Top Law Schools

I still have a few unlikely reaches to hear back from but it will most likely come down to this option. I have not been accepted to UNC but I must make a decision at W&L extremely soon to claim this offer. I did one of these a week ago to weed out other programs and I believe this is what my cycle will come down to.

Region does not matter, I would be just as happy to practice in VA as NC.

Edit: I'd love to know why you pick whatever you pick.

UNC - hands down.
1) Much greater lay prestige.
2) Greater industry prestige.
3) I just think UNC is better.

LSATfromNC wrote:I still have a few unlikely reaches to hear back from but it will most likely come down to this option. I have not been accepted to UNC but I must make a decision at W&L extremely soon to claim this offer. I did one of these a week ago to weed out other programs and I believe this is what my cycle will come down to.

Region does not matter, I would be just as happy to practice in VA as NC.

Edit: I'd love to know why you pick whatever you pick.

You already got your W&L scholarship info? Did it come by mail recently?

So have you already been given this scholarship offer to W&L? If so, did you get it through e-mail or snail mail? Please elaborate because W&L is a school I am strongly considering as well.

As far as the question goes, I really think it should depend mostly on which school you personally prefer. Obviously having 30,000 less in debt gives WL a boost, but if you really like UNC better I would go for it. The two rankings are very similar, and I have a hard time believing that either one gives you a huge advantage over the other.

UNC has a better reputation, great Charlotte connections, and a better location. If the money is near equal, as it is in your case, and you have no clear preference with geography, I would take UNC in a heartbeat.

Think OP deferred from last year, but I could be wrong.

I chose UNC. As a NC resident (as OP is), I can say that UNC is far and away the dominant regional school in this state. Duke places more into NY, etc. etc. W&L does NOT dominate the VA market. ITE if you don't care about where you work and those are your two finalists, I would choose UNC easily.

Rowinguy2009 wrote:So have you already been given this scholarship offer to W&L? If so, did you get it through e-mail or snail mail? Please elaborate because W&L is a school I am strongly considering as well.

As far as the question goes, I really think it should depend mostly on which school you personally prefer. Obviously having 30,000 less in debt gives WL a boost, but if you really like UNC better I would go for it. The two rankings are very similar, and I have a hard time believing that either one gives you a huge advantage over the other.

OP said $10K in debt, not $30K.

UNC, no question.

Anyone know what the deal is with Wake v UNC with regards to reputation and employment prospects in the NC legal market? UNC holds a higher rank, but the admissions criteria for Wake (GPA and LSAT scores) are more selective???

UNC is definitely better respected than Wake Forest. I'm not a lawyer, but the lawyer/judge reputation ranking for UNC is also much, much better than Wake Forest's. The reason the admission criteria is more strict for Wake is that UNC has tight residency restrictions for admissions and that affects their raw figures. If you are OOS at UNC it is damn hard to get into.

Don't buy into the raw admission figures for these two schools to try to get an idea into where you should go to practice in NC. If you can get into UNC, you go there, hands down.

Additionally, I have been to both schools (took my LSAT at Wake, toured UNC), and UNC just has the aura of a more prestigious, respectable LS. It reeks of old money. Wake is kind of half-assed.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think UNC is building a new facility soon.

aschleic wrote:Anyone know what the deal is with Wake v UNC with regards to reputation and employment prospects in the NC legal market? UNC holds a higher rank, but the admissions criteria for Wake (GPA and LSAT scores) are more selective???

a greater percentage of wake grads end up leaving nc (50% vs. unc's 40%) probably due to the fact that wake has a greater % of out of state students. their job prospects are pretty similar though. for both schools, 60% of their grads land jobs where they make at or below 65-70k/yr. with about 20%-25% of their grads working in public service jobs earning ~45k/yr.

not that many differences. a greater percentage of unc grads don't have a job at graduation (30% compared to wake's 20%). a greater percentage of unc grads go into public interest and for wake a greater percentage of their grads get federal clerkships.

i think in most cases UNC should be picked over wake b/c it would probably cost less.

Halibut6 wrote:UNC is definitely better respected than Wake Forest. I'm not a lawyer, but the lawyer/judge reputation ranking for UNC is also much, much better than Wake Forest's. The reason the admission criteria is more strict for Wake is that UNC has tight residency restrictions for admissions and that affects their raw figures. If you are OOS at UNC it is damn hard to get into.

Don't buy into the raw admission figures for these two schools to try to get an idea into where you should go to practice in NC. If you can get into UNC, you go there, hands down.

Additionally, I have been to both schools (took my LSAT at Wake, toured UNC), and UNC just has the aura of a more prestigious, respectable LS. It reeks of old money. Wake is kind of half-assed.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think UNC is building a new facility soon.

They are, it's supposed to be finished in 2012. OP, I'd chose UNC if I were you!

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To others: Take the UNC/Wake discussion to a different thread.

To OP: What's your basis for the cost of attending UNC? GI Bill?

My cost basis is GI Bill! I have heard nothing regarding scholarships at either of these schools (hell I haven't got a decision at UNC even). W&L provides free tuition for several veterans each year. I am a non binding deferal at Wake, but I am begining to think I would not like the stress of possibly losing a scholarship due to performance. At W&L so long as I don't fail then I have no pressure regarding bills, I simply need graduate in order to do what I want to do.

The GI Bill covers probably 70% of UNC in state tuition. At this point I think I am going to take W&L, and if I get into Duke, UNC or get pulled off Vandy's waitlist then I will reconsider, just sucks I have to drop $750.

LSATfromNC wrote:My cost basis is GI Bill! I have heard nothing regarding scholarships at either of these schools (hell I haven't got a decision at UNC even). W&L provides free tuition for several veterans each year. I am a non binding deferal at Wake, but I am begining to think I would not like the stress of possibly losing a scholarship due to performance. At W&L so long as I don't fail then I have no pressure regarding bills, I simply need graduate in order to do what I want to do.

The GI Bill covers probably 70% of UNC in state tuition. At this point I think I am going to take W&L, and if I get into Duke, UNC or get pulled off Vandy's waitlist then I will reconsider, just sucks I have to drop $750.

If your wife works... I'd say UNC. Also, I would think the school system in Chapel Hill would be better for your kid(s).

My wife is a teacher so area definitely matters. Lexington is actually in a pretty good location. If I live 20-30 minutes out from school then that puts her within 20-30 minutes of Roanoke, Lynchburg or Charlottesville. Hopefully 1 of those cities need a highschool science teacher next year!

The other possibility from here is that if I do great at W&L I could try and transfer to UVA, which is also a Yellow Ribbon School (meaning free tuition again if I get a slot).

I see the votes are even, can I get some of those who chose W&L to say why?

I voted W&L because of better clerkship placement, law teaching placement, lay prestige (at least with my experience being in NY my whole life), environment (I want to go to a school where academics>athletics), W&L's small size and, relatedly, its very low student-faculty ratio, and, for you, it's free.

gymboree wrote:UNC - hands down.
1) Much greater lay prestige.
2) Greater industry prestige.
3) I just think UNC is better.

W&L:
1) UNC is evil.
2) W&L is in the beautiful mountains instead of that terrible low country.