What school ranking and above is respectable Forum

[tier3]

What school ranking and above is respectable on US News and World Report? Where is the cutoff?

[slexisl1024]

13

[BlueLotus]

It is foolish to go by rank. Look at schools based on LST scores, instead. http://www.lawschooltransparency.com/

So-called "TTT" schools like U of Montana, U of Wyoming, etc. are reasonable choices if you go for cheap, want to live there, and have ties to those regions.

[Wingtip88]

It is foolish to go by rank. Look at schools based on LST scores, instead. http://www.lawschooltransparency.com/

So-called "TTT" schools like U of Montana, U of Wyoming, etc. are reasonable choices if you go for cheap, want to live there, and have ties to those regions.

This times infinite.

Forget about the dumb ass ranking system. Pick a school that has strong job placement in a market you want to work in and whose borrowing requirement will leave you with a manageable debt load at repayment.

There's really nothing else to consider.

[eriedoctrine]

Go to LST.
Do not go to any school < 80%, including those in the T14 (NU, Yale, etc)

[Cicero76]

Go to LST.
Do not go to any school < 80%, including those in the T14 (NU, Yale, etc)

lolllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

[timbs4339]

It depends on a bunch of factors. Do not let a defunct news magazine/college rankings company determine how you invest three years of your time and five or six figure.

[Kimikho]

Go to LST.
Do not go to any school < 80%, including those in the T14 (NU, Yale, etc)

"I got into Yale and gtown but went to gtown because the employment score was so much better" -- said no one ever

Lst isn't perfect. It doesn't count for law school funded jobs. Don't go to a school with a low lst score (not including Yale) but don't just waltz off to gw because according to lst 78% of grads get jobs.

[bugsy33]

That's not how it works.

[should-i-do-it]

Yale or die bro. Fuck HS

[EricHosmer]

Yale or die bro. Fuck HS

Yale on full ride

[AT9]

The "respectable" ranking is entirely based on where you want to work and what your goals are.

Any legal job in South Dakota? TTT (USD) is quite possibly your best option.
Mid-law in North Carolina? #31 (UNC/Wake) and up
Gov. in Minnesota? #20 (UMN) and up
SCOTUS clerkship? T5/T10 and up

You get the point. And as others said, the rankings shouldn't be relevant in your search. Look at schools that place strongly in your desired region, or the "national" schools like the T-14. If you can't get into a school with solid placement in your desired region for a reasonable price (in relation to your goals and the likelihood of that happening), don't go.

[tier3]

Do most go to school in a state they'll be working in after graduation? Or can you go to school in another state and still be accepted by those hiring for the state you return to?

[BigZuck]

Do most go to school in a state they'll be working in after graduation? Or can you go to school in another state and still be accepted by those hiring for the state you return to?

Generally you should go to school in the state you want to practice in, although there are possible exceptions when it comes to tippy top schools and wanting to get a job at big firms (which isn't applicable to you)

Don't go to law school with your numbers, no way will it be worth it.

[Louis1127]

u suck as a poster and if youre an alt u suck at alting

[tier3]

Zuck,

I'm studying for the LSAT I'm not going in cold, I'll do fine. In my prior posts I intentionally under estimate my potential scores so as not to put stress on myself. It's better to be conservative on your scores and coming out better than being liberal and coming out with a worse score.

[gnomgnomuch]

You're looking at it incorrectly.

It's based on your particular goals.

Example: You live in Minnesota, don't particularly want biglaw and want to stay there... UM is the place to go.
Example: You live in Minnesota, want biglaw and don't want to stay there.... UM is not the place to go.

If you want to live in a region, go to that regions strongest school, unless you want biglaw at that region, then either that region on a full ride (and get top 20% or so) or the best school you can get into. But there are drawbacks, you take on more debt, might not be able to return, might strike out at OCI if you end up at a school like GULC instead of a school like Columbia.

If you want just biglaw, don't care where you end up, and are willing to take on 280k of debt, then go to the highest t-14 school you get into. Thats a pretty awful option though.

Also, look up your schools LST. You need to know what the best/worst/likely scenarios will look like when you graduate. At Harvard, you'll be more or less good unless you're socially retarded and have awful grades and are just awful. At Fordham, the outlook is a lot different.

Also, take into account underemployment scores, clerkship scores all of that.

Choosing a law school is like playing Russian roulette with 3 years of your life, and about a quarter of a million dollars, you've got to be really careful about it, and you have to know where the risk is and isn't worth it - but thats very personal as well. For you 300k for a Harvard degree is worth it, for someone else, they'd rather take the full ride at a lower t-14, same with 300k for a lower t-14 degree, versus a full ride at a strong regional.

[sopranorleone]

Zuck,

I'm studying for the LSAT I'm not going in cold, I'll do fine. In my prior posts I intentionally under estimate my potential scores so as not to put stress on myself. It's better to be conservative on your scores and coming out better than being liberal and coming out with a worse score.

That's a good strategy, but by the same token, be conservative as to your chances for post-graduation employment. Law school is a huge risk, and even those who do score 170+ end up deciding not to go.

[tier3]

Louis,

If you don't like my posts don't read them.

[pancakes3]

Nobody can give you legitimate advice if you're not willing to share at least a practice score. The reality is if you can't score in at LEAST the high 160's, with your GPA, you really shouldn't go to law school.

[tier3]

pancakes,

I'm scoring 173 -176 there are a few that I'm missing but I think it's because I'm tiring toward the end. How does one build up endurance for this test?

[KMart]

pancakes,

I'm scoring 173 -176 there are a few that I'm missing but I think it's because I'm tiring toward the end. How does one build up endurance for this test?

Try taking 6 section tests for a few of your PTs. I did this and it made the 5s feel a lot easier.

[patogordo]

pancakes,

I'm scoring 173 -176 there are a few that I'm missing but I think it's because I'm tiring toward the end. How does one build up endurance for this test?

i thought you weren't a multiple question test taker?

[tier3]

patogordo,

I'm really not if I had to choose I prefer essay tests, term papers and presentations.

[Louis1127]

tier 3 and above is totally fine, anything below that is bad though

and don't let anyone tell you that rank doesn't matter- law is all about prestige, and ranking is the only thing that matters- that's why it's worth all the debt.