Wake Forest vs. Emory

[CaptainApathy]

Got a $60,000 scholarship at Wake and a $42,000 scholarship at Emory. I'm from NC and I'd like to stay in the area, and I've visited Wake and really liked what I saw there. However, the prospect of attending a law school as prestigious as Emory is mighty tempting. What say you?

[tourdeforcex]

what are your goals?

do you know how emory grads place in NC?

[CaptainApathy]

I don't have terribly specific goals in mind right now beyond exploring my interest in the law.

As for Emory's placement in NC, that's a good question that I don't have an answer for. Anyone have any insight on that?

[rebexness]

[pokerlaw]

I'd go Wake since you want to stay in NC.

[Eagles_Legendz]

If you want to work further south than NC, go to Emory.

If you are interested in staying in NC, go to Wake.

If you're interested in working anywhere in the north, you probably have as good of a shot at either school, so go to Wake and save the money.

[zonto]

No UNC?

[SrLaw]

I am have 45K from Emory and 66K from Wake.


I am in the same position as to not knowing what to do.

[Nicholasnickynic]

No UNC?

NLJ 250 =10% at unc. He probably wants to pay back his loans.

[TheFactor]

No UNC?

NLJ 250 =10% at unc. He probably wants to pay back his loans.

With in-state tuition at UNC, total COA will be similar to Wake.

Edited for clarity.

[MrAnon]

as prestigious as Emory

Is this a joke? You understand that after you get outside the top 15 or 16 schools, T18-T40 are all fungible. They are the same school quality and prestige within their areas. Nobody in NC is going to care that you went to Emory.

[crit_racer]

as prestigious as Emory

Is this a joke? You understand that after you get outside the top 15 or 16 schools, T18-T40 are all fungible. They are the same school quality and prestige within their areas. Nobody in NC is going to care that you went to Emory.

I disagree. You really think OSU or Alabama have as much lay prestige as BU or Emory? I don't. I'm from a place that is pretty far from any of these schools (TX), and I can guarantee you that people here would be more impressed by BU or Emory than Ohio State or Alabama.

Private schools in general carry more lay prestige I think. Also, Emory is more or less a household name. (anecdotal) when i told my parents I was applying to Emory, they were impressed/excited. When I told them I was thinking about applying to Wake Forest they were like huh? why? I bet you most ppl in the country don't even know what state Wake Forest is in...

Edit: having said that, OP I think you should def. take the $ at WF if your goal is to work in NC. I'm just saying that if you wanted to work outside of NC, Emory would have greater prestige

[Nicholasnickynic]

as prestigious as Emory

Is this a joke? You understand that after you get outside the top 15 or 16 schools, T18-T40 are all fungible. They are the same school quality and prestige within their areas. Nobody in NC is going to care that you went to Emory.

I disagree. You really think OSU or Alabama have as much lay prestige as BU or Emory? I don't. I'm from a place that is pretty far from any of these schools (TX), and I can guarantee you that people here would be more impressed by BU or Emory than Ohio State or Alabama.

Private schools in general carry more lay prestige I think. Also, Emory is more or less a household name. (anecdotal) when i told my parents I was applying to Emory, they were impressed/excited. When I told them I was thinking about applying to Wake Forest they were like huh? why? I bet you most ppl in the country don't even know what state Wake Forest is in...

[CaptainApathy]

UNC has been having a hard time processing my in-state residency for some reason and consequently I haven't heard from them yet. I've been to Chapel Hill numerous times and while its a nice town to visit, I wouldn't want to live there. A little too fratty for my taste. Not to mention, cost of living is considerably higher in the Chapel Hill area.

As for Emory, I know its not an Ivy or anything, but its the best school I got into and I've always heard their degree carries a significant amount of weight in the South. Not to mention their people have been extremely gracious and accomodating with my questions and concerns; that's considerably more than I can say for the people at UNC and William and Mary.

Also, thanks for all the replies. I really appreciate getting some outside thoughts on this.

[mez06]

No UNC?

NLJ 250 =10% at unc. .

You know, this could be a misleading statistic. For (1) Students placing in the Big-Law "range" based upon grades more than likely opt-ed to PI jobs at UNC versus WF (2) It's North Carolina. Law firms hire there but not necessarily the biggest 250 firms. There are employers that give comparable salaries that are NOT one of the biggest 250 firms in the country. My logic. And I think its sound.

[Nicholasnickynic]

No UNC?

NLJ 250 =10% at unc. .

You know, this could be a misleading statistic. For (1) Students placing in the Big-Law "range" based upon grades more than likely opt-ed to PI jobs at UNC versus WF (2) It's North Carolina. Law firms hire there but not necessarily the biggest 250 firms. There are employers that give comparable salaries that are NOT one of the biggest 250 firms in the country. My logic. And I think its sound.

sure there are firms that hire that give comparable salaries? Are you suggesting that for some reason all the unc students migrate to those while the WF students take the nlj 250? That makes zero sense.

Also, plenty of wf students do PI. Im interning at NC DoJ this summer.

[tttlllsss]

Got a $60,000 scholarship at Wake and a $42,000 scholarship at Emory. I'm from NC and I'd like to stay in the area, and I've visited Wake and really liked what I saw there. However, the prospect of attending a law school as prestigious as Emory is mighty tempting. What say you?

Given your situation, you should go to WF for sure

If you weren't set on staying in NC, I would say go to Emory

[FGCUguy123]

What if I'm looking to stay in the south (Florida, Atlanta)? I've heard people say go for it. I know the job market is hard now, but Emory is, as previously mentioned, a household name in the south. The positive feedback helps me rationalize spending $90,000 in loans.

[tttlllsss]

What if I'm looking to stay in the south (Florida, Atlanta)? I've heard people say go for it. I know the job market is hard now, but Emory is, as previously mentioned, a household name in the south. The positive feedback helps me rationalize spending $90,000 in loans.

How will your debt load be only $90k? Thought you got a $30k scholly

[FGCUguy123]

What if I'm looking to stay in the south (Florida, Atlanta)? I've heard people say go for it. I know the job market is hard now, but Emory is, as previously mentioned, a household name in the south. The positive feedback helps me rationalize spending $90,000 in loans.

How will your debt load be only $90k? Thought you got a $30k scholly

I'm not factoring in living expenses...my parents are helping me out. I'm very grateful.

[Eagles_Legendz]

If you're looking at Atlanta, go to Emory.

In regards to Florida, I'm not sure there is a significant difference between Emory and Wake, though I would venture to say that Emory puts you in a slightly better position.

[FGCUguy123]

If you're looking at Atlanta, go to Emory.

In regards to Florida, I'm not sure there is a significant difference between Emory and Wake, though I would venture to say that Emory puts you in a slightly better position.

Yeah, I think you're right. Especially because whenever I tell people (in Florida, where I live) that I got into Emory, they are very impressed.

Also, if you go to WF remember...you WILL be competing with UNC and Duke. UNC is, maybe, a little more do-able, however, WF pales in comparison to Duke. Emory, on the other hand, is the top dog in GA...WITH some national reach and some regional reach. Keep that in mind.

[Nicholasnickynic]

If you're looking at Atlanta, go to Emory.

In regards to Florida, I'm not sure there is a significant difference between Emory and Wake, though I would venture to say that Emory puts you in a slightly better position.

Yeah, I think you're right. Especially because whenever I tell people (in Florida, where I live) that I got into Emory, they are very impressed.

Also, if you go to WF remember...you WILL be competing with UNC and Duke. UNC is, maybe, a little more do-able, however, WF pales in comparison to Duke. Emory, on the other hand, is the top dog in GA...WITH some national reach and some regional reach. Keep that in mind.

truth... although ATL as a market is heating up.. so I imagine there are a fair share of duke/uva grads there

[FGCUguy123]

If you're looking at Atlanta, go to Emory.

In regards to Florida, I'm not sure there is a significant difference between Emory and Wake, though I would venture to say that Emory puts you in a slightly better position.

Yeah, I think you're right. Especially because whenever I tell people (in Florida, where I live) that I got into Emory, they are very impressed.

Also, if you go to WF remember...you WILL be competing with UNC and Duke. UNC is, maybe, a little more do-able, however, WF pales in comparison to Duke. Emory, on the other hand, is the top dog in GA...WITH some national reach and some regional reach. Keep that in mind.

truth... although ATL as a market is heating up.. so I imagine there are a fair share of duke/uva grads there

Where did you get that information about ATL heating up? I know the ranking drop is probably shifting some Emory faculty to work for their paychecks and are now in the process of increasing job opportunities for Emory grads. It would be great to see some evidence that the ATL legal market is heating up (insofar as Emory is a very viable option for me).

[Nicholasnickynic]

If you're looking at Atlanta, go to Emory.

In regards to Florida, I'm not sure there is a significant difference between Emory and Wake, though I would venture to say that Emory puts you in a slightly better position.

Yeah, I think you're right. Especially because whenever I tell people (in Florida, where I live) that I got into Emory, they are very impressed.

Also, if you go to WF remember...you WILL be competing with UNC and Duke. UNC is, maybe, a little more do-able, however, WF pales in comparison to Duke. Emory, on the other hand, is the top dog in GA...WITH some national reach and some regional reach. Keep that in mind.

truth... although ATL as a market is heating up.. so I imagine there are a fair share of duke/uva grads there

Where did you get that information about ATL heating up? I know the ranking drop is probably shifting some Emory faculty to work for their paychecks and are now in the process of increasing job opportunities for Emory grads. It would be great to see some evidence that the ATL legal market is heating up (insofar as Emory is a very viable option for me).

Well, perhaps I spoke too soon- I'm not aware of the ITE numbers on ATL, but it had been an expanding market for a while- as opposed to DC, NYC, Boston, Chi, which are all supersaturated.


Here's an article- although I can't seem to find a date on it-

http://www.scribd.com/doc/47803193/The- ... in-Atlanta