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I'm currently agonizing over Michigan v. Northwestern for transfer admission, need to make a decision soon.

Background: Top 12% at IUB in my 1L year. Originally from the mid-Atlantic, interning in DC with the FG this summer.

Anyway, my question is: how hard is it to land an SA in Chicago with no ties? I have heard conflicting things about this. If I chose NU, would Chicago firms consider that to be ties since it shows my desire to live there? Or would I be wasting bids if I bid on Chicago firms?

bump, sorry for the duplicate post but making my decision very soon. I really appreciate any insight on this...

Is Chicago like NY or DC, in the sense that ties aren't that important (from what I've heard)?

Or is it more like a regional market, where firms will be more skeptical of those without roots?

NO Chicago is NOT like NY. Coming in as a transfer with only east coast connections would be a lot of risk.

Well, do you not want NYC at all? If so either school could serve ya well. Might consider whether NU or Mich has better DC placement, though this would also seem risky as a transfer. Might want to solicit some advice from transfer students.

buckilaw wrote:Well, do you not want NYC at all? If so either school could serve ya well. Might consider whether NU or Mich has better DC placement, though this would also seem risky as a transfer. Might want to solicit some advice from transfer students.

I think they are comparable as far as DC. I am definitely open to NYC, fiancee is from there, just wanted to know about what the outlook would be for me in Chicago, given that the biggest chunk of recruiters at NU are from there.

Point taken IAFG, although I would think that I could leverage my financial W/E, plus the fact that I decided to xfer and live in Chicago, to explain my desire to be there.

You might. But the competition... It's tight.

I transferred out of the Chicago market. One of my reasons for doing so is that in speaking with a number of attorneys at big law firms my lack of ties was going to be an issue. Not sure if it would have been a death knell but coming from a school that places just over 11% in the NLJ 250 I did not want that strike against me.

Take it for what its worth but if you do go Chi prepare to develop a compelling narrative for why Chicago. Personally as an 08' graduate I find it insane that they think I would turn my nose up at big money in a big city when I've seen the horror that is unemployment. But it is something to consider...

Personally I pinned all my bids on NYC. DC market is small class size and uber competitive/selective.

I would go Michigan for the prestige and lower COA. But thats me I'm kind of a whore.

Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

I'm sorry i mentioned Mich prestige

rayiner wrote:Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

Those are harsh words. One sub-par placement year and you talk about it like it's a crap school...

The xfer class is not that much smaller, maybe 30 vs. 40 or so.

eastcoast_iub wrote:

rayiner wrote:Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

Those are harsh words. One sub-par placement year and you talk about it like it's a crap school...

The xfer class is not that much smaller, maybe 30 vs. 40 or so.

But what other way is there to end the "Michigan is prestigious" meme than to point out every chance I get that Duke is an objectively better school, with at least equal admissions selectivity and better placement, even pre-ITE: http://lawfirmaddict.blogspot.com/2007/ ... ement.html.

Michigan is a great school. When it slips to #11 next year it will be ranked appropriately.

PlessFightsFire wrote:I'm sorry i mentioned Mich prestige

I am sorry you did too.

rayiner wrote:
Michigan is a great school. When it slips to #11 next year it will be ranked appropriately.

When you talk about "appropriate" USNWR rankings, you just perpetuate the myth that USNWR rankings should play a role in prospective student analysis.

IAFG wrote:

rayiner wrote:
Michigan is a great school. When it slips to #11 next year it will be ranked appropriately.

When you talk about "appropriate" USNWR rankings, you just perpetuate the myth that USNWR rankings should play a role in prospective student analysis.

Touche.

rayiner wrote:But what other way is there to end the "Michigan is prestigious" meme than to point out every chance I get that Duke is an objectively better school, with at least equal admissions selectivity and better placement, even pre-ITE: http://lawfirmaddict.blogspot.com/2007/ ... ement.html.

Michigan is a great school. When it slips to #11 next year it will be ranked appropriately.

I agree wholeheartedly with this analysis.

lol & the egregious sixigan bashing itt

hoping this thread will go back to chances at chicago firms w/o ties

Anonymous User wrote:hoping this thread will go back to chances at chicago firms w/o ties

What else is there to say? It's an uphill battle. It's an unsafe bet, especially for someone who didn't spend even 1L in Chicago. There still aren't many jobs and UChicago, Northwestern and Michigan all have plenty of people with good grades and ties gunning for them. While I am not going to say that there is no way a transfer with no ties could get a Chicago SA, it's not a good use of one's bids.

Does growing up in the midwest, undergrad in the midwest, WE in the midwest, and transfer to chi establish enough ties in your opinion?

.

eastcoast_iub wrote:

rayiner wrote:Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

Those are harsh words. One sub-par placement year and you talk about it like it's a crap school...

The xfer class is not that much smaller, maybe 30 vs. 40 or so.

They're lightly Northwestern trolling you. (Michigan is a great school and is of course substantially more prestigious than Northwestern or especially Duke, which are both TTT Ivy wannabes.)

Anyway, Chicago has a more regional bias than New York but is probably the easiest market after New York to break without ties. Kirkland doesn't care about ties--at all--but other firms like Sidley and Jenner do. If you have something mildly compelling--and even "I'm only applying to Chicago" can be mildly compelling--you might be okay. But it does have a certain level of risk. New York is also just a much bigger market.

There is just downright absurdly bad information on this thread.

Of the 8 or so NU students at Sidley this summer, I think maybe 2 of them are from Chicago/had ties to Chicago outside of going to law school here.

Of the 3 kids at Jenner, two of them had no ties whatsoever aside from going to NU law.

People grossly overestimate how important it is to have ties to Chicago. The big firms really don't care.

NYC doesn't care about ties because they know you're going to spend 1 or 2 years at their firm, tops, so why value whether or not someone went to high school in Great Neck.

Bronte wrote:

eastcoast_iub wrote:

rayiner wrote:Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

Those are harsh words. One sub-par placement year and you talk about it like it's a crap school...

The xfer class is not that much smaller, maybe 30 vs. 40 or so.

They're lightly Northwestern trolling you. (Michigan is a great school and is of course substantially more prestigious than Northwestern or especially Duke, which are both TTT Ivy wannabes.)

Jesus Christ who gives a fuck???

rayiner wrote:Michigan has no prestige left, it's been declining since 1970. It's hanging precariously onto #10, and that's only because of all that spending on the new digs.

That said, I'd go to MIchigan as a transfer because of the smaller transfer class size.

MVP just sounds cooler than VPD

Fresh Prince wrote:

Bronte wrote:They're lightly Northwestern trolling you. (Michigan is a great school and is of course substantially more prestigious than Northwestern or especially Duke, which are both TTT Ivy wannabes.)

Jesus Christ who gives a fuck???

It was a joke. They're peer schools. Everyone knows that.