Opinion on: BU vs W&L $$ vs Wake $$ Forum

[Xtinz88]

Thoughts??

I am leaning toward working on the East Coast and have ties there. All were reaches considering my scores and price is not really a concern.

Open to any/all opinions

[bk1]

price is not really a concern.

Why?

[IrwinM.Fletcher]

price is not really a concern.

Why isn't it a concern?

If money is water, BU is certainly the best school on your list so just go with it. But if you're saying you don't care how much debt you take on, then...

[Xtinz88]

price is not really a concern.

Why?

Had a big UG scholly and just came into some family money so debt is not really an issue (sorry if that sounds absurd)

[Mal Reynolds]

Save your money and get a job. Put that shit in a mutual fund and buy a beach house instead of a worthless degree.

[bk1]

Had a big UG scholly and just came into some family money so debt is not really an issue (sorry if that sounds absurd)

It doesn't sound absurd. Honestly it depends on the amount of family money. If you're talking millions, then blowing 150k on law school probably isn't that big a deal. If you're talking about more like 200k then I think you really should care how much of that you put towards law school. Blowing all the family money on law school isn't necessarily a good investment (especially if the school is mediocre, e.g. the schools you have mentioned). You could invest that money much more wisely on top of the fact that scholarships are going to be more of a factor.

You need to be more specific than "East Coast." If you want VA --> W&L. If you want NC --> Wake. If you want Boston --> BU.

[hephaestus]

Save your money and get a job. Put that shit in a mutual fund and buy a beach house instead of a worthless degree.

Don't waste your family money. Put $140 of it towards a retake.

[Xtinz88]

Thanks for the opinions...definitely a lot to think about!

[RedGiant]

Hi, my brother attended Wake and graduated about 5 years ago. FWIW, even though he went to an East Coast Ivy, and he did well, he found it difficult to get NC employment due to "lack of ties to NC.". Just one anecdote, but keep in mind that the South can be very insular. I will note, having gone to grad school in New England, that Boston is very clubby about everything too, so not sure if my anecdote heps....mostly just think about geographically where you might want to end up. My brother had a great time at Wake and the COL can't be beat. Good luck with a few great options.

[northwood]

where do you have ties, specifically ( and what are they?). Where do you want to work? Each of the schools you listed are in a separate region. So while they may be similarly ranked, they are not "peer schools" because they are all in different regions, and if you want the south, and go to BU- you will have to triple out work someone from te region, who went to Wake to prove your ties.

[FamilyLawEsq]

edited

[YankeesFan]

I think the ties thing is overblown...Top 1/3 at Wake with no ties to NC and got mid-law in Charlotte. After spending a summer down here no one has questioned me about ties.

[somewhatwayward]

My child graduated from Wake in 2011 at median=Fed job in DC. His/her fiance/e top 25% in same class=patent boutique in DC area.

Well, it's nice that it worked out for them, but only 55% of Wake's c/o 2011 was in long-term full-time jobs (http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=wake), so they should feel grateful to have dodged a bullet. People qualified for patent law are also in a different boat. It is easier for them to get jobs.

[northwood]

I think the ties thing is overblown...Top 1/3 at Wake with no ties to NC and got mid-law in Charlotte. After spending a summer down here no one has questioned me about ties.

ties also can be used to help determine if you would be happy in that region after graduation.

[FamilyLawEsq]

[quote="somewhatwayward"]Well, it's nice that it worked out for them, but only 55% of Wake's c/o 2011 was in long-term full-time jobs (http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=wake), so they should feel grateful to have dodged a bullet. People qualified for patent law are also in a different boat. It is easier for them to get jobs.[/quote

[Crowing]

Well, it's nice that it worked out for them, but only 55% of Wake's c/o 2011 was in long-term full-time jobs (http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=wake), so they should feel grateful to have dodged a bullet. People qualified for patent law are also in a different boat. It is easier for them to get jobs.

The problem is that many assume everyone goes to law school to work for a firm. For those that want and get PI placements, think tanks, goverment jobs where JD is an advantage, and/or work in business, those jobs should not be termed as "underemployed positions" by LST. For most that is exactly what incoming students wanted, they never wanted a firm. Those students did not "dodge a bullet." Obviously, if someone is big law or bust and does not want to work in the Mid Atlantic region, they may not want to attend Wake Forest. Wake's number for long term positions at 9 months is 69.62%

For those with post-graduate work for the class of 2011, one wanted to work in construction law so s/he got a master degree in construction and is now working for large company in the South. Another went to get a degree from the London School of Economics to come back and work in DC. They did exactly what they came to law school to do. The bottom line is once all law schools provide more accurate information one can research the school and make an informed decision but treating LST (with its firm bias) as gospel is shortsighted.

Um, that's not how LST works. The "employment score" includes PI and government work as well - the only requirement is that the position be a long-term, full-time legal position. Sure this doesn't include people who get non-legal jobs, but those people had no good reason to go to law school in the first place if they didn't want to be a lawyer.

[Rahviveh]

Well, it's nice that it worked out for them, but only 55% of Wake's c/o 2011 was in long-term full-time jobs (http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=wake), so they should feel grateful to have dodged a bullet. People qualified for patent law are also in a different boat. It is easier for them to get jobs.

The problem is that many assume everyone goes to law school to work for a firm. For those that want and get PI placements, think tanks, goverment jobs where JD is an advantage, and/or work in business, those jobs should not be termed as "underemployed positions" by LST. For most that is exactly what incoming students wanted, they never wanted a firm. Those students did not "dodge a bullet." Obviously, if someone is big law or bust and does not want to work in the Mid Atlantic region, they may not want to attend Wake Forest. Wake's number for long term positions at 9 months is 69.62%

For those with post-graduate work for the class of 2011, one wanted to work in construction law so s/he got a master degree in construction and is now working for large company in the South. Another went to get a degree from the London School of Economics to come back and work in DC. They did exactly what they came to law school to do. The bottom line is once all law schools provide more accurate information one can research the school and make an informed decision but treating LST (with its firm bias) as gospel is shortsighted.

JD advantage jobs aren't counted in underemployment IIRC but they also aren't counted in the employment score. It would be interesting to see a statistical chart tracking the "JD Preferred" category across the rankings. Just eyeballing it, the the "higher-ranked" schools seem to have lower JD-preferred rates, suggesting these aren't desirable options unless you're having trouble finding legal work

[timbs4339]

I know a guy who won 150K on a game show. Put it all on law school and graduated with no job, ended up doing contract work and finally trying to go solo. Strange how the "safe" path turned out riskier than the 1 in a million shot.