Immediate help - Pepperdine (full) vs. Irvine (50% off)!! Forum

[math.j]

Oh, and I'm interested in this theory...... I can think of a few potential outcomes.

[Teoeo]

Thanks all!

so...

No, I am very much not christian. and i'm not too tied to any side of the political spectrum, but i'm definitely far more more liberal in ideals.

I went to UC Santa Barbara for undergrad. I'm really not excited to go to another rich, white, beach school, but I also am not a fan of Orange County at all.

So I guess the scholarship issue could be bigger than I thought. Pepperdine seemed quite convincing that the money would be there. Realistically, two years, or even one year of full tuition would be insane. I'm super broke. Already owe tens of thousands.

So now, the family and friends (who know little about law schools) say Pepperdine. and this forum indicates Irvine! Yikes.

You really should go to Irvine. A lot of people are turning down USC and UCLA to go there, and I wouldnt be surprised if it ended up ranked T20 in the next few years. The reason your family doesn't know about it is because it's new, but I guarantee you UCI is going to make damn sure their first 3 classes get amazing placement.

[Teoeo]

BTW, im sure they place all the students with teh scholarship in the same section to compete against each other, this is a common practice.

[DarkwingDick]

BTW, im sure they place all the students with teh scholarship in the same section to compete against each other, this is a common practice.

diabolical.

[dvd]

`

[eth3n]

1/2 off guaranteed vs. 1/3 requirement on full scholarship...tough call but I would go with irvine, and I am NOT an irvine lover at all, but I have a bad feeling pepperdine is going to have a steep fall next year for a variety of reasons. Also CoL Irvine wins by a longshot.

The majority of law school tests are extremely arbitrary, and they work HARD at Irvine to get their kids jobs, I gotta give them that (not to mention if you get buddy-buddy with profs quite a few of them are big names)

also teoeo is exactly right, that is a notoriously common practice.

[Great Satchmo]

I'd go with Irvine.

Guaranteed money is guaranteed money.

Plus, I imagine, as others have said, that Irvine is going to be working HARD to make sure their first few classes get the best placement possible. The school is trying to make a name for itself, and beyond selecting students with high numbers, getting graduates into top jobs will be one of the best ways.

Plus, the faculty seem to be highly regarded, and with so few students having gone through the school, I would think the faculty would be more willing to pull strings for employment.

[Gatriel]

Could you afford to stay at Pepperdine if you lost the scholarship?

[keg411]

I'd vote UCI but I have a problem with recommending a school that isn't accredited and has no history.

I'm sure it's great, but it's a bit of a gamble.

I agree that UCI is a gamble... but we're talking Pepperdine, not UCLA/USC. Plus, I have a theory about the first 2-3 classes with UCI (after that it gets hairy).

keg411, what is your theory about the first 2-3 classes?

That it will be necessary not to only make sure the the students are employed, but that they are employed in quality legal jobs. The people involved have invested too much to see Irvine "fail" (or at least fail immediately).

[Lawyerwannabe18]

OP what were your numbers?

[DerrickRose]

Go to Irvine and for christs sake get an apartment there. You do not want to commute 3 hours a day for law school.

[quadsixm]

Irvine. The incoming students' numbers are closer to UCLA's than Pepperdine's, and I wouldn't be surprised to see UCI ranked closer to 20 when all is said and done.

[DarkwingDick]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure they told us that commuting to Irvine from LA was a horrible, horrible idea and that they strongly advise against it.

[math.j]

I called the law school (Irvine) and they told me the commute wouldn't be too bad. They even said they currently have a few students who commute from San Diego to Irvine daily. That's pretty nuts. At least I'll be able to read on the train.
Oh, and if you must know. 165/3.67

[Gatriel]

Whats the verdict chief?

[acrossthepond]

I am throwing this out there... the rest of you can hate on me all you want, but I have been to Pepperdine to visit and spoken to several students who go there - ranging from 1Ls to 3Ls (and none of these were students that Pepperdine SUGGESTED I talk to). It isn't the conservative hell it is made out to be. Two of the students were liberals and say they feel perfectly at home and do not feel the conservative viewpoint pushed upon them. I am also a liberal and I didn't feel uncomfortable at all with the environment. For what it's worth, I saw several Obama bumper stickers in the law school parking lot.

I asked students if they had difficulty keeping their scholarships and of the three students I spoke to each of them only knew of one student who had lost theirs. I am not saying that this means it is a guarantee that you will keep it, I just don't think that it is the dire situation some people on this board make it out to be.

If it were me, the commute would concern me. I wouldn't do 75 minutes a day. But, if it weren't for the commute... I would still be very tempted by a full ride.

[wocehtoom]

Having visited both schools I'd like to disprove some of TLS's conventional wisdom

1) It was asked on ASD at Pepperdine whether the sections were stacked. They are not

2) There seems to be some kind of decidedly anti-christian, anti-conservative, and anti-white bias here on TLS. While the overall mission statement reflects Pepperdine's goals, no one is going to convert you, you won't feel like an outsider as a non practitioner or even an atheist, the professors are a good mix of liberal or conservative, and if you for some reason had a problem with Dean Star, he is leaving next year.

3) Both schools are a risk. While you will have to compete for your scholarship at Pepperdine, we have no idea how Irvine is going to fare, despite all the hype.

Good luck, you have two amazing options

[math.j]

I'm going with Irvine.

Sending in my statement of intent now!
Thanks everyone!

[Gatriel]

Congrats man!

Make sure you get your seat deposit back from Pepperdine. (If you sent one in

[dvd]

`

[cavebat2000]

Thanks all!

so...

No, I am very much not christian. and i'm not too tied to any side of the political spectrum, but i'm definitely far more more liberal in ideals.

I went to UC Santa Barbara for undergrad. I'm really not excited to go to another rich, white, beach school, but I also am not a fan of Orange County at all.

So I guess the scholarship issue could be bigger than I thought. Pepperdine seemed quite convincing that the money would be there. Realistically, two years, or even one year of full tuition would be insane. I'm super broke. Already owe tens of thousands.

So now, the family and friends (who know little about law schools) say Pepperdine. and this forum indicates Irvine! Yikes.

Bolded. If true then stay the fU** away from Pepperdine.