UVA or NU ??? -- Please Help! Forum

[igo2northwestern]

It's not a disadvantage because an LLM is a very different degree; law firms typically don't hire a 1 year LLM alone (tax is the exception ofc). Your background would be distinct either way, I think. The people I know at NU in my year with a similar background to yours got V5 firms.

Anyway, I'll just say that you should visit both schools. It seems that your mind is set on the other school, and that's fine too. At the end of the day, it's wherever you think you'll thrive.

Good point! Once there, no one cares about the journey you took there.

I'm glad that you enjoyed Sichuan/Chinese food I'm happy with or without it.

Also, I sort of like being one of a kind And being the only (or one of the no-more-than-three) Chinese in OCI might even be of advantage (English/Mandarin bilingual with extensive WE/network both in US and China)? While staying with 50 other Chinese who have similar qualifications with me might be a bad thing when it comes to hiring...

OP is a she

I was actually a bit confused why NU wl'ed me at the first place. Both my lsat and gpa are above their 75% with WE ( 3+ yrs in the states + 2 yrs in China) plus advanced degree... it hurts to hear "someone from the WL", I guess that's one of the reasons I lean on UVA, who admitted me early January and offered me $105K beginning of March.

OP, I wouldn't focus on the timing so much; I understand though that you might feel slighted. The reason why I say this is because Admissions is very removed from your life as a student in law school. Once you're in, you're in. And at this point, it is more important to assess whether you'll enjoy the community, the surrounding environment, housing situation, academic life, etc. Still, if you're concerned about NU's treatment of international students, I think the fact that there were 50 international Chinese LLM students this past year might change your opinion.

I forgot to mention before, Chicago has a Chinatown if Chinese food is important to you. (from what I understand, a lot of my Chinese friends here appreciate it). There's also this one Sichuan place I went to a few months ago (not Lao Sze Chuan) -- it was amazing. hmm... I wonder what the name of it was..

[Informative]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

[furrrman]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

Is this true for biglaw?

[igo2northwestern]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

Is this true for biglaw?

NU's CA placement is solid--I'm pretty sure that the school's geographic segmentation is through student preference. I don't know a single person who wanted CA Biglaw but did not get it.

[furrrman]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

Is this true for biglaw?

NU's CA placement is solid--I'm pretty sure that the school's geographic segmentation is through student preference. I don't know a single person who wanted CA Biglaw but did not get it.

Thanks, this is what I assumed. Median at NU should have a solid chance at CA biglaw, whereas median at USC/UCLA probably does not.

[sundance95]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

Is this true for biglaw?

NU's CA placement is solid--I'm pretty sure that the school's geographic segmentation is through student preference. I don't know a single person who wanted CA Biglaw but did not get it.

I can say the same for UVA, at least amongst the biglaw competitive segment of the class.

The decision is whether you want to live Chicago or Charlottesville. They could not be more different. One is a college town, the other is a major city. One has great weather, the other, not so much. Surely you have a preference one way or the other.

[ymmv]

For the west coast, I would choose NU. While you already mentioned it, you really should have applied to UCLA/USC for Cali, each of which are going to place better than NU or UVA in Cali.

Is this true for biglaw?

NU's CA placement is solid--I'm pretty sure that the school's geographic segmentation is through student preference. I don't know a single person who wanted CA Biglaw but did not get it.

I can say the same for UVA, at least amongst the biglaw competitive segment of the class.

The decision is whether you want to live Chicago or Charlottesville. They could not be more different. One is a college town, the other is a major city. One has great weather, the other, not so much. Surely you have a preference one way or the other.

TITC nutshell response.

[M458]

thanks a lot~ appreciate your help

As for the vibe, I'm assuming - correct me if I'm wrong - located in downtown Chicago + Kellogg's influence NU people might be more career-driven/pragmatic/suit-n-tie type with little campus/community feel? While UVA somehow gives me this very earthy feeling, more campus feel, super nice people, but probably isolated from real world internship/externship/etc. opportunities thus not quite sure what they wanna do with their degree once graduate?

No offense to anyone (sorry NUers and UVAers), just wanna find out more relevant info. to help making my decision...

I agree, this really comes down to where you want to live and just which overall vibe you think would suit you better. Personally I'd choose NU just because I'd much rather live in the city. There's really no bad choice to be made.

NU's culture is not suit and tie at all, outside of OCI interviewing. Though I should mention that if you wanted to do a NDIL/appellate judicial externship or fed/states attorney externship, even during the school year (getting course credit + lit experience), you could commute very easily since the courthouse is in the heart of Chicago.

People here are friendly and chill. I think if I were to sum up the culture of NU, it would be a group of people, many of whom are older/have work experience, who understand that there are other priorities apart from out-competing your classmates for grades and jobs. People here will often go out for a beer on the town, and the folks in Chicago exude the Midwestern friendly feel.

I should add that the APALSA community here is huge, and the student organization is one of the best in the country in terms of it's structure, events, etc. There is also an enormous Chinese LLM group every year--last yeah it was 50.

One last pretty important, and overlooked plus, is that any class under 40 students is uncurved. This means that, apart from your 1L core classes, you have the choice to have a less grade focused time throughout 2L and 3L (and many people do).

Edit: as for living, you could stay further from the school for cheap ($600) or live for sub-$1400 rent in a high rise with a doorman, indoor tennis courts, gym, and pool 2 blocks from the law school. It's super nice, and as someone who has lived in NY, SF, and LA, it's impossible to get these prices anywhere else.

Good info here, but just wanted to point out that $600 is pretty unrealistic. The range is closer to $900-$1400. Sure, you can find roommates and/or live a lot further from campus, but most don't. Even living in Uptown is probably closer to $700-800 and that commute is 45+ minutes.

[lhanvt13]

woah lots of good info here. I'm just tagging along for the useful stuffs.

[yosup]

Thank y'all for the great discussions! I've learned so much and it definitely helped tremendously