New to this... can someone guess how much aid I'll get? Forum

[ilikebaseball]

Hey guys, happy to be a part of the forum around people with the same aspirations as me. I'm from Dallas and was a student athlete at Arkansas (not anymore because of injury problems but nevertheless). I have a 3.3 GPA and I got a 168 on my first LSAT. I'm taking it again in September because I'm shooting for a 170 or above, but I don't really know how the merit scholarship thing works so I was wondering if people could tell me how much (if any) these schools I'm applying to will help me out! I'm studying sports law, so that's the reason some of these schools are on my applying list, but here it is:

Texas-
SMU-
Baylor-
Tulane-
Miami-
Maryland-
Pepperdine-
Oklahoma-

Could anyone guess how much these schools will offer? Because if it isn't enough I may have to think about other schools to apply to. Thanks a lot guys

[DrSpaceman]

http://www.mylsn.info

[03152016]

check out mylsn, and good luck on the retake
question - what other interests do you have in the law? hypothetically, if you knew ahead of time that you could not obtain a legal position that was sports-related, what would you do? would you pursue law at all?

[ilikebaseball]

check out mylsn, and good luck on the retake
question - what other interests do you have in the law? hypothetically, if you knew ahead of time that you could not obtain a legal position that was sports-related, what would you do? would you pursue law at all?

Its not even really the sports that interest me. I really like the art of contracts. Contractual law whether its sports, entertainment, real estate, or anything like that. I also am pretty good with IP law. But since I can rarely ever find a school that specializes in "contractual law" sports is usually the closest thing to that particular branch from the studies that I've done.

[03152016]

ok
the reason i ask is
many people go to law school wanting to do 'international law' or 'sports law' or 'entertainment law'
and only realize after they graduate that these jobs don't exist
the type of jet-setting glamorous jobs where you prosecute war criminals or negotiate record deals with bon jovi represent a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of legal jobs
but it doesn't sound like you have that delusion

[ilikebaseball]

From what I've heard, its tough enough to get A job after law school, never mind a specialized one at a private firm. I do feel I'd excel at these classes and tulane, miami, and UT are definitely not bad schools, so if I could get my degree from these places as well as take these specialized sports/entertainment law classes (just to make it interesting) it would only be a plus! At the end of the day, I want my degree and to pass my bar. It may sound ill advised, but I honestly am not really worried about what particular branch I want to practice. I'll worry about that after I pass the bar lol. I don't wanna think too far ahead. I still gotta get a higher LSAT score!

[Ramius]

First off, with a 3.3/168, the only schools on your list that should stay are probably UT and maybe SMU if you're from Texas, which you are. Beyond that, and especially if you get a 170+ on your retake, hit up the T14 and see what kind of money you're going to get from those schools. The wisest advice you can get for school selection is either a T14 or a region you have ties to for free or close to it.

As for sports/contract law, disregard any sort of specialty rankings or anything like that. Every school will have that to offer, but not all will have a good chance at a good legal job after graduation. Mylsn.info is great, but you also need to look at http://www.lawschooltransparency.com and learn about the employment outcomes at the schools you're considering.

[Nova]

http://www.mylsn.info

[ilikebaseball]

First off, with a 3.3/168, the only schools on your list that should stay are probably UT and maybe SMU if you're from Texas, which you are. Beyond that, and especially if you get a 170+ on your retake, hit up the T14 and see what kind of money you're going to get from those schools. The wisest advice you can get for school selection is either a T14 or a region you have ties to for free or close to it.

As for sports/contract law, disregard any sort of specialty rankings or anything like that. Every school will have that to offer, but not all will have a good chance at a good legal job after graduation. Mylsn.info is great, but you also need to look at http://www.lawschooltransparency.com and learn about the employment outcomes at the schools you're considering.

My whole family lives in Maryland, which is why that's on the list. I've also been to Norman, OK many times and know they offer great scholarship money so that's why that is on the list. I could probably take schools like Pepperdine and Tulane off.

My only problem is that I can't just get in to schools. I HAVE to get a good scholarship. Its a must. I just can't afford law school at all nevermind the rising debt after. So that's why some of the lower ranked schools are on the list!

[UnicornHunter]

First off, with a 3.3/168, the only schools on your list that should stay are probably UT and maybe SMU if you're from Texas, which you are. Beyond that, and especially if you get a 170+ on your retake, hit up the T14 and see what kind of money you're going to get from those schools. The wisest advice you can get for school selection is either a T14 or a region you have ties to for free or close to it.

As for sports/contract law, disregard any sort of specialty rankings or anything like that. Every school will have that to offer, but not all will have a good chance at a good legal job after graduation. Mylsn.info is great, but you also need to look at http://www.lawschooltransparency.com and learn about the employment outcomes at the schools you're considering.

My whole family lives in Maryland, which is why that's on the list. I've also been to Norman, OK many times and know they offer great scholarship money so that's why that is on the list. I could probably take schools like Pepperdine and Tulane off.

My only problem is that I can't just get in to schools. I HAVE to get a good scholarship. Its a must. I just can't afford law school at all nevermind the rising debt after. So that's why some of the lower ranked schools are on the list!

Dude, you can't afford to waste 3 years of your life by going to a law school with terrible employment prospects, especially when you consider that even with a full ride scholarship you're still looking at 60-100k in debt. If you like contracts, forget about sports law and shoot to get into a T14 and try and go corporate. Kill the LSAT and you might even get money at a great school like NU or Cornell.

[lawskool234]

I have a 3.3 and got a 169 on the LSAT. I'm going to NU in the fall with a $90k scholarship. Don't settle on those schools, retake for 170+ and blanket the T14, you may be surprised at what you can get.

[ilikebaseball]

I just can't see my prospects of getting into a T14 as very good. I have doubts that I'll even get into Texas. I keep looking at the numbers and although my LSAT is pretty good my GPA is just awful to go to a great school. Plus, Idk how I could pay for a T14 school. Do you guys not think that its a bit too optimistic for me to go for these great schools because even if I get in I have doubts they'll offer me much IF ANYTHING

[anyriotgirl]

I just can't see my prospects of getting into a T14 as very good. I have doubts that I'll even get into Texas. I keep looking at the numbers and although my LSAT is pretty good my GPA is just awful to go to a great school. Plus, Idk how I could pay for a T14 school. Do you guys not think that its a bit too optimistic for me to go for these great schools because even if I get in I have doubts they'll offer me much IF ANYTHING

You should apply. Applications are down and it looks like they will continue to be down. Write a "why X" essay for each school, and apply early (September or October). Email schools and ask for few waivers. You'll get them from more schools than you might expect. Getting into a T14 is easier than you've probably been lead to believe. Make sure you apply to lower schools too, so you can later go to the better schools you've gotten into and ask for more money. Don't auto ding yourself, make them reject you and you might be surprised at what comes back.

[ilikebaseball]

But what's the point in applying to a Georgetown, Northwestern, GW, or a school like that if I won't be able to afford it anyway you know? That's my biggest reason

[anyriotgirl]

But what's the point in applying to a Georgetown, Northwestern, GW, or a school like that if I won't be able to afford it anyway you know? That's my biggest reason

I mean how much are you tryna pay for law school?

[ilikebaseball]

But what's the point in applying to a Georgetown, Northwestern, GW, or a school like that if I won't be able to afford it anyway you know? That's my biggest reason

I mean how much are you tryna pay for law school?

A place like UT will be ideal, where its 30k minus scholly. All of the other schools would give me a lot of money. But I just checked, and a place like Georgetown cost like 70k a year, which surely would leave me with over 150k in debt. Ideally, I'd like to keep it under 100. I don't know how realistic that is, but then again I'm new here and that's why I made this thread I guess lol

[anyriotgirl]

But what's the point in applying to a Georgetown, Northwestern, GW, or a school like that if I won't be able to afford it anyway you know? That's my biggest reason

I mean how much are you tryna pay for law school?

A place like UT will be ideal, where its 30k minus scholly. All of the other schools would give me a lot of money. But I just checked, and a place like Georgetown cost like 70k a year, which surely would leave me with over 150k in debt. Ideally, I'd like to keep it under 100. I don't know how realistic that is, but then again I'm new here and that's why I made this thread I guess lol

You don't know how much money a school is going to give you until you actually apply. I have a friend with a 168/3.3 who will be attending GW next year with a decent amount of money. He got them to raise his scholarship with money from BC.

If you can break 170 you're in a place where you are above the median LSAT at a lot of schools. These days the medians are pretty precarious and might be held in place by only a couple of students. Schools will shell out to keep their medians.

The other thing that you have to realize is that a law degree typically isn't super portable outside of the T14 (and even within that there's definitely regionalism. Ie a duke degree isn't super great to practice in California). I don't know a ton about the Texas market, but from what I understand it's fairly insular. If you don't have ties there it will be hard for you to get a job. And you need a job to pay back your debt, whether it's 50k 100k or 150k.

[ilikebaseball]

I had heard that UT was the absolute best school to get a big firm Texas job? Could be wrong. I really think I'll only be looking at either jobs in Texas or Maryland as of now. I'm really trying to break 170 though. Its just a huge hurdle to me for whatever reason

[anyriotgirl]

I had heard that UT was the absolute best school to get a big firm Texas job? Could be wrong. I really think I'll only be looking at either jobs in Texas or Maryland as of now. I'm really trying to break 170 though. Its just a huge hurdle to me for whatever reason

If you're from Texas and want to stay there then it absolutely makes sense for you to go to UT. But you should still apply to some other schools to see what comes back, because you never know who's gonna like you. Even if you don't matriculate, other scholarship offers (and sometimes even simply admission to a higher ranked school) could be useful in getting UT to give you more money.

[Ramius]

I had heard that UT was the absolute best school to get a big firm Texas job? Could be wrong. I really think I'll only be looking at either jobs in Texas or Maryland as of now. I'm really trying to break 170 though. Its just a huge hurdle to me for whatever reason

I'll let some of the others who go to UT and such chime in like zuck, but from my understanding following TLS for some time, UVA and Duke also place well in Texas and most of the T14 have equal hiring power in Texas, with self-selection accounting for the smallish number who practice in Texas out of a given T14. I'm not saying going to UT is the wrong choice for you, because it very well may be, but understand that about 1/3 of UT students get BIGLAW, which leaves a whopping 2/3 without it. With that in mind, I wouldn't bank on I getting BIGLAW out of UT. All the other schools will overwhelmingly likely not give you what you want, so you have to consider how badly you want that BIGLAW job, and go from there in picking schools that can reasonably get it for you.

I get needing aid to pay for school, but even at UT with a half scholly and in-state, you're looking at easily $120k at repayment after cost of living and interest. Just something to keep in mind.

[ilikebaseball]

Not only that, but my grandfather runs one of the largest pension law firms in the Dallas metroplex. So I mean, I'm pretty much guaranteed a job after college (if i cant find one elsewhere). But I appreciate the advice. I figured that, being the best law school in the state and usually a T15-17, more then 1/3 of the students would find great jobs. Guess that's a misconception!