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Which of these options would you take? My favorite market is New York but Chicago is a close second. 40k undergrad debt and a splitter (hence the GWU sticker). I prefer to go straight from ug to law school so I don't lose the momentum I gained (started off sluggish in ug and am finishing strong).

Is there a chance Wustl can buy it's way into future prestige? What's their alumni base like in Chicago?

From which school does median give me the best chance at a govt or midlaw job?

I'd go to a lesser school with more money. You're going to be at $200-250k total debt coming out of all these places and they don't have the job prospects to justify that kind of risk.

If I had to take any of them I'd take Illinois because I believe it is the cheapest.

I can't speak much about NY, but I know the Chicago market pretty well and I talked to some biglaw partners when I was deciding between these schools.

All of these schools are thought of, by hiring partners/committees, as equals. In Chicago, Illinois wins because they have such a large and dedicated alumni base. If you want Chicago/midwest, go with Illinois.

blurbz wrote:I can't speak much about NY, but I know the Chicago market pretty well and I talked to some biglaw partners when I was deciding between these schools.

All of these schools are thought of, by hiring partners/committees, as equals. In Chicago, Illinois wins because they have such a large and dedicated alumni base. If you want Chicago/midwest, go with Illinois.

Illinois is better for Chicago (barely) but for mid-west in general I would take WUSTL

I would take Illinois, since WashU would mean about 35k more debt considering COL, higher tuition, etc. UIUC's employment stats ITE were better than WashUs as well.

RockyIII wrote:

blurbz wrote:I can't speak much about NY, but I know the Chicago market pretty well and I talked to some biglaw partners when I was deciding between these schools.

All of these schools are thought of, by hiring partners/committees, as equals. In Chicago, Illinois wins because they have such a large and dedicated alumni base. If you want Chicago/midwest, go with Illinois.

Illinois is better for Chicago (barely) but for mid-west in general I would take WUSTL

Nah--For general midwest, take whichever one is cheaper! The above poster is right, though, Illinois placement was better than WashU's ITE, but for all intents and purposes, the schools are about as equal as they can be. The tie-breaker has got to be the alumni base from Illinois.

blurbz wrote:

RockyIII wrote:

blurbz wrote:I can't speak much about NY, but I know the Chicago market pretty well and I talked to some biglaw partners when I was deciding between these schools.

All of these schools are thought of, by hiring partners/committees, as equals. In Chicago, Illinois wins because they have such a large and dedicated alumni base. If you want Chicago/midwest, go with Illinois.

Illinois is better for Chicago (barely) but for mid-west in general I would take WUSTL

Nah--For general midwest, take whichever one is cheaper! The above poster is right, though, Illinois placement was better than WashU's ITE, but for all intents and purposes, the schools are about as equal as they can be. The tie-breaker has got to be the alumni base from Illinois.

Really? You don't think Wash. U. is more highly regarded in the Mid West as a whole? That doesn't seem right to me, but I really don't know.

I think based on the options presented that I would go with Wash U or Illinois, but then again I think GW may place better into NY and East Coast, so if OP has a strong preference for East Coast then perhaps GW is the way to go (although you would probably need to be quite highly-ranked in the class to have a shot at NY from GW). I think this decision comes down mainly to personal preference. Money is nice, but on the other hand those are both relatively minor scholarships considering the overall cost of attending law school (though if you are in-state IL it may be a different picture).

I would take GW-more internship opportunities due to its location. I wouldn't want to be stuck in St.Louis. (my preference)

Lawquacious wrote:

blurbz wrote:

RockyIII wrote:

blurbz wrote:I can't speak much about NY, but I know the Chicago market pretty well and I talked to some biglaw partners when I was deciding between these schools.

All of these schools are thought of, by hiring partners/committees, as equals. In Chicago, Illinois wins because they have such a large and dedicated alumni base. If you want Chicago/midwest, go with Illinois.

Illinois is better for Chicago (barely) but for mid-west in general I would take WUSTL

Nah--For general midwest, take whichever one is cheaper! The above poster is right, though, Illinois placement was better than WashU's ITE, but for all intents and purposes, the schools are about as equal as they can be. The tie-breaker has got to be the alumni base from Illinois.

Really? You don't think Wash. U. is more highly regarded in the Mid West as a whole? That doesn't seem right to me, but I really don't know.

I think based on the options presented that I would go with Wash U or Illinois, but then again I think GW may place better into NY and East Coast, so if OP has a strong preference for East Coast then perhaps GW is the way to go (although you would probably need to be quite highly-ranked in the class to have a shot at NY from GW). I think this decision comes down mainly to personal preference. Money is nice, but on the other hand those are both relatively minor scholarships considering the overall cost of attending law school (though if you are in-state IL it may be a different picture).

WashU has more lay prestige, for sure, but in terms of legal hiring it seems like it's a tie, with an edge going to the school with more alumni in the area.