Should I apply for Chicago Law Scholars? Forum

[s'all good, man]

Hi all,

I am wondering if I should apply for Chicago Law Scholars. While $150,000 is of course nothing to scoff at, I don't necessarily want to be committed to going to UC.

For background, I have a ~3.75 GPA and a 178 and will have been working for 2 years when I enter law school. I know that Yale and Stanford are pretty unlikely, but it is my understanding that I have a decent shot at Harvard and at getting in and getting money elsewhere in the T14. All else being equal, I would probably rather go to Columbia or NYU for a change of scenery and because that is closer to where my friends and family live. But, I want to do BigFed/PI (and plan to pursue a federal clerkship), and so I would go to UC over e.g. Columbia if it would be a better place to pursue those goals.

So, I am wondering:
1. If it is worth holding out for a shot at Harvard (and at what cost difference it'd be worth going to Harvard), and
2. If it would be dumb to go to Columbia / NYU for roughly the same cost, given my career goals.
3. If Chicago Law Scholars could preclude me from possibly getting even more money from UC. (They note that the scholarship is a "minimum" of 150, but I don't see why they'd give you more if you're already committed.)

I recognize that all of these comparisons are hypothetical (I may not get into e.g. Columbia, or may not get any money there) but figure its something to think about.

Thank you for any insights or advice you may have!

[jsnow212]

I would not hold out for a potential HLS acceptance. You will likely get in, but you will likely get substantially less than $150k from HLS because it is need based. The neediest 15% of HLS's class gets 150k total need-grants based on recent ABA 509 data.

I think the Law Scholars program does offer a great proposition: 150k off of a school ranked one below HLS and with near identical/better in some areas outcomes would be a phenomenal result.

[BrainsyK]

If Chicago Law Scholars preclude you from applying to other schools or receiving a Ruby, then I stay away. You a good candidate for literally every named T14 full-ride out there. If not, no reason to not apply. $150k is only like 80% of the tuition whereas Ruby is full-freight + a living stipend (I think).

[s'all good, man]

I would not hold out for a potential HLS acceptance. You will likely get in, but you will likely get substantially less than $150k from HLS because it is need based. The neediest 15% of HLS's class gets 150k total need-grants based on recent ABA 509 data.

I think the Law Scholars program does offer a great proposition: 150k off of a school ranked one below HLS and with near identical/better in some areas outcomes would be a phenomenal result.

Yeah, that's something I'm thinking about -- even if I do get into HLS, can I pay for it, and would it be worth it to do so? So thanks for that.

Do you have any thoughts about UC vs. Columbia or NYU, assuming similar costs?

[jsnow212]

If Chicago Law Scholars preclude you from applying to other schools or receiving a Ruby, then I stay away. You a good candidate for literally every named T14 full-ride out there. If not, no reason to not apply. $150k is only like 80% of the tuition whereas Ruby is full-freight + a living stipend (I think).

I thought about this as well but a few things make me still recommend applying for the law scholars:

1) The scholarship is minimum 150k, so there is still a chance for the Ruby.
2) Although OP has a strong profile, it isn't very competitive for full-ride named scholarships at CCN due to GPA. At best, there is a coinflip chance at a full-ride to NYU and notably less than a coin-flip at Chicago/Columbia (with around half of people ending up with zero scholarship).

https://mylsn.info/q8qvl3/ vs. https://mylsn.info/wg1h8e/

I also don't think a chance at 30k more from UVA/Duke would be enough to sway OP from the boost in admission chance at UChicago w/substantial scholarship this program may provide.

I think a 150k scholarship (which is more than any non-Ruby at Chicago btw) would be an excellent outcome to commit to.

I would not hold out for a potential HLS acceptance. You will likely get in, but you will likely get substantially less than $150k from HLS because it is need based. The neediest 15% of HLS's class gets 150k total need-grants based on recent ABA 509 data.

I think the Law Scholars program does offer a great proposition: 150k off of a school ranked one below HLS and with near identical/better in some areas outcomes would be a phenomenal result.

Yeah, that's something I'm thinking about -- even if I do get into HLS, can I pay for it, and would it be worth it to do so? So thanks for that.

Do you have any thoughts about UC vs. Columbia or NYU, assuming similar costs?

Others can chime in on this, but the schools are peers with similar outcomes. No doors are truly closed going to either. UC has stronger clerking numbers, Columbia is strong in BL placement, and NYU has a strong PI presence. All-else-equal, you'd probably want to go based on location/post-law-school goals.

[s'all good, man]

If Chicago Law Scholars preclude you from applying to other schools or receiving a Ruby, then I stay away. You a good candidate for literally every named T14 full-ride out there. If not, no reason to not apply. $150k is only like 80% of the tuition whereas Ruby is full-freight + a living stipend (I think).

Hmm, thanks! I saw that the other replier disagreed with you on this, but I am also wondering about if this would effectively if not technically preclude me from a Ruby.

[s'all good, man]

Others can chime in on this, but the schools are peers with similar outcomes. No doors are truly closed going to either. UC has stronger clerking numbers, Columbia is strong in BL placement, and NYU has a strong PI presence. All-else-equal, you'd probably want to go based on location/post-law-school goals.

Yeah, I need to think about that. Definitely prefer Columbia/NYU based on location, but wondering if UC's clerkship boost should be enough to push me towards it.

[LikelyThrowaway]

I had nearly identical stats and chose a full scholarship at Chicago over Harvard. I'm very glad I did. If money were equal I'd probably still choose Harvard, not by much, simply because of the stronger reputation (which is mild in the legal community but major among the public, which I care about for personal long-term reasons). But I've really enjoyed Chicago and I doubt I'd have had a better time at Harvard, and the money is extremely significant.

The one caveat is if you'd like more geographical flexibility Harvard is better due to the alumni network. I'm going to the west coast and it wasn't too hard to find a job (though I have good grades), but it sucks that so few of my friends will be in my market and I'll basically have to create an entirely new social network.

Still, had the decision you're facing, opted for Chicago, zero regrets.