Empirical basis for benefit of T1-> T14/T20 transfers Forum

[09042014]

Is there any empirical evidence that transferring have a measurable effect on entry level hiring when you already go to a halfway decent school, toughly T1?

I just don't see why a firm would care that you transferred. I'd treat them the same as if they were at their old school.

[shock259]

I posted this in your other thread:

Went to lower ranked midwestern T1 that places ~3% in biglaw. Had substantial scholarship. Transferred to CLS, paid sticker, got big firm offer in NYC. Biglaw was almost certainly not going to happen from my old school. My grades weren't good enough and I had no connections. No way I could have been accepted at CLS as a 1L with my UGPA/LSAT. The only reason I got biglaw was because I transferred.

I'd definitely do it over again.

Just to add, I was top ~7-8% at my T1. No NYC biglaw firms even went to my T1's OCI. Regional big firms and national firms with local offices only.

At OCI at CLS, interviewers always mentioned transferring right off the bat. I always explained that I transferred for career reasons. I decided during my 1L that I wanted to do biglaw and biglaw would have been very difficult to get from my old school. All interviewers understood. My stats final OCI stats were something like: ~35 screeners, ~12 CBs, ~10 CBs taken, ~8 offers, ranging from V20-V100 (for what it's worth). I got a couple of CBs from V10 firms but no offers. I expect I was shut out of the top firms mostly because of my grades from the T1.

So grades matter, and your old school definitely matters, but transferring up can give you a huge advantage if you are gunning for a biglaw SA.

Oh, I also mass mailed right after I got accepted to CLS. I mailed basically all biglaw firms in NYC. Even with Columbia on my resume, only a couple ever got back to me, and all but 1 were rejections. If I had stayed at my T1, this would have been my only access to the NYC market (as mentioned, no NYC big firms went to my T1).

TL;DR: transferring gave me access to WAY more screeners, which gave me WAY more CBs, which led to more offers than I would have otherwise managed.

Also, there's some OCI data in one of the transfer stats threads that has more than just anecdotes. It has old school, new school, # of offers, etc.

[BVest]

TL;DR: transferring gave me access to WAY more screeners, which gave me WAY more CBs, which led to more offers than I would have otherwise managed.

This. And many of those you'll get interviews with that you wouldn't otherwise get through mass mail, esp. if the new school does lottery interviews. Over half my CBs were lottery pick rather than pre-select.

[09042014]

Transferring markets makes sense. But intra market the same question applies.

[sap]

Transferring markets makes sense. But intra market the same question applies.

A lot of the big firms don't refuse to hire people from shitty schools because they're uncomfortable with top grades, crap school, but because clients are. My transfer bestie, who knew the managing partner at the firm where she ultimately ended up, asked him for an interview before she transferred. He flat told her that unless she moved to a better school, he wouldn't even bring her in for an interview. This was with all of her grades back. Anyone who says that you have the same opportunities in the same markets from the TTT school with great grades as you would at the T14 school as a transfer is flat lying or doesn't know what they're talking about. Quit lying, DF. You usually know what you're talking about.

And firms that I ultimately got offers from (through OCI, in the market where both schools are) were firms that I had mass-mailed before transferring and gotten rejections from. It's not just one story from one person.

[Nebby]

Technically DF only mentioned intramarket T1 transfers to T14. If you're an intramarket T2/3/4 transfer to T14, then that makes more sense.

sap, did y'all transfer from an intramarket T1? Or T2?

[FSK]

.

[butlerraider1]

Yeah, transferring from GW-> Georgetown or Fordham-> NYU is probably pretty stupid, especially if you loose a scholarship.

Yeah, this.

[collegebum1989]

Yeah, transferring from GW-> Georgetown or Fordham-> NYU is probably pretty stupid, especially if you loose a scholarship.

What is the reason behind this? Is it because any conferrable advantage of the higher ranked school on OCI outcomes would be negligible since your 1L grades are coming from the lower-ranked school anyway?

Also, assuming COA for both are the same, would transferring within market make sense to have a more prestigious degree at graduation make a difference say 10 years down the line?

[Nebby]

Also, assuming COA for both are the same, would transferring within market make sense to have a more prestigious degree at graduation make a difference say 10 years down the line?

No.