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Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:50 pm
by politico2011
Do people ever pick another T-14 over Harvard at equal money? Would there ever be a reason to (liking the city/school, atmosphere, intangibles of law school) or is this a weird thing to ask? It's hard to tell how much ranking actually matters.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:51 pm
by paulinaporizkova
for job prospects, harvard is your best bet. i think everything else is pretty subjective.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:52 pm
by bk1
It's an objectively bad financial decision but I could see some reasons (mainly family related like spouse, kids, dying relatives, etc).
I would assume there are people who do it, but I would tell anybody who cares about the intangibles to consider the point of law school: to get yourself a job. And that is where Harvard trumps the rest.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:53 pm
by CanadianWolf
Yale & Stanford probably offer better opportunities & may be preferred by many due to the smaller class size.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:54 pm
by bk1
CanadianWolf wrote:Yale & Stanford probably offer better opportunities & may be preferred by many due to the smaller class size.
I made the assumption that OP was referring to T14's other than Yale and Stanford.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:56 pm
by Richie Tenenbaum
People on here argue about which is better between Harvard and the Hamilton at Columbia (I would probably go with zero debt, but that's me). It's a much harder argument to make for any T14 (minus Yale and Stanford) when the cost is equal.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:58 pm
by Casey2889
politico2011 wrote:Do people ever pick another T-14 over Harvard at equal money?
SLS and YLS.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:04 pm
by rundoxierun
CanadianWolf wrote:Yale & Stanford probably offer better opportunities may be preferred by many due to the smaller class size.
ppl need to stop saying that crap... you dont choose between HYS b/c one offers better (legal at least) opportunities.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:09 pm
by AreJay711
bk187 wrote:It's an objectively bad financial decision but I could see some reasons (mainly family related like spouse, kids, dying relatives, etc).
I would assume there are people who do it, but I would tell anybody who cares about the intangibles to consider the point of law school: to get yourself a job. And that is where Harvard trumps the rest.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:11 pm
by CanadianWolf
Yale & Stanford offer better academic & clerking opportunities in part due to the smaller class sizes. Overall, in my opinion, Yale & Stanford are better options.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:12 pm
by concurrent fork
politico2011 wrote:It's hard to tell how much ranking actually matters.
There is a significant difference in prospects from HYS vs. CCN, if that is what you are asking.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:13 pm
by CanadianWolf
Actually, Harvard & Columbia offer similiar opportunities which is why I agree with the poster above who would select Columbia with a Hamilton scholarship over Harvard absent significant financial aid.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:15 pm
by rundoxierun
CanadianWolf wrote:Yale & Stanford offer better academic & clerking opportunities in part due to the smaller class sizes. Overall, in my opinion, Yale & Stanford are better options.
OMG.. no. no. no. Higher percentage when the schools have a hugely different amount of students does not equal better opportunities. Harvard produces something like 110-130 federal clerks a year. These are relatively rare and limited positions, percentages alone dont tell an effective story.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:16 pm
by CanadianWolf
I think that we all understand that you have been accepted to Harvard. Congratulations !
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:18 pm
by rundoxierun
CanadianWolf wrote:I think that we all understand that you have been accepted to Harvard. Congratulations !
This isnt about me being accepted to harvard.. Ive said many times on this forum that Stanford is my top choice. This about me getting tired of people stating distorted statistics as fact. Context matters people.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:18 pm
by CanadianWolf
One man's distortion is another's reality. Enjoy Harvard ! And thank you for pointing out that "context matters". I agree.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:23 pm
by vanwinkle
H vs. Y or S? That's an endless debate, but seemingly not the one OP was getting at.
HYS vs. the rest of the T14 at sticker? Absent extraordinary circumstances, you'd be a fool to go lower.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:05 pm
by Moxie
vanwinkle wrote:H vs. Y or S? That's an endless debate, but seemingly not the one OP was getting at.
HYS vs. the rest of the T14 at sticker? Absent extraordinary circumstances, you'd be a fool to go lower.
This. /thread
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:08 pm
by Bildungsroman
How different is biglaw placement between Harvard and Columbia? I know people have a total boner for the name Harvard, but it seems like Columbia offers comparable placement if that's your area of interest.
tkgrrett wrote:CanadianWolf wrote:Yale & Stanford probably offer better opportunities may be preferred by many due to the smaller class size.
ppl need to stop saying that crap... you dont choose between HYS b/c one offers better (legal at least) opportunities.
Why the fuck not? If someone wanted to do a clerkship or enter academia, Yale is demonstrably superior to HS.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:39 pm
by Casey2889
YLS is not "demonstrably" superior to either SLS or HLS at offering an increased chance of receiving A3 clerkship, though YLS does perhaps have a higher rate of students who choose to pursue those opportunities.
as has been noted, hls sends 100+ to A3 clerkships each year. proportionally, stanford sends ~30% a year to A3 clerkships, ahead of HLS, but behind YLS which sends ~33% a year----a small difference that i think derives mostly from the distinct aggregated preferences of the two classes.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:45 pm
by Bildungsroman
Casey2889 wrote:YLS is not "demonstrably" superior to either SLS or HLS at offering an increased chance of receiving A3 clerkship, though YLS does perhaps have a higher rate of students who choose to pursue those opportunities.
Yeah the self-selection argument I get it brah.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:47 pm
by rundoxierun
Bildungsroman wrote:Casey2889 wrote:YLS is not "demonstrably" superior to either SLS or HLS at offering an increased chance of receiving A3 clerkship, though YLS does perhaps have a higher rate of students who choose to pursue those opportunities.
Yeah the self-selection argument I get it brah.
There isnt just a "self-selection" argument there is a clear numerical distortion argument.. it really shocks me how many people just dont get this.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:57 pm
by Bildungsroman
tkgrrett wrote:Bildungsroman wrote:Casey2889 wrote:YLS is not "demonstrably" superior to either SLS or HLS at offering an increased chance of receiving A3 clerkship, though YLS does perhaps have a higher rate of students who choose to pursue those opportunities.
Yeah the self-selection argument I get it brah.
There isnt just a "self-selection" argument there is a clear numerical distortion argument.. it really shocks me how many people just dont get this.
Okay, it totally makes sense that % placement doesn't effectively summarize the chance of getting a clerkship from a prticular school. You're right. Whatever you want to believe to make HYS seem equivalent.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 1:03 pm
by johnnyutah
It can make sense to choose a lower t-14 over Harvard if you are pursuing a Ph.D. at the same time, and there is a top professor in your field that you want to work with for that.
Re: Harvard vs. T-14 at equal money
Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 1:16 pm
by dextermorgan
paulinaporizkova wrote:for job prospects, harvard is your best bet. i think everything else is pretty subjective meaningless.