Washburn vs University of Kansas?? Forum

[legallyblonde13]

Question - I'm struggling because KU Law has been my top choice LS since I began looking into going. Washburn wasn't a top choice, but since I'm from KS and want to practice in Wichita, I applied.

I received a near full-ride scholarship to Washburn and I haven't heard back from KU yet, but I'm confident I'll get in (not so confident I'll receive scholarship money).

Any thoughts on going to Washburn over KU?

[rockchalk86]

As a fellow Kansan and Jayhawk alum, why would you want to live in Topeka? Lawrence is not only rated way higher than Washburn, it's a lot more fun. You will have better career options as well. If you get into KU that's where you should go. I may be biased, but I am also informed. Trust me... Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU!

[legallyblonde13]

As a fellow Kansan and Jayhawk alum, why would you want to live in Topeka? Lawrence is not only rated way higher than Washburn, it's a lot more fun. You will have better career options as well. If you get into KU that's where you should go. I may be biased, but I am also informed. Trust me... Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU!

I definitely agree that Lawrence is FAR superior to Topeka, and in fact I plan on living in Lawrence regardless of the school I end up going to. Do you think that practicing IN Kansas you would still have better career options going to KU vs. Washburn? It seems as though the attorneys I've spoken with don't see much of an advantage to graduating from one school over another if you're going to practice here. Going outside of the state you would definitely have to give the advantage to KU.

Another thing I've considered is that that competition at KU will be much more intense, so you would presumably have a better shot at being at the top of your class at Washburn. So, what's better...being at the top of your class at Washburn or not quite as high ranked at KU...? Aaah decisions decisions...

[rockchalk86]

As a fellow Kansan and Jayhawk alum, why would you want to live in Topeka? Lawrence is not only rated way higher than Washburn, it's a lot more fun. You will have better career options as well. If you get into KU that's where you should go. I may be biased, but I am also informed. Trust me... Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU!

I definitely agree that Lawrence is FAR superior to Topeka, and in fact I plan on living in Lawrence regardless of the school I end up going to. Do you think that practicing IN Kansas you would still have better career options going to KU vs. Washburn? It seems as though the attorneys I've spoken with don't see much of an advantage to graduating from one school over another if you're going to practice here. Going outside of the state you would definitely have to give the advantage to KU.

Another thing I've considered is that that competition at KU will be much more intense, so you would presumably have a better shot at being at the top of your class at Washburn. So, what's better...being at the top of your class at Washburn or not quite as high ranked at KU...? Aaah decisions decisions...

You should have more confidence in yourself than that! I think you can't plan on your class placement. Maybe the competition at KU will make you work harder. Plus, law school is about surrounding yourself with smart people. Anecdotally, I hear Wash students are not too bright.

I think the alumni network from KU is very strong compared to Wash which will help you land a job in Kansas. All in all, shoot for KU.

[KansasSplitter]

If you are set on wanting to work in Wichita after law school, and IF Kansas does not end up offering you a substantial scholarship...then you should choose Washburn.

Look at the larger law firms in Wichita (Foulston Siefkin, Triplett Wolff & Garretson, etc.). KU places slightly better, but only slightly. The difference is not worth graduating with $50k more debt for placement in a market where market is $75-$80k for top first year jobs.

[Vincent Vega]

KU.

/thread

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[rockchalk86]

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Rock Chalk Jayhawk

[Vincent Vega]

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Rock Chalk Jayhawk

Many people. Why?

[Vincent Vega]

Whatever you do, stay away from KU.

Of course, this might just be blatant anti-KU trolling by a MU fan. I cannot confirm nor deny that.

What is a MU?

[rockchalk86]

National Championship night on Massachusetts (Mass) street... Best night of my life.

P.S. Lost my virginity during the day

[Vincent Vega]

Nobody looks like they are doing anything in that picture. They're all just kind of standing. Was there music or car flipping/burning or anything?

[legallyblonde13]

Thank you for the input...KU Decision Letter was sent 1/25 so I'm crossing my fingers

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[hoverin Ferb]

Why Wichita? Just curious. What is the job market like?

[lawschooliseasy]

KU! Have you seen their basketball team?!?!

[Vincent Vega]

KU for sure now, since KU is obviously >UK in basketball.

John Wall, why did you let the Wildcats lose? Why?!

[Vincent Vega]

PS I am from Illinois, and I have never heard of the University of Missouri referred to as "MU." It's always just called Mizzou here.

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[rockchalk86]

I'm from MO, and it was always MU growing up. Now it does seem that Mizzou is more commonplace. I think it has to do with TV stations now referring to them as Mizzou and with them even putting that on the scoreboard on TV sometimes. People here out east where I live now still don't know who Mizzou is half the time.

It can't be MU because that is way too many letters for them to remember

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[rockchalk86]

I'm from MO, and it was always MU growing up. Now it does seem that Mizzou is more commonplace. I think it has to do with TV stations now referring to them as Mizzou and with them even putting that on the scoreboard on TV sometimes. People here out east where I live now still don't know who Mizzou is half the time.

It can't be MU because that is way too many letters for them to remember

Shouldn't you be paying attending to the drive-thru in case someone is waiting?

Good call! Your girlfriend just had a HUGE order and if I wasn't paying attention I would have missed the 5 triple baconator's. My brother went to Mizzou so I have been doing this for years... you don't want to start this. Trust me.

[hoverin Ferb]

It's kinda like the University of Kansas being called "KU."

[rjl]

I had the same decision to make last year.

Washburn, all tuition paid, vs. KU with a smaller, one-time scholarship. I chose Washburn. Here are my thoughts:

I looked at all the law firms in my home city (Wichita), as well as in other cities in the area. Yes, there are slightly more KU alumni at a law firm like Foulston Siefkin, but it's proportional to the number of students at the respective law schools.

"Living in Topeka" isn't a hurdle as, like you said, you can still live in Lawrence and only have a half hour drive. I do it. But I have friends from school who live in Topeka and don't find it all that bad. Yes, it isn't "great," but how much free time do you honestly plan on having?

I wouldn't necessarily say that the KU students are leaps and bound brighter, either. My contracts professor, a Harvard alum who is "visiting," actually taught at both schools last semester, and to hear him talk, his Washburn students were at least equal to his KU ones. I know from my experience that there are some VERY bright people in some of my classes. Not everyone is a slave to rankings. Some of them are legacies. Some of them really wanted to stay home in Topeka. And a lot of them, like me, just wanted to soften expenses.

Speaking of the TLS blue flames and rankings, many might knee-jerkedly jump in here and say "KU" because they are ranked higher and therefore must be superior. (TLSers are ranking whores, see, as most people find the website by searching for the "top law schools," therefore the forum kind of self-selects towards people who care about rankings.) The reality is that most firms and lawyers I've talked to in Kansas don't have an opinion on which school is better. Most laypeople, in fact, assume Washburn is the superior school. I've even talked to a few KU Law alumni who told me I'd be stupid to turn down a full tuition scholarship, and a few of them even told me they wish that they'd gone to Washburn themselves because they had friends who did and turned out better positioned afterwards.

Aside from the scholarship, the other deciding factor for me was the attitude of the schools. The KU faculty seemed, well, clinical when I visited. Almost a "We're KU, we know you want to come here" disposition. The Washburn faculty, on the other hand, all seemed genuinely interested in me attending the school. I'd really recommend you attend the accepted students day at each school and just see how you "feel" about them.

That said, for me, it mostly came down to the money. I'm a non-trad, and graduating with that much more debt to pay off from a school that, for my practical purposes, didn't seem too appreciably better just didn't make sense.

I'm happy with my decision. I've already got interviews for 1L summer internships at some of the aforementioned firms, and I'm going to graduate a lot less in debt from Washburn than I would have from KU.