URM Forum

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Santa Clara with $.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Deferred at Cornell. On the one hand, it sucks. I really do love the idea of Law School in Ithaca and I'm a big a fan of Cornell as an institution. On the other, it could always be worse, I could always be rejected. Whoever it was that was answering the phone was super nice, as I called to find otu my decision. I'm going to get her a gift.

My admissions record now stands at 4-0-1. 15 games to play.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

This process is destroying me. I thought that having my applications out by November 1st would mean that I would hear back from more than a 1/4 of my schools, but alas...

If I were my boss I would fire (I say this as I type from work). All I do is lurk here and LSD and LSN waiting to see people with similar send/complete dates get into schools so I can frantically check my e-mail. When work is over, I race home and run to my mailbox just to see...nothing...ugh...

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Here are some of my favorite things about the cycle, in no particular order:

1. Sitting at work with my e-mail open and on autorefresh, crippling any chance I have at productivity.
2. Getting excited when my "Law School" folder lights up, only to check and have it be a PM from someone on a law school website.
3. The acronyms.
4. Being able to identify people I've never met in my life by GPAs, LSAT scores, PSs, DSs, etc.
5. The feeling of excitement when you find out someone with similar numbers to you has gotten into a school you want to get into.
6. The panic when you realize that that person might have taken "your" spot.
7. The deep depression when you find out that person applied after you.
8. The feeling of resentment that you try hard to hide while making a "congratulations!!!" post to someone who got in somewhere with lesser numbers than yourself.

...that's enough for now...

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I used to check every status checker multiple times a day. Now I check it a couple of them...once a day...if I remember.

I used to check my email 115 times a day. I'm down to about 30.

I used to run to my mailbox at the end each day. I now check it only if it's on the way to somewhere else I'm walking...and I remember.

I've semi given up on hearing back from my remaining 14 schools.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Deferred by Michigan. My last two decisions are deferrals, which sucks, but on the positive side I'm growing more fond of Georgetown as the time passes.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

GTown positivity is quickly fading as I hear of people with comparable or lesser numbers than myself getting into schools I applied to despite having applied well after I did. I'm in full on panic mode and this is probably the most stressed I've ever been, which is shocking for me, considering I don't normally stress about anything ever. I really hate this process and wish I could just skip ahead to the end. I'm extremely close to calling some of these schools and asking if I made some kind of mistake or if something is wrong with the application because it's been 2.5 months and I still have about 13 schools to hear from.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Waitlisted at UCLA? Check.

Mediocre SEO interview? Check.

My law school admissions cycle record now stands at 4-0-1-2 (Acceptance-Ding-WL-Deferral). 12 games left to go in the season.

I'm not sure whether or not I will pursue the UCLA WL thingy. I've really fallen in love with GULC and the program at UCLA that I was really interested in...I've heard it might actually negatively affect my career.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Waitlisted at Penn? Check.

In happier news, I leave for D.C. later this evening. I'm hoping to have a great time this weekend and really get sold on GULC. I will post a lengthy report upon my return.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Accepted at Northwestern and Fordham with e-mails within 5 minutes of each other? Check.

I received the acceptances while visiting GULC...where I had a great time, so the past few days have been great. Now, on to a more in-depth discussion of GULC...

The Good
-The location is amazing. I couldn't sit through the entire Ginsburg/Hale discussion (I was really tired, felt myself falling asleep, and decided to give my seat to someone who would be more attentive), but it really drove home the point that if you choose to attend GULC, you are REALLY in the midst of political events.
-The students aren't weirdos or super nerds. This really concerned me and I was glad to see that many of the students seemed to be very down to Earth, regular people who just happen to be extremely intelligent/accomplished/driven (There WAS one group of admitted students that sat across from me and I could hear them discussing their cycle as well as LSAT scores and the like, so I figured they were probably TLS/LSD users). I also sat in on a Criminal Justice class and liked that everyone laughed at or somehow mocked the gunners and/or students being unnecessarily...uncouth.
-Everyone knows about the amazing gym/recreational facilities

The Bad
-I guess McDonough Hall wasn't that impressive, but this is the first LS I've visited, so I don't really have anything to compare it to. Other than that...there's not too much I can put into this category. Maybe I will think of something later.

Overall
-I was already falling for GULC, but this weekend really helped me to believe that I could attend this school and enjoy myself at school as well as in the DC area, which was really important to me. There is actually a part of me that hopes that I get rejected from the rest of my schools so that I can just go to GULC without regretting passing up the prestige of higher ranked institutions...though I would probably be pissed if this did happen. As it stands, I'm fairly certain I would choose GULC over anything below the CCN range. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to PM me.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

1. I was deferred by Harvard. When I found out, I was quite pleased. Harvard was the first school I applied to after receiving my September LSAT score and I did it with the expectation that I would be rejected, but it was worth not wondering "what if..." Upon finding out I was deferred, this gave me hope for the rest of my cycle...but then reality got in the way...

A few URMs with similar (but better) numbers than the ones I have were recently waitlisted at Columbia. This leads me to believe that tomorrow afternoon, when I check my mailbox, there will be a waitlist letter from Columbia waiting for me. Part of me is now dreading that moment, while the other part relishes the opportunity to have a better idea of where I will be in August. Once I have the actual letter in hand, I will be able to see which side won.

Worst case scenario, I should be at Northwestern or Georgetown (more likely) once August rolls around and I can't complain about that.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I recently found out there is a problem with my mail, so Columbia made a decision on my file 2 weeks ago and I still don't know what it is. Hopefully, I will find out in the next few days. I did, however, find out that I have been rejected by Yale. *shrugs*

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Josh from Columbia admissions no doubt hates me at this point. However, my 132nd call this week allowed me to find out that my letter was mailed again yesterday so I should receive it today (if I'm really lucky) or tomorrow. I am crippled with fear. Seriously. This is the first time since score release day that I've felt this kind of anxiety.

If I get rejected, I will be crushed. If I get waitlisted, I will be greatly saddened. If I get deferred, I will be frustrated, but hopeful. If I get accepted...

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I hurry to my mailbox.
I reach inside and pull out whatever is there.
I see "Columbia University" in the upper left hand corner of the envelope.
I see "Bingo! " written above my name on the envelopee.
I smile to myself thinking Josh from Columbia admissions is such a funny guy.
I ignore my girlfriend's pleas to hurry up and open the letter.
I slowly open the letter, prepared for the good news.
I read the first line.
I pause.
I read the first line again.
I pause.
I read the last line.
I sad.
I was rejected.

With a smiley face.

Awesome.

This one hurt...this one hurt a lot.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I was placed on Hold by The University of Chicago today. When I consulted with some other URMs about where I should end up I was told that I should be able to get 1/3 for CCN. With a rejection from Columbia and a hold from Chicago, I'm hoping to break through and get that one. Either way, I'm going to get started on my Chicago essay sometime later this week and I've already sent an updated LOR.

In other news, I attempted to work on a LOCI for Harvard today, but have no idea what I'm doing...I mean...it's Harvard, who wouldn't want to go there? I feel kind of silly trying to come up with more specific reasons for my interest when I feel the issue is as straightforward as the school in question being the H-Bomb.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Woke up to a Duke WL this morning. It appears I may have hit my ceiling at #12, but that's not a bad place to be.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

My Michigan deferral turned into a rejection. I found out from my mom that I got the letter while I was visiting Northwestern (more on that later). When I got home and looked at the envelope I saw that there was some thickness to it and began to think it was a WL or better. I quickly opened it, read the first line, and realized it was a rejection. The reason the envelope was thick was that they initially tried to send it to my school address in the beginning of February, but it was lost as a result of my mail debacle.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I had low expectations going in, but NU blew them away. The facilities were really impressive, more so than what I saw of Georgetown. This might sound silly, but everything looked prestigious, which matters to me because I'm a prestige whore. The classrooms were especially nice. The one thing I didn't like structurally is that the gym that you get a membership to is about 6 blocks away. However, I guess if you're going to be dedicated enough to work out, you might as well be willing to walk 6 blocks.

Job opportunities got brought up every 5 seconds and after a while I started to think about it and realized that maybe there is an advantage to attending a smaller school. Obviously, that's something that's mentioned on this site a lot, but for whatever reason it never sank in for me until I heard the Northwestern students talk about it last week. Part of what drove this home for me was that despite being the 2nd ranked school in Chicago, it seemed like NU really held a lot of weight in the city (what I mean is...there didn't seem to be any Chicago envy). Part of that may be because of the section of Chicago we were in, but it was cool to see and meet a bunch of Chicago big wigs who were NU grads.

The biggest thing for me though was the people. I got along really great with the other admitted students as well as the current students, something I was scared about due to the lack of work experience thing.

[iwanttogotolawschool]

It's a beautiful day!!!

I was originally going to write a post about how I was displeased with the recent outcome of my Georgetown scholarship application (lessK a year)...but then Northwestern swooped in and saved the day, once again exceeding expectations. This time, their method was a scholarship for moreK a year.

Truthfully, I had a wonderful time at Northwestern, but something in my gut kept telling me that GULC should be my first choice. Because of this, I was hugely disappointed with the GULC scholarship offer. While free money is free money, having a binding April 1st notification date meant that I would have to have no doubts about the way I felt about GULC and with 5 or so pending decisions...I'm not ready to feel that way. Northwestern's offer, on the other hand, allows me to feel the calm of knowing I'm going somewhere (with money in hand, so to speak) while not having to think "what if..."

I met this girl when I was three years old
And what I loved most she had so much soul
She said, excuse me little homie, I know you don’t know me, but
My name is Wendy and, I like to blow trees and,
From that point I never blow her off

[iwanttogotolawschool]

I have officially checked out. I have several major assignments due this week (including one by midnight tonight), but I can't focus on them because I keep thinking about the fact that I need to know where I will be come August. Right now, it's between Northwestern and Georgetown with more scholarship money from NU, making the decision seem simple enough, but I'm waiting for financial aid packages that should arrive by the end of the week.

Things get complicated once I begin considering that I want to put down a deposit as soon as possible in hopes of being accepted to a certain summer opportunity. Things get more complicated when considering that a.) money is a major issue and b.) I am currently on 1 waitlist and have yet to receive a decision from 6 schools...

[iwanttogotolawschool]

Northwestern Law 2011.

I have a few WLs, but I'm not expecting anything of them. I plan on apartment shopping in June and sometime between now and then I will go back and fill in some of the info on my old posts, hopefully this will all prove useful to someone in the future.