selected for a merit scholarship, they will send me a separate packet for that. Any idea if you can apply/ask for one of these in the event that they don't select me? Also, let's say a school like BU, BC, or (extremelyoptimistic) GULC or UVA or something, offers me money, can I tell GW that and try to get them to offer me money too? Like play them off against each other? How am I to gauge how much a school wants me? This would seem to be territory where one should tread carefully.

GW doesn't offer very many scholarships. You either get 105k or nothing, and most people get nothing. They do not negotiate or take scholarships from peer schools into consideration. If they're offering a scholarship, it'll be in your admissions packet, but I doubt you'll get one with your LSAT score.

Also, I completely agree with ATR, gwuorbust and everyone else who said retake and reapply. A few more points on the LSAT will get you into far better schools and get much larger scholarships. Even if you don't retake, applying next year with a smarter, more realistic list of schools, will yield infinitely better options than you have right now.

[bluecanary622]

my fave ATR quotes of the evening:
“I scored much higher and got huge scholarships to many schools which did not admit you (check my LSN, which is in my profile)”
“I like GW -- actually received a huge merit scholarship there yesterday”
“We're not haters, we're just trying to help you maximize your potential.”
“TLS posters humbled me”

you're right... he's so obviously correct about everything.

Not everything, just against you in this thread. Fantastic reading comprehension you have there.

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

[fatduck]

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

there's always option 3: kill yourself

[gwuorbust]

--ImageRemoved--

[Magnolia]

my fave ATR quotes of the evening:
“I scored much higher and got huge scholarships to many schools which did not admit you (check my LSN, which is in my profile)”
“I like GW -- actually received a huge merit scholarship there yesterday”
“We're not haters, we're just trying to help you maximize your potential.”
“TLS posters humbled me”

you're right... he's so obviously correct about everything.

Not everything, just against you in this thread. Fantastic reading comprehension you have there.

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

3. Go to one of GW's peer schools which offers similar job prospects but has a lower CoA and is more likely to offer scholarship money.

Edit: I like fatduck's third option more.

[fatduck]

also the idea that working for a state senate campaign and being bilingual = "strong softs" is laughable

[bluecanary622]

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

there's always option 3: kill yourself

ahh, yes. very true. my error.

now of course--if you get into a sub T18 school all of these issues magically go away and you can throw out options 1, 2, and 3 and just go on ahead and accept.

[gwuorbust]

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

well if someone else is footing the bill then it is not a problem. or if you know, 100% that you plan on doing public interest.

but if you are going to law school because you want to increase your earning potential, taking on 250k in debt will not earn you a solid ROI.

[fatduck]

ahh, ok--so in conclusion, every single person who got accepted to GW with no merit-based aid (or even a low scholarship) should immediately turn down the acceptance and either:
1. attend a school that will cover your tuition
or
2. take a year off and hope for better luck next year. if at that point you fail to get a higher score, defer to point 1.

correct?

there's always option 3: kill yourself

ahh, yes. very true. my error.

now of course--if you get into a sub T18 school all of these issues magically go away and you can throw out options 1, 2, and 3 and just go on ahead and accept.

i personally recommend option 3 for anyone who doesn't get into yale. ymmv.

[ATR]

...

[romothesavior]

3. Go to one of GW's peer schools which offers similar job prospects but has a lower CoA and is more likely to offer scholarship money.

Ding ding ding, we have a winner! If you really don't want to take a year off, this is a very viable option. Re-taking is usually the best option, because it is so much easier to get a few more points on the LSAT than it is to bank on doing well in law school. From the standpoint of many 0Ls, taking a year off of law school just to get a few more points sounds horrible, but is often the best move you can make long-term. If I could have taken a year off to get 2-3 more points on my LSAT score and DOUBLED my job prospects (or alternatively, halved my debt load), you can bet your ass I would have done it.

If a person wants to jump headfirst into 200k+ of debt because they are too stubborn to actually think about what people with knowledge on the subject are saying, then good luck to them. (This isn't directed at OP, because he seems like a good guy... it's more just a general statement, and it's also directed at this bluecanary guy.)

i wonder why over 200 law schools exist if going to the #20 law school isn't worth it. so weird.

You just answered your own question. The reason why going to #20 isn't always worth it is because there are over 200. You could close all but about 100 schools, and you'd still have more graduates than jobs. It's a simple numbers game. There are far more grads than there are jobs, and as long as more schools continue to open and schools continue to increase their class sizes, the problem will only get worse. This issue has been exacerbated by the economy in recent years, especially for schools like GW (and schools like mine). A lot of students at schools like GW will never work as lawyers.

The other reason it may not be worth it to go to GW is because of the price. Will going to GW get you a legal job? Yes, most likely. The majority of their grads will work as a lawyer. But will they be able to manage their debtload with that job? Probably not. 200k+ of debt on a 50k salary in a high COL city like D.C. will make your life hell, and that debt will follow you around for 25 years. Good luck starting a family and buying a house with that kind of debt. I don't know about you, but I don't want every financial decision I make for the next 25 years to be drastically affected by my decision to go to law school.

[FeelTheHeat]

Given the gentleman's level of reading comprehension, I don't know why anyone wastes time saying he should retake.

How do you plan to pay back your debt?

[Jumborific]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

[fatduck]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

[ResolutePear]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

Pft, businesses can fail. Much better to pay 250k in loans you can clear off in a bankruptcy than to pay it for a business that will work return way more should you work equally as much in both choices.

[fatduck]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

Pft, businesses can fail. Much better to pay 250k in loans you can clear off in a bankruptcy than to pay it for a business that will work return way more should you work equally as much in both choices.

good point. take out 250k in loans and bet it on black?

[FeelTheHeat]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

Pft, businesses can fail. Much better to pay 250k in loans you can clear off in a bankruptcy than to pay it for a business that will work return way more should you work equally as much in both choices.

good point. take out 250k in loans and bet it on black?

Why's it gotta be black

[fatduck]

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

Pft, businesses can fail. Much better to pay 250k in loans you can clear off in a bankruptcy than to pay it for a business that will work return way more should you work equally as much in both choices.

good point. take out 250k in loans and bet it on black?

Why's it gotta be black

always bet on black

--ImageRemoved--

[FiveSermon]

House always wins. Better to just give me the 250k.

[ATR]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

Well, this is an exception to the ideas I've been spouting. Good for you that the cost isn't that big of an issue.

[Rule11]

My folks are helping me out on this one. Debt isn't too big of a consideration thank god.

if your parents are going to pay $250k in loans, why not take out $250k in loans to start a business?

Pft, businesses can fail. Much better to pay 250k in loans you can clear off in a bankruptcy than to pay it for a business that will work return way more should you work equally as much in both choices.

Maybe I misunderstood you (actually, I'm certain I don't understand all of what you said), but student loans cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. Just wanted to make sure nobody was confused (at least on that point) by your post.

[Mickey Quicknumbers]

always bet on black

FWIW I made 100 dollar bet this spring break on red.

It turned out well