Santa Clara ($$$) v. Hastings ($$) Forum

[PrizeFighter]

Santa Clara COA - 65K (35K per year scholly with no stips)
Hastings COA - 120K (20k per year scholly with 3.0 stip)

I live 10 minutes from Santa Clara or an hour via train from Hastings, and my sugar mama will continue to pay the rent while I am in school, but the rest will be financed by loans.

I hope to work in either PI or Gov in the bay area or nearby. I have worked for the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office for the past year as a clerk, and I worked for the Public Defender for 6 months before that. I am hoping this gives me a bit of an edge when it comes to getting hired back as an attorney, but Santa Clara County is extremely competitive (I believe it's the highest paying DA office in the country), so getting hired back is hardly a foregone conclusion. Either way, I hope to find a job that takes advantage of LRAP type programs.

I can take a year long leave of absence from work and go back, so there is the option of switching to part time at Santa Clara after the first year to hold on to my current job, and this also allows me to hold onto my seniority and retirement plan (new hires come in with a worse retirement plan). This seems like the safest/most practical play.

Hastings is tempting because I really want to test myself against the highest caliber of classmates possible. I know this is probably a stupid ego thing, but I never felt challenged at my state school, so I want to see what my limits truly are.

GPA- 2.66 (180 degree grade trend after going back to school, but the damage was already done)
LSAT - 169, 167, 172

PS. If I get off the waitlist at either Northwestern or Virginia, is sticker at either school a better option?

[nlee10]

no Davis?

[PrizeFighter]

no Davis?

I didn't apply to Davis. I figured they were comparable to and wouldn't offer more money than Hastings, but I wouldn't have to move if I go to Hastings, and there is no way I am commuting to Davis from San Jose every day. I probably should have at least applied for negotiation purposes, but that ship has sailed.

[macgruber]

PrizeFighter- Im a 2L and was wondering if you knew anything about the post-bar clerk position and whether that leads to full time employment at Santa Clara District Attorney's office?

[ub3r]

I think people will say that if you want to do PI, try to stay in your desired region and definitely minimize debt. So UVA and Northwestern at sticker seem like really bad options for you.

I also think the cheaper cost and local connections/ease of access make SCU much more viable than Hastings here.

[Rigo]

my sugar mama will continue to pay the rent while I am in school

Please elaborate on this.

[Rigo]

Hastings is tempting because I really want to test myself against the highest caliber of classmates possible.

lol

I'd go for the cheaper option here. HasTTTings isn't worth the extra money, and keeping your ties to the DA's office will probably be worthwhile.

[ManoftheHour]

Even with that GPA, with a 172, I'm surprised these are your only options.

Of these two and with those goals, definitely Santa Clara.

[PrizeFighter]

PrizeFighter- Im a 2L and was wondering if you knew anything about the post-bar clerk position and whether that leads to full time employment at Santa Clara District Attorney's office?

The two post-bar clerks I knew well (one from Hastings and one from UVA) interviewed for but did not get the gig. Hastings grad did get hired by a smaller county down south FWIW. The position helps, but there are just so may applicants.

Go for the 2L honors program if you can. It leads to a job fairly often I'm told.

[PrizeFighter]

my sugar mama will continue to pay the rent while I am in school

Please elaborate on this.

Lol, wife makes enough to pay my half of the rent and utilities while I'm in school.

Hastings is tempting because I really want to test myself against the highest caliber of classmates possible.

lol

I'd go for the cheaper option here. HasTTTings isn't worth the extra money, and keeping your ties to the DA's office will probably be worthwhile.

I figured that would get a lol (highest caliber being relative and all), but I appreciate the input from everybody. I was already leaning towards SC, but this makes me feel more confident I'm making the right choice.

[PrizeFighter]

Even with that GPA, with a 172, I'm surprised these are your only options.

Of these two and with those goals, definitely Santa Clara.

I really only applied to two convenient schools (SC and Hastings), and the rest were schools that were out of my league (Harvard, Stanford, Berk, Chi, UVA and Columbia). I figured anything between wasn't worth uprooting my life and quitting my job for.