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Barrister on a Budget just wrapped
its four-part series
on applying to law school, and with most of your admission applications in,
it’s now time to start filing your FASFA applications and figuring out how to
finance your education. However, there’s
more to think about than just applying for loans. Over the next three weeks, we’ll discuss
false scholarships, how some loans can affect your credit score, and what
happens to financial assistance if you drop a class. Stay informed with this three-part series on
student loans.
As interest in law school continues to
dwindle across the country, schools are attempting to ignite more attention –
or at least hook the best in the small pool – by offering substantial
scholarships upon admittance to the program.
However, despite even your best efforts, you may lose these scholarships
after the first year or even the first semester!
These scholarships – gaining notoriety
as “exploding scholarships” or “bait-and-switch scholarships” – come with
conditions. Some may require you to
maintain a certain GPA or achieve a specified rank in order to keep the
scholarship and not just after one semester or year, but for every semester
until you graduate. Many students – as
great as they may have been with their undergraduate education – cannot reach
or maintain these harsh standards in law school and lose their
scholarships. Already invested in their
education, students are trapped in deciding between paying for the rest of
their law school education or dropping out.
Thus, the bait-and-switch.
Don’t assume that this can’t happen to
you. Sadly, there are many top
LSAT-takers who end up in the bottom-half of their class, losing their precious
scholarships in the process. Be
absolutely clear with the law school what the terms are for a merit scholarship;
try to negotiate for an irrevocable scholarship—or go elsewhere. After all, if they really want you because of
your stellar LSAT score, chances are others do, too. No one will look out for your interest. You need to do that.
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Until
Next Time,
Jenny
L. Maxey
Author of Barrister on a Budget:
Investing in Law School…without Breaking the Bank
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