Hopefully this profile helps future applicants to develop reasonable expectations for admissions and scholarships. Good luck to everyone!
All scholarships are the total for all three years. $1 means I didn't get offered any money because you can't enter $0.
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10-17-13 Received acceptance email from Duke and a large envelope in mail a few days later.
10-23-13 Received email invitation for Virginia phone interview and completed interview that afternoon. Also received Georgetown acceptance in mail today!
10-25-13 Accepted at Virginia by a phone call with my interviewer. Virginia admissions office is extremely friendly and helpful.
11-13-13 Skype interview with Vanderbilt. Very nice personal touch. Should hear back before Christmas.
11-25-13 Received large acceptance package in the mail from Vanderbilt.
12-3-13 Acceptance phone call from NYU today. Other materials should be arriving through the mail soon. NYC would be full of amazing opportunities.
12-16-13 Minnesota called today and notified me of my acceptance. Additional package should arrive in mail soon.
12-19-13 Received acceptance phone call from University of Pennsylvania today. Penn is definitely one of my top choices and I am extremely excited. Penn will send a portfolio sometime in January with additional information.
12-23-13 Minnesota's package arrived in the mail today with an offer for free non-resident tuition. I never imagined that I would have the option to attend an excellent school and not pay tuition.
1-2-14 Accepted to Boston University by phone call today. Great way to start off the new year!
1-10-14 Boston University's scholarship offer arrived in the mail today. They offered $35,000 a year and I only need to remain in good standing. Boston is a great city and BU is a great school. Things are starting to get very interesting.
1-13-14 Cornell requested an interview and I made an appointment for January 30th. Interview will be held on campus since it is relatively close and Cornell is one of my top choices. I will receive a decision within a week of the interview as well.
1-31-14 Yesterday's interview at Cornell was excellent. The staff and students are very friendly and the school has a collegial and close-knit atmosphere. I received an acceptance email this morning and am very excited to have this opportunity.
2-21-14 Waitlisted at Columbia and Michigan today. Received notification by email for both schools. I was expecting a waitlist or rejection from Columbia, but Michigan took me by surprise. Very disappointing day.
2-25-14 Withdrew from Michigan today after thinking about it over the weekend.
3-3-14 Received Vanderbilt scholarship offer in mail today. I am more and more impressed with Vanderbilt as I learn new things about the school. It would be nice to visit Nashville and the school before making a decision.
3-6-14 Received scholarship info from Penn and UVA in the last few days. I am overwhelmed by these amazing options. There are still plenty of variables in play, but I will likely choose one of these schools.
3-10-14 Withdrew my application from Boston University today. Minn., Penn, Vanderbilt, and UVA are much higher on my priority list after receiving offers. Might as well free up space for people on the waitlist. Also withdrew from Georgetown today after receiving an email informing me that I was placed on the alternate list for scholarship assistance. I don't think it makes sense to pay sticker price at Georgetown with the other options available.
3-17-14 Duke scholarship arrived in the mail today. All I can say is wow I was not expecting this much. Excellent option. I will be at ASW in a week and a half. Can't wait to see the campus.
3-22-14 Lots of news to report from the last few days. First, I attended the UVA open house this week and loved everything about the campus, student body, environment, career prospects. Next, Cornell offered $50,000 a year in the snail mail. Holy Crap. This is going to be very difficult to turn down unless someone else increases their offer by a lot. I have been extremely interested in Cornell since first applying. Dream come true. Lastly, I withdrew from Minnesota and Vanderbilt. I felt strangely sad sending these withdrawals in because both schools had treated me so well.
4-1-14 Found out that NYU will not be offering any scholarships/aid. There is no way I will pay tuition and NYC rent completely out of pocket. I will likely withdraw soon.
4-7-14 Withdrew from NYU today. I think other schools offer identical career prospects without the enormous cost.
4-8-14 Withdrew from Penn today. I liked everything about Penn, but not as much as Duke, UVA, and Cornell. There would also be more debt with Penn so that made the decision easier. I will probably decide within a week.
4-11-14 The process is finally done and I have decided to join the class of 2017 at Cornell Law School. I attended the open house and all of my impressions of the school were confirmed. Cornell has excellent students, faculty, academics, and career prospects. I couldn't be happier! Duke and UVA are also excellent schools, but Cornell was a better fit for me and offered more money. In the end a very difficult decision became a no brainer after attending all the open houses and seeing the financial offers.
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Tips and Advice
- Apply early!!!! You want your application read while there are spots and scholarships for the taking. This also gives you more time to evaluate options and visit schools you are admitted to.
- Take advantage of fee waivers and apply to many schools. I can't tell you how many times I changed my mind during the process. Also, my attitude on certain schools changed completely from the time I applied. Having more options is never a bad thing. You could also learn new things about schools after you apply that drastically changes your mind.
- Don't compare yourself to other people. You'll be miserable if you compare yourself to the person getting accepted to Yale and full ride offers everywhere else.
- Make your choice based on what you want. Don't listen to trolls online or make your choice based on a ranking given by some pretentious magazine. If you like a school and want to attend, then don't let anyone ruin it for you. Choosing a school is extremely personal and no one else can tell you what factors are most important.
- Don't attend a school unless you visit or attend an open house/ASW.
Good luck! My numbers are identical and my school choices are similar, so I'll keep an eye out.