New England VS. Mid West Forum

[am588]

I'm debating between NE and Midwest schools. I'm from the Boston Area, and have a great fulltime job (needless to say, I'm looking at PT programs). I am interested in going into corporate law, and after talking to a few in my company's team, I have an offer of working at my corp headquarters (not in legal, but can do some work there after 1L) while going to law school. I haven't heard much about the programs out there, and am kind of nervous about relocating. How are schools rated out there? And, are there things to do? I've only been in the area once before. If I were to relocate, it would be in the Minnesota/Wisconsin area. Thanks

[theavrock]

I'm from the Midwest so I can't speak too much about Boston but I would be happy to answer any questions you specifically have about the Midwest.

The very nice thing about both areas is that COL is relatively inexpensive. Minneapolis and Milwaukee are both great cities. Both very underrated in my opinion. If there are any specific questions let me know.

As to the schools Minnesota and Wisconsin both dominate their respective regions and if you do very well, Chicago is not out of the possibility. Wisconsin has degree privilege. Essentially, if you graduate from a WI law school, you don't have to sit for the bar in Wisconsin.

[2014]

University of Minnesota is a top 25 school. If you could keep a FT job in Minneapolis and go PT (I don't even know if they have PT though sorry), then that would be a solid school to choose.

[fugitivejammer]

I dont think Wisconsin or Minnesota have PT programs. If being a PT program is a requirement, then there is Marquette in Wisconsin, and Loyola, IIT, and DePaul in Chicago. All these schools are in the lower T1, but have pretty solid networks and reputations in their regions. So if you plan on staying in the midwest after graduation, then that's an option. Pretty sure there are a few other schools that offer PT programs in the general region but ranked lower and I'm unfamiliar with them.

Haven't been to Minnesota, but know a lot of ppl from there and they are some of the friendliest ppl I know. Madison (if you choose to go to Wisconsin for school) is a solid city and I think has the highest restaurants per capita in the US. There's a good amount to do there and keep u busy, it's a bout 2.5 hr drive to Chicago, and is beautiful in the summer months. Only problem is October - March.

[vegenator]

Hi, I'm from Minnesota and thought I'd share some general info about the schools in the state.

The University of Minnesota is obviously the highest ranking of the four MN law schools and enjoys the most prestige in the area. Unfortunately, they don't have a PT program. The three lesser known law schools in the Twin Cities are: William Mitchell, St. Thomas, and Hamline.

William Mitchell (in nice neighborhood of St. Paul) was in the third tier last year, but now ranks 98th. Although it's no U of MN, it does enjoy some prestige in the area and they have a PT program. If you absolutely have to do PT in Minnesota, this is the route I'd go.
St. Thomas (in Downtown Minneapolis) is in the third tier and has no PT program.
Hamline (in a less-nice neighborhood of St. Paul) has a PT program, but they're in the fourth tier.

Since you're from Boston, you should be able to handle the long winters alright. There's plenty to do in the Twin Cities (restaurants, museums, theater, sports, parks, etc.) but unlike the East Coast, there aren't many other big cities near by (Madison, Des Moines, Chicago are long car drives away).

Hope this helps a bit.

[am588]

Thanks! I'll look into those PT programs