Going to law schools w/ 0 aid? NU, specifically?

[Spacebot7000]

Who is going to a school that is giving you 0 aid? No grants, no merit, nothing. Northwestern gave away all their money, so I'm screwed. WTF?

[karita624]

Who is going to a school that is giving you 0 aid? No grants, no merit, nothing. Northwestern gave away all their money, so I'm screwed. WTF?

I am biased, because I want to go to NU more than anything, and I would take the loans.  But the tuition is nearly $40,000.  That is a shitload of money, no matter what anyone tells you.  $1000 for 10 years isn't peanuts, at least not to me.

[karita624]

My point being-- that sucks. I would go, though, unless you have another cheaper option that is not a complete step down.

[Spacebot7000]

[Sigh] Thanks. I just the so-called award letter, and I was shocked by the bill. It's an awesome school. I visited a couple weeks ago, and any misconceptions I had about it being too business-y, etc. vanished. Plus, I already have about $50k in UG loans. Hello, Biglaw, my name is Ms. 7000. I'm already looking for apartments in Chicago. I just want to be sure that I'm not crazy for going to a school with no money whatsoever. I can't even believe that. Oh well, hopefully I'll get off U of C's fancy waitlist, anyway, and none of this will matter.

[GO_PTO]

you could wait a year and get some work experience whilst re-applying (I am assuming your crazy high second lsat came in mid year and that is why you aren't given any).

Waiting a year sounds like it sucks, but if it saves you $60-100K+ (not to mention a year of current salary and work experience) maybe it is worth it.

That is all my plan anyway, I am hoping to go from a 163 to a 170+, but I couldn't fathom doing what you did!

[karita624]

you could wait a year and get some work experience whilst re-applying (I am assuming your crazy high second lsat came in mid year and that is why you aren't given any).

Waiting a year sounds like it sucks, but if it saves you $60-100K+ (not to mention a year of current salary and work experience) maybe it is worth it.

That is all my plan anyway, I am hoping to go from a 163 to a 170+, but I couldn't fathom doing what you did!

That is a lofty goal, Gabeo. I wish you luck!

[GO_PTO]

That is a lofty goal, Gabeo. I wish you luck!

choice 'D' is most often correct, right? 

[karita624]

[Sigh] Thanks. I just the so-called award letter, and I was shocked by the bill. It's an awesome school. I visited a couple weeks ago, and any misconceptions I had about it being too business-y, etc. vanished. Plus, I already have about $50k in UG loans. Hello, Biglaw, my name is Ms. 7000. I'm already looking for apartments in Chicago. I just want to be sure that I'm not crazy for going to a school with no money whatsoever. I can't even believe that. Oh well, hopefully I'll get off U of C's fancy waitlist, anyway, and none of this will matter.

Not to make you feel bad, Ms. 7000, but HOLY CRAP! 50k from UG, too?
I may have to agree with Gabeo on this one-- try again next year for some aid (assuming you are applying directly out of UG).  Make some cash this coming year, make a dent in the debt, and use  your LSAT score to get some sweet scholarships!
I am a couple of years out and am SO HAPPY I took time off.  You aren't as old as you think you are....

[michaelduke]

Who is going to a school that is giving you 0 aid? No grants, no merit, nothing. Northwestern gave away all their money, so I'm screwed. WTF?

Besides NU, what other options do you have? 

[dave303]

You're looking at over 200k of debt. Since you're going to northwestern a biglaw job is virtually guaranteed but you wont have the option of doing anything else. It's not too big a deal as long as your happy with doing that for a couple of years. If you get into a good firm you could be making close to 200k with bonuses after 3 or 4 years and the debt will not be an issue.

That UG is quite horrible though, don't you wish someone had told you that you could go to a state school for next to nothin and still get into top law schools?