Top Law Schools

Iowa with full ride vs Notre Dame 5k

Edit: Iowa has top 1/3 stipulation vs Notre Dame with only good standing stipulation


Explanations or advise would be helpful also.

Free ride at Iowa. That would be hard as hell to pass up. It would reduce soooo much stress in law school. Needles to say, however, Notre Dame is better, but it's not that much better. Maybe if ND was a T10 then I would say forget about the money.

I know. I am having a hard time deciding and need a pros and cons breakdown. I dont know much about Iowa. Does it have an inflated ranking like IU-Bloomington or is it a generally solid school?

I went for a full ride at a lower ranked school instead of a small scholarship at a (significantly higher) ranked school. I'm only a 1L, but so far I don't regret it. It takes a lot of the pressure off.

if Iowa wins tonight go there

sckon wrote:I know. I am having a hard time deciding and need a pros and cons breakdown. I dont know much about Iowa. Does it have an inflated ranking like IU-Bloomington or is it a generally solid school?

LOL I think IU-Bloomington is way worse.

What exactly do you want to do with your degree? Big law, public interest, etc.?

No brainer, IOWA!

The only thing I worry about is the top 1/3rd of the class stipulation. How hard is that?

How did you manage only $5k at ND while getting a full ride at Iowa? I realize admissions can be somewhat arbitrary, but wow.

Definitely go to Iowa unless you have extraordinary reasons to go to ND. If anything, you could use the full ride as a bargaining chip, but I doubt you'd get much more.

ps494 wrote:

sckon wrote:I know. I am having a hard time deciding and need a pros and cons breakdown. I dont know much about Iowa. Does it have an inflated ranking like IU-Bloomington or is it a generally solid school?

LOL I think IU-Bloomington is way worse.

What exactly do you want to do with your degree? Big law, public interest, etc.?

More corporation or big law. I know Iowa has a cool corporation law journal and curriculum that would help.

sckon wrote:The only thing I worry about is the top 1/3rd of the class stipulation. How hard is that?

Edit for reading comp fail.


If the LSAT is indicative of how you will perform in law school, then you would easily be in the top 1/3 since your LSAT score is easily in the top 1/4 for Iowa.

sckon wrote:Iowa with full ride vs Notre Dame 5k


Explanations or advise would be helpful also.

Does the difference in money really matter over the course of a 30 year career? No, of course not. Notre Dame is a pretty storied law school.... Iowa's ranking could be a bit inflated as well.

Imagine that JD on the wall.... would you like to see Corn-land Iowa staring back and you and every potential client for the rest of your life or NOTRE DAME?

I'd seriously go ND.... yes, you'll incur debt, who cares.... what's the payment extended out 10 to 15 years on 100k or so? 1000/month or so? Arbitrary I say.

lawoftheland wrote:

sckon wrote:Iowa with full ride vs Notre Dame 5k


Explanations or advise would be helpful also.

Does the difference in money really matter over the course of a 30 year career? No, of course not. Notre Dame is a pretty storied law school.... Iowa's ranking could be a bit inflated as well.

Imagine that JD on the wall.... would you like to see Corn-land Iowa staring back and you and every potential client for the rest of your life or NOTRE DAME?

I'd seriously go ND.... yes, you'll incur debt, who cares.... what's the payment extended out 10 to 15 years on 100k or so? 1000/month or so? Arbitrary I say.

PS - my brother-in-law's finance's dad went to ND Law..... then became the CFO of a MAJOR health insurance company for 20+ years. They're hanging out in Italy at the moment. Don't be stupid... Notre Dame.

lawoftheland wrote:

sckon wrote:Iowa with full ride vs Notre Dame 5k


Explanations or advise would be helpful also.

Does the difference in money really matter over the course of a 30 year career? No, of course not. Notre Dame is a pretty storied law school.... Iowa's ranking could be a bit inflated as well.

Imagine that JD on the wall.... would you like to see Corn-land Iowa staring back and you and every potential client for the rest of your life or NOTRE DAME?

I'd seriously go ND.... yes, you'll incur debt, who cares.... what's the payment extended out 10 to 15 years on 100k or so? 1000/month or so? Arbitrary I say.

This has got to be the worst advice ever. With your logic, you should not even concern yourself with debt whatsoever. And yes, he/she will be better off in 30 years because he/she won't still be paying off student loans.

Also, what kind of a pretentious douche-bag would go to a school based on whether or not it looks good to have that degree on their wall?

Lawoftheland evidently would choose a law schools based on how cool it sounds when he tells his friends.

This has got to be the worst advice ever. With your logic, you should not even concern yourself with debt whatsoever. And yes, he/she will be better off in 30 years because he/she won't still be paying off student loans.

Also, what kind of a pretentious douche-bag would go to a school based on whether or not it looks good to have that degree on their wall?[/quote]


Oh I don't know... perhaps the thousands of contributors to a forum called TOP LAW SCHOOLS.

lawoftheland wrote:

sckon wrote:Iowa with full ride vs Notre Dame 5k


Explanations or advise would be helpful also.

Does the difference in money really matter over the course of a 30 year career? No, of course not. Notre Dame is a pretty storied law school.... Iowa's ranking could be a bit inflated as well.

Imagine that JD on the wall.... would you like to see Corn-land Iowa staring back and you and every potential client for the rest of your life or NOTRE DAME?

I'd seriously go ND.... yes, you'll incur debt, who cares.... what's the payment extended out 10 to 15 years on 100k or so? 1000/month or so? Arbitrary I say.

rofl

That said, a top 1/3 stipulation is rough, and you'll really be kicking yourself for turning Notre Dame down if you end up losing the Iowa scholarship. However, my understanding is that getting in-state tuition is relatively easy for 2L/3L at Iowa--you should probably look in to that.

Both schools are rather regional. Notre Dame's placement is better, but you might be talking the difference of biglaw for 25% vs biglaw for 15%--who knows what the situation will be in 2013, could be worse, could be better.

Money talks - Iowa. ND is not highly ranked to justify the mountain of debt.

....

I am going to ask ND for more money. But is Iowa a peer school?

Don't be doofuses.... ND wins this theoretical argument by virtue of future placement as well as future inflation. (oh it's coming... which is at least good for student loan debt)

Well, based on rankings, Iowa is a peer school - both are in the 20s. Plus, they are in the same basic region. Apply to IU Bloomington and get a full or near full ride there and really mount the pressure on ND to pony up another 10k a year.

ps494 wrote:

sckon wrote:The only thing I worry about is the top 1/3rd of the class stipulation. How hard is that?

Edit for reading comp fail.


If the LSAT is indicative of how you will perform in law school, then you would easily be in the top 1/3 since your LSAT score is easily in the top 1/4 for Iowa.

Do you think that most top LSAT scorers should instead attend T2 schools in markets they are interested in? Would a 170 scorer be better off at a school with a 160 75th percentile LSAT with close to a full ride in a market she is interested in than at Georgetown/Vanderbilt/Wustl? Just curious as to what you think. I am considering going T2 for that reason. I think I'd rather be top 10% at a strong regional T2 than median at a T20.

kwhitegocubs wrote:Well, based on rankings, Iowa is a peer school - both are in the 20s. Plus, they are in the same basic region. Apply to IU Bloomington and get a full or near full ride there and really mount the pressure on ND to pony up another 10k a year.

I got money from IU. Is that enough theoretical leverage?

whuts4lunch wrote:

ps494 wrote:

sckon wrote:The only thing I worry about is the top 1/3rd of the class stipulation. How hard is that?

Edit for reading comp fail.


If the LSAT is indicative of how you will perform in law school, then you would easily be in the top 1/3 since your LSAT score is easily in the top 1/4 for Iowa.

Do you think that most top LSAT scorers should instead attend T2 schools in markets they are interested in? Would a 170 scorer be better off at a school with a 160 75th percentile LSAT with close to a full ride in a market she is interested in than at Georgetown/Vanderbilt/Wustl? Just curious as to what you think. I am considering going T2 for that reason. I think I'd rather be top 10% at a strong regional T2 than median at a T20.

If you go to the T2, go because they are offering you significant money, not because you think you're going to be smarter than your peers. LSAT isn't a particularly good indicator of 1L performance--my LSAT was below Wisconsin's median, for example.

How much? Full ride or at least 2/3? If so, then combined with the full ride to Iowa, you have a lot of regional leverage in the same (theoretical) peer group to use on ND.

Whether they bite is another thing, but it's certainly SEEMS like it would have a chance of working.