tkim88 wrote:Just as a positive follow up to all the negative discussion in here, Santa Clara is a great school, not only for IP. I have several friends who matriculated, and are now working in big law at firms like Quinn and Kirkland as well as smaller, boutique firms making $160K+ per/year. I think your experience is what you make of it and how much effort you put into it, and I think it's unfair to the rest of the forum community to insert such a negative piece that is so clearly skewed.
Law school success is not based off what you make of it and though effort helps, it's not guaranteed. I don't think it's unfair or clearly skewed that one person posted his one negative experience. For ever friend you have who are working biglaw, there are 9 who aren't. Only 50% of last year's class were employed as lawyers. The employment numbers don't lie. Someone from my HS graduated with a JD/MBA above median and after 2 years of unsuccessful job searching (sporadically employed doing doc review but after a certain amount of time the stink of unemployment doesn't wash off regardless of how positive and diligent you are), is studying for the MCATs.
Also, by and large, the professors at every law school are absolutely qualified to teach and whatever "terrible" professor one encounters is just part of the natural distribution of people. There are lazy professors at every law school - even HYS.
As far as "being a good lawyer" goes, I don't think a Harvard graduate necessarily is a better lawyer than a Santa Clara grad or some other school. The problem is there are only half as many jobs out there as graduates, so how do you choose? A higher tiered school is a signal so employers don't have to waste resources in deciding which candidate is better.
I hope I didn't come off as mean or judgmental.