ITT: Practicing attorneys tell you your top choice is bad Forum

[yossarian]

2) I understand that to some degree, no advice can be given without goals, but if the purpose of this thread is the list in the OP, doesn't a more generalized goal need to be assumed. Just, gainful employment to pay off debt (at whatever level the school gets classified into)? Again, perhaps if this is assumed, the list has no value anyway, but it is, after all, a generalized list of tiered classification.

OP list is to keep people from rehashing the same schools. Individual responses cover the goals listed in the request.

Fair enough! Thanks again for a great thread.

[worldtraveler]

UPDATED POST WITH GOALS

Goal: Biglaw
Region: Indianapolis
Connections: Lifer, no strong ties to law firms, but loose relationships with a few partners (an email or coffee once/twice per year kinda thing)

Schools:
ND w/ $ (no word yet on amount, let's assume 50%)
WUSTL (no scholly info yet, let's assume 50%)
IU-B (in state plus 50%)

Any other goals besides big law? Otherwise I'm inclined to say don't go to any.

[Dr. Review]

UPDATED POST WITH GOALS

Goal: Biglaw
Region: Indianapolis
Connections: Lifer, no strong ties to law firms, but loose relationships with a few partners (an email or coffee once/twice per year kinda thing)

Schools:
ND w/ $ (no word yet on amount, let's assume 50%)
WUSTL (no scholly info yet, let's assume 50%)
IU-B (in state plus 50%)

Any other goals besides big law? Otherwise I'm inclined to say don't go to any.

I'm with WT on this one. None of those seem like good choices for your stated goals.

[yossarian]

Any other goals besides big law? Otherwise I'm inclined to say don't go to any.

Ideally would like to work in government practice of local biglaw. Some experience (w/ decent network) in policy circles in city. Would be fine with small-midlaw if I could do school corporation/municipalities work and pay off debt.

Thanks for thoughts.

EDIT: Also would be fine with local government work (especially if nonPD), but again only if debt concern is mitigated.

[ManoftheHour]

Goal: PI gunner. PI or bust.
Region: SoCal, NorCal is okay too.
Connections: Born and raised.

Schools:
USC: 130k
UC Davis: 40k
Loyola: Free, but with shitty top 50% sTTTips.

[worldtraveler]

Goal: PI gunner. PI or bust.
Region: SoCal, NorCal is okay too.
Connections: Born and raised.

Schools:
USC: 130k
UC Davis: 40k
Loyola: Free, but with shitty top 50% sTTTips.

Is this what it is going to cost you or the scholarship amounts? And what kind of PI?

[rad lulz]

3) Curious as to the thoughts between listing BU/BC firmly in the 50% category but ND closer to 75%. Both are saturated markets (East Coast Metros and CHI), and both seem to function similarly in their regions (from what I can tell). Thoughts on this?

personally, I think BU/BC might best fall into the "for free" zone, but rad expressed his opinion of ~50% as being OK. These kinds of lists are good starting points, not bibles to follow for all purposes.

That said, I wouldn't attend either for less than half, and I'd prefer closer to 2/3 or 3/4 scholly for both.

About $75k to $100k debt for bc bu is more than 50%

It's pretty close to free tuition actually

[rad lulz]

UPDATED POST WITH GOALS

Goal: Biglaw
Region: Indianapolis
Connections: Lifer, no strong ties to law firms, but loose relationships with a few partners (an email or coffee once/twice per year kinda thing)

Schools:
ND w/ $ (no word yet on amount, let's assume 50%)
WUSTL (no scholly info yet, let's assume 50%)
IU-B (in state plus 50%)

Any other goals besides big law? Otherwise I'm inclined to say don't go to any.

[Dr. Review]

Goal: PI gunner. PI or bust.
Region: SoCal, NorCal is okay too.
Connections: Born and raised.

Schools:
USC: 130k
UC Davis: 40k
Loyola: Free, but with shitty top 50% sTTTips.

Assuming those are costs: I am inclined to say USC would be OK with ~50%, UC Davis for free, No to Loyola.

[Dr. Review]

About $75k to $100k debt for bc bu is more than 50%

It's pretty close to free tuition actually

OP updated to match.

[ManoftheHour]

Goal: PI gunner. PI or bust.
Region: SoCal, NorCal is okay too.
Connections: Born and raised.

Schools:
USC: 130k
UC Davis: 40k
Loyola: Free, but with shitty top 50% sTTTips.

Is this what it is going to cost you or the scholarship amounts? And what kind of PI?

Cost. Deputy DA. Sorry, forgot to mention that this is just hypothetical. I just want to weigh potential options. My COL will be covered for all three years regardless of where I attend. However, I can live at home if I attend a LA school. I received a half ride last year from Davis with a lower LSAT score (5 points lower). If it helps, I have a close relative that works at the DA's office that I want to work at (LA).

[Winston1984]

Iowa for free with no ties? Thanks for doing this thread.

[ManoftheHour]

Thanks for doing this thread.

[timbs4339]

Goal: PI gunner. PI or bust.
Region: SoCal, NorCal is okay too.
Connections: Born and raised.

Schools:
USC: 130k
UC Davis: 40k
Loyola: Free, but with shitty top 50% sTTTips.

Is this what it is going to cost you or the scholarship amounts? And what kind of PI?

Cost. Deputy DA. Sorry, forgot to mention that this is just hypothetical. I just want to weigh potential options. My COL will be covered for all three years regardless of where I attend. However, I can live at home if I attend a LA school. I received a half ride last year from Davis with a lower LSAT score (5 points lower). If it helps, I have a close relative that works at the DA's office that I want to work at (LA).

That's total debt? Davis seems like a good deal, if you work the connection to do internships during the summers and intern at a local DA/AG office during school.

[twenty]

misread op.

[timbs4339]

Iowa for free with no ties? Thanks for doing this thread.

Seems like a good deal especially if you can use it to negotiate full rides at other schools.

[jbagelboy]

Im tempted to simplify the discussion and say no one should sacrifice 3 years of income and the corollary advancement opps to go to law school at all. And especially not some of these law schools. But whatever thats just a negative attitude on my part so ill shut up and let y'all get back to this noble work here cutting the bullshit

[jk148706]

Excellent idea. Some of the more common ones on TLS:

UVA ED (i.e, sticker) for biglaw.
Northwestern at sticker for biglaw.

I thought this thread was for non-t14s

[twenty]

Wups, RC fail.

[AT9]

Sweet thread.

Goals: practice in an area of interest to me; don't care much what form of employment it takes (most interested in land use law).
Ties: strongest ties scattered across southeast and Midwest.
Other: wife will be working while I'm in school, so COL will hopefully be covered/mostly covered.

Got a near full tuition scholly from Wake Forest (less than $10k tuition/fees total), no stips. How much would you need from Vandy, Emory, and WUSTL to pass up the WF offer?

[timbs4339]

Excellent idea. Some of the more common ones on TLS:

UVA ED (i.e, sticker) for biglaw.
Northwestern at sticker for biglaw.

Honestly these are tough choices now that COA is approaching 300K. I see people who have sticker debt from a few years back in biglaw and it is a mixed bag. Some love it, some hate it, most people are meh about it. But all are paying a huge % of their income to the government (like 70%) and are certainly not living high on the hog. I know one guy who works at a V10 and lives in a shared 4BR fifth floor walkup in a room the size of a closet. It undoubtedly will be a good long-term investment but that's not the only factor.

It really comes down to how you want to spend your late 20s/early 30s and how debt averse you are, since it would be possible, but maybe not advisable, to make the standard payments and just stretch the debt over to your post-biglaw career.

[rad lulz]

m

[rad lulz]

Excellent idea. Some of the more common ones on TLS:

UVA ED (i.e, sticker) for biglaw.
Northwestern at sticker for biglaw.

Honestly these are tough choices now that COA is approaching 300K. I see people who have sticker debt from a few years back in biglaw and it is a mixed bag. Some love it, some hate it, most people are meh about it. But all are paying a huge amount of their income to the government and are certainly not living high on the hog. I know one guy who works at a V10 and lives in a shared 4BR fifth floor walkup in a room the size of a closet. It undoubtedly will a good long-term investment but that's not the only factor.

It really comes down to how you want to spend your late 20s/early 30s and how debt averse you are, since it would be possible, but maybe not advisable, to make the standard payments and just stretch the debt over to your post-biglaw career.

This

T14 at sticker was more defensible for around $200k

Now? Ehhhhh

[Dr. Review]

Iowa for free with no ties? Thanks for doing this thread.

Do you have any reason to want to work in Iowa?

If you can't think of one cogent, concrete reason, don't bother.

My thoughts exactly. Be damn ready to answer "Why Iowa?" in interviews.

[jk148706]

Excellent idea. Some of the more common ones on TLS:

UVA ED (i.e, sticker) for biglaw.
Northwestern at sticker for biglaw.

Honestly these are tough choices now that COA is approaching 300K. I see people who have sticker debt from a few years back in biglaw and it is a mixed bag. Some love it, some hate it, most people are meh about it. But all are paying a huge amount of their income to the government and are certainly not living high on the hog. I know one guy who works at a V10 and lives in a shared 4BR fifth floor walkup in a room the size of a closet. It undoubtedly will a good long-term investment but that's not the only factor.

It really comes down to how you want to spend your late 20s/early 30s and how debt averse you are, since it would be possible, but maybe not advisable, to make the standard payments and just stretch the debt over to your post-biglaw career.

This

T14 at sticker was more defensible for around $200k

Now? Ehhhhh

Won't have any COL $ to take out. Does that make it all better?