LSL Veterans Thread

[CMac86]

I'm done with my cycle. Got into UVA ED a few weeks ago and paid the deposits. Still pinching myself really. 2 years ago I was a college dropout in year 10 of my Army enlistment with an injured back and no real chance of more promotion.

Congrats!!

I got my first acceptance late last week. It felt good to get one. I'm still waiting on the results of my other apps.

I feel your pain. Summer 2016, I was a 2x college dropout that decided I needed to finish my degree ASAP when medical issues made it clear staying in the Navy was not a smart move.

[CM Funk]

Hey, everybody. Long-time listener, first-time caller. . .er, poster.

A little bit about me. . .AD USAF MSgt, hit 20 years TIS back in May, current career field not connected in any way, shape, or form to the legal profession. Was planning on staying in for a couple more years, but I'm getting more curious about things and want to see when I need to start doing what I need to do.

A couple of questions:

1) I got my Bachelor's back in 2013 using just Tuition Assistance. Haven't touched any GI Bill funds because I was planning on using it when I got out for this endeavor. I got my degree from an online school because it was the easiest way to go about it. Is that going to count against me in any way?

2) Is there a good timeline for following for when you're getting ready to get out and start going to school? Like when do you start prepping for the LSAT, when do you take the LSAT, that sort of thing.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of other questions, but that's what I can think of for now.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can provide any insight!

[CMac86]

Hey, everybody. Long-time listener, first-time caller. . .er, poster.

A little bit about me. . .AD USAF MSgt, hit 20 years TIS back in May, current career field not connected in any way, shape, or form to the legal profession. Was planning on staying in for a couple more years, but I'm getting more curious about things and want to see when I need to start doing what I need to do.

A couple of questions:

1) I got my Bachelor's back in 2013 using just Tuition Assistance. Haven't touched any GI Bill funds because I was planning on using it when I got out for this endeavor. I got my degree from an online school because it was the easiest way to go about it. Is that going to count against me in any way?

2) Is there a good timeline for following for when you're getting ready to get out and start going to school? Like when do you start prepping for the LSAT, when do you take the LSAT, that sort of thing.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of other questions, but that's what I can think of for now.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can provide any insight!

1. As long as the school has regional accreditation, I don't think it will count against you. I finished my degree via University of Maryland University College (100% online, military friendly, and paid for mostly via TA) and have been accepted to one school so far (the only school I have heard back from). From what I've read, and have been told (I specifically asked admissions reps about this), as long as it is accredited, they mostly care about your GPA. Don't get me wrong, I think having an Ivy League school on your resume would help, but I don't think having an accredited online school will necessarily hurt.

2. As far as timeline goes, the thing that I wish I would have done is budget more time to study for and take the LSAT. I would shoot to apply the fall BEFORE you get out unless if you want to take a gap year or two. LSAT specifically, I studied for it off and on over the course of about 6 months while going to school full-time and being on full time active duty (took February 2017 test). I ended up underperforming on test day (last 10 test average was about a 163, wrote a 156 on the real thing), but with the way I had my degree completion planned, an additional retake would not have fit my work/school schedule. I have strongly considered taking a gap year, but based off of my GPA, there is a good shot that my eventual results wouldn't vary much from what they will be this cycle. I'm 100% GI Bill eligible, so I'm not concerned about scholarship money, rather I'm just trying to get accepted at all. So, if this is something that you are considering, I would look into different test prep materials (take the freebie test available from LSAC as a cold start score under test day conditions-maybe use the 7sage LSAT Proctor App), and start studying ASAP. Keep taking practice tests until you are consistently (4-5 tests in a row) either at or above your target LSAT score. Once you're consistently scoring at or above your target LSAT score, register for the next test.

I used the Power Score Bibles, 7sage, Manhattan LR & RC, and then the LSAT Trainer. If I was to do my prep over, I would have started with the LSAT Trainer to get a nice overview and then gone through the 7sage curriculum (including fool proofing all of the logic games). The PowerScore Bibles & Manhattan prep materials would only be used if I was having specific issues/needed to get a different take on the materials. I also started reading Scientific American, The Economist, and The New Yorker to get used to reading more dense material. I felt like reading Scientific American was the most beneficial. The psychological impact of not being intimidated by large science-terms (even though they rarely make an impact on the answers to the questions) seemed to help with test day stress.

A general tidbit of advice is: get a Service2School Mentor. My mentor helped me out a ton with focusing my essays and translating my experiences from military jargon/structures to something that admissions committees would understand.

[ajordan]

Hey, everybody. Long-time listener, first-time caller. . .er, poster.

A little bit about me. . .AD USAF MSgt, hit 20 years TIS back in May, current career field not connected in any way, shape, or form to the legal profession. Was planning on staying in for a couple more years, but I'm getting more curious about things and want to see when I need to start doing what I need to do.

A couple of questions:

1) I got my Bachelor's back in 2013 using just Tuition Assistance. Haven't touched any GI Bill funds because I was planning on using it when I got out for this endeavor. I got my degree from an online school because it was the easiest way to go about it. Is that going to count against me in any way?

2) Is there a good timeline for following for when you're getting ready to get out and start going to school? Like when do you start prepping for the LSAT, when do you take the LSAT, that sort of thing.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of other questions, but that's what I can think of for now.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can provide any insight!

Cosign the online school thing. I will receive my degree from an online program at a regionally accredited school in February and I'm headed to T-14 next year. In a vacuum, yeah, it certainly helps to have name brand on your degree as the school can put it in their class profile brochures, but the thing that really matters are your grades from that degree. I have a ~4.0 from 76 hours of my degree program online and a mid 170s LSAT. Because of foolish schooling I did 15 years ago that only got my GPA up to a 3.1. Still, that proved sufficient in the end.

As far as timelines are concerned I decided that if I was going to be a lawyer then I wasn't going to set myself up for failure by going to a school with poor employment outcomes. I saw a friend do it, he graduated last year, and he's struggling/bitter/negative. I didn't want to end up like that. Also I have a wife so if she was going to follow me somewhere it needed to be worthwhile.

With that said, I started studying for the LSAT in September, fully two years before I was set to apply for law school. I didn't go crazy. Took an intro diag (low 150s) bought the intro 7Sage and really studied hard for about 1 or 2 hours every day. I viewed it like PT. It may suck getting started but once you're on a roll it suddenly feels weird to miss a day. I definitely feel like the discipline I learned to stay on task in the military helped me study. I was in the low 160s after about 6 weeks (mainly raising my LG score ten points and LR a few here or there). Once I started learning what the test was REALLY asking in LR and RC I got the next five points or so. I plateaued pretty hard for about a month around 167-168 and was pretty frustrated. I simply went back and questioned everything I THOUGHT I knew and found some holes. I probably could've saved time with a reputable tutor at that point but I was enjoying doing it myself so I did. I ended up upgrading 7Sage and spent a LOT of time on each question I missed until I found the "a-ha" moment as to both why my answer was wrong and why the correct answer was right. I also invested in a few books about my mental state. I highly recommend "Mindset" by Carol Dweck. I had tentatively signed up to take the Feb LSAT, five months after I started studying, but was going to withdraw if I didn't get to my goal score. Once I was breaking 170 I figured there was no point in rescheduling. My timing worked out pretty well and I was in my range on actual test day. I DID do every question from every book from test 42-81 before test day, almost all under timed conditions. I felt super prepared and knocked it out in one go.

I also hired a very reputable admissions consultant 9 months in advance of my cycle. I did it mainly for peace of mind - I didn't want to look back on my app cycle and ask "well, could I have done that better?" My consultant was an absolute godsend. I had to write multiple addenda for C&F from incidents over a decade old. Furthermore, my PS would've been far worse without her help. Also, she talked me in to writing a DS based on something I wrote about in some of our correspondence. I am a white male and I would've never considered writing a DS without her prodding. I almost didn't do it even after the fact. But now, as I look back on my apps, I'm glad I did. She got me thinking along the lines of instead of trying to categorize myself as a minority of some specific type to focus on how my experiences contribute to the incoming class. As military folks we are already "of type". However, we're not all the same. For one, you and I are both enlisted and much older than most vets who apply. I had a few other identifiable things in my career that helped me stand out as well. I highlighted them. My materials were absolutely on point by the day apps opened.

A final note: If you are planning on using your GI Bill you should leverage it in your apps. Certainly don't boast or be an idiot, but you earned that benefit. And if you're planning on using it don't leave any ambiguity. View it from their perspective, as an unambiguous GI Bill applicant at a public school you are guaranteed tuition payments that, in this world where the full freight buyers are paying for the full ride goers, hold extant value in this process. It's win/win for you and the school. Don't shy away from communicating that clearly. It's nothing to be embarrassed about.

Any other questions we're here and will be.

[Vet11]

How did you go about when mentioning about the GI Bill? Addendum?

[ajordan]

I did not make a specific addendum for that but I did put it into another addendum when addressing growth. It felt appropriate.

[Vet11]

I did not make a specific addendum for that but I did put it into another addendum when addressing growth. It felt appropriate.

Awesome thank you! I saw that you ED, congrats on your acceptance! Did u have the GI Bill pay for the seat deposit? And how much do you think applying ED helped your chances? I'm still debuting whether to do it for UCLA or Berkeley.

[dannyinsd]

Hey, everybody. Long-time listener, first-time caller. . .er, poster.

A little bit about me. . .AD USAF MSgt, hit 20 years TIS back in May, current career field not connected in any way, shape, or form to the legal profession. Was planning on staying in for a couple more years, but I'm getting more curious about things and want to see when I need to start doing what I need to do.

A couple of questions:

1) I got my Bachelor's back in 2013 using just Tuition Assistance. Haven't touched any GI Bill funds because I was planning on using it when I got out for this endeavor. I got my degree from an online school because it was the easiest way to go about it. Is that going to count against me in any way?

2) Is there a good timeline for following for when you're getting ready to get out and start going to school? Like when do you start prepping for the LSAT, when do you take the LSAT, that sort of thing.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of other questions, but that's what I can think of for now.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can provide any insight!

I studied for about a month before I took the LSAT.

[ajordan]

I did not make a specific addendum for that but I did put it into another addendum when addressing growth. It felt appropriate.

Awesome thank you! I saw that you ED, congrats on your acceptance! Did u have the GI Bill pay for the seat deposit? And how much do you think applying ED helped your chances? I'm still debuting whether to do it for UCLA or Berkeley.

I imagine it helped. No, I did not use GI Bill for my seat deposits. I just paid them. From what I’ve heard you can get that money back once the check clears for fall tuition.

[UVA2B]

I did not make a specific addendum for that but I did put it into another addendum when addressing growth. It felt appropriate.

Awesome thank you! I saw that you ED, congrats on your acceptance! Did u have the GI Bill pay for the seat deposit? And how much do you think applying ED helped your chances? I'm still debuting whether to do it for UCLA or Berkeley.

I imagine it helped. No, I did not use GI Bill for my seat deposits. I just paid them. From what I’ve heard you can get that money back once the check clears for fall tuition.

This is basically right, since a seat deposit is just a down payment on your first semester tuition.

[CMac86]

How did you go about when mentioning about the GI Bill? Addendum?

I did not make any direct references to the GI Bill, but I had a military theme throughout my application (it came up in my personal statement and I referenced the military in my GPA addendum). I was hoping to infer that, "Hey, I have the GI Bill, so I'm willing to pay sticker if you can give me a YRP slot".

[Van_Houten]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

[splitasticvet]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

Good luck. Can you share your study methods?

[nubcs]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

Congrats on getting your apps in! I attended Penn's military visit day a couple years ago during my app cycle, and I thought it was fantastic. I felt it helped me better understand what I wanted to talk about in my PS and interviews, but for you, I think it would still be helpful in case you had to write a LOCI. Also, Penn's visit had a portion where you met people from admissions, and I do think it helps to put a face to a name in an organic environment (i.e., not by visiting campus specifically to meet admissions).

YMMV, though, and it may not move the needle for you in the grand scheme of things, so if you feel comfortable where you're at right now, you should be fine.

[CMac86]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

I feel like if you can get the double whammy of a campus visit and veteran-specific info in one visit, it would be worth it.

I did the Chicago-Kent Law School Experience Day (presentations, campus tour, 2 mini-classes, and a breakout session lunch with current students). From talking to one of the students one-on-one, I got contact info for a current student veteran. The emails between her and myself, were tremendously beneficial and offered a perspective that I do not think I could get from an Ad Comm. E.g., she was able to answer questions about the transition from service member to law student, interacting/dealing with the VA, and the veteran specific services available at the school. I used that info as part of a Why Chicago-Kent essay. I felt like it made the essay more specific than if I just wrote it about the campus visit.

[Van_Houten]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

Good luck. Can you share your study methods?

Definitely, I ended up taking three times total 157--165--174 with about 6 months of study prior to each take. I spend the first year still learning new material until I felt I was at a place where I was all learned out and felt like everything was review. So after I got my second score back I spent all of the last 6 months just taking practice exams and only slightly giving extra attention to RC as it was my worst section on my first (-13). I took an online course but I think blind review helped the most and my schedule was about an hour a weeknight and 2 hours on weekends with an off day.

[LSNlife]

Hi all,

First time poster -- I just finished up my apps for the cycle.

3.5/174 -- applied to YLS, HLS, CLS, NYU, Penn, & Georgetown

With Veterans Day coming up, I've been getting invites to veterans-affiliated events for campus visits and was wondering if there's benefit to attending these besides getting a campus feel and talking to current students ie, could I write about a campus visit in a LOCI if it came to that? I thought about visiting more campuses, before submitting, and mentioning it in a PS but I've been told the veteran & first-gen American thing may be more compelling than a visit story. Only asking bc I'd have to take time off work for the events going on in the day. Thanks in advance.

I know you don’t want to take days off but with your numbers the biggest benefit in my opinion would be having some good “feelings/experiential” thoughts about different schools. Post-acceptance events are often crammed together in the same couple of weekends and many conflict, so I personally found that more stressful to schedule and wish I had taken the time to visit schools before acceptances came out - at least at the schools that you’re seriously interested in and/or have a lot of questions. Vets visit days are going to be less crowded and likely to feel more casual and friendly rather than you and 200+ other admitted students all jockeying to have your questions answered. It’s all about preference at the end of the day.

[Van_Houten]

Thanks for the responses! I'll try to make it as it sounds like a vet-focused one may be more personal. To your point @LSNlife, I attended a general Penn visit day over the summer and was fighting with a big crowd/waiting in long lines to get a word with admissions folk, so I can imagine admitted students day being way worse.

One last Q, specific to HLS --

I've been informed by a vet HLS alum that they've been making a big push for vets with any overseas service as many there now don't have any.

I'm pretty sure this is something I don't explicitly mention as I focus on my family's story of coming to the US in my essays and I had a pretty uncool job in the Marines. Also, the overseas having been Japan & S Korea wasn't exactly a crazy story to tell, I thought. Still, bad move on my part. HLS status check allows people to upload more materials -- is there any way to upload a DD214 with a cover letter and frame it as an awards sheet, given the decorations section, or another way to include this now?

Granted, I might be overthinking and this may not matter a whole lot but I'm a splitter who needs every advantage.

[LSNlife]

Thanks for the responses! I'll try to make it as it sounds like a vet-focused one may be more personal. To your point @LSNlife, I attended a general Penn visit day over the summer and was fighting with a big crowd/waiting in long lines to get a word with admissions folk, so I can imagine admitted students day being way worse.

Yeah I can only imagine. I’m currently attending Penn and while I only visited Penn during ASW so I can’t compare to summer visit days but I found the specific vets meeting during ASW to be, by far, one of the most influential parts of my decision-making process. Good luck in your application cycle! I’m sure you’ll have some fantastic results!

[CMac86]

I posted this on Reddit about an hour ago and wanted to share with this group.

Stats: 2.68 LSAC GPA, 156 LSAT, non-URM (White), Active Duty Military.

Submitted GPA and C&F addendums. Degree GPA was 3.53 with a 6-8 year gap. Wrote a Why X and visited for the law school experience day this past January.

So, I just checked my status checker since I thought "Eh, it's about the end of working hours in Chicago, maybe they'll send out decisions today"...and saw "ADMITTED". Got the email from the school about 5mins after seeing the status checker. I'm posting here after calling my Mom & my Dad. No scholarship offer in the email or on the status checker, but since I am 100% Post 9/11 GI Bill Eligible, as long as I can get one of the Yellow Ribbon Program slots (admissions reps said they haven't ever filled all of them), tuition and fees will be covered 100%.

I blanketed the Chicago regional schools (Chicago-Kent, DePaul, John Marshall, Northern Illinois) where I was right about a splitter, and then threw hail mary apps to Loyola & Northwestern. Time to withdraw my other apps and decline admission to Northern Illinois.

Chicago-Kent was my top realistic choice. I liked the vibe in the webinars, loved the law school experience day, talked to several students (mostly via email), and felt like it would be the best fit for me.

I've looked at the employment numbers on Law School Transparency, talked about the various schools with my Service2School Mentor, did my own research, and decided this would be the best place for me. I know that for jobs I will have to network my ass off, but since I've worked as musician (in and out of the military) for the last 17 years, I think that part will come as I make the transition back to being a civilian.


I'm so incredibly relieved. Now I know where I'll be moving next year, what school I will be attending, and can start planning the transition from active duty to law student. I know the GI Bill/Yellow Ribbon side of things will be a challenge since my last day on active duty will be the end of July, and orientation stuff is mid August.

and the LSL Veterans specific things...

In their webinars, the school said that they value work experience and diverse perspectives. I took a gamble and mentioned that I like guns on my resume (under interests/hobbies). E.g., that I've completed several classes at Sig Sauer Academy, am a member of the Liberal Gun Owner Club, and participate in recreational target shooting.

I've verified against the school website and VA website, their YRP match with GI Bill 100% covers tuition and fees. So, if the school offers me any scholarship money, I'll be attempting to get it as a living expense stipend. However, since my LSAT was just below their median and GPA was below their 25th, I think there's a good shot their offer will be at sticker. I plan on attending either way.

[mmmmmm]

Is it possible to get an education (post-9/11) COE when you don't know which school you're going to yet, so long as you have an acceptance? Like, get it for a school you're accepted at, then change it if you change what school you go to? Or is there no point?

[CMac86]

Is it possible to get an education (post-9/11) COE when you don't know which school you're going to yet, so long as you have an acceptance? Like, get it for a school you're accepted at, then change it if you change what school you go to? Or is there no point?

COE = Certificate of Eligibility? If that is what it means, I got my COE for Post 9/11 a few months (I think it was either February or March of this year) before submitting applications. It is just a certificate indicating that you are eligible for X number of months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. I don't have the VA site in front of me, but it was a pretty quick process online. It took 2-3 weeks for it to arrive via USPS. It is now sitting in my safe next to other important documents.

A quick Google search yielded these links.

From the VA Website.
https://www.va.gov/education/how-to-apply/

PDF from the VA Website, this info looks like it might be a little out of date.
https://www.benefits.va.gov/homeloans/d ... on_coe.pdf

[mstng9878]

Hey all. Hope everyone's cycle is going well. I wanted to post a note and a possible warning. At at least one school that I was accepted at, I was offered admission with no scholarship. I'm a splitter and have reasonable expectations in that concern; however that school gives scholarships to >90% of its applicants and my LSAT is >75th% for them. When I called the admissions office to confirm the $0.00 offer, the first thing brought up by them was my veteran status and access to the GI Bill. When I explained that I'm not eligible for Post 9-11 due to using the Montgomery for my undergraduate degree, the admissions person told me to send an addendum explaining this. Needless to say I am a bit perturbed about this. The very first thing mentioned in my acceptance package was the school's support of veterans which I now find ironic. YMMV and good luck to everyone.

[LSNlife]

Hey all. Hope everyone's cycle is going well. I wanted to post a note and a possible warning. At at least one school that I was accepted at, I was offered admission with no scholarship. I'm a splitter and have reasonable expectations in that concern; however that school gives scholarships to >90% of its applicants and my LSAT is >75th% for them. When I called the admissions office to confirm the $0.00 offer, the first thing brought up by them was my veteran status and access to the GI Bill. When I explained that I'm not eligible for Post 9-11 due to using the Montgomery for my undergraduate degree, the admissions person told me to send an addendum explaining this. Needless to say I am a bit perturbed about this. The very first thing mentioned in my acceptance package was the school's support of veterans which I now find ironic. YMMV and good luck to everyone.

Thanks for sharing. Hopefully with the addendum they’ll give you something. Out of curiosity do you remember if this is a school that includes a question in the application specifically inquiring as to whether or not your eligible for the GI bill rather than just asking if you’re a vet? I’d be interested to see if perhaps schools that don’t ask that question also make that assumption that all Vets are eligible.

[mstng9878]

Hey all. Hope everyone's cycle is going well. I wanted to post a note and a possible warning. At at least one school that I was accepted at, I was offered admission with no scholarship. I'm a splitter and have reasonable expectations in that concern; however that school gives scholarships to >90% of its applicants and my LSAT is >75th% for them. When I called the admissions office to confirm the $0.00 offer, the first thing brought up by them was my veteran status and access to the GI Bill. When I explained that I'm not eligible for Post 9-11 due to using the Montgomery for my undergraduate degree, the admissions person told me to send an addendum explaining this. Needless to say I am a bit perturbed about this. The very first thing mentioned in my acceptance package was the school's support of veterans which I now find ironic. YMMV and good luck to everyone.

Thanks for sharing. Hopefully with the addendum they’ll give you something. Out of curiosity do you remember if this is a school that includes a question in the application specifically inquiring as to whether or not your eligible for the GI bill rather than just asking if you’re a vet? I’d be interested to see if perhaps schools that don’t ask that question also make that assumption that all Vets are eligible.

None of the schools that I applied to asked any questions about my GI Bill eligibility. My application was flush with military stuff as I'm a 25 year retiree (hard to not play that up), so there is no doubt to any reader about my history. I was just really po'ed when the first thing out of the admission rep's mouth was something to the effect of, "You're a veteran. What about your GI Bill?" It is my distinct impression that they made the assumption you mention.

FWIW, I have received quite the opposite reaction from schools that I sent my new addendum to today. From assurances that that was never considered to one director actually saying that he found that practice highly irregular and border-line unethical. So, some schools seem to get it. Its just disappointing because it was a school that I was seriously considering.