Goin4It (2022-2023)

Always worked through college part-time, had an extra-full class schedule, performing, and so on.

Roughly 6-7 years highly varied w.e.

scholarship info is rough figure for 3 years

Completion dates are according to status checkers (if available) or email acknowledgments.

I sent my applications in MUCH later than I originally wanted for various reasons, so I spent countless hours making sure that they were as close to perfect as possible!

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I feel very happy about how my applications turned out, especially when given my strange work history, later applications, and multiple LSAT scores. I also had to consider that my undergraduate school was not particularly strong. It was a local school, not known for academic strength. I did work quite a bit while I was there (15-20 hours a week on top of 3-hour rehearsals every night) and managed to get excellent grades, but the classes weren't particularly hard. I finished in an amazingly short amount of time - 2.5 years (I earned a few credits while in high school, but not like kids do today).

I also have a second bachelor's degree from another state school and a smattering of classes I've taken from various schools as I've moved across country.

My work experience is comprised of a LOT of seasonal and contract positions, ranging from tourism type work to political campaign work. I've been in my current job for over a year, working in finance and H/R. I have no formal training in that area.

I did manage to get a recommender from my 2nd bachelor's degree program. He waited a really long time to get my letter written. It further delayed my application complete dates, but I don't think it hurt me in the long run.

There are a few ways to look at applying late. You are definitely taking more of a chance with your admissions chances. Spots fill up quickly, and competition is quite a bit more stiff. When I attended the Michigan ASW, Dean Zearfoss commented to me that she must have really liked my application to have accepted me so late in the game. I was accepted 2 days before the mass wait-listing began.

While I didn't get in to a lot of schools I applied to, I didn't expect to. My original intent was to go to U-Washington, an excellent school that happened to be local. I had no idea how schools would take my combined LSAT scores or my work history. It turned out WAY better than I expected. For years, Michigan has been a top choice for me. I never thought I would be able to get accepted, let alone Georgetown!

By applying late, I think the schools that really liked my attributes were the ones that accepted me. I do think I would have gotten accepted a few more places had I applied earlier. Not certain, but likely. But if I had, it's possible I would have gone to a school that didn't value as highly the specific things I will bring to the law school experience. I selected the schools while applying; the schools that were a good match for me ponied up and made me an offer. Those that didn't probably weren't places I would have been as successful. As much as I think I would be an awesome student at Yale, I am coming to the realization that I just don't think I'm the Yale type. So, it all works out.

Good luck to all future applicants and those still deciding where to go!

1/30 - email from GW! I'm in somewhere already! Wow - it was only 15 days! Financial aid/scholarship info to follow in Feb/Ma rch

2/5 - got home to discover a priority package from Indiana crammed into my mailbox - in with full-tuition scholarship...very nice...it is now a truly serious option as I have family in Indy and the prospect of low to no debt is really attractive...we'll see how the chips fall.

2/8 - received my acceptance letter from U/W (in an unremarkable regular sized white envelope) - another great option with low in-state tuition, no moving costs, and a really cool city to live in, plus a decent international law section. Scholarship application included with letter.

2/11 - GTown status checker changed this morning. Why do I have to check these things constantly? Argh.

2/14 - GTown!!!!! Woo hoo!!!!!! That was the best Valentine's Day present I ever got!

2/18 - updated completion date for Virginia to reflect when they got my 3rd LOR (specific for that school - hopefully it will help!)

2/19 - status checker for MN changed to "decision letter sent;" by noon was admitted to Minnesota via email (they also sent an invitation to admitted students out before the official acceptance. I'm a little sad - I was hoping for the phone call!)

2/21 - is UofMN reading my account? They called today - no word on scholarships :( perhaps my acceptance packet will have something...it's a stretch though, I know.

- starting to feel a little ansy about my pending applications. A note to future applicants - apply earlier than I did!

2/25 - Michigan status checker went to decision in early am. Holy crap. Why must they use snail mail?!?!?

- in the mail, I just got a SCHOLARSHIP from George Washington for $20,000/yr, + FREE housing for the first year in the residence hall and a faculty mentor.... WOW! Housing is my biggest worry when it comes to DC!

2/26 - I JUST GOT ACCEPTED TO MICHIGAN!!!! I must have done something right! Surely all these acceptances so far aren't flukes! Oh my goodness. Wow. Beautiful blue binder with a CD, bookmark (a personal favorite), a note from the dean saying my work experience is "terrifically interesting." I'll say! I can't wait to visit. Ann Arbor looks beautiful.

3/3 - I feel a Berkeley "ding" is just around the corner in my mailbox...if not today, soon...

- got home to a letter from MICHIGAN offering me a SCHOLARSHIP!!!! Granted, it's not full Darrow or even half, but holy cow - I just got a scholarship to a TOP 10 SCHOOL!!!!! I really really need one from Georgetown....too bad it seems like they already sent out scholarship invitations. I wonder if they'll bargain with me...

3/5 - I dread going to the mailbox. At this point, practically every other school is going to reject me by mail unless they email me or call me to let me in. A lot of people who submitted apps to Berkeley when I did have been notified of their rejections. There are a few of us who haven't. I feel like we are stuck in the "what on earth do we do with THESE applications?" pile. I haven't even gotten an email saying I've been referred to the academic admissions committee. And I'm dying to go to decision at Virginia. The longer it takes, the less chance I have of getting in. Aargh. (Not that it would necessarily be bad to be "stuck" with the GREAT options I have so far...)

3/6 - Had a fun alumni/admitted students reception in Seattle for GW folks. What a great and supportive group of alumni. They totally sold the school, and sold it well, but I still have to visit them before I can make any decisions. Also got my mailed acceptance to Seattle U with a Presidential Scholarship and a Community Service Award (for my previous volunteer work) for the first-year only. I very much appreciate the offer, but I had been planning on withdrawing before they finalized my application. Now I feel bad for not having done it already, but hopefully that scholarship money will go to someone else who will put it to excellent use!

3/7 - withdrew from Duke and Cornell - at this point, I would not attend them over Michigan thanks to the scholarship and location ...

3/12 - withdrew from Minnesota. Heading to the DC area to visit schools (even UVA, though I have not heard yet and am expecting no better than waitlist at this point :( ...)

3/24 - just got back from visiting schools. GW upped my scholarship offer from half tuition to 2/3 tuition. Yale sent my rejection letter. No surprise there - I'm actually surprised that I'm not at all bothered by it. I loved one of the schools I visited so much that I don't even care about getting rejected by Yale, a school that had been my dream since time began. Wow. Now that's saying something...

3/27 - email update on UVA status checker. Another decision is imminent. My pride doesn't want a rejection, but the practical side of me oddly wants a waitlist so I can continue to choose b/t my top 2 options. I have no idea what to expect, either. Last year's data isn't very helpful, and UVA doesn't seem to send out all the same types of decisions on any given day. So, who knows?

3/28 - withdrew from Seattle U and U W today. Guess I'm moving across the country...again. And to think that the whole reason I retook the LSAT was to get into U W. It's funny how our priorities change once we know what options we truly have.

3/31 - got my waitlist letter from UVA - priority WL for non-residents. In it. they offer an opportunity to interview. I'm not sure if I will or not, since UVA has a bit more reputation for big firms, and that's not where I want to end up... And oddly enough, STILL no word from UC-Berkeley...

4/1 - hah - I had to laugh at myself for this one - I went out of town from March 13 - 24. In the pile of mail I got from the post office, I had a rejection letter from Berkeley. I had it for half a month and didn't even realize it! It's cool - I suspected when they wanted a list of every job I'd ever had since high school that I wouldn't get accepted. Let's just say that I've had a LOT of jobs since then....

With that news, I think my application cycle is just about wrapped up. I seriously doubt I'll be accepted to Harvard and Pennsylvania. Honestly, I'm not even sure they are that high up on my list of preferred schools. So, decisions will be made after my visit to Michigan this weekend...

4/8 - got an email scholarship offer from Georgetown that matched my scholarship/grant offer from Michigan. I was not originally invited to apply for a scholly at G-Town, but I asked to be considered when I visited. For future reference, this does work!

I really enjoyed my visit to Michigan. Before the ASW, I expected not to like Michigan and had been thinking that I would accept the scholarship offer to Indiana-Bloomington. However, the ASW changed my mind (as it has so many others in the past). I have decided to head up North. This won't be confirmed until I send in my check once I get back from visiting family in Indy, but I'll update once I send in the check... Gasp!

Of course, I made the decision to attend Michigan over the weekend. I was not sure whether G-Town would match Michigan's scholarship and need grant offer. Honestly, had G-Town offered even a little bit more, I would probably have taken them up on it. But since it's a straight up match, then it's definitely Michigan for me! This isn't all about money, by the way. I don't think I want to deal with living in DC quite yet. It would be a huge adjustment in living style, and I've been working and living well for several years now. I'll save the DC experience for the summers and for my career. That will leave me plenty of time to live in the capital...and it will be so much better living there when I'm not a student. I can't imagine how people manage to live on budget while they're in DC. OK, fine, so in a way it is about money. Sheesh.

4/11 - mailed in official deposit to Michigan today!!!! SO excited! Must withdraw from all other schools now - at this point (for me at least) there is no going back. Woo hoo!

Congrats to everyone, and best of luck to those still waiting to hear! Oh - and for the record, I did NOT write the "Why Michigan" essay. I did, however, write about a failure...

4/18 - The anticlimactic Penn rejection letter arrives (dated 4/15) ...

4/21 - ... and with the (in)famous Harvard email, it's done! I couldn't be more pleased by a rejection letter, and by my cycle in general.