Top Law Schools

Just submitted last of my applications. Now trying to solicit predictions.

UGPA: 3.97 from a top 10ish university
LSAT: Cancel, 169, 172
SOFTS: Public policy MA from a top program, overseas fellowship, 2.5 years work experience as a consultant for the federal government
RESIDENCE: Virginia
URM: No
I sent all my applications within the last week, is this considered late?

Applications sent to (all regular admission):

Stanford
Chicago
Harvard
Columbia
Boalt
NYU*
Michigan*
UVA* (figure this is prob my best shot, given residency)
Georgetown*
Cornell*

* Indicates fee waiver (is this a good sign?)

might have a crack at u miami's waitlist

1001ArabiaNights wrote:Just submitted last of my applications. Now trying to solicit predictions.

UGPA: 3.97 from a top 10ish university
LSAT: Cancel, 169, 172
SOFTS: Public policy MA from a top program, overseas fellowship, 2.5 years work experience as a consultant for the federal government
RESIDENCE: Virginia
URM: No
I sent all my applications within the last week, is this considered late?

Applications sent to (all regular admission):

Stanford
Chicago
Harvard
Columbia
Boalt
NYU*
Michigan*
UVA* (figure this is prob my best shot, given residency)
Georgetown*
Cornell*

* Indicates fee waiver (is this a good sign?)

If you have decent softs (as in not horrible), you probably have a good chance at Virginia, NYU, Cornell and GULC. Hard to say on the others.

1001ArabiaNights wrote:Just submitted last of my applications. Now trying to solicit predictions.

UGPA: 3.97 from a top 10ish university
LSAT: Cancel, 169, 172
SOFTS: Public policy MA from a top program, overseas fellowship, 2.5 years work experience as a consultant for the federal government
RESIDENCE: Virginia
URM: No
I sent all my applications within the last week, is this considered late?

Applications sent to (all regular admission):

Stanford
Chicago
Harvard
Columbia
Boalt
NYU*
Michigan*
UVA* (figure this is prob my best shot, given residency)
Georgetown*
Cornell*

* Indicates fee waiver (is this a good sign?)

you have good chances at all schools except harvard. why don't you look at the rankings section where it provides the 25&75 percentiles?

honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

In everywhere except: Harvard is probably out, but still have a shot; Stanford will come down to softs.

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

Ragged wrote:In everywhere except: Harvard is probably out, but still have a shot; Stanford will come down to softs.

If the top PP program is Wilson or HKS I would feel better about Harvard if you play up the PI/policy angle.

Harvard, Stanford, & Columbia might be tough. Otherwise, in at all!

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

I was referring to merit-based fee waivers - I'm pretty sure OP's fee waivers are not need based.

glewz wrote:

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

I was referring to merit-based fee waivers - I'm pretty sure OP's fee waivers are not need based.

I understand that there is some debate as to whether fee waivers indicate a good chance of admission or if they are merely a way for a school to artificially inflate selectivity by luring applicants who only get rejected. I am sure the strategy differs from place to place and was hoping to glean insights on those specific schools.

Also, I was wondering how much I can expect my retakes to hurt my chances, particularly at the relatively more exclusive set of schools to which I applied, as this is something that the Predictor does not capture. Do my softs balance out the retakes?

1001ArabiaNights wrote:

glewz wrote:

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

I was referring to merit-based fee waivers - I'm pretty sure OP's fee waivers are not need based.

I understand that there is some debate as to whether fee waivers indicate a good chance of admission or if they are merely a way for a school to artificially inflate selectivity by luring applicants who only get rejected. I am sure the strategy differs from place to place and was hoping to glean insights on those specific schools.

Also, I was wondering how much I can expect my retakes to hurt my chances, particularly at the relatively more exclusive set of schools to which I applied, as this is something that the Predictor does not capture. Do my softs balance out the retakes?

Retakes will hurt you at H. They claim to look at average and I'm not sure how they will view your cancel. But retakers with your average getting accepted are not unheard of. I would say that your chances at Harvard are not so hot (out/WL->out in all probability), but definitely worth an app fee.

At Stanford they might hurt too but I'm not exactly sure what their policy is. However, even your average is above their median, so if you don't get accepted it will be because of your softs not the retakes.

As for the rest of the schools, I don't think it will matter at all.


As for the fee waivers, schools send them out to alot of people with great numbers for that school, but also to alot of those whose chances at admission are slim at best (perheps with a great GPA but an abysmal LSAT). So in the end of the day its your numbers that tell you if you have a chance or not, not the fee waiver. Still though, enjoy not having to pay hundreds of dollars.

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

So after your most recent post, I guess getting a fee waiver does mean something.

Boalt will fetishize your GPA. Harvard is really the only iffy one, but I've seen it done with less.

1001ArabiaNights wrote: * Indicates fee waiver (is this a good sign?)

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

+1

Honestly, do you really think schools don't wana make some $? If you don't have a sliver of a chance, there's no way they would give you a fee waiver. Think about it. It's a bad economy - a fed consultant like you should know.

jeremysen wrote:

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

So after your most recent post, I guess getting a fee waiver does mean something.

If by something you mean that either you have stats at an accetable range for the school or you don't, then yes.

jeremysen wrote:

1001ArabiaNights wrote: * Indicates fee waiver (is this a good sign?)

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

+1

Honestly, do you really think schools don't wana make some $? If you don't have a sliver of a chance, there's no way they would give you a fee waiver. Think about it. It's a bad economy - a fed consultant like you should know.

Not true. Actually, some schools will send fee waivers to "unlikelys" in order to boost their selectivity ratings.

Ragged wrote:

jeremysen wrote:

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

So after your most recent post, I guess getting a fee waiver does mean something.

If by something you mean that either you have stats at an accetable range for the school or you don't, then yes.

he is clearly trying to use "mean something" as an arbitrary term, when clearly you meant it doesn't mean something in regards to likelihood of acceptance. definitely grasping at straws. yes, we all agree that it means something because you don't have to pay to apply. congrats jeremy, you won the argument.

Ragged wrote:

jeremysen wrote:

Ragged wrote:

glewz wrote: honestly, you need to do more research - if you don't even know that a fee waiver is a good thing...

Getting a fee waiver doesn't mean anything. You should follow your own advice.

So after your most recent post, I guess getting a fee waiver does mean something.

If by something you mean that either you have stats at an accetable range for the school or you don't, then yes.

"schools send them out to alot of people with great numbers for that school, but also to alot of those whose chances at admission are slim at best"
Do you think they'd just throw $ away to those who don't even have a chance? There's a limit to this practice, and the schools OP is considering won't throw a fee waiver to a 165 LSAT. Of course getting a merit fee waiver is a good sign.

This doesn't mean that schools won't give fee waivers to unlikelys. This just means that there is SOME indication - a sliver of a chance. That is a good thing, no matter how you interpret it.

And of course, as you even acknowledge, you get a free app.

FuManChusco wrote:he is clearly trying to use "mean something" as an arbitrary term, when clearly you meant it doesn't mean something in regards to likelihood of acceptance. definitely grasping at straws. yes, we all agree that it means something because you don't have to pay to apply. congrats jeremy, you won the argument.

dumbass did I mention paying to apply earlier? obviously I was talking about likelihood of acceptance. read carefully.

If a fee waiver indicates that you have .1% chance instead of zero of getting in its pretty close to not meaning anything.

170/3.8 isn't any better off if he gets a fee waiver from Columbia than if he doesn't.

Ragged wrote:If a fee waiver indicates that you have .1% chance instead of zero of getting in its pretty close to not meaning anything.

Please share your statistics with us - how the fk did you get .1% chance?

Here's how: by making shit up.

jeremysen wrote:

Ragged wrote:If a fee waiver indicates that you have .1% chance instead of zero of getting in its pretty close to not meaning anything.

Please share your statistics with us - how the fk did you get .1% chance?

Here's how: by making shit up.

--ImageRemoved--

I was right to stay outta this one. I wanted to reply but ...

jeremysen you're an idiot. Fee waivers don't mean shit. First off UVA sends them to practically anyone. I got one and was flat out rejected. I also got one from Columbia and UCLA. Tell me the last time they let a non-URM in with a 3.2x GPA.

facepalm your ability to estimate the likelihood that a MERIT BASED fee waiver candidate has a higher standing than regular candidates.

No one is saying that getting a fee waiver gives you an advantage. Is it a good sign? Duh.

Idiot.