Is it too late to apply in this cycle? Forum

[Lxwind]

Hi all, I have a 174 LSAT and a Superior GPA (from a foreign univ). I have a master's degree in public administration and have been working full time since last August. I'm working in a non-profit legal/advocacy group and I recently confirmed my passion to pursue a JD degree and practice law afterward. Question is, is it still not too late to apply for the class of 2019? I have talked with contacts about recommendation letters and can probably obtain 3~4 of them within a week or so. All I seem to lack is the PS, I can try and get that done asap. Do you guys think it is a better idea to try to apply this cycle and try again in September if necessary, or is it better to just wait for September? Thanks!

[AJordan]

It's not too late, especially with those numbers. The issue is money. If you need scholarships you might run into some potential problems. Hamiltons, Dillards, and Mordecais have already gone out, at least the first batch, so you're behind there. But if you're not money conscious it's not really an issue. If you're looking at HYS, which you should be, it's definitely not too late as they only give merit aid anyway. Really, it's all about money. If you have a grand to drop for this cycle and see what happens that's fine as long as your end goals are commensurate with the money you're going to receive.

[QContinuum]

It wouldn't hurt to try applying this cycle, although as AJordan notes, you'll almost certainly be at a disadvantage - possibly a severe disadvantage - w.r.t. getting merit aid. But the worst case scenario is that you decide to reapply in the fall for 2020. Having applied this cycle won't handicap you should you end up reapplying next cycle (although the usual advice is to write a new PS).

I also want to clarify a typo in AJordan's post above - Yale, Stanford, and Harvard award only need-based aid, and do not award any merit aid. Thus you wouldn't be at a disadvantage re: getting aid at those three schools, should you be admitted.

[AJordan]

It wouldn't hurt to try applying this cycle, although as AJordan notes, you'll almost certainly be at a disadvantage - possibly a severe disadvantage - w.r.t. getting merit aid. But the worst case scenario is that you decide to reapply in the fall for 2020. Having applied this cycle won't handicap you should you end up reapplying next cycle (although the usual advice is to write a new PS).

I also want to clarify a typo in AJordan's post above - Yale, Stanford, and Harvard award only need-based aid, and do not award any merit aid. Thus you wouldn't be at a disadvantage re: getting aid at those three schools, should you be admitted.

Yeah, that was a mistake for sure. Need-based only at HYS.

[Lxwind]

It's not too late, especially with those numbers. The issue is money. If you need scholarships you might run into some potential problems. Hamiltons, Dillards, and Mordecais have already gone out, at least the first batch, so you're behind there. But if you're not money conscious it's not really an issue. If you're looking at HYS, which you should be, it's definitely not too late as they only give merit aid anyway. Really, it's all about money. If you have a grand to drop for this cycle and see what happens that's fine as long as your end goals are commensurate with the money you're going to receive.

Thanks for the advice! Money is not really an issue but I checked several top schools and figured the timeline would be too tight for me to submit everything - e.g. HLS's deadline is 2/1, CLS 2/15... So I decided not to rush it. I'll get everything ready in the summer so I can submit once the next cycle opens. The only issue is I'm currently working under OPT. My employer has promised to sponsor me for H1B but there is still uncertainty given the current environment. Then I'll have to carefully think about what to do between the end of 06/2019 when my OPT ends and 09/2020 when law school will begin...

[Lxwind]

It wouldn't hurt to try applying this cycle, although as AJordan notes, you'll almost certainly be at a disadvantage - possibly a severe disadvantage - w.r.t. getting merit aid. But the worst case scenario is that you decide to reapply in the fall for 2020. Having applied this cycle won't handicap you should you end up reapplying next cycle (although the usual advice is to write a new PS).

I also want to clarify a typo in AJordan's post above - Yale, Stanford, and Harvard award only need-based aid, and do not award any merit aid. Thus you wouldn't be at a disadvantage re: getting aid at those three schools, should you be admitted.

Thanks for the insights! But also I'll have to push for recommendation letters and will certainly need to rewrite my PS if reapply- the timeline is too tight. I'll just apply in September.

[AJordan]

It's not too late, especially with those numbers. The issue is money. If you need scholarships you might run into some potential problems. Hamiltons, Dillards, and Mordecais have already gone out, at least the first batch, so you're behind there. But if you're not money conscious it's not really an issue. If you're looking at HYS, which you should be, it's definitely not too late as they only give merit aid anyway. Really, it's all about money. If you have a grand to drop for this cycle and see what happens that's fine as long as your end goals are commensurate with the money you're going to receive.

Thanks for the advice! Money is not really an issue but I checked several top schools and figured the timeline would be too tight for me to submit everything - e.g. HLS's deadline is 2/1, CLS 2/15... So I decided not to rush it. I'll get everything ready in the summer so I can submit once the next cycle opens. The only issue is I'm currently working under OPT. My employer has promised to sponsor me for H1B but there is still uncertainty given the current environment. Then I'll have to carefully think about what to do between the end of 06/2019 when my OPT ends and 09/2020 when law school will begin...

I think you're making the right decision. Careful of that promise if it's not in writing.

[Lxwind]

It's not too late, especially with those numbers. The issue is money. If you need scholarships you might run into some potential problems. Hamiltons, Dillards, and Mordecais have already gone out, at least the first batch, so you're behind there. But if you're not money conscious it's not really an issue. If you're looking at HYS, which you should be, it's definitely not too late as they only give merit aid anyway. Really, it's all about money. If you have a grand to drop for this cycle and see what happens that's fine as long as your end goals are commensurate with the money you're going to receive.

Thanks for the advice! Money is not really an issue but I checked several top schools and figured the timeline would be too tight for me to submit everything - e.g. HLS's deadline is 2/1, CLS 2/15... So I decided not to rush it. I'll get everything ready in the summer so I can submit once the next cycle opens. The only issue is I'm currently working under OPT. My employer has promised to sponsor me for H1B but there is still uncertainty given the current environment. Then I'll have to carefully think about what to do between the end of 06/2019 when my OPT ends and 09/2020 when law school will begin...

I think you're making the right decision. Careful of that promise if it's not in writing.

That's actually what I'm struggling about recently - I'm fairly confident that my boss still wants me with the organization, but I'll certainly have to be the one to push him for the visa, otherwise it's gonna be too late before he won't even realize.... However, in the meantime, I'm not sure if I actually want to work for him for another year. There are certain aspects of the job that I don't like.....it would be near impossible to find another job that sponsors visa at this time of the year (especially in my field, under current climate...), I wonder if it's gonna be better to just give up pushing for a visa and quit at the end of June. I can find a job in my home country...or maybe just take a year off to travel around the world - I suppose I won't have any time for that once law school starts, let alone once I become a practicing lawyer.