Does Brooklyn suck? Forum

[soda mayor]

It seems everyone in my situation is usually forced to decide between fordham at sticker or cardozo with money while Brooklyn Law is almost always completely overlooked. I know cardozo isnt a "great" school but is Brooklyn that much worse than Cardozo? I can't see it being THAT much worse its only like 10 spots behind in the rankings. Maybe there's something i'm missing.

I'm gonna be visiting cardozo and fordham in the upcoming weeks, should I visit BLS too?

[de5igual]

Brooklyn and Cardozo don't differ really as far as cost and exit options are concerned. Have you considered Rutgers-Newark? Not sure how true this is, but both BLS and Cardozo have reputations for section stacking--something to consider if you've received a scholarship there.

[j.wellington]

I looked into Brooklyn quite a bit. The impression I got was that it's a decent school if your only priority is to study and practice in New York City. I've met a few BLS alums doing corporate law who are pretty accomplished and one very impressive guy who holds a low-paying though socially important position doing low-income housing litigation, but even they weren't talking up their school. They were industrious people who took the opportunity to be at the foot of the NYC market and ran with it. If that sounds like you, it's probably worth the no-fee, no-deadline application. Just don't expect it to be a ticket to anywhere.

[vanwinkle]

I looked into Brooklyn quite a bit. The impression I got was that it's a decent school if your only priority is to study and practice in New York City, but not worth much otherwise. I've met a few BLS alums doing corporate law who are pretty accomplished and one very impressive guy who holds a low-paying though socially important position doing low-income housing litigation, but even they weren't talking up their school. They were industrious people who took the opportunity to be at the foot of the NYC market and ran with it. If that sounds like you, it's probably worth the no-fee, no-deadline application. Just don't expect it to be a ticket to anywhere.

This. BLS' position right in the middle of the legal/political center of Brooklyn is a huge plus (it's walking distance from both the Kings County Criminal Court and Supreme Court, as well as offices of lawyers who represent clients in both) and I've met people who attended BLS and went on to become PDs, ADAs, etc. in the area by interning and making connections while they went to the school.

BLS is a place for someone who's willing to work their ass off in order to get into the NYC market. It can be useful for that, but only that.

[keg411]

Brooklyn and Cardozo don't differ really as far as cost and exit options are concerned. Have you considered Rutgers-Newark? Not sure how true this is, but both BLS and Cardozo have reputations for section stacking--something to consider if you've received a scholarship there.

Rutgers-Newark really places in NJ, though... not NYC.

[Rutgers1L_10]

Brooklyn and Cardozo don't differ really as far as cost and exit options are concerned. Have you considered Rutgers-Newark? Not sure how true this is, but both BLS and Cardozo have reputations for section stacking--something to consider if you've received a scholarship there.

Rutgers-Newark really places in NJ, though... not NYC.

That is a slightly under-informed statement (and a sometimes common misconception about the NY/NJ legal market)

1. There really aren't THAT many firms in NJ that are lone-firms. Most are smaller, satellite offices of NYC firms. An extraordinarily large number of 2L/3Ls, and recent grads that have firms positions work in both the NY and NJ offices of many firms and corporations.

2. NJ is one of the few states that has their state-test for the bar on a different day that the other test. Therefore most NJ law students actually take both the NY and NJ bar at the same time. This is a great attribute, because you can actively practice on either side of the Hudson. But,employers will have new associate do all their dirty work in the larger NYC office, but you get a lot of specialized attention and hands-on at the smaller NJ firms.

3. But as a general matter Rutgers has incredible connections in the court systems, and in the private sector all over Norther, Central and even Southern NJ.

[im_blue]

It seems everyone in my situation is usually forced to decide between fordham at sticker or cardozo with money while Brooklyn Law is almost always completely overlooked. I know cardozo isnt a "great" school but is Brooklyn that much worse than Cardozo? I can't see it being THAT much worse its only like 10 spots behind in the rankings. Maybe there's something i'm missing.

I'm gonna be visiting cardozo and fordham in the upcoming weeks, should I visit BLS too?

Perhaps BLS gives out less scholarship money than Cardozo, and hence isn't seriously compared to Fordham.

[afterglow99]

Brooklyn and Cardozo don't differ really as far as cost and exit options are concerned. Have you considered Rutgers-Newark? Not sure how true this is, but both BLS and Cardozo have reputations for section stacking--something to consider if you've received a scholarship there.

Most def - if you are going to do law school exclusively on loans and aren't comfortable with 200k in debt from Fordham, Rutgers Newark is probably the most sensible choice for the NY area. Why pay double at Brooklyn for comparable job placement? Everyone at Rutgers gets instate tuition anyway so it runs 23k/year. If your scholarship at Cardozo/Brooklyn is unconditional then they could be good options. But still, before the recent econ shakeup Rutgers had better biglaw placement anyway!