Should I transfer? (Round 2) Forum

[keg411]

And how about commuting? Does anyone have any experience with making a commute to school? Keep in mind that this is 2L year, not 1L, so there isn't the same urgency and fear of 1L year. But is it just too unworkable to take a 50 min train ride into NYC every day?

It would depend where you are coming from in NJ. If you live off 280, it's pretty easy to drive to Harrison and then take the PATH (this will cut time off your commute and you won't have to take the train the whole way... plus the PATH is cheaper than NJT). If you don't, do you live off a direct train line or would you have to change trains or drive far? Some city commutes are more tolerable than others for reasons besides the length.

[kaiser]

And how about commuting? Does anyone have any experience with making a commute to school? Keep in mind that this is 2L year, not 1L, so there isn't the same urgency and fear of 1L year. But is it just too unworkable to take a 50 min train ride into NYC every day?

It would depend where you are coming from in NJ. If you live off 280, it's pretty easy to drive to Harrison and then take the PATH (this will cut time off your commute and you won't have to take the train the whole way... plus the PATH is cheaper than NJT). If you don't, do you live off a direct train line or would you have to change trains or drive far? Some city commutes are more tolerable than others for reasons besides the length.

Im right along the NE corridor line by one of the local stops. Takes approx 50 min to get to the city. Subway ride from NY Penn station to NYU ia estimated at 6 min. Though is obviously have to allow for delays.

[keg411]

And how about commuting? Does anyone have any experience with making a commute to school? Keep in mind that this is 2L year, not 1L, so there isn't the same urgency and fear of 1L year. But is it just too unworkable to take a 50 min train ride into NYC every day?

It would depend where you are coming from in NJ. If you live off 280, it's pretty easy to drive to Harrison and then take the PATH (this will cut time off your commute and you won't have to take the train the whole way... plus the PATH is cheaper than NJT). If you don't, do you live off a direct train line or would you have to change trains or drive far? Some city commutes are more tolerable than others for reasons besides the length.

Im right along the NE corridor line by one of the local stops. Takes approx 50 min to get to the city. Subway ride from NY Penn station to NYU ia estimated at 6 min. Though is obviously have to allow for delays.

That sounds like an extremely painless commute (plus, commuting after 1L is apparently much more tolerable). Knowing what I know about commuting into the city, it sounds pretty tolerable. Worst case scenario and you can't stand it, you can always move into the city/somewhere closer in NJ.

I think since you didn't make law review, transferring is probably the right choice. Especially since you are going "home" (which I'm guessing is where you are right now) and won't have to make any huge adjustment.

[crazyblink653]

And how about commuting? Does anyone have any experience with making a commute to school? Keep in mind that this is 2L year, not 1L, so there isn't the same urgency and fear of 1L year. But is it just too unworkable to take a 50 min train ride into NYC every day?

because it's a train ride, i wouldn't worry about it too much, since you can presumably catch up on work/sleep while on the train ride to and from each day. the only downside is that you are constrained by the train schedule. i'm not too familiar with NY/NJ transit, but that could be a downside if the frequency of trips is not very good at the times you would probably need to take them.

As for Penn, i'm from philly and I know that you can find a very comfortable apartment within 10-15 min subway/trolley ride to the law school for about $700/mo, MUCH cheaper than anything comparable you'd find in NYC.

my vote is that if you're happy where you are, and can perhaps use your acceptances as leverage for even more money from your current school, it may be more financially prudent to stay where you are. BUT if you're concerned about clerkships/academia/NYC biglaw placement, you might want to consider one of those schools, in which case i would say Penn, given convenience and COL.

[kaiser]

I've been searhing around and saw a bunch of cheap options in places like Jersey City, where the school would only be a 20 min PATH train ride away. Renting out a room in Jersey City can be as cheap as 500/month so that definitely seems feasible. I really do want to start in NYC biglaw because of the training you get and the future opportunities it opens up. At BU we get a good number of big NYC firms, but they just don't interview many people (it's a 1 day off campus program shared with BC). So I guess im starting to lean toward NYU. Even the clerks in the courthouse where I work seemed to recommend transferring.

[Tiresias]

I had an hour commute to my school via public transportation. I found it to be a benefit and not a burden. I liked being able to review materials on the train, warm up my brain, and get into the mindset of class. Coming home was sometimes exausting, however, I also felt it was good decompression time.

[kaiser]

I had an hour commute to my school via public transportation. I found it to be a benefit and not a burden. I liked being able to review materials on the train, warm up my brain, and get into the mindset of class. Coming home was sometimes exausting, however, I also felt it was good decompression time.

Hmm, interesting to hear that

[kaiser]

I really wish there were someone out there who could tell me whether top 10% at BU without LR would be "safe" for NYC big firm job. I know the results in this poll were overwhelmingly NYU, but its hard to get over the short-term wallet-shock of adding in at least 50K in debt if I could get an NYC big firm position where I am now. Any BU or BC 2L's out there who can shed some light on how "safe" I would be going into OCI? I know that nothing is a guarantee, but I would just really love to hear some stories/feedback/anecdotes on this before I make any sort of decision.