Best Law Schools for an Introvert Forum

[ktbug17]

Hi everyone, 0L here stressing about law school. As a bit of background, I currently attend a huge and highly rated public school that I honestly don't really like. It's way too big for me and the sheer size of campus and the student population means I rarely see the same people and therefore haven't made very many close connections. It's very important to me that in my law school application and decision process I look at schools that will better suit my needs and make me more comfortable on top of lining me up for a good job after graduation. I'm mostly looking for schools with small class sizes in small to medium sized towns with a good community feel preferably in the Top 25 or even Top 50, being as Big Law is not my end goal. My current LSAC GPA is 4.0 with 3 semesters left (projecting 3.85 - 4.0) and I'll be taking time off before entering law school to work and prep for the LSAT (diagnostic was 169, aiming for 174). Could anyone recommend any schools that fit the criteria above and might even give me a good bit of money to attend? I've been looking at UVa and Cornell so far. Thanks and sorry if this was confusing or poorly worded; I wasn't quite sure how to explain it.

[CanadianWolf]

Of course, you need an actual LSAT score. Nevertheless, if you need scholarship money then you should be aware that Harvard, Yale & Stanford only award need based aid, but they reward graduates with the best legal positions in the field. If you actually end up with a 3.9 GPA & an LSAT in the 170s, then just apply to all of the Top 14 law schools & you should receive several substantial scholarship offers.

[Mack.Hambleton]

All schools are split up into small sections, and the biggest law schools are only about 1500 students, so like the size of a high school.

[ktbug17]

Yeah, of course I know this is purely speculative at the moment. Just trying to figure out how to make law school a better experience than undergrad.

[CanadianWolf]

Law schools tend to revolve around studying & academic work, whereas most undergraduate programs have a heavy emphasis on social activities so you should be more comfortable in law school.

[acr]

This should not be a consideration for deciding where to go to law school. With a 4.0 your opportunities are endless. It would be foolish to rule out schools like Harvard, Chicago, Columbia/NYU, etc just because they're in a big city or have larger classes and you might not like it. Law school is not comparable to going to a large, public undergrad in any way. You are in the same building taking the same classes with the same people you sit next to seeing the same people in the hallways and commons. Every law school has introverts. If you go to a school like Cornell or UVA, it is likely that you will be practicing law in a big city. Most meaningful legal jobs are in big cities. There's no way around it, so if you want to be a lawyer and go to law school I would get over it. No matter the size of a city or school you can always form as small of a community for yourself as you want

[scone]

All schools are split up into small sections, and the biggest law schools are only about 1500 students, so like the size of a high school.

Do they have the feel of a high school, community-wise, though? Is it fairly difficult for students to socially fall under the radar at schools like Harvard, despite the huge class size, or do you get some people who are seen at the beginning then disappear for the next three years?

[Gray]

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[ktbug17]

I want to practice criminal law in the California (Bay Area specifically) and am hoping to end up at a DA's office. I know that for those purposes, Berkeley or Stanford are the best options, but since Berkeley is where I am now and I hate it and Stanford doesn't give merit aid (and I won't qualify for much need-based aid) I've decided to look out of the state. I have strong ties to the area, being as I attended undergrad here and my whole family lives in the South Bay. I also have ties to some local DA's offices and private criminal defense firms since my dad is a police officer. Based on what I've looked into so far, it doesn't matter so much where you go for that sort of work as long as you have experience as a summer intern and have shown interest in criminal law based on the courses you've taken. Also, don't all of the T14 place primarily into Big Law?

[TheSpanishMain]

I want to practice criminal law in the California (Bay Area specifically) and am hoping to end up at a DA's office. I know that for those purposes, Berkeley or Stanford are the best options, but since Berkeley is where I am now and I hate it and Stanford doesn't give merit aid (and I won't qualify for much need-based aid) I've decided to look out of the state. I have strong ties to the area, being as I attended undergrad here and my whole family lives in the South Bay. I also have ties to some local DA's offices and private criminal defense firms since my dad is a police officer. Based on what I've looked into so far, it doesn't matter so much where you go for that sort of work as long as you have experience as a summer intern and have shown interest in criminal law based on the courses you've taken. Also, don't all of the T14 place primarily into Big Law?

Yes and no. TLS often talks about BigLaw placement as a proxy for employment prospects generally, because if a school places a lot of it's graduates into Big Law jobs, it has the ability to place them into other jobs as well.

Just out of curiosity, why do you want to be a DA if you're an introvert? I'm not criticizing, just wondering. Given that DAs are constantly in court and doing a lot of public speaking, I wouldn't think that would appeal to an introvert.

[ktbug17]

I don't mind public speaking. I guess my introversion is expressed in different ways. I won't go out of my way to talk to and try to connect with any become good friends with someone because as an introvert I'm very content to be alone most of the time, so I'm hoping for a law school environment that will force me to be more social because I'll be around the same people constantly.

Also, although ending up at a DA's office is my big goal (currently, I still have quite a few years), I would also be happy at a firm or in Big Law as long as it was in the SF/Silicon Valley area. I'm aware that my interests may change but I doubt that my location preference will.

[landshoes]

If you want to see the same people every day, all day, consider UChicago. You can still avoid making friends here, but it takes a lot of effort (and we have orientation programming specifically designed to help you get to know your classmates better). Hyde Park is also sort of a small area within the bigger city. It's honestly a little too small/community-y for me.

[Mack.Hambleton]

All schools are split up into small sections, and the biggest law schools are only about 1500 students, so like the size of a high school.

Do they have the feel of a high school, community-wise, though? Is it fairly difficult for students to socially fall under the radar at schools like Harvard, despite the huge class size, or do you get some people who are seen at the beginning then disappear for the next three years?

Maybe after 1L when you can get away from your section, but 1L everything is with your section so it's pretty hard

[landshoes]

Also, the people I know who have gone to other law schools still made some friends (or no friends) basically depending on their ability and desire to make friends. Not necessarily based on the size of the school. So while I think it's great that you're looking at a law school that would be a good fit for you, I would also consider that it might be important also to adjust your behavior a little bit if making friends in law school is important to you.

(Seriously, though, uchicago makes a huge huge deal out of facilitating this exact thing, so don't rule it out just because it's in chicago. That doesn't mean it's right for you either, but we literally just did 3 days of activities that were all about making friends and bonding with each other. You really would have to work to not know and be known by at least 30+ people after our orientation.)

[seashell.economy]

Maybe Berkeley would be a better fit? The students and faculty seem to stress a more collegial environment, and it seems to be a bit more colorful than, say, Chicago. It seems like you might enjoy the environment, and the location is also where you desire.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Maybe Berkeley would be a better fit? The students and faculty seem to stress a more collegial environment, and it seems to be a bit more colorful than, say, Chicago. It seems like you might enjoy the environment, and the location is also where you desire.

since Berkeley is where I am now and I hate it and Stanford doesn't give merit aid (and I won't qualify for much need-based aid) I've decided to look out of the state.

That said, OP, you might enjoy the law school atmosphere more than the general university atmosphere (if the issue is size/impersonality).

[foregetaboutdre]

OP I went to Michigan for undergrad and now am at a LS at another large university. Law School is literally not like "big campus" undergrad (although I personally enjoyed it). You don't interact with the main campus essentially at all besides I guess parking if you drive to class.

[seashell.economy]

Oh! For some reason I read that as if OP was at Stanford now and hated it - skimmed and didn't pay attention! Thanks for the correction.