UVA Law Class of 2019 Forum

[missie]

Checking in!!! So excited to be here

[OtterLaw]

Checking in!!! So excited to be here

So I take it the interview went well?

Congrats and welcome!

[stig2014]

Unsuccessfully tried to negotiate scholarship this week. Anyone who's paying full tuition/close tuition able to justify why UVA is worth it? It's my dream school and I'm having a hard time turning it down for other t14 options, with money. Would love to hear the thought process of those who are in a similar position, even if it's someone deciding against UVA.

[missie]

Checking in!!! So excited to be here

So I take it the interview went well?

Congrats and welcome!

Very well - thanks OtterLaw!

[herecomesthesun]

Unsuccessfully tried to negotiate scholarship this week. Anyone who's paying full tuition/close tuition able to justify why UVA is worth it? It's my dream school and I'm having a hard time turning it down for other t14 options, with money. Would love to hear the thought process of those who are in a similar position, even if it's someone deciding against UVA.

I really wanted UVA. It's close to DC, which is where I want to practice and I love Virginia. But when I didn't get a scholarship offer (and have tried to negotiate twice, with pretty substantial offers from other comparable T14s), I couldn't justify the debt. Even though I want biglaw and will in theory be able to pay off the debt, I just don't want that crushing burden

[thebrownnote]

Unsuccessfully tried to negotiate scholarship this week. Anyone who's paying full tuition/close tuition able to justify why UVA is worth it? It's my dream school and I'm having a hard time turning it down for other t14 options, with money. Would love to hear the thought process of those who are in a similar position, even if it's someone deciding against UVA.

Honestly, if I had other T14 options with good money (I'm thinking 50k+), and I didn't have a very compelling reason to want to be at UVA, I'd take the money and run. Maybe not to Georgetown, because the idea of competing against almost 700 other students in my class for everything from clinics to jobs to time with professors scares me, but to the rest of the T14 and maybe even UT, Vandy, or UCLA depending on where you want to live, yes.

Sure, your clerking opportunities are probably better at UVA than most other schools, but its still a very narrow subset of the world that gets to clerk for the Supreme Court. And after that I think you need to heavily weigh where you want to end up. If you need to be in DC when you graduate, then maybe Northwestern or Cornell isn't for you unless they give you a ton of money.

For me, I haven't heard back about my scholarship number yet, because I applied late and just got accepted, but I have a very good reason for wanting to live in Charlottesville, and I know that UVA will give me a good shot at going where I want to after graduation: clerking and then a specific type of firm or gov work. But if you just want a generic biglaw job after graduation, and you like UVA/Cville because you've visited and really liked it but that's about it, I would take the money elsewhere.

[SomeElleWoodsJoke]

.

[Nagster5]

Currently no scholarship offer and still planning to attend (FWIW I also think that's an error, I had to correct my FAFSA like last week) but even with no money, I'm going.

Anyone who did ASW, remember the booster speaker talking about UVA law grads rising to leadership quickly, and the whole network being strong?

I found this great policy-centric place randomly online and applied for an internship. Got an interview (K-JD, this is not a given). The senior VP came over to introduce himself, he's a UVA grad, and noticed my mention of it in my cover letter. He's still exactly as enthusiastic as the school implies, and gave me law/life advice for 20 minutes after my interview.

So. Unless this is a very elaborate pitch, they aren't kidding. And this several states away.

I've talked to several grads in Texas, and this holds true with every one. The UVA kool-aid is no joke, it's main reason I'm attending.

[OtterLaw]

Currently no scholarship offer and still planning to attend (FWIW I also think that's an error, I had to correct my FAFSA like last week) but even with no money, I'm going.

Anyone who did ASW, remember the booster speaker talking about UVA law grads rising to leadership quickly, and the whole network being strong?

I found this great policy-centric place randomly online and applied for an internship. Got an interview (K-JD, this is not a given). The senior VP came over to introduce himself, he's a UVA grad, and noticed my mention of it in my cover letter. He's still exactly as enthusiastic as the school implies, and gave me law/life advice for 20 minutes after my interview.

So. Unless this is a very elaborate pitch, they aren't kidding. And this several states away.

I've talked to several grads in Texas, and this holds true with every one. The UVA kool-aid is no joke, it's main reason I'm attending.

Yeah after hearing how great a UVA degree placed in the major Texas markets, riding the waitlist at UT seemed pointless. See you all in the Fall! So excited!

[strongbadge]

Hey all, checking in! Looking for some advice.

I first want to say that I am in love with all things UVA. They were the first school to admit me, and the highest ranked. I have visited campus (grounds) twice and was blown away. I have even put a deposit down on an apt in C'ville. In other words, I am ready to go. However, I just received notice that i will not be getting any scholarships or need-based aid. I am married with a child and $0 scholarships means Ill be taking 240K of loans over three years. The biggest problem with that is that I don't really want to do biglaw, and Im not sure how to manage such an exorbitant debt load otherwise.

I do have a full ride at a T25. I'm not excited about the school, or the job prospects as compared to UVA, but then again, not a whole lot does compare to UVA.

Is anyone else on here paying sticker and taking out loans for room/board etc? I'm anxious for all thoughts and advice.

[RedWhite&Blonde]

Hey all, checking in! Looking for some advice.

I first want to say that I am in love with all things UVA. They were the first school to admit me, and the highest ranked. I have visited campus (grounds) twice and was blown away. I have even put a deposit down on an apt in C'ville. In other words, I am ready to go. However, I just received notice that i will not be getting any scholarships or need-based aid. I am married with a child and $0 scholarships means Ill be taking 240K of loans over three years. The biggest problem with that is that I don't really want to do biglaw, and Im not sure how to manage such an exorbitant debt load otherwise.

I do have a full ride at a T25. I'm not excited about the school, or the job prospects as compared to UVA, but then again, not a whole lot does compare to UVA.

Is anyone else on here paying sticker and taking out loans for room/board etc? I'm anxious for all thoughts and advice.

I think you will have much better job prospects at UVA than the other school, but I understand your anxiety about the cost.

[Nagster5]

Hey all, checking in! Looking for some advice.

I first want to say that I am in love with all things UVA. They were the first school to admit me, and the highest ranked. I have visited campus (grounds) twice and was blown away. I have even put a deposit down on an apt in C'ville. In other words, I am ready to go. However, I just received notice that i will not be getting any scholarships or need-based aid. I am married with a child and $0 scholarships means Ill be taking 240K of loans over three years. The biggest problem with that is that I don't really want to do biglaw, and Im not sure how to manage such an exorbitant debt load otherwise.

I do have a full ride at a T25. I'm not excited about the school, or the job prospects as compared to UVA, but then again, not a whole lot does compare to UVA.

Is anyone else on here paying sticker and taking out loans for room/board etc? I'm anxious for all thoughts and advice.

Have you looked into VLRP? With IBR and PAYE it makes big debt loads very easy to handle with low-paying jobs.

[strongbadge]

Yeah I have looked into the VLFP and LRAP and others - you're right, they're pretty good. I'm pretty much sold, just have a bit of cold feet as the deposit deadline approaches. Thanks for the responses guys!

[HoosOnFirst]

Is it worth bringing a car?

I'd recommend it. You can definitely do everything you need to do without it, but maybe not everything you want to do. Aside from the Corner, Barracks, and the Downtown Mall, you need a car to get to most of the fun places in Cville. Alternatively, you can always find a friend with a car and convince them to go to wineries, trails, etc. with you (and not have to DD). I also heard a rumor that law school involves some studying, so you may not have tons of time to go do Cville activities anyway.

[thebrownnote]

I'm planning on sending my letter of recommendation writers a thank you gift, because I like to think I'm classy like that and also because I'm a scumbag who "networks." For one of them I'm going to send flowers or a potted plant. I'm pretty stumped on what to get for the other person who, despite usually not conforming to gender-norms, is a man who would not appreciate flowers or a potted plant.

Has anyone done anything similar or can anyone offer advice? Thanks!

[OtterLaw]

I'm planning on sending my letter of recommendation writers a thank you gift, because I like to think I'm classy like that and also because I'm a scumbag who "networks." For one of them I'm going to send flowers or a potted plant. I'm pretty stumped on what to get for the other person who, despite usually not conforming to gender-norms, is a man who would not appreciate flowers or a potted plant.

Has anyone done anything similar or can anyone offer advice? Thanks!

I sent a really nice thank you note with a Starbucks gift card to the people who wrote my LORs and helped with my application process. I figured most people drink coffee or something that they could get at a Starbucks and they're everywhere. Perhaps even a gift card to somewhere else if you know what they eat/drink?

[RedWhite&Blonde]

I'm planning on sending my letter of recommendation writers a thank you gift, because I like to think I'm classy like that and also because I'm a scumbag who "networks." For one of them I'm going to send flowers or a potted plant. I'm pretty stumped on what to get for the other person who, despite usually not conforming to gender-norms, is a man who would not appreciate flowers or a potted plant.

Has anyone done anything similar or can anyone offer advice? Thanks!

I also did Starbucks (asked a family friend who is a professor for advice on the gifts. She said that everyone can use/appreciate Starbucks, whereas the more trinkety type things can go unused).

[ChervonaKatya]

I'm planning on sending my letter of recommendation writers a thank you gift, because I like to think I'm classy like that and also because I'm a scumbag who "networks." For one of them I'm going to send flowers or a potted plant. I'm pretty stumped on what to get for the other person who, despite usually not conforming to gender-norms, is a man who would not appreciate flowers or a potted plant.

Has anyone done anything similar or can anyone offer advice? Thanks!

I sent a nice bag of coffee and a coffee mug of landmark supreme court cases for one and a mug from Quotable + coffee to the other.

[thebrownnote]

Thank you all for your frighteningly speedy replies!

Now to see if Torchy's will deliver a gift card...

[philawsopher]

Paid my first seat deposit at UVA today, and signed a lease last week. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Now to plan a move from CA to VA...

I'm planning on sending my letter of recommendation writers a thank you gift, because I like to think I'm classy like that and also because I'm a scumbag who "networks." For one of them I'm going to send flowers or a potted plant. I'm pretty stumped on what to get for the other person who, despite usually not conforming to gender-norms, is a man who would not appreciate flowers or a potted plant.

Has anyone done anything similar or can anyone offer advice? Thanks!

I gave mine each an Amazon gift card plus hand-written thank you note. Who doesn't like Amazon gift cards?

[OtterLaw]

I got my travel stipend check for the ASW today in the mail. That was way quicker than I thought it would be!

[HoosOnFirst]

Got my reimbursement too! I wish there were more instances where I could just sign a piece of paper and receive $100 in the mail...

[RedWhite&Blonde]

Got my reimbursement too! I wish there were more instances where I could just sign a piece of paper and receive $100 in the mail...

Yeah, I had to give Penn BOTH of my boarding passes and social security number just to get the refund...

[thebrownnote]

I thought I'd add my experience to the chorus of people who recommended filling out that ask-a-UVA-alum form. An alum at the very top of the narrow field I'd like to get into called me out of the blue, and he spent an hour and a half of his time telling me all about the ins and outs of the profession. At the end of it he offered to put me in touch with a few other people whom I'd love to speak with and told me to let him know the next time I was in his city. It's kind of crazy to me that somebody who I could never have access to otherwise just essentially cold-called me because I was admitted to his law school. As someone who isn't used to having these types of "connections," I found it mind-boggling.

[ohthatjenn]

First deposit deadline is soon and I still haven't heard from Fin Aid office