Loyola-Chicago ($) v. Cleveland-Marshall Forum

[peterswe]

Hey everyone. Thanks in advance for your input.

It has all come down to these two schools. I have personal reasons for attending either one of these schools, but I do not want you to consider that here. I received a small scholarship from LUC, but it will still be about $10k/year more expensive than CM.

With respect to job prospects, which of these two schools would you guys feel more comfortable attending?

I will be incurring debt wherever I go, but like I said above, LUC will cost me roughly 30k more in total. I figure this is not a huge difference spread over an entire career. Both schools boast about an extensive alumni network in their respective regions. Both schools have specialized programs that look interesting to me. And both schools are in cities that I love. I guess what I am really trying to compare is the negatives of each city: the lack of any economic activity in Cleveland v. the over-saturation of the Chicago legal market. Where do you think I should go and why?


Please ask questions if you feel I left out any pertinent information and please refrain from saying "retake and apply to XXX school of law". Thanks!

[patrickd139]

Can you postpone your decision until after July 1? If Lebron leaves, things could get rough in Cleveland. And what if he left for the Bulls? Oye...

In all seriousness, pick a city. If you want to practice in Cleveland, go to [strike]tOSU[/strike] Cleveland. If you want to practice in Chicago go to [strike]any other school ranked ahead of[/strike] Loyola.

[peterswe]

In all seriousness, pick a city. If you want to practice in Cleveland, go to tOSU Cleveland. If you want to practice in Chicago go to any other school ranked ahead of Loyola.

Thanks for the response. I truly appreciate it, but this does not really help me make a decision. Yes, I am aware that these are not ideal schools, but I am not an ideal person with an ideal GPA and LSAT. If everyone was able to attend a top law school, they wouldn't be considered "top."

Anyways, would you lean one way or the other in terms of job prospects? (Assume I have no preference toward a certain city, which is basically true)



Again, thanks for the input. I need to pull the trigger here soon.

[patrickd139]

There are more jobs in Chicago. There are fewer law schools in Cleveland. I still think the answer to your question is whether you want to live/practice in Chicago or Cleveland. That said, I think Loyola is a slightly better school. Plus, Chicago >>>> Cleveland.

[BarbellDreams]

Umm... Loyola is a lot better than Cleveland, with a scholly to boot I doubt this is even close.

[peterswe]

Umm... Loyola is a lot better than Cleveland, with a scholly to boot I doubt this is even close.

The scholly is really small, making Cleveland the cheaper option (in-state tuition at CMLaw is incredibly cheap).

I would probably prefer to live in Chicago, but I have family and a few connections in Cleveland...Hmmm, this is going to be a tough one.

What should I be more afraid of: Cleveland's dismal economy or Chicago's oversaturation?

[patrickd139]

What should I be more afraid of: Cleveland's dismal economy or Chicago's oversaturation?

I'd be afraid of both. I'm near the top of the flagship law school in a state that's not over-saturated and I'm scared stiff.

[peterswe]

I'd be afraid of both.

I am afraid of both - but which should I be more afraid of in your opinion?

[peterswe]

Bump.

Input from some more people would be helpful. Is anyone familiar with these two schools, or at least these two cities?

[peterswe]

One last bump.

I'm sending a deposit to one of these schools this weekend.

[patrickd139]

One last bump.

I'm sending a deposit to one of these schools this weekend.

Dude. If you want to live in Chicago, go to Loyola. If you want to live in Cleveland, go to Marshall.

[osi]

Out of those two you should go to the school that will leave you in the least debt.

[peterswe]

Dude. If you want to live in Chicago, go to Loyola. If you want to live in Cleveland, go to Marshall.

Trust me, I will follow this advice. At this point, however, I'm just trying to make sure I REALLY want to live in the city that I'm leaning towards and opinions on these two schools/cities might help.

Out of those two you should go to the school that will leave you in the least debt.

The difference in price is $30k total. To me this seems rather small since where I go to school will largely shape the rest of my life. I don't want concerns over $30k to dictate my future, whether or not they should.