Thinking about a joint program... Forum

[psfs]

As decision roll in I am thinking that I would like to do a JD/MBA joint program. My question is, how much weight should I give to a certain law schools for having a better business school? Do I pass up the chance to go to a top 20 law school with an average business school to go to a top 50 law school with a better B-school? Thanks for your help.

[romothesavior]

I think CA is your best bet if you wanna get on a joint program, but you'll need a referral from your doctor. Try putting your testicles near the microwave...

[Action Jackson]

I don't think any top 50 law schools have top 10 B-schools, so no.

I would also highly recommend giving SERIOUS thought to whether or not you will actually NEED an MBA in the career you want. If you're just trying to pad your resume you'll end up wasting a ton of money.

[romothesavior]

As decision roll in I am thinking that I would like to do a JD/MBA joint program. My question is, how much weight should I give to a certain law schools for having a better business school? Do I pass up the chance to go to a top 20 law school with an average business school to go to a top 50 law school with a better B-school? Thanks for your help.

Okay, South Park jokes aside... I think you'll find there to be a pretty strong correlation between great business schools and law schools. Yale, Harvard, Penn, Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, Chicago, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, Virginia, and Michigan are all T-15 law schools, and all are also in the top 15 in business schools. Further down the law school rankings, you'll find that Texas, WUSTL, Texas, and Emory also have great business schools.

Not sure how many of these have joint degrees, but I think most of them do. Moral of the story: you don't have to sacrifice one for the other.

[romothesavior]

I don't think any top 50 law schools have top 10 B-schools, so no.

I would also highly recommend giving SERIOUS thought to whether or not you will actually NEED an MBA in the career you want. If you're just trying to pad your resume you'll end up wasting a ton of money.

edit: Read you post wrong, my apologies.

[psfs]

Ok. As an example of a scenario where it isn't the case that the higher law school has just as good a Bschool, let's say one were deciding between a Fordham (top 30 law school and average Bschool that's not in the top 55) and a University of Maryland (top 50 law school and top 40 Bschool). What would your opinions be?

[prolyphek]

I can only speak on what I know from one of my mentors in terms of having a JD and MBA but he went to Gonzaga for law school and then ended up with a MBA from Vaderbilt and it has increased his earning potential and helped with his progression tremendously in his legal career.

[imchuckbass58]

Ok. As an example of a scenario where it isn't the case that the higher law school has just as good a Bschool, let's say one were deciding between a Fordham (top 30 law school and average Bschool that's not in the top 55) and a University of Maryland (top 50 law school and top 40 Bschool). What would your opinions be?

This really isn't the way to think about it. The difference between 30 and 40 in the rankings are next to meaningless. Two thoughts:

-Both schools are regional (for both law and business). If you want to work in Maryland, go there. If you want to work in New York, go to Fordham. This holds true for pretty much every school below the T20 or so.

-If for some reason you face this scenario where both schools are in the same market, you have to decide which degree is "driving." Are you planning on doing law or business after graduation? If law, go to the better ranked law school. If business, go to the better ranked business school.

[romothesavior]

Ok. As an example of a scenario where it isn't the case that the higher law school has just as good a Bschool, let's say one were deciding between a Fordham (top 30 law school and average Bschool that's not in the top 55) and a University of Maryland (top 50 law school and top 40 Bschool). What would your opinions be?

My opinion would be to first ascertain whether an MBA is really worth it to you. If so, then I would say look at a school with both a good B-school and a good law school. There are plenty to choose from. And +1 to chuckbass. The rankings become less meaningful and more region-driven the lower you go in rankings.

And at the end of the day, I would take the higher law school. Law is the biggest prestige-whore profession of all.