Need some advice on negotiating with UVA Forum

[democrattotheend]

Some background:

I applied to UVA in early December, a few days before I took the LSAT for the first (and thankfully only) time. Two days after my score came back, my status checker said that I had been admitted to UVA's class of 2013. Obviously I was thrilled, but I did not get any e-mail or snail mail from the school for over a week, so I started to wonder if the status checker was an error. Last Friday, I called and spoke to someone who I later found out was Cordell Faulk, who told me that it was no mistake, and he said something to the effect of "looking at your file...wow...we really want you to come here" or something like that. He then sent me a nice follow-up e-mail apologizing for the lack of communication and congratulating me on my admission.

I eventually got my acceptance letter in the mail, but as of now, no merit aid offer. Based on LSN, I think I have a chance at getting some merit aid (my stats are 3.82/173/VA resident), but I am trying to figure out if I need to ask for it or if it makes sense to. UVA is the only school I have heard from so far, since I took the December LSAT, but I am thinking that instead of waiting for another school to accept me and make an offer, maybe it makes sense to reply to the personalized e-mail I got from Director Faulk last week with something like this:

Dear Mr. Faulk:

I just wanted to let you know that I received my acceptance packet [he had asked me to let him know if I didn't receive it by today]. As I said on the phone, I have heard great things about UVA and am thrilled to be accepted.

I noticed that my acceptance letter mentioned the application process for need-based aid, but said nothing about merit aid. Is there a process to apply for merit aid, or is that something that is automatically considered and determined later on in the cycle? I do not anticipate being eligible for need-based aid because I am currently employed and have some savings. But as an aspiring public interest lawyer, I am concerned about taking on such a large amount of debt, and merit aid will be a crucial factor in my decision.

Thank you again for welcoming me to UVA, and I look forward to visiting during Admitted Students Weekend.

Sincerely,
[Name redacted]

----

Does it make sense to send an e-mail like this now, or wait to see if I get any other offers? UVA is among my top choices, but I would love to have a scholarship offer from them that I could use to negotiate with Georgetown and/or Penn if I get in to either. Mr. Faulk pretty much said straight out on the phone that they really wanted me, so would it make sense to draw upon that and ask for merit aid now?

Any suggestions you guys have on the content and/or timing of the draft e-mail I wrote above would be great.

Thanks a bunch!

[scribelaw]

I don't think UVA has started giving out a ton of scholarships yet, so I don't know if you have to really worry. Here's a thread on the subject:

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7&t=103459

FWIW, I think your e-mail is very well worded, it can't hurt to send it. With your numbers and in-state status, I'd have to think you should be a good bet on getting something in the ~$60k range.