Thursday, April 3, 2008

Agonizing over Being Waitlisted?

Anna Ivey, fellow member of AIGAC, has a great blog post about (1) why schools waitlist and (2) what to do about it.

10 comments:

  1. I'm thinking about the Fall 2009 Admission cycle.

    Are you able to turn students from possible admits(both numbers above a school's median) into sure-admits?

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  2. Charlene,
    Please contact me via email at lawschoolexpert@cox.net or by phone at 877-LAW-SKOL.
    I offer free initial consultations and look forward to answering your questions.

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  3. how do you think that the recent economic downturn will affect the search for jobs after law school?

    as such, do you think it would be wiser to go to a cheaper law school or take a scholarship instead of going to an expensive but more reputable law school?

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  4. When the economy goes south, applications to law school go north. This will impact Fall 2009 applicants and make things even more competitive than Fall 2008. The job market upon graduation depends upon the economy at that time, of course.

    In choosing scholarship versus more reputable school, you must consider your personal goals. There's also something to be said for being a bigger fish in a smaller pond, and for being a fish that is debt-free and that relieves some of the job pressure upon graduation.

    The answer to your question, as you know, depends on a lot of factors (including the location where you hope to practice, career you would like, how much more reputable the 2nd school is, etc.).

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  5. Some law schools strive to keep their yield rates high by admitting applicants whom they think would attend the school. In order to keep their success rates high, would you think that some consultants(in general) also have an interest in choosing schools that their clients would probably get into, rather than schools that may be their client's interest, since a higher rate of success would sound better?

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  6. I don't quantify my success that way. I have a strong showing of my clients being admitted when their numbers are at or below the 25th-50th percentiles for the given school. It's to my benefit to have my clients reach - and more often than not I'm the one that encourages the reach (but only if I believe it's a reasonable school to strive for).

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  7. Is it true that if you dont hear it may be because the school thinks you are going to choose a higher ranked school? What if my preferred school is one that i havent heard from but I have got acceptances at higher ranked schools- way higher????

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  8. This is not true. Some schools are simply incredibly slow! Just email the school or call and let them know you're anxiously awaiting a decision since deposit deadlines are looming....

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  9. Ann - is there a polite appropriate way to let the school know that it's imperative to get their decision soon? Who should this correspondence be directed to? And will it even help? I'm in the same situation as Anonymous above - last Friday I got an acceptance letter to by far the highest ranked school I applied to, and the seat deposit is due on April 31st, but I still haven't heard from my first choice school. Rumor is they are way behind in their admissions process. I know it's not much in the grand scheme of law school expenses, but I don't exactly have $250 to waste right now...

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  10. Unfortunately, you have to waste the $250. Other than a simple status check phone call, there's not much you can do without risking annoying the admission office. You're not alone in this situation. The good news is that the 31st is a long time away -relatively speaking- and you may hear from your #1 school before then.
    Good luck!

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