Volume 67, Issue 3

Yeshiva Grads in Grad Schools

by Eli Isak

In keeping up with Yeshiva College trends, most 2002 graduates who did not go into computers, business, or the Rabbinate opted to attend either law school or medical school. Although the majority of students who applied were admitted to at least one school, last year marked a noticeable decline in Yeshiva’s acceptance rates in the top schools, especially medical schools.

Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy Dean Rabbi Michael Hecht, along with Dean Nada Beth Glick, serves as a pre-law advisor to the many prospective law school applicants.  “To the best of my memory, competition for acceptance into law schools last year was the toughest to date, with the exception of one other year,” said Hecht.  He cited a number of reasons for this phenomenon.  For the incoming class of 2001, he explained, many law schools miscalculated their number of applicants and were forced to defer quality students to this year’s incoming class, greatly reducing the available seats for new candidates.

In addition, the number of applicants to law schools from Yeshiva last year, 85, is significantly higher than the typical maximum of 50.  These students, coupled with the droves of former Yeshiva graduates abandoning the burst “dot bomb” bubble for a career in law, have greatly clogged the Jewish student demographic.  Hecht didn’t foresee any significant change in these numbers for next year.

Despite the fierce competition, an impressive 93 percent of Yeshiva graduates received acceptances from at least one American Bar Association accredited school.  Hecht attributed this fantastic success primarily to the high quality of the class indicative in their LSAT scores.  The mean score achieved on the exam by Yeshiva applicants placed in the 83rd percentile.  Of those, one-third scored in the top five percent of the nation.  Many have credited this already annual success to an extensive background in Talmud study, which enhance many skills often held in prominence on the LSATs.  Among the 85 graduates who applied, there were multiple acceptances to top tier law schools such as Harvard, Columbia, NYU, and the University of Pennsylvania.

According to Columbia School of Law student Jeremy Herskowitz (YC ’02), “The best way to really increase your chances of getting into the top school of your choice is to apply early.”

Yeshiva’s pre-meds didn’t fare as successfully as their pre-law peers.  Of the 60 students who applied to various health-related schools, including dental, optometry, and podiatry, 52 students, or 87 percent, were accepted.  According to Coordinator of Pre-Health Advisement Dr. Stefan Bosworth, this figure has risen slightly since last year.

As Bosworth explained, there is an interesting phenomenon within each year’s number of applicants to medical schools.  The business marketplace has an inversely proportional correlation with the number of med school applications, but it typically takes about two years to take effect.  This explains the drop in med school applications over the last several years in response to the market boom that collapsed a year and a half ago.  It’s only a matter of time, therefore, until the recent recession catches up with medical school applications and sends them shooting through the roof.

Bosworth asserts, however, that medical school applications from Yeshiva students would remain stable regardless of the economic situation, for better or for worse, because, “Yeshiva guys go into it for the right reasons and put the money second.”

This year’s applicants to medical schools did not share the multiple acceptances to top echelon schools that were enjoyed by law school candidates.  With few exceptions, the top tier medical schools are void of recent Yeshiva graduates, despite their characteristically superior MCAT scores.

Yeshiva graduate David Sturm (’02), now in his first year at New York University School of Medicine, offers an explanation for this development.  “A lot of the guys scored well above the average score usually looked for in top schools but were rejected anyway.  It’s probably because all the best schools are most interested in maintaining a diverse student body, and well, there are a lot of New York Jews.”

The only top school that accepted a relatively high number of Yeshiva graduates is Einstein, which is under Yeshiva auspices.  Their number of acceptances, 17, is three times higher than those of any other school.  However, most students attribute this success to Einstein’s affiliation with Yeshiva.

Other graduates chose to bide their time and defer application to graduate school.  Aaron Brody (YC ’02) chose to enroll in the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary this year and plans to enter law school next fall.  Reflecting on his decision, Brody said, “If you can manage to take a year off before starting graduate school, it’s really something worth doing.”

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