BigSoupyNightmare '22–'23 app cycle Class of 2026 class year

hello there, fellow traveler. I know it feels stupid and annoying to hear me say it now because you’re probably anxious and nervous I was for the past year of my life because of this godforsaken process, but it really will be okay. the universe provides — if you put good into it, good will come back to you.

that said, my biggest advice is to win all you can: for 90% of this process, schools/lsac/The Man have the leverage. they’ve gone through admissions cycles a thousand times before, they’ve got more data than you do about the state of the applicant pool and they know more about their own schools than you could ever dream of. so make use of any leverage you can get. they’re going to play the game, whether you do or not. obviously, be kind, don’t be a dick, and don’t lie — but know your worth, and know they need applicants and tuition-paying students just as much (more, tbh) as you need a jd.

if you can afford it, I highly recommend applying to a handful of safeties/schools you know you’ll get money from that you can use as leverage at the schools you’re really stoked about. I spent a little over $1000 on applications (which sucked!) including at a number of schools I wasn’t super likely to go to — and those extra applications got me tens of thousands more in scholarships at schools I was stoked about just by asking nicely and pointing to better offers at other schools. here’s a bit of how I did that:
150k at Cornell increased to 174k on 3/22 using offers from Mich (150k) and UVA (150k)- 150k at GULC increased to 180k on 3/29 using offers from Cornell (174k), Mich (150k) and UVA (150k)

• $75k at NYU (assuming I make less than 25k in 2L summer) increased to 105k (again, conditional on 2L summer) on 4/5 using offers from Penn (123k), UVA ($150k) and Michigan (150k).
• Reconsideration denied at UCLA (used Northwestern 180k, WashU 150k, Penn 123k). Emailed request 4/3 and denied 4/5.
• Reconsideration at UVA (150k) denied. Sent offers from Cornell (174k), UCLA (150k), Penn/NYU LRAP comparison. Sent Northwestern (180k) with follow-up email.
• Zoom call with fin aid: I explained why I liked UVA and my concerns about finances, they explained that more $$ was unlikely because they’d already overspent. I think convo would have been different if UVA was my top choice and I had a number that would have gotten me to commit, but that wasn’t the case. We talked about LRAPs and loan payments and some other stuff, which was helpful nonetheless. And everyone at UVA is so damn nice!
• $123k at Penn increased to $135k using GULC (180k), UVA (150k), NW (180k) following brief conversation with FinAid very soon before acceptance deadline.