Duke, Columbia, NYU, NU (sticker) v. UT (45k) v. BC/BU (90k) Forum

[lmsf]

For the right person, Columbia at sticker is a good choice. But your situation sounds like anything but a full-ride is going to be risky. And, no offense meant, but 3.3/164 students are the types we read horror stories about graduating from a T6 and doing doc-review. If you are going to pay sticker (and HYSC are the only places I would), your heart better be completely in it.

No offense taken. This is also why I am skeptical. I've never been one to punch clocks. However, I am truly interested in the law, its history, and its application. I am also aware that my career goals (politics>international NGOs>Judge) require a law degree.

Politics and international NGOs do not require a law degree. You should only go to law school if you want to practice law. If your interest is international/politics, you should get a Master's in Public Policy or International Affairs. It will be much cheaper and will serve you better in the field.

If you are interested in domestic politics and you are easily bored, you should consider working on political campaigns. Each job is only during the campaign season (and if you're doing a presidential campaign you're often jumping from state primary to state primary so your job changes even more) and you'll have a lot of constant change and be able to work on many types of campaigns. You don't need an advanced degree for this type of work (or even a BA really), all that matters is how good you are and your connections. Of course, this type of work required 80+ hours a week and pays like shit in the beginning (consulting and fundraising is where the big $'s at, and you need experience for that), so up to you.

A lot of people get JDs before joining the foreign service, which puts you on a new project/in a new country like every 2-3 years. That's something to consider, OP, especially considering that LRAP would then cover it.

Right, I don't mean you CAN'T do intl NGO/foreign service, etc. with a JD, just that it's not required. And if something's not required, why not get a degree that's cheaper, takes less time, and puts you on a direct path to that job instead like SFS or SAIS? (On a side note, I believe OP mentioned he's an immigrant. That might be an issue for foreign service from the US. I heard that immigrants may be subject to extra screening depending on where they're from, how long they've been in the US ... but that still leaves a lot of non US-diplomat options open)

[Bronck]

I didn't realize how dramatically Columbia had cut its class size over the last two years until now! 469 to 365?

They have reduced the classes but I don't think it's by as much as you're saying. Are you comparing a graduating class vs an entering class? They always pick up a bunch of transfers. This has an entering class drop of ~10% http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school=columbia.

Correct. They seem to pick up 40-50 transfers a year. That being said, 10% from c/o 2014 to c/o 2015 is quite a significant drop; it means that our class, post-transfers, will be similar in size (assuming they admit the same number of transfers) to previous entering classes, which should help at OCI (though, how much, who knows).

That being said, I wouldn't necessarily advocate CLS at sticker either...

[walkingpanda]

Thank you guys for these suggestions. Yes, I am in love with politics and currently considering working on a Mayoral campaign. I have feeling that, once I get into it, I will never look back. And, yes, foreign service would probably not work for me (I'm from one of those ohhhhh scary countries).

[Doorkeeper]

Would it be possible to use the Columbia acceptance to get Duke or Northwestern to give some aid?

[walkingpanda]

Would it be possible to use the Columbia acceptance to get Duke or Northwestern to give some aid?

I've thought about that but I do not know how to go about it without insulting a school. Take UT for example.
"Dear UT, you have given me $ but I have been accepted into CND. These are great t-14 schools compared to your shitty t-17 or whatever you are. As you may already know, $ is an important criteria in my decision making because 1) I want to minimize debt and 2) maximize my employment prospects. Your school has given me $ but DNC are better schools and they too have accepted me. So give me more $ or I shall go to DNC for 0$."

In summary, Your acceptance +45K is worth less than DNC at sticker.

[mr.hands]

I think this might be one of those "don't go to law school" situations. None of those sound very promising to me.

A minority (AA from a more recent post) with a Columbia admission shouldn't go to law school? There has to be an astronomically small chance that he wouldn't receive at least one market paying offer.

he's looking at 300k in debt...you know how many years of biglaw its gonna take to pay that off? probably wont last long enough.

That's my biggest concern. I get bored, really quickly. I've had like 10 jobs and in 7 years. My motto is MOVE ON. It visibly shows when I am bored.


On other hand, I entirely believe I can raise my LSAT to 170+. But what are the chances of getting a fully scholly from a t-14 with ~3 and 170+ for AA male?

Your motto isn't going to serve you well if you have 300k in debt. If you get a market-paying biglaw job that allows you to pay off that debt, you will be locked into it for the loooong term (and lucky to have it)

Don't go to law school.