IUB (Full Ride) vs Vandy (105k) Forum

[richie808]

Hey All,
First time poster. Here's a little bit about me:

I have some decent connections in the area I'm from (not the same market as either of these schools) and I'd consider practicing just about anywhere (Nashville, Indiana, my home state, or wherever) when I get done with school. I don't particularly care about biglaw. I'd like to work in government, but I'm not dead set on any particular career path.

I'm debt-averse. I have $0 debt right now. I think I could almost get through 3 years in either location with little to no debt from living expenses. All of the above are leading me to IUB. Conventional wisdom seems to say forget the debt and go to the best ranked school you can, however this does not appeal to me. I don't want my debt to force me into a particular career (like biglaw) when I graduate. Many people have also said that outside of the T-14, law school only makes sense if you aren't paying tuition.

Thoughts?

[Law Sauce]

Personally I would pick Vandy because its better in the long run and has a ton more name recognition than Indiana (Indiana is new to the top 30 and employment prospects outside of Indiana lag behind its ranking, but since you dont want Biglaw and could work in the midwest, the effect of that is lessened by a lot and with zero debt you will be way ahead of your peers financially)
IMO, 100k in debt is annoying but not life-changing or soul crushing. People manage with that much right out of undergrad and still survive.

For you though, even though I voted Vandy, Indiana may be the better choice. Bottom line: visit, and if you'd be happy going to Indiana, go there. I mean you have a full ride, who is going to argue with that!

[brose]

I'd say Vanderbilt, but it seems like you want IUB and zero debt so take it.

[bk1]

Vandy at that cost is very reasonable. Your debt will be low enough that you will be okay if you don't end up in biglaw.

If you are 100% sure you want to be in Indiana for the foreseeable future then take the full ride, however if you have aspirations of NYC/DC/TN then you should take Vandy.

[BarbellDreams]

I have n connections to Vandy at all and troll for them non stop on this site. Vandy is in my opinion one of the most underrated schools out there. 100k is a lot, but honestly I would take it. Big question is what exactly you want to do in government and how high up it is, cause if its something thats difficult to get into Vandy will give you a much better shot than IUB.

[richie808]

Just wanted to thank all of you who replied and voted for the thoughtful feedback.

[2011Law]

I have n connections to Vandy at all and troll for them non stop on this site. Vandy is in my opinion one of the most underrated schools out there. 100k is a lot, but honestly I would take it. Big question is what exactly you want to do in government and how high up it is, cause if its something thats difficult to get into Vandy will give you a much better shot than IUB.

+1

If you want to work at a public defenders office or something along those lines, IUB might be the better choice. If you want to do something more along the lines of DOJ, Vandy is definitely the better choice.

[pereira6]

While I also have some other schools to consider, IUB for free and Vandy for 100k are two of my options.

100k is a pill that can be swallowed, especially for a school like Vanderbilt. It's a great school, and like others have said, it's very underrated for whatever reason. Who the hell knows the formula USNews uses for their rankings, but I would pick Vanderbilt over Georgetown, Texas, UCLA, or USC if they were all the same price. And, I would actually take them over Cornell, but that is strictly personal because I am from upstate New York and I know what kind of black hole the town of Ithaca is. I would hate living there for 3 years.

You have no debt right now. 100k of debt with a law degree from a law school that can get you some really sweet gigs is much better than so, so many people in this country. People take out 75k of debt for a liberal arts undergraduate degree all. The. Time.

Think about this scenario: You might not want to be forced to be put into biglaw--and with 100k, you won't be forced to have to take it--but let's say you learn of some cool career you want later on in life where biglaw would be a great stepping stone to get there. In other words, what if you end up wanting biglaw for things other than the high salary? Vanderbilt can get you there. IUB probably can't.

Finally: visit the schools. That will do wonders for you.

[Aberzombie1892]

If you don't want to compete with IUI grads in Indianapolis, don't go to IUB. It is truly that simple.

Look at the 2009 employment mega thread if you have any doubts of that:

About 19% of IUB graduates made more than $82,500.
About 36% of Vanderbilt graduates made more than $141,560.

The numbers for both schools are worse now. But you cannot honestly say Vanderbilt is not worth the difference.

[richie808]

Thanks for the replies, I am strongly leaning towards Vandy now. I really think that the placement potential Vandy has is worth the cost over IUB. Also, I had to consider what would happen if I graduate around median from both schools. Median at IUB seems terrifying to me, median at Vandy seems to still offer great opportunities to those who are willing to fight for them / remain determined in the job hunt. I really the the expanded options make it worthwhile. I visited Vandy earlier this week and was really impressed. Great facilities, great campus, fantastic CDO / front office / professors, and very nice and intelligent students. Definitely leaning towards Vandy, and 100k of debt seems a lot less intimidating once I looked into IBR (income based repayment) in case of a worst-case income scenario.

Also wanted to thank everyone on this site for tons of great advice and insights.