Convince me I'm crazy -- turning down $$ at T14s for BU Forum

[Allyn]

So here's the deal. Since the beginning of the law school process, I have been set on going to Boston University. I was offered a full-tuition scholarship for all three years and I couldn't be happier. I felt at home when visiting BU and Boston, and I definitely want to work and settle down in the area. I also don't know if I want to stay in the field of law forever - my plan atm is to work 7-10 years after LS graduation, leave the work force to raise a family, and then maybe do something non-law related after. I have no interest in becoming partner, going into politics/government, or going into academia. All those factors combined makes BU with a full scholarship seem like a perfect fit for me.

That said, a handful of T14 schools surprised with with amazing scholarship offers that I wasn't expecting. I'm currently sitting on the following offers:

Cornell - $120,000
University of Chicago - $60,000
UVA - $90,000
Duke - $67,500

I've already sent in my BU deposit, but with deadlines looming days away I'm starting to double guess turning down scholarships that people would kill for.

Have at me. Like the title says, convince me I'm crazy or reassure me of my sanity.


(Additional considerations:
- Public transportation is a big deal for me, I don't have a car and would vastly prefer not to drive.
- I want biglaw like the most of us, but it's not "biglaw or bust" for me. I'd be happy be any salary that's better than what my BA degree could get me (which, ITE, may be anything>$0).
- When I mention that I want to do something non-law related wayyy into the future, I'm thinking along the lines of counseling or teaching, aka. I'd be going back to school anyway so my law degree would be basically useless in that aspect.
- Not a guarantee yet, and not the most important factor, but my boyfriend (also a LS student) will probably be in Boston next year as well - we'd be splitting living expenses.)

[hiromoto45]

To each their own.

[GordonBombay]

I wouldnt go to Cornell.

[eldizknee]

.

[CanadianWolf]

You are mature & confident and you know what you want & have the courage to pursue your own path.
P.S. Making law review, and, possibly, becoming a law review editor, at Boston University will give you a better legal education than attending one of the other higher ranked schools without the law review experience.

[awesomepossum]

my plan atm is to work 7-10 years in Big Law after LS graduation

Not the best decision then....but whatever.

[hellokitty]

I'm going to go with you're sane. I think you should go wherever you feel comfortable/happy. There will be some people that say you're psycho but this is TLS, a lot of people have this sort of 'T14 or bust' mentality. I say, enjoy the full ride at your dream school.

[JollyGreenGiant]

I'm in a similar position of people saying "WTF ARE YOU DOING TURNING DOWN XXX for T1 FREE RIDE"

But, idk. I am personally still torn. I'm waiting for other people's input on this subject.

[fortissimo]

Wouldn't you need to be top 10-15% to get biglaw from BU?

[zozin]

Have you visited the other schools?

[dakatz]

Wouldn't you need to be top 10-15% to get biglaw from BU?

I would think it has to be better than this. And keep in mind that its not like we are talking the Class of 2011 here. Class of 2013 has a 2-year buffer on them that will hopefully allow the economy a bit of time to recover.

[fortissimo]

Wouldn't you need to be top 10-15% to get biglaw from BU?

I would think it has to be better than this. And keep in mind that its not like we are talking the Class of 2011 here. Class of 2013 has a 2-year buffer on them that will hopefully allow the economy a bit of time to recover.

http://pdfserver.amlaw.com/nlj/law%20sc ... page12.pdf

Keep in mind these people had OCI in 2007. Top 1/3 back then is probably equal to around top 15% now, if that, given how much biglaw has been cut at top 14s. The class of 2013 will have OCI next year - that's not that much time for the economy to recover. I wouldn't hedge my bets, going in, on graduating top 1/3 or higher at any school.

[goingtolawschool]

Are you a BU troll? If so, you should really be focusing on providing excuses for your decline in the ranking instead of creating scenarios in which you'd take BU over U Chicago with 60k.

[tamlyric]

I think you'd be half-crazy to turn down BU for $$ at T14s.

1. You want to work and live in Boston.
2. You want to work in law for only 7-10 years.
3. You have a full-ride offer from BU, which is probably going to place in Boston nearly (if not) as well most T14s.
4. You have visited BU and came away feeling good (if not great) about the school.

It seems to me that the only reason to turn down BU for some T14 is *IF* you want to leave a variety of other options open--that is, on the off-chance that your preferences for your future change from those stated in (1) and (2) above.

[stratocophic]

Edit: No idea what I was going for there.

[TheBigMediocre]

You're on hold at Harvard right? You're a Puerto Rican with a 171/3.9. I think they'll offer you admission before the end of this cycle.

[Tangerine Gleam]

You know what you want. Do it. BU be a good school.

[Allyn]

I should mention that it's not "biglaw or bust" for me (seeing as I won't be sitting on mountains of debt, probably should have made that clearer), but of course I'm going to shoot for the top.

I've visited Cornell a handful of times in the past, I just never got the sense I would like it there. I haven't had the means to visit UVA or Duke, and I really have zero desire to be in Chicago. Out of the four, Cornell is the only offer I'm seriously considering - the others are too far away from home. Had I not stumbled upon TLS, I probably never would've applied outside the Northeast.

And lol no I'm not a BU troll

[JollyGreenGiant]

It really depends what you wanna do after graduation, IMO.

If it's some prestigious job, then a Chi law degree will take you further than BU. If it is just some local Boston job, I could see BU being perfect.

However, will you have no doubts? Are you okay with possibly shutting some doors on your long-term future?

[entrechatsix]

you're not crazy (imo). congrats on the full ride, enjoy!

[greyarea]

I'd take Chicago, and I hate cold weather. UChi will get you the same jobs in Boston as BU and will leave you with many more options in case you want to relocate some day.

[Allyn]

It really depends what you wanna do after graduation, IMO.

If it's some prestigious job, then a Chi law degree will take you further than BU. If it is just some local Boston job, I could see BU being perfect.

However, will you have no doubts? Are you okay with possibly shutting some doors on your long-term future?

I want to get the best local Boston job that I can, and I am 100% sure that I will be staying home to raise my family in the future. And barring any unlikely scenarios where my entire family moves, I'm sure I want to stay in the Northeast.

And re. Law Review - that's a great point, I definitely want to be on law review no matter where I end up.

[rayiner]

If you want biglaw then want to transition into something non law related but good, you need to go to Chicago. No. Brainer.

[im_blue]

If you want biglaw then want to transition into something non law related but good, you need to go to Chicago. No. Brainer.

TITCR. OP is crazy.

[JollyGreenGiant]

It really depends what you wanna do after graduation, IMO.

If it's some prestigious job, then a Chi law degree will take you further than BU. If it is just some local Boston job, I could see BU being perfect.

However, will you have no doubts? Are you okay with possibly shutting some doors on your long-term future?

I want to get the best local Boston job that I can, and I am 100% sure that I will be staying home to raise my family in the future. And barring any unlikely scenarios where my entire family moves, I'm sure I want to stay in the Northeast.

And re. Law Review - that's a great point, I definitely want to be on law review no matter where I end up.

I'm not trying to argue.. but the LR point is moot. Who's to say you will get on BU's law review but not on Cornell's? (It's basically admitting you're going to a subpar school for your abilities)

And the "Best local Boston job".. can you be specific? I mean, I realize you don't necessarily wanna practice law (but why law degree?) ..but what field do you want?


From a 0L perspective, a non-BU pedigree will get you the "Best possible job"..even in Boston. I feel like you will be fighting with a ton of other BU grads for those Boston jobs, yet you'd be one of the few Cornell or Chi grads (due to class size and placement) trying to get a job. And if I were hiring, I'd rather hire 20 BU grads and 1 Chi grad instead of 21 BU grads.