UFMatt (2022-2023)

PhD (Bio-related)
National Merit Scholar
Significant work experience during undergrad
Various honors in both undergrad and grad school
Extensive publication history

All $$$ is total for 3 years
Decision date listed above refers to when mailed, not received

4/10/10:
Having just attending the ASW at Emory, I will be accepting their offer and withdrawing from all other schools. It really came down to their strong IP curriculum, the location in an affordable metropolitan area with a major airport, the efforts being made by Emory (entire campus) to improve itself, the proximity to family, and the availability of jobs for my wife. ND, Illinois, Minnesota, and W&M were all outstanding offers, but Emory just seemed a bit more tailored to my career goals. If anyone is wondering about my status with Cornell, I applied EA, got deferred to RD, and as of today have yet to hear a decision, which is why I'll leave it as "pending."

3/23/10:
Received an email update from Notre Dame increasing my scholarship from $18k/yr to $20k/yr. Now I'm just trying to decide between ND and Emory.

3/22/10:
Rejected at Michigan via mail. I'm not sure why it took them 5 months to do so.

3/1/10:
Waitlisted at Duke via email. Beats an outright rejection. I suppose I'll stay on until I decide between Notre Dame and Emory. Duke at sticker price would be outrageous.

2/27/10:
Several pieces of mail today. A separate big envelope came from Emory with a $60,000 award. I also received a 4gb USB memory stick from Illinois; it's almost like a mini Zippo since it has a metal shell.

2/26/10:
Received an acceptance package in the mail from Emory. Now I just need to wait on scholarship info. It's an attractive option for me, as long as they can match or beat ND's offer.

2/12/10:
OSU Merit Scholarship for $11,000 per year. A good deal for those in-state, but not so much for me. I also received an email from BC awarding me $15,000/yr, renewable for 3 years. Unfortunately I must accept within 3 weeks. I've been leaning toward Notre Dame, but I'll have to consider all options at this point and make a decision soon.

2/8/10:
Rejected via email by UVA. Not much of a surprise apart from how long it took them (over 3 months from time of application). I wouldn't have been able to afford full price anyway, so not too big of a deal.

2/1/10:
Rejection letter from UCLA. Not surprising considering I'm an out-of-state splitter. I only applied because they gave me a fee waiver, so no harm done.

1/23/10:
An acceptance packet arrived from BC today. Includes a letter, a few forms, and a nice booklet about the school. No mention of scholarship money.

1/19/10:
Received a WL letter from Vanderbilt (mailed 1/12). Unfortunate decision, but not surprising given their very predictable acceptance chart.

1/8/10:
In via email at Illinois-UC with $25,000 scholarship guaranteed for 3 years! That guarantee means a lot (i.e. no GPA stipulation). I'll definitely need to add this to my visits list. Dean Pless provided very informative updates on the forum at top-law-schools.com that I would recommend checking if you are also applying.

12/28/09:
Received my Minnesota packet in the mail today. I was floored when I saw a scholarship of $25,000 per year! My most generous scholarship so far is also at the highest ranking school I've been accepted to. Time to look more closely at Minnesota!

12/26/09:
Received a letter from Cornell stating that I will be placed into the regular applicant pool. Beats a rejection I suppose.

12/21/09:
Received a lot of mail today. A big acceptance packet from Notre Dame, Boston U, and Indiana-Bloomington. Indiana offered a $15,000 per year scholarship, or essentially half tuition waiver. Also received another 'please come to OSU' letter without scholarship info. Boston didn't include any scholarship info, but hopefully later on they'll throw some my way.

12/18/09:
Email from Notre Dame. In with $18,000 per year! I'm very excited. A generous scholarship from a law school with - as I see it - a fast rising reputation. Notre Dame is definitely up with W&M as the two most enticing options thus far.

12/18/09:
I received a voicemail from the University of Minnesota notifying me of acceptance. Very excited. A letter is on its way, hopefully with scholarship information.

12/17/09:
I received a voicemail from Boston University congratulating me on an acceptance there. I'm very happy, as it's my first T20. They said a letter is on its way, so hopefully I'll get some scholarship money.

12/05/09:
Received acceptance letter from Iowa with a nice handwritten addendum. Scholarship information will apparently be sent later.

12/03/09:
Overnight I received emails from both Iowa and Ohio State informing me of acceptance.

11/21/09:
Acceptance package arrived from W&M. $51,600 total award includes out-of-state tuition waiver, graduate fellowship, and additional yearly scholarship. Very tempting offer.

11/18/09:
Received acceptance letter from Georgia with a Georgia Law car sticker. Feels good to get my first acceptance, but they don't send out scholarship info until January.