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Heres my situation. I have a full-tuition scholarship to IU-B and a little over half (graduate fellowship at ~17k/yr) tuition at W&M, but I don't know which school to choose. To be honest, I loved neither school when visiting them, mostly because I found both facilities left something to be desired, although Bloomington/current IU students seemed more fun than Williamsburg (I think tours of WashU and Vanderbilt spoiled me though). At this point, I want to work in DC and preferably at the best firm I can after graduation (been living here for 4 years now, so it has become "home" to an extent, but I am originally from the Midwest). Although, I am really flexible on where I live after graduation, as long as it is a decent sized city, getting the best job possible is what matters to me. While I like the flexibility between DC/Chicago jobs that IU-B can offer, DC remains my preferred location. Looking at the 2009 NLJ employment statistics, W&M placed 21.8& in the NLJ 250, while IU-B wasn't in the top 50 (so <13.2%).

I also think that if I don't cut the mustard during law school, I'd rather get a lesser paying job in Virginia than in Indiana (a "the devil you know" situation). A professor of mine, who used to be a hiring partner at a v50 and a v5 firm in the late 90s told me w&m was a no brainer, but I was curious to see if anyone had any other input. I've weighed the ups and downs of each over and over, but still don't know what to do.

Basically my question is, do the career prospects in DC from w&m outweigh the free-tuition/slightly better atmosphere at IU-B? I know I had a similar thread a few weeks ago, but that was mostly focused on choosing one of these schools as opposed to sticker @ Duke/Vandy if I got off the waitlists. I know now I would pay sticker at Duke/Vandy, but if those don't come through (and even much sooner than either POSSIBLY could come through) I need to decide between IU and w&m. I don't want to do a poll because honestly, I'm just looking for thoughts and a 6 votes for IU and 4 for w&m isn't going to help much.

THANK YOU INTERNET!

If you don't want to work in Indiana, don't go to IUB. It's really that simple.

I'm not sure about William and Mary's prospects in DC (443/3733 are bar admitted in DC on martindale.com), but it does well in VA.

However your ties to DC will help you get there with a William and Mary degree

Even if you go to William and Mary, you will still need to do very well for big law in DC.

I agree with the above poster. As someone who is also considereing IU-B, I know how you feel about the facilities. They were my least favorite part of the school. That being said, even though you didn't like the facilities at W&M, I think if you know you want to end up in DC/VA after graduation, W&M will be the better option.

Would you be paying about half of the in-state rate for W&M? If that's the case, tuition would still be relatively cheap. It's not like you'd be putting yourself 120K in debt by choosing W&M. I don't think IU would be a bad choice, it's just if you didn't land a desired job in DC or Chicago, you would have to be prepared to look for something in one of the mid-sized midwest cities (Indy, Louisville, Cincy). If that's something you wouldn't be okay with, then I would choose W&M. If ultimately you would be okay with it, then coming out relatively debt free at IU is obviously an attractive option.

Good luck in your decision! Follow your heart and go where you'd be more comfortable in the end.

Well, I think that people underestimate Indiana's reach. Only 30-35% of IUB's grads stay in Indiana, and around 60% (on average) stay in the midwest. DC is IUB's third largest-market, and they have a surprisingly large alumni base in DC. However, W&M placed around 20% of its recent graduating classes in DC, and a lot of their OCI is from DC. Obviously, it's harder right now to get major firm jobs at both schools, but 2013 may very well be a different animal altogether.

I was actually pretty impressed by W&M's facilities. On one hand, it's not ornate and awe-inspiring on any level. On the other, they have a great mock trial courtroom, a very nice law library (I loved the glass outcropping looking down to the trees below), and the classrooms are neat and clean. It's just a nice, functional, modern building. I'm visiting IUB later on, but I've heard that their facilities weren't quite as good as W&M, with the possible exception of that huge glass-enclosed library.

WashU has that old-school Ivy/Gothic look, which I admit is very appealing, but over the course of three years I'm guessing that anything above "depressing/1970s/gulag" architecture will be all one really needs.

If you want DC, though, I'm inclined to pick W&M. I think that you'll find a group of students you enjoy at either school.

If DC is your goal, then definitely pick W&M. It's an affordable school, and does place reasonably well into DC.

Don't the IUB full scholarships require top 1/3 or something along those lines? That is a major turnoff.

UFMatt wrote:If DC is your goal, then definitely pick W&M. It's an affordable school, and does place reasonably well into DC.

Don't the IUB full scholarships require top 1/3 or something along those lines? That is a major turnoff.

IUB's full rides are good standing requirement. It's a major turn-ON.