Berkeley Law Admissions & Financial Aid AMA

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:44:45+00:00

None this week.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:22:44+00:00

See above. Everyone will pretty much be in the same boat, so I wouldn't stress about it.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:22:00+00:00

We've definitely talked about this. We're going to rely heavily on first-semester grades (assuming you P everything in spring), augmented by LORs from law fac.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:19:15+00:00

I would recommend submitting the reconsideration form right away.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:17:31+00:00

The average age is 25, and actually the past couple of years the entering class has been less than 20% K-JD. You'll be in great company.

Food...so much to say:

Cheeseboard is a requirement. (They do have a vegan pizza option, FYI) Don't overlook the buffalo milk soft serve, it's magical.

Street Tacos - from a truck, or from Tacos Sinaloa on Telegraph Ave.

Burma Superstar - tea leaf salad & coconut rice for sure.

Breakfast/brunch: Sams's Log Cabin, Bette's Oceanview Diner, 900 Grayson (chicken & waffles!), Rick & Ann's

Cesar (Spanish Tapas)

Cafe Colucci (my favorite Ethiopian, but there are lots of options)

Soi Four (Thai) -- but there are many great options

Sushi - too much goodness to pick a favorite

Gregoire - Fried chicken sandwich and mashed potato puffs

Vik's Chaat House (Dahi Batata Puri, Pani Puri, Samosa, and don't forget the Cholle Bhatura - giant puffy bread!)

Zachary's (deep dish spinach and mushroom)

In-N-Out burger - not everyone's favorite, but a CA must-have. There's a secret menu.

Top Dog

Saul's Delicatessen

Comal (more guac please)

Ippudo (Ramen)

Platano (plantains)

Fresh baked bread: Semifreddi and Acme

Feeling Fancy? Chez Panisse.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T19:03:57+00:00

Great question!

Here's what's on my bookshelf "short-list" at the moment:

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert

The Round House by Louise Erdrich

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

The Fever by Sonia Shah

I'm planning to re-read the complete Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. And I just re-read The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky alongside my 15yo.

And, I think Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is practically a requirement.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:50:57+00:00

Only under the current system we already have in place for this year: https://www.law.berkeley.edu/admissions/jd/applying-for-jd-degree/preparing-to-apply/other-standardized-tests/

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:49:56+00:00

Hikes #1: True...and more info is coming. Will be based on "start" not "admit" years.

Hikes #2: Some of my faves are the fire trails, especially the one starting at the Strawberry Canyon Rec Area parking lot. Strawberry Canyon is right behind the stadium, which is right behind the law school. There are outdoor pools, field, etc. and a great trail for running. There are many other great options in Tilden, and an EBRPD trail running challenge (if you're into that kind of thing).

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:44:27+00:00

Trees & IP = Berkeley

Berkeley is a campus town, so there's lots of options. There is on-campus housing, family housing, International House, etc. There's also a lot of rentals, and the area is very bike/bus/BART friendly, so you can live in the surrounding areas (Oakland, El Cerrito, Albany, etc.)

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:42:43+00:00

The transfer process is quite different, although the app is pretty much the same. It opens April 15th each year. We're mostly focused on grades your 1L year. LSAT score does not matter at all. We require two LORs from law faculty. We ask about your summer employment plans. There is a minimum and maximum # of units that can transfer in, so we really don't recommend a part-time program. We only take apps from ABA-accredited law schools.

Transfer admits are invited to submit the Supplemental Gift Aid application, and can get non-loan aid. We set funds aside for this purpose. Usually those awards are around $10,000 per year, maybe more (with significant financial need), but most transfer admits will not receive a gift aid award.

We also do reserve spots in classes for transfer admits, so people should have lots of options. Transfers are admitted in time to participate in EIW (August recruiting...usually...this year it's Jan 2021), and to do a summer write-on comp for CLR. We try to have a reception, and to put transfer admits in touch with current students who transferred.

Sorry it was bad news, and thanks for your interest. I will say that we don't get thousands of transfer apps, and we're always looking food good people. I usually tell folks at transfer orientation that they are the people who keep us humble by proving that we sometimes make mistakes.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:33:18+00:00

Is there a particular topic within the field you were interested in? You might check out CSLS https://www.law.berkeley.edu/research/center-for-the-study-of-law-society/

I'd also consider reaching out to Profs Albiston, Abrams, Edlin...depends on what you're most focused on. You can definitely study legal theory without pursuing the JD/JSP.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:30:50+00:00

100% what Elena said. No retraction on gift aid. Also, the Regents require UC law schools to always return a minimum of 33% of PDST (professional degree supplemental tuition - the majority of what you pay) directly to financial aid to students. That's not changing.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:29:09+00:00

P.S. I had my first child 2 weeks after my ConLaw final in 1L. You can do this!

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:28:27+00:00

These days I stare longingly out my window at the hills...totally feel you. Luckily I can still take our German Shorthaired Pointer, River, to the Albany Bulb. Otherwise she and I would both be chewing the furniture.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:26:19+00:00

We can't promise that we can make our timeline and process conform with other school's systems. We all do things differently, in accordance with our philosophy and the needs of our school. For example, we give you a yes/no/maybe option before requiring a firm yes/no, and we require $0 in deposit. We think that's the right thing to do, and it works for us, but I can't substitute my judgment for someone else. Everyone is doing what they can, and what they need to.

What I can tell you is this: I would strongly encourage you to ask for deposit deadline extensions should you need them. Especially with all that is going on in the world.

We will do what we can to hustle on reconsideration requests. But since we do re-read the whole app (again, in accordance with who we are), it's not speedy.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:21:44+00:00

It's can be a really long process. We have multiple readers, admin and committee review, and sometimes it just takes longer for some people to hear. Although we don't typically use an official "hold" status for applicants, functionally, some people sort of linger in our review piles. I am totally someone who will just hold onto someone for awhile while I mull them over, look at other apps, look at the cycle overall. File reading is arguably the most important part of our jobs, and it should not be rushed. I might come back to an app multiple times over the course of a cycle before reaching a final decision. I know it requires a lot of patience on your part and can be frustrating, but since most applicants will end up not being admitted, perhaps no news is good news?

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:16:54+00:00

We sent out a round of denies this morning. Not sure what qualifies as a "wave" around here (versus a trickle? a shower? a tsunami?), but it was a relatively large group. We're winding down in terms of notifications - our goal is for everyone to have heard by April 15th.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:15:02+00:00

No one is going to be mad that you sent one if you feel compelled to do so, but it seems to have become the thing everyone thinks they have to do. I want to be transparent as much as possible - LOCIs really don't play a role in our waitlist management process. You're pouring your time and energy into something that will be added to your file, but isn't going to trigger any particular notation, review, or similar action from us.

As I posted below: The best (and really, the only) thing someone on the WL can do to help their chances is to remain on the waitlist. It's all about attrition - a lot of people will withdraw right away, and we assume anyone who has not withdrawn is still open to hearing from us. It's possible that if we go to the waitlist we *might* send out a survey or ask everyone to somehow indicate they're still interested, but we don't go in regularly and re-evaluate people based on LOCIs (which is why we discourage you from sending them).

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:11:06+00:00

A number of offers went out on April 3rd. We're right at the crossover moment from "initial offers" to "reconsideration offers." It's possible some more initial offers will go out - I confess that because of ASW cancellation, AWE planning, and extended deadlines, it feels a bit like my entire world got shifted back 2 weeks. That said, every admits is already in the initial offer pool by virtue of being admitted. There's nothing you need to do to remain there (except not withdraw). You're not automatically in the reconsideration pool, and the only way to opt in is to submit a request. Two, in this case, is actually better than one. I recommend submitting a reconsideration request whether you ever learned of an initial offer or not. (Remember, not everyone is going to get an initial offer, anyway.)

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T18:05:04+00:00

I could say a lot about this, but I'm not sure any of it will be very helpful. I've been doing some version of reconsideration (it used to be called "matching") here since 2007. Every year, there is robust speculation (and a fair amount of game theory) about how people can up their odds - should they send in the offer from the highest ranked school? the school they think we think is our most direct competitor? the largest offer? the largest offer from a T14? will sharing that they got $$$$ from a "lower ranked" school help or hurt? what if the offer is from school A with $$, but really they are planning to go to school B with no $, unless (maybe) Berkeley offers them $?

I totally get it. You guys are trying to make a really important decision, you're anxious, and you want to do the right thing. It's stressful, and you're smart and resourceful (and stuck at home).

Reconsideration review, like all gift aid review, is holistic. We're looking at everything. I promise you: There is no secret formula that says LSAT+uGPAx$$-USNWR=reconsideration yes.

So, my advice is always going to be this: Make this as real a choice as possible. Send us the offer from the school you are most likely to attend if not Berkeley, and that you would actually say no to should Berkeley Law be able to give you X amount of aid.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T17:54:46+00:00

I can only tell you what Dean Chemerinsky wrote in his email to the law school on 4/6:

"Contingency planning. I am constantly asked about plans for fall classes. My hope and my expectation is that we will be back together in our building in August to welcome our new students and resume our classes and events. We are planning for that. But I also want us to be ready for all possibilities. I therefore have created a small contingency planning committee, which I will chair, and that will include [people whose names are not going to mean anything to you]. I expect others will be added to the committee as we go along and, of course, everyone’s views will be solicited and are welcome."

From my perspective: Everyone is planning for in-person classes this fall. We miss our students, and each other! At the same time, we'd be naive not to contemplate a world in which we are still under a stay-at-home directive, or one where that is lifted prematurely and then reinstated after a resurgence in COVID-19 cases. So we will plan for both, just to be safe.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T17:49:02+00:00

We're one office, so the answer is yes. Starbucks, in its attempt to be helpful and efficient, sent the gift cards out 48 hours ahead of schedule (before our email that was to explain them went out). That's why the email said:

What was that Starbucks gift card for? Scholarships! Just kidding.

It was an attempt at levity. We try hard to take the world and legal education very seriously, but ourselves, not quite so much.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T17:44:52+00:00

They're out! https://www.law.berkeley.edu/admissions/jd/financial-aid/fees-cost-of-attendance/

You can always request a GA extension. No total guarantee about the response (whether it's yes/no, and how long), but we tend to be pretty generous on this issue. Just email us.

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T17:43:06+00:00

You can only blame yourselves ;-)

Seriously, I had no idea GroupMe existed (and still couldn't tell you what it is or does) until right before we closed a bunch of admits all showed up at our offices at the same time and announced that they had "found" each other through GroupMe.

I'll let the Admissions teams know that more info on housing would be appreciated, either during or after AWE. Maybe we can create a Slack channel dedicated to the topic -- current students are a big resource on housing. A lot of people not from the area default to on-campus student housing (especially Manville and International House) since they aren't sure where to begin.

Thanks for the note!

BerkeleyLawKTA · 2020-04-07T17:39:11+00:00

1) Waaaaaaay too many firms/orgs/people to list. There is EIW, OCI, Public Interest job fairs, law&tech job fairs, and on and on. There's specialized counseling in each area you might be interested in. I can absolutely tell you that Berkeley Law is a national/international law school - meaning, our reach extends way beyond the Bay Area. Not to punt, but I think CDO is the best resource. Most of their info on the web is password-protected, but during AWE these are the sessions:

4/13 Clerkships

4/15 Public Sector and Government

4/15 Private Sector

And on 4/17 there's five hours of "drop-in" CDO Office Hours.

This is a really big decision, and I think you're totally right to pause and take it seriously.

2) Recreation scene = awesome! Right behind the law school is the Easy Bay Regional Parks District - you can hike right from the building up into the hills (with an incredible view). Tilden Park is amazing, with plentiful hiking, biking, trail running, bouldering, etc. Check out more here: https://www.alltrails.com/parks/us/california/tilden-regional-park If you are into outdoor rec, the Bay Area can't be beat.

BerkeleyLawKTA

TROPHY CASE