Notre Dame vs IUB vs T14 Forum

[becauseimaddicted]

Not completely truthful in the subject line due to space constraints. I'm choosing between Notre Dame ($18,000 a year after scholarship), Indiana (also $18,000 with the possibility of more money) and taking another year off from school (graduated in May 2009) and trying for T7-T14.

My LSAT/GPA is 170/3.62. I applied very late in the cycle and was waitlisted at UVA, GULC, and Northwestern. I was told at both GULC and UVA that if I applied earlier I would have likely been admitted. If I applied in October, I have a legitimate shot at the lower end of the T14, though any merit aid is unlikely. Another problem is that I don't have work lined up for next year, so I have no clue what I'd do with myself. I want to be a criminal prosecuting attorney, so I won't be making a lot upon graduation and money is definitely a concern. I know there is LRAP, but I'm also female and concerned about locking myself into ten years of working full-time if I decide I want to have kids at some point in my thirties.

IUB looks good if I can negotiate more money. My family is in Indiana so I'm a resident, though I am not from here, and don't want to work here after graduation. I know it is less prestigious than Notre Dame for whatever reason, but I do think I would be happy in Bloomington, near my family, etc.

The Notre Dame scholarship is generous and ND seems to have some kind of prestige that I personally don't understand. I visited and thought it was really okay. The course selection seems really limited (apparently lots of people take things like "canon of marriage law" because its an easy A) and the clinics they offered weren't impressive. I'm also not religious, fairly liberal, and not a fan of football or beer. I know the degree would be more portable than IU, and I do eventually want to be in New York so I'm concerned about that.

I've paid a deposit at ND to hold my seat and have another two weeks to decide on IUB.

Any opinions appreciated!

[mazzini]

Seriously.... don't sell yourself short here. Wait until next year and at least get a full ride from some T20 schools. No reason for you to jump in like this. Get a job, anything to stay afloat at first, but keep looking for law firm work. Your stats are good enough for T-14 admittance and much better scholarship opportunities.

[Rock Chalk]

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[09042014]

Don't go to IUB.

I'd wait for T14.

[fwaam]

I'd have encouraged you to go ahead this year with the scholarships you got, but it sounds like you're very underwhelmed by both schools and the prospects from them. Thus, reapplying seems like your best option. I understand your issue with debt, but there's nothing saying that you have to limit yourself to applying to the T14 this time around. Also apply to some schools in the lower T1 but in the area where you actually want to work, and you should be setting yourself up for great scholarship money. Then you can decide next year how much debt you're comfortable with. It's not like this is your last chance to go to law school with a scholarship--applying early will probably get you more than you got this time.

[modestsquirrel]

Wait. If you want to be a prosecutor in NYC then you are going to have to break into a T14. You have great grades and have a shot at NYU if you apply early. Don't settle. Work a year and build up your resume. Do non-profit work it will reflect positively when you interviewing for positions at district attorneys offices, who often value public service/non-profit work second to grades.

[becauseimaddicted]

Thank you guys, I definitely appreciate the opinions!! If I can ask another question, why do you think I shouldn't go to IUB if I get more money?

I will say though, that I was about 90% set on IUB before soliciting advice and now I would say I'm like 50/50, so I am really listening. I really want to be in law school, so I guess the only reason I would take the options I have is to just get on with my life. Which, in the long run, is probably short sighted. But I can't wait to go to law school, can't wait to be a lawyer, I just really don't want to put it off another year. I'm looking for legal jobs but I'm afraid the gap in my resume is going to look bad if I don't find something (I'm just working for now). I don't know that I necessarily want to be a prosecutor in NYC. I do know that I want to start out in a DAs office, not necessarily in New York, and I do want to end up in New York (its where I'm from, where my extended family is, and in my opinion, the best city in the world). But careers evolve and I'm not sure what I'll want in the next twenty years.

Judging from LSN, NYU and Columbia are both pipe dreams. I did my undergrad at NYU, so part of me would like a different kind of experience, but I'd be a fool not to go if I could get in. Other than Cornell, what schools in the New York area should I be looking at? I like Michigan because it has a summer start program, and I loved UVA when I visited after I was waitlisted. If I do decide to wait, any opinions on where I should be applying? Should I do ED anywhere?

[fwaam]

I will say though, that I was about 90% set on IUB before soliciting advice and now I would say I'm like 50/50, so I am really listening. I really want to be in law school, so I guess the only reason I would take the options I have is to just get on with my life. Which, in the long run, is probably short sighted. But I can't wait to go to law school, can't wait to be a lawyer, I just really don't want to put it off another year. I'm looking for legal jobs but I'm afraid the gap in my resume is going to look bad if I don't find something (I'm just working for now). I don't know that I necessarily want to be a prosecutor in NYC. I do know that I want to start out in a DAs office, not necessarily in New York, and I do want to end up in New York (its where I'm from, where my extended family is, and in my opinion, the best city in the world). But careers evolve and I'm not sure what I'll want in the next twenty years.

It's understandable to not want to put it off, and you have good scholarship money. But reading your OP, it sounded like you really don't want to go to either of the schools you've been accepted to, that you'd feel like you were "settling" and that you couldn't get the jobs you want long-term. I would think having connections to NY would help, but you can do better and it sounds like if you jumped into something right now, you'd regret it down the road. (The other option is transferring, but that's risky.)

If you're working right now, I doubt anyone would question your taking a year off. It might be problematic without a job, but still probably the right call for you.

[traehekat]

Wait for T14, for sure. If you actually liked ND it MIGHT be another story, but that pretty much seals the deal. 1 year of your life, in the long run, isn't a big deal. The law school you attend will follow you around the rest of your life.

[modestsquirrel]

Just a thought, too: If you are graduating from school right now, I would apply to the paralegal program for recent college graduates at the Manhattan DA's office (also Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens). I interviewed there after I graduated and turned down the job, I always wish I would have taken it. It seemed like a great experience and is probably one of the better soft's you can have on a resume. I know several people who did it and ended up getting into some amazing law schools with sub par numbers. I'd look at Duke, Georgetown, NW, and reapply to UVA. Work experience could always pull you off the waitlist.