mikeau (2022-2023)

Thanks for the input on schools. I might be sold on Stetson...if I can get in. Actually, all three in Florida sound great! I don't think I'd be willing to move to Alabama because I don't think I would fit in well there (Alabama=perceived as ultra-conservative; Chicagoan (me)=ultra-liberal) :) But, I guess it's worth a look. Better going somewhere than nowhere I suppose! Best of luck to you!

Congratulations on your cylce, so far it's looking liek a success. With your 155 you should be applying to more schools. You can certainly get into a lot of schools with that score.

What do you think of this school?

Congrats on the Barry admit & scholly. Despite what you might read on LSD or elsewhere, Barry places quite well in the Daytona-Orlando-Tampa corridor. You should consider it if you are thinking of relocating permanently to FL. Not sure if you got the e-mail or not but there is an Admitted Students gathering this Saturday at the school.

Thanks for the support. I'm at a loss for words, but oh well. I saw ur admited to Loyola...I just got something in the mail from them and applied. What are ur top choices in schools? Good luck!

Sorry to hear the news. Trust me, I know how it feels. At least you have two schools wanting to give you money. FCSL has a pretty solid reputation already here in Florida (not sure about Barry). Good luck with the rest of your apps. Maybe we should start a club for fellow Stetson rejects who would have been admitted any other year but this one with the way things are going, it'll be pretty popular.

Just out of curiousity, did you ever receive notice from Stetson that you application was copmlete?

Sorry to hear a fellow KA got the same news from Samford. I'm still waiting on Stetson, although if you got axed I am not very optimistic. Congrats on Coastal- I got the same deal. It looks like we're in similar boats. Good luck.

Sorry to hear a fellow KA got the same news from Samford. I'm still waiting on Stetson, although if you got axed I am not very optimistic. Congrats on Coastal- I got the same deal. It looks like we're in similar boats. Good luck.

I'm going to go look for townhouses next weekend, but I'm pretty sure it's fairly expensive there. Especially near the law school; it's in a pretty nice area. A friend of mine owns a condo there and it's only a one bedroom and it was about 160K. I know this is not much help and I apologize- BUT when I come back from visiting I will get back to you for sure. Again, sorry to ramble and not offer much help.

FSU and UF are my top and I haven't heard from them or Stetson. If I don't get in any of those, maybe FCSL. Let me know if you end up there.

I was notified that I was waitlisted at LSU by regular mail. Hope you have better luck than me.

Hey, we got similar numbers/schools. I'm putting some serious thought into FloCo. Are you going to wait on FSU?

I didnt see KA somehow, I was treasurer for two years. I see myself at somewhere other than FCSL hopefully Mercer or GSU but FSU is also on top. I am not opposed to FCSL I just hope my scores reach higher.

Just wondering if you have any additional comments on the school besides the ones you posted. I like what I've heard so far, but I still don't know a whole lot about Loyola. Thanks.

Heard from Samford yesterday. Our index #s are the same, so it looks good for you. Good luck.

Why would you take FL C over Jones? I am asking b/c I am in both with a $10k/year at FL C and $7k/year at Jones. I also have to make this choice and am curious about your opinion on the matter.

By end up: If you mean which school, I am going to Jones barring some oddities that are unforeseen. If you mean where would I like to practice, I am going back to my hometown in Albertville to my uncle's firm. I did not notice but about three non-trad. students at the open house today (not to say that there aren't more who did not come!). I really enjoyed it. The fear I have of FCSL is that it is a profit school (The only proof I have is hearsay from the lawschooldiscussion.org boards). I agree about the campus though, it looks marvelous! Have you visited Jones? The way I have approached my decision is determining what I want to do with my JD. Since I am going back to my hometown, I am staying in-state for networking purposes and for the BAR. Also, I am not going to some of my better schools (Miami, Mercer, Stetson) because of the debt difference. Since I will not be making as much, I am opting for a school that offered me a scholarship. Also, I think Jones vibes with my personality and beliefs better than would a Miami or LSU. Where do you want to practice? What kind of law, if you know yet?

Thanks for the info on Loyola....I'm debating on weather to go all the way to NO to check it out. Samford would be very hard to pass up. I imagine you'll be hearing from them soon, especially since our numbers are pretty much exactly the same. Maybe we'll both get lucky and end up at FSU. Good luck with the rest of the waiting game.

Thanks for the insight. I don't think there's anyway I'd take them over Samford. I was getting interested before I heard back from Samford, we'll see. Speaking of which...you should be getting a "yes" from them anytime now. Not only are our numbers identical but we were even deferred on the same date. Good luck w/ ur apps.

Its about time. Yeah, I'd have to say its definitely at the top of my list, right behind FSU. I'm going to check out Cumberland very soon and I can't wait. Right now I think its a tie between Samford, Mercer, and UMiami if i don't get into FSU. But then again Mercer is taking forever to get back to me and I'm waitlisted at UM. Samford has lots of famous alumni....like the current Gov. of Florida, so I'd be perfectly happy if thats where I end up. Good luck with the rest of your apps, maybe I'll see you there in the fall.

I just heard on Friday that I was taken of def! This is probably where I will be going too. Maybe I will see you around if it is.

Yes. I will be practicing in Alabama. Thus, I thought that there was no reason for me to learn the civil stuff. I came very close to attending it anyways...it was very hard to turn them and Miami down. Upon further reviewing my situation, I thought it would be better to stay in state if I could. I am currently having an e-mail conversation with the dead of admissions at Jones about some questions I have and about a possible scholarship increase. If they increase my $, it would be a tough call. I would almost have to take the money! I'll be happy when this process is complete! Good luck on the rest of your cycle. Maybe you will get a shot at LSU or FSU.

I just got back from visiting Cumberland....its impressive, you'll enjoy your visit. The law school and library are very nice and just what you'd expect from a good law school. Everyone was real helpful and I sat in on a class which was cool. Worse case senario (FSU or UMiami don't work out) I'm going here and couldn't be happier. Let me know how your visit goes.

They sent me a letter letting me know I was accepted off of the list, I have to let them know by May 14th. Goodluck!!

Congrats on Samford. I loved my visit. I'm going to Stetson mainly b/c I want to stay in Florida. Good luck.

Hey, Jones' offer was too good for me to pass up! I am staying in state for practice, which means the less debt the better! I would ask anything that you are curious about. Dean Matthews is very honest and tells it straight forward. I asked about the provisional accredidation. If you are curious about it, it would be worth asking. Also, if you are interested, ask about the progress that the moot court and trial advocacy teams have made. Also, something that was big for me--you may want to ask about the initial ranking system. With your numbers, you should be quit high already (they rank by the LSAT and UGPA initally rather than waiting until after the first semester). They offer some interesting clinics too. The alternative dispute resolution track is interesting. In addition, because of the entering-class size, you (and I) would have more opportunities to participate in activities. These are some of the things that swayed me. Also, the new Feb. BAR results was amazing--Jones at ~86% while UA was in the mid-60% and Cumberland was in the 50%. Also, I viewed the 1L moot court competition a few weeks back. Most schools do not allow 1Ls to compete in any of the moot court or trial ad competitions. Also, the finalists got to argue in the AL supreme court courtroom in front of two of the justices! These are all interesting to me. Like I said, Dean Matthews is open and honest, so ask whatever you have on your mind. I chose Jones over Miami, Cumberland, and LSU$ (man it was so hard to say no to them!!!) and I am thrilled with my choice thus far. My uncle went to Jones and he has a partner from both Alabama and Cumberland. The Cumberland grad even told me to take the money. I'll submit to you the question that he asked me, which I pondered until I finally made up my mind: Is school X really worth more than Jones with the money? He said no for my situation. He has been practicing for like 10 years and is still paying on his loans!! These are just some of the thoughts that I entertained while making up my mind. I hope some of this helped. Fill me in after your visit...I'm curious what you think about the school.

Come to Samford. It has the best reputation of your schools, best job placement, and best bar passage rate. I do not trust a non ABA accredited school and something like Jones would severly limit your career options. Samford can place you in Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Atlanta, whatever you want in the Southeast and well better opportunities outside of Alabama for those with the better grades. I was very impressed with my visit and am planning to attend. We want to have a high caliber of student and some more College Republicans :-) You should go to Samford, unless of course, you get into Florida State or LSU. Yes saving money is great if you can do it.

Come to Samford. It has the best reputation of your schools, best job placement, and best bar passage rate. I do not trust a non ABA accredited school and something like Jones would severly limit your career options. Samford can place you in Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Atlanta, whatever you want in the Southeast and well better opportunities outside of Alabama for those with the better grades. I was very impressed with my visit and am planning to attend. We want to have a high caliber of student and some more College Republicans :-) You should go to Samford, unless of course, you get into Florida State or LSU. Yes saving money is great if you can do it.

I believe that the last poster is misinformed a bit. First of all, Jones is accredited, and even if something were to happen, the students entering in this years class would have all of the perks that a student entering a fully-accredited institution would have (it is on the ABA website...look it up if you don't believe me). Also, Jones also can place students out of state. I know for a fact that a couple of students just passed and already have jobs in FL, a student just passed the Louisiana bar as well. I believe that grads also took the Mississippi and GA bars as well...all passing as far as I know. Thus, though Jones is building on its new accreditation, I do not believe that one would be limited by a JD from Jones. Also, I would even go so far to say that Jones probably places better in Southern Alabama. Further, the money is hard to pass up. Ultimately Mike, the decision will be yours to make. I do not think that you could go wrong with either school to be honest. But in terms of reputation, if Jones consistently out-perform Cumberland and Alabama in terms of BAR pass and trial ad, then I would be entitled to claim, I think, that Jones could at least match, if not by-pass those other schools. Regardless, you should make a decision that would make you the happiest. Either way, you will have a good school behind your name.

Watso59 has some very good reasons for choosing Jones, especially the money factor and early trial involvement (if thats what you're interested in). But when it comes to the BAR passage rates, I'd take that for a grain of salt. New schools like Jones and Florida Coastal have high BAR passage rates because they're teaching specifically toward having higher than normal BAR passage rates to intice candidates like you and Watso. I find it very hard to believe that UA and Cumberland have BAR passage rates in the 60s-50s....especially since UA is a top 40 school and Cumberland's website claims rates in the 80s and 90s. The decision is obviously up to you, I just wanted to fill you in if that hadn't already been brought to your attention.

Do keep me posted! I also thought of Jones as a night school, but when I attended the open house there were only 2 non-trads to the about 28 trads. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Again, the money was one of the big decision-makers for me. Whatever your decision, you could not go wrong with either school in my opinion.

Those numbers are what I was given by an official source (I had to inquire into the Feb. results a bit because Alabama and Cumberland failed to post them at the time!). If they are wrong, and I am inclined to believe otherwise, then I was misinformed. However, I do know for a fact that Jones has had the highest BAR pass rate for the last two tests... Btw, is teaching for the bar not what law school should be about at least to some extent? I mean, you have to pass it if you want to practice? Just my thoughts.

No need to get testy. I would explain my "gain of salt" comment further but I feel like it'd just offend you more. Sounds like you've really thought through your school choice and thats great (and smart). I wish you luck in law school next year.

letmein, you have not offended me, nor am I testy...I just want the facts to be out there--regardless of the decision made. Also, the numbers were posted in response to cntryguyinil more so than you (he seemed to be misinformed about Jones' bar pass rate as well as its accredidation status). Also, feel free to explain your analogy--I am hardly offended. You are entitled to your view/opinion. Acutally, I am curious what you could possibly mean by it.

Thanks, Mike. I really hope that I get off the waitlist. I called the other day and assured them that I would attend if I was accepted. However, the woman with whom I spoke told me that the class was already full and that I would have to wait a month or so to ehar anything further. Syracuse seems like a great option, but its so far away and terribly expensive. Even after maxing out my gov't loans, I still have to finance or come up with 30K per year. Thats just too much money. Right now I am waiting to find out whether or not I will get a scholarship. If they can cut the 30K in half, then I will feel much better about the whole situation. As of right now, I will be going to Syracuse, but I need the scholarship for it to even begin to make sense. If I don't get any money, and I don't get pulled off the waitlist, I may re-take the LSAT and matriculate next year instead. Does that sound ... sound?

I got to Stetson, but am also thinking about COastal in hopes of a transfer. Got any idea of what you might do?

Thanks for the kind words. Also, congrats again on a good cycle. I am sure you will be very happy and do well at Cumberland. I am glad that you got into a school that you like. I wish you the best in law school and after.

I might actually have to disagree with you there. I have visited both schools but spent more time in New Orleans. I found the area the school is in to be in great shape, and the rent very reasonable considering the city, and comparable to what I'm paying right now. I have located a potential roommate and we're looking at $500-$600 a piece to rent a house only a couple of blocks from the school. I liked the fact that Loyno is much more established than FCSL, and a lot of the same firms that recruit students from UNC and Wake Forest also recruit at Loyola for positions all over the southeast, instead of being more highly concentrated in and around Jacksonville. $30k is a lot of money, but keeping it is based on maintaining a particular GPA and although I am positive I would have no problem, its not something I am willing to take a chance on. I also like the fact that Loyola is part of a university instead of a stand-alone law school, and their study abroad programs were very appealing to me. With friends in Jackson, Layfayette, Oxford, and Baton Rouge and all other things considered, Loyola just seemed a better fit for me than FCSL. Thanks for the post and good luck with the rest of your cycle!

You were right; I got in to Cumberland this morning. I'm sending in my seat deposit tomorrow. Exciting stuff!

Yeah, I'm definitely going to Cumberland. What about you? I have always been impressed with Cumberland, so I pretty happy about going there.

Decision's been made? LSU? I have made plans for living; but I'm not 100% sure about them yet.

Thanks, Mike. And best of luck to you too. Congratulations on getting LSU ... that's a great school.