BU (full ride) vs. Cornell (partial scholarship) ?? Forum

[prospectivelawyer]

Hey guys! Finally figured out I should be posting about this in this forum

So my question: I was offered a full ride at Boston U, but I also got into Cornell and they offered me half of tuition. Obviously, going to Boston would be a huge relief financially, but Cornell is a T14 whereas BU isn't. (Also, I'm interested in Big Law, and from what I understand, rankings matter for that. I also plan on living/working in either New York or Philadelphia after I graduate, not Boston).
Is it worth it to give up the money at BU to go to Cornell?

[UVA2B]

Depends how badly you're set on NYC and Philly following law school. If you really don't want to end up in Boston, you probably shouldn't go to BU. If you'd be okay ending up in Boston and you're debt-averse though, BU is the safer choice here financially. Half tuition at Cornell is still pretty big debt that would probably bother me personally, but if you really want NYC Biglaw more than anything else, it's much more likely to get you there. Have you calculated Cost of Attendance at both schools to get real numbers for debt?

[Lawschool305]

OP I'm in the same exact boat as you, and will most likely be attending Cornell. I don't have much to add because I am not sure what is the correct choice, but I am interested to hear what people say on this thread as well.

[Lavitz]

Definitely Cornell if you have no interest in practicing in Boston. If you really wanted to work in Boston and didn't mind not getting biglaw, it would be different. The Cornell debt is near the limits of what I would tolerate, but I think it's worth it here.

[existentialcrisis]

Definitely Cornell if you have no interest in practicing in Boston. If you really wanted to work in Boston and didn't mind not getting biglaw, it would be different. The Cornell debt is near the limits of what I would tolerate, but I think it's worth it here.

I agree with this.

Also, are you from Philadelphia?

[prospectivelawyer]

Thank you, guys! I'm leaning more towards Cornell, and I'm hoping to use my offer at BU to negotiate more scholarship money.

And I'm from South Jersey, about 15 min from Philly!

[existentialcrisis]

Thank you, guys! I'm leaning more towards Cornell, and I'm hoping to use my offer at BU to negotiate more scholarship money.

And I'm from South Jersey, about 15 min from Philly!

Philly firms care about ties, but I'll bet south South Jersey would do the trick. I would go to Cornell and spend your 1L summer in Philly + mass mail the firms there and I'd think you should be good to go.

[Clemenceau]

Thank you, guys! I'm leaning more towards Cornell, and I'm hoping to use my offer at BU to negotiate more scholarship money.

And I'm from South Jersey, about 15 min from Philly!

Philly firms care about ties, but I'll bet south South Jersey would do the trick. I would go to Cornell and spend your 1L summer in Philly + mass mail the firms there and I'd think you should be good to go.

+1

[Dr. Nefario]

BU free is a great option if you did want to work in Boston. They also do place a good amount of grads in NYC and have an OCI program in Philly. That said, Cornell's numbers are much better for biglaw. It kinda comes down to you get a free shot at 33% biglaw or a $100,000+ shot at biglaw. Personally I would go BU because being free of debt is incredible. However, with grades being unpredictable and with you not wanting Boston biglaw at all, then Cornell might be the better option.

[Rigo]

I'd go Cornell.