Top Law Schools

I am trying to decide which of my three options I should choose. I applied to Villanova too and was accepted but they arent really in the equation due to their recent scandal. I am a PA resident (Philly) so temple and pitt would be cheaper. I have heard good things about Pitt as a city but I am not sure if I want live there for the rest of my life, or at least the foreseeable future, as it is kind of small. I am reluctant to leave Philly because it is my home but Temple Law is in a seedy area. I like maryland too because Baltimore would be a completely fresh and new area for me, also a medium sized city, though I have heard that their law school is also in a seedy area.

Any opinions would be appreciated.

If you have to pay sticker OOS at Maryland, then it shouldn't really be in consideration unless you can afford it without loans. I've heard of Pitt grads getting nice jobs in Philly but it seems Temple grads do dominate the area. Personally, if I was in your shoes, I would pick the place that I would be most comfortable going to school and living in.

ran12 wrote:If you have to pay sticker OOS at Maryland, then it shouldn't really be in consideration unless you can afford it without loans. I've heard of Pitt grads getting nice jobs in Philly but it seems Temple grads do dominate the area. Personally, if I was in your shoes, I would pick the place that I would be most comfortable going to school and living in.

Yeah I forgot to add that I do not need to worry about debt or loans. I should have stated that as it is very relevant

karate1243 wrote:I have heard good things about Pitt as a city but I am not sure if I want live there for the rest of my life, or at least the foreseeable future, as it is kind of small.

I guess Pitt would be a pretty silly consideration then, wouldn't it?

arvcondor wrote:

karate1243 wrote:I have heard good things about Pitt as a city but I am not sure if I want live there for the rest of my life, or at least the foreseeable future, as it is kind of small.

I guess Pitt would be a pretty silly consideration then, wouldn't it?

pretentious douche, like many, though not all, people on TLS

karate1243 wrote:

ran12 wrote:If you have to pay sticker OOS at Maryland, then it shouldn't really be in consideration unless you can afford it without loans. I've heard of Pitt grads getting nice jobs in Philly but it seems Temple grads do dominate the area. Personally, if I was in your shoes, I would pick the place that I would be most comfortable going to school and living in.

Yeah I forgot to add that I do not need to worry about debt or loans. I should have stated that as it is very relevant

In that case Maryland is the better of the 3 options. People say shit about Baltimore but it's not that bad, especially in the law school area and you're also close to DC. Maryland also has the best career opportunities of the 3 if you prefer to be on the east coast but Temple and Pitt do tend to dominate their respective regions.

karate1243 wrote:

arvcondor wrote:

karate1243 wrote:I have heard good things about Pitt as a city but I am not sure if I want live there for the rest of my life, or at least the foreseeable future, as it is kind of small.

I guess Pitt would be a pretty silly consideration then, wouldn't it?

pretentious douche, like many, though not all, people on TLS

Not sure how it's pretentious to point out that you're considering a regional school in an area you don't seem to want to be.

I'm a Pitt student and I love Pittsburgh. However, I think if you want to stay in Philly, you should go to Temple. I think having REALLY strong ties to an area is very marketable. I grew up in Pittsburgh, went to Pitt for undergrad, and now go to Pitt law. I think it's a very strong selling point in interviews. I'm not a flight risk at all. Plus, you probably have a network and connections in Philly (even if you don't realize it, you might be surprised who can help you).

If you like Philly, go to Temple.

Scurredsitless1 wrote:I'm a Pitt student and I love Pittsburgh. However, I think if you want to stay in Philly, you should go to Temple. I think having REALLY strong ties to an area is very marketable. I grew up in Pittsburgh, went to Pitt for undergrad, and now go to Pitt law. I think it's a very strong selling point in interviews. I'm not a flight risk at all. Plus, you probably have a network and connections in Philly (even if you don't realize it, you might be surprised who can help you).

If you like Philly, go to Temple.

I appreciate your opinion. I've been to pitt a few times to visit some friends I have there and i've liked it. However, I feel like Philly has more to do and a better legal market. The upside of pitt is that I would be living in shadyside probably, which ive heard is very nice. The area around temple, as most people know, is sketchy.

It seems like Temple is your best option. Don't try to talk yourself out of staying in Philly just because Temple Law is located in a sketchy area. I visited Temple and really liked the school. The campus itself is fine and the law school facilities are good as well, though the surrounding area is pretty sketch a few blocks away. That said, Temple is a good school that does well in Philly. You have connections in Philly [and I completely agree with the above poster who commented that local allegiance, if you will, is a valuable asset with firms and in interviews...I am currently experiencing this], and you seem like you want to stay in Philly. So stay in Philly and go to Temple. Best of luck with your decision!

I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

I think it has something to do with the total meaninglessness of the rankings and the duplicity with which schools release employment data.

arvcondor wrote:

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

I think it has something to do with the total meaninglessness of the rankings and the duplicity with which schools release employment data.

TIC.

Never. I repeat, NEVER look at median salary, its absolutely worthless.

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

cuz Maryland is TTT. u mad?

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

Where are you getting these numbers? I thought temple was ranked 72...also where did you get the starting salary number?

morristmm wrote:

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

Where are you getting these numbers? I thought temple was ranked 72...also where did you get the starting salary number?

Median salary at MD is listed at 70k b/c a lot of people there go into PI and gov't.

Wholigan wrote:

morristmm wrote:

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

Where are you getting these numbers? I thought temple was ranked 72...also where did you get the starting salary number?

Thanks for the smarty-pants response. I'm not finding anywhere that ranks Temple 61 for 2011. Can you post an actual link?

morristmm wrote:

Wholigan wrote:

morristmm wrote:

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

Where are you getting these numbers? I thought temple was ranked 72...also where did you get the starting salary number?

Thanks for the smarty-pants response. I'm not finding anywhere that ranks Temple 61 for 2011. Can you post an actual link?

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandr ... ngs/page+3

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... e#p4165438

BarbellDreams wrote:

arvcondor wrote:

2things2 wrote:I'm trying to figure something out that I noticed while looking at the new rankings.

Temple is ranked 61st while Maryland is ranked 42nd, but it says that the median starting salary for Maryland is 70k while the median starting salary for Temple is 135k. Is there an explanation for this that I'm missing? HOW is this the case?

I think it has something to do with the total meaninglessness of the rankings and the duplicity with which schools release employment data.

TIC.

Never. I repeat, NEVER look at median salary, its absolutely worthless.

Can you explain why it doesnt mean anything? And the numbers don't include public service jobs, it literally says this:
Temple's median private sector starting salary: 135k
Maryland's median private sector starting salary: 70k

How can I ignore that I would be making twice as much money coming out of Temple?

ran12 wrote:Median salary at MD is listed at 70k b/c a lot of people there go into PI and gov't.

yeah, this is definitely why....

oh my god i feel like everyone knows the answer to this question except me! tell tell tell!

2things2 wrote:Can you explain why it doesnt mean anything? And the numbers don't include public service jobs, it literally says this:
Temple's median private sector starting salary: 135k
Maryland's median private sector starting salary: 70k

How can I ignore that I would be making twice as much money coming out of Temple?

A- Never believe the school's salary info. They all game the system.
B- Do not assume you will be making any particular amount of money by attending any school whatsoever in these tiers. If you do, the admissions people have you right where they want you. See 'A'.
C- I would not be shocked if the actual numbers were skewed toward Temple when it comes to salary. They have identical NLJ 250 placement, and Temple places the vast majority in Philly, where market is $145k. I believe market is $125k in Baltimore (someone correct me if I'm wrong) where the majority from UMD no doubt place. That is not going to account for a $55k difference, but it's something.

Wholigan wrote:

2things2 wrote:Can you explain why it doesnt mean anything? And the numbers don't include public service jobs, it literally says this:
Temple's median private sector starting salary: 135k
Maryland's median private sector starting salary: 70k

How can I ignore that I would be making twice as much money coming out of Temple?

A- Never believe the school's salary info. They all game the system.
B- Do not assume you will be making any particular amount of money by attending any school whatsoever in these tiers. If you do, the admissions people have you right where they want you. See 'A'.
C- I would not be shocked if the actual numbers were skewed toward Temple when it comes to salary. They have identical NLJ 250 placement, and Temple places the vast majority in Philly, where market is $145k. I believe market is $125k in Baltimore (someone correct me if I'm wrong) where the majority from UMD no doubt place. That is not going to account for a $55k difference, but it's something.

I thank you for your attempt, but this doesn't explain anything. I give up.

median salary is a bogus statistic. it just means 50% of those reporting data make more than that number, while 50% make less than that number. this might work well if 100% of the employment data was collected, but unfortunately schools seem to pick and choose what numbers they will report and only about 1/4 of the class actually ends up reporting employment info. basically they fudge the data to make them look better. people, such as yourself, who don't know any better, may fall for this trap.

as for # employed percentages. these are also bullshit because you can report a graduate as being employed whether they work for Skadden or Taco Bell.