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Having a tough time deciding which school to attend in the fall. Choosing between going to Chapman with a 70% scholarship guaranteed the first year and contingent on a 3.0 the second and third year (2.8 mean) versus going to Southwestern Law school. I currently live in Los Angeles (downtown) with my fiancé and plan on staying there while in law school and after. Does anyone have a recommendation on which one to choose? I know that Chapman just broke T100 and I got the scholarship, but Southwestern has a good reputation in Los Angeles and would be five-minute commute. Thanks for any advice.

Reapply or Chapman. Do not go to Southwestern.

exitlane wrote:Reapply or Chapman. Do not go to Southwestern.

What do you know about Southwestern?

I used to live in Irvine and commuted to downtown LA (Wilshire/Western).

Two possibilities:
1) Metrolink train and then a bus (or drive down on Monday and leave your car at the station)
2) Driving ($$$$ for gas and time)

Before you decide, get up one weekday morning and drive to Chapman. Plan a day there, and drive back when you think your classes will be over.

If you can drive to avoid traffic or think you can mentally handle stop-and-go for hours... do Chapman.

As to answer OP's question, Chapman places better in OC and Southwestern would be better for Los Angeles. I've talked to many attorneys and a few judges and this is universally the consensus among them. From downtown, you are setting yourself up for one hell of a daily commute. I'd suggest taking a day and actually driving down around the time you would more that likely be leaving everyday. (7-8:30) Even with that in mind, the scholarship is damned enticing. If you don't plan on public interest jobs, the money saved over 3 years, if you keep the scholly, is significant. Just know, it will be a 3 years of commuter hell.

Sequoia90 wrote:Before you decide, get up one weekday morning and drive to Chapman. Plan a day there, and drive back when you think your classes will be over.

Great minds think alike!

There is no way I'd pay the sticker price at Southwestern or Chapman, but given your options the scholarship at Chapman is pretty much a no-brainer. As was said, take the money or retake the LSAT.

70% at Chapman? You gotta go with Chapman. If you have your heart set on working in LA then SW would give you a better chance at securing employment in LA. Same goes for Chapman and OC.

Chapman wins hands down. Chapman gives you a good shot at OC employment and less debt. You also may have a shot at LA employment since Chapman students do get scattered throughout the south since OC isn't a large legal market. The only thing that really truly should be making the decision difficult is the commute, which is an ugly one. But you are saving sooooo much money, so suck it up and commute. Plus Chapman is a relatively new school and on the rise, evidenced by their recent breakthrough in rankings and their money being pumped into their law school.

Paying sticker for Southwestern is for the birds.

Top 30 percent at Southwestern are allocated scholarships after 1L. $6.1M was allocated for continuing students in the coming year. In general, Southwestern focuses more on keeping its best students (by giving them scholarships) than enticing people to attend with money.

If you go to Chapman you need to move to the OC.

Don't commute. Move. Commuting would only set you up for failure.

Danteshek wrote:Top 30 percent at Southwestern are allocated scholarships after 1L. $6.1M was allocated for continuing students in the coming year. In general, Southwestern focuses more on keeping its best students (by giving them scholarships) than enticing people to attend with money.

Taking the high-stakes gamble to crack the top 30% for the possibility of a scholarship is a terrible idea. Take the 70% guaranteed first-year scholarship at Chapman.

Danteshek wrote:If you go to Chapman you need to move to the OC.

You do not need to move to the OC to attend Chapman. While the commute wouldn't be great by any stretch of the imagination, it is doable, especially when the school you are driving to is giving you a hefty scholarship.

Um, I didn't tell OP not to go to Chapman. But it sounds like Southwestern makes more sense ignoring the cost. OP can evaluate for himself his chances of doing well or not doing well in law school. I do not know what Chapman does or does not do to retain their students after 1L. I'm just giving him information about Southwestern that may be relevant to his decision. After all, failing to finish in the top 30 percent at either school does not bode well for job prospects, scholarship or no scholarship. It may not be smart to continue if he sucks it up at either school.