H vs GULC @ $X? Forum

[HughSteeply]

H @ 266 K
GULC @ 249 K - $X

What $X makes GULC the more attractive option? There are some other schools with $$$ offers (though fewer than what TLS might expect given my numbers), but these are the only two I can seriously consider for external personal reasons.

Considerations:

Background is computer science and several years in tech. Would like to make a shift to IP/Patent/Tech-related law. Unicorn outcomes (academia) welcome but not expected due to low likelihood. Ties to East Coast / DC but would put a significant value on the option to move to West Coast and Asia.

COA figures include 0 interest payments because I will be funding law school from personal savings. Does the typical TLS calculus change if the choice is between ~0 net worth and an extra (max) ~250K in the pocket, as opposed to the more common ~300K debt vs COL/0 debt? I understand that a mountain of debt would severely limit the options that are viable after graduating, but would having incremental $ over ~0 net worth make many more options in my field of interest viable? My current perspective looking at those numbers is that it would likely translate to having to wait an extra ~3 years to make a mortgage downpayment.

All input (except suggestions to do tech, been there done that) is welcome, though if you would please include what perspective (0L, 1-3L, practicing lawyer) you are coming from that would be greatly appreciated for putting your thoughts into context.

[jbagelboy]

By personal savings, do you mean a drop of your parents vast net worth, or do you mean all the money they've saved (or that you've helped save) over the past decade? If the former, then Harvard is cost justified at basically any X. If the latter, I would seriously reconsider how you want to spend this money, and probably only do so for Georgetown at total COA of less than $100k.

Put another way, I think Harvard is worth considerably more than Georgetown in your circumstances--$150,000 more--but spending this much money on law school is itself a questionable proposition regardless of school.

[HughSteeply]

By personal savings, do you mean a drop of your parents vast net worth, or do you mean all the money they've saved (or that you've helped save) over the past decade? If the former, then Harvard is cost justified at basically any X. If the latter, I would seriously reconsider how you want to spend this money, and probably only do so for Georgetown at total COA of less than $100k.

Put another way, I think Harvard is worth considerably more than Georgetown in your circumstances--$150,000 more--but spending this much money on law school is itself a questionable proposition regardless of school.

It really is personal savings (note my comment about having 0 net worth), not the result of any vast parental wealth. I am not looking at law school as a net positive financial investment compared to not going (tech salaries are quite good). Rather, I am approaching this from the perspective of wanting to do law, so I'd like to keep the focus on the decision between the two options rather than between them and not going at all.

Input from someone with experience (reading your post history) is exactly what I am interested in, but I am a little unclear which side you are coming down on. Your post suggests that 150 k is the difference maker for someone actually paying for law school. Specifically, do you have any thoughts on what having or not having that incremental savings over 0 would open up, if anything, in terms of legal opportunities in ip/patent?

[Nathanael]

i don't know why on earth you'd consider going to GULC for that much money let alone consider it when you have an offer from HLS

edit: sorry, i misunderstood your post. are you waiting for a scholarship offer or something? GULC is notoriously stingy so i wouldn't wait with bated breath.

[deepseapartners]

I'm a current student and don't know much about employment outcomes for IP/tech law specifically. But your employed at graduation prospects in general from Harvard are so much more certain than from Georgetown that I think anything short of a full ride would be a mistake.

[Hikikomorist]

Why/how are these your only two options?

[Aeon]

If law is what you really want to do (instead of investing the money into a business or other alternatives), and you're considering keeping "unicorn" options open, I would say Harvard is the way to go here.

[fliptrip]

Well, let me at least engage the worth conversation from something like a quantitative basis. Harvard's outcomes are worth about $125,000 more than Georgetown if you consider expected 2 year earnings in biglaw. So, in one sense, that's your X. From there, it's up to you to decide what value you place on downside risk, etc.

There's something about having to use so much of your own money to do this that makes me nervous. Paying $200-250k of your own money to embark on this just feels painful. I echo others by wondering why you don't have a better option somewhere in the middle.

[wons]

On the one hand you're framing your question as an ROI question, but then you make clear that what's driving you is a non-economic desire to do law. If you treat the Harvard degree as a consumable, then what's its worth is what you are willing to pay for it. No different than driving a Mercedes compared to a Honda - both get you where you want to go, the Honda is a third of the price, plenty of people buy the Mercedes if they want it enough and have the money.