Vandy v. UCLA Forum

[fingersxd]

Strong preference for NYC biglaw, but have an SO from the LA area who would love to go back and I would be fine with working in LA biglaw for a few years (assuming I can even get biglaw) and then trying for a lateral transfer back to NYC.

20k/yr - Vandy
18k/yr - UCLA

If truth be told I am leaning towards Vandy (and I don't think either school will give me any more $), but am curious what people here think.

I think Vandy would be a no-brainer if I was wedded towards NYC right out of school. However, as I'm not, I think I have to seriously consider UCLA. Thoughts?

[dr123]

In state at UCLA?

[fingersxd]

In state at UCLA?

Not initially, but I've heard both anecdotally and was told by the dean that getting in-state for 2L and 3L is pretty much a formality. A few years ago when UCLA was much cheaper this would have been easier, but I just don't know if the value is there anymore.

[fatdouche]

If you want NYC, go to Vandy

[crossingforHYS]

There are plenty of LA firms that interview at Vandy, and plenty of cali people at vandy---so going to vanderbilt will not a disadvantage at all for you...in fact the living cost will be lower.

secondly, I am from L.A. and UCLA does not have the cache that translates as well as Vandy on the east coast

take this with a grain of salt...I am an 0L, but I do know people in biglaw

[fingersxd]

There are plenty of LA firms that interview at Vandy, and plenty of cali people at vandy---so going to vanderbilt will not a disadvantage at all for you...in fact the living cost will be lower.

secondly, I am from L.A. and UCLA does not have the cache that translates as well as Vandy on the east coast

take this with a grain of salt...I am an 0L, but I do know people in biglaw

Let me clarify, I am from NY and eventually want to practice there. However, I would love to get away for a few years. I recognize that UCLA doesn't have Vandy's cache on the east coast, but my initial point was that I would be willing to work in LA for a couple of years and then attempt a lateral transfer back to the East Coast.

Can anyone speak to the difficulty/probability of a successful lateral transfer?

[Grizz]

At equal money, Vandy brother. UCLA is gonna be more expensive probably even with in-state. Vandy will get you back to CA if you have ties for sure (girlfriend), and will probably give you a better NYC shot. How serious is this gf? I'm guessing not so serious that you can't be away from her for a while (considering you want NYC biglaw). If you really really need to be with this gf, UCLA wouldn't be a terrible choice though.

Also, the time for just "getting away" and going to a school in a new place to experience that place is past bro. Thats what college was for.

[fingersxd]

At equal money, Vandy brother. UCLA is gonna be more expensive probably even with in-state. Vandy will get you back to CA if you have ties for sure (girlfriend), and will probably give you a better NYC shot. How serious is this gf? I'm guessing not so serious that you can't be away from her for a while (considering you want NYC biglaw). If you really really need to be with this gf, UCLA wouldn't be a terrible choice though.

Also, the time for just "getting away" and going to a school in a new place to experience that place is past bro. Thats what college was for.

PM'd

[duckmoney]

If you want NYC, go to Vandy

This

[CanadianWolf]

Have you visited both law schools ?

[fingersxd]

Have you visited both law schools ?

Yes. Both have their pros/cons. I think Nashville vs. LA is more of a factor than the schools themselves (aesthetically speaking, not academically or career-wise).

[fingersxd]

Any more thoughts here? I need to make a decision on UCLA today.

[CanadianWolf]

May help if you share what constituted "pros" and what you considered to be "cons" about each law school.

[fatdouche]

If you want NYC, go to Vandy

This

[bigjinjapan]

This is a tough call, and one that I'm contemplating as well. I think financially you'll be in much better shape at Vandy. I can tell you firsthand that CoL in LA is really ridiculous and will be higher than you think (unless you live like a hermit; but the weather's always fantastic so you'll want to go out). In terms of 'just getting away' I think Vandy has the edge too, since you'll likely be practicing in NY or LA after graduation. But it is hard to deny the allure of LA...Is there nothing specific at either school that's a real draw for you?

I'll be interested to hear which way you end up going.

[fingersxd]

This is a tough call, and one that I'm contemplating as well. I think financially you'll be in much better shape at Vandy. I can tell you firsthand that CoL in LA is really ridiculous and will be higher than you think (unless you live like a hermit; but the weather's always fantastic so you'll want to go out). In terms of 'just getting away' I think Vandy has the edge too, since you'll likely be practicing in NY or LA after graduation. But it is hard to deny the allure of LA...Is there nothing specific at either school that's a real draw for you?

I'll be interested to hear which way you end up going.

Two points.

(1) Although financially "I" will be better off at Vandy (and would probably make the choice if single), I have a SO who would be MUCH better off with me at UCLA. Since we don't want to do long-distance, that is not an option. That said, the financial discrepancy between the two schools is largely mitigated bty SO's employment prospects.

(2) Vandy is better than UCLA in NY (though I wonder how much of that is self-selection -- I suspect most), but likewise UCLA>Vandy in LA. If I would be happy working in either market, does Vandy's strength in NYC outweigh UCLA's advantage in LA?

[bigjinjapan]

Two points.

(1) Although financially "I" will be better off at Vandy (and would probably make the choice if single), I have a SO who would be MUCH better off with me at UCLA. Since we don't want to do long-distance, that is not an option. That said, the financial discrepancy between the two schools is largely mitigated bty SO's employment prospects.

(2) Vandy is better than UCLA in NY (though I wonder how much of that is self-selection -- I suspect most), but likewise UCLA>Vandy in LA. If I would be happy working in either market, does Vandy's strength in NYC outweigh UCLA's advantage in LA?

Now officially making this decision... /

One thing I'm considering about the LA placement issue is how much competition you'll have from classmates for those jobs. I imagine that this will be much stiffer at UCLA, possibly making OCI more difficult. At Vandy it seems likely that the class will be pretty split on where they want to go following graduation, so it may be easier to get those OCIs with firms from a specific area that you may be interested in. But is this outweighed by physically being in the area you want to work in? I don't really know, but I'd imagine so.

Also dealing with a SO situation: she's said she would move to LA but is not so keen on Nashville. Probably wouldn't be coming until L2 anyway, so I might have time to convince her, but LA is undeniably closer to Japan...

Have you made your decision?

[fingersxd]

Two points.

(1) Although financially "I" will be better off at Vandy (and would probably make the choice if single), I have a SO who would be MUCH better off with me at UCLA. Since we don't want to do long-distance, that is not an option. That said, the financial discrepancy between the two schools is largely mitigated bty SO's employment prospects.

(2) Vandy is better than UCLA in NY (though I wonder how much of that is self-selection -- I suspect most), but likewise UCLA>Vandy in LA. If I would be happy working in either market, does Vandy's strength in NYC outweigh UCLA's advantage in LA?

Now officially making this decision... /

One thing I'm considering about the LA placement issue is how much competition you'll have from classmates for those jobs. I imagine that this will be much stiffer at UCLA, possibly making OCI more difficult. At Vandy it seems likely that the class will be pretty split on where they want to go following graduation, so it may be easier to get those OCIs with firms from a specific area that you may be interested in. But is this outweighed by physically being in the area you want to work in? I don't really know, but I'd imagine so.

Also dealing with a SO situation: she's said she would move to LA but is not so keen on Nashville. Probably wouldn't be coming until L2 anyway, so I might have time to convince her, but LA is undeniably closer to Japan...

Have you made your decision?

PM'd

[Noval]

Both schools are good but won't be enough to land you NYC BigLaw.

I would suggest Vandy as you'll still have a shot at L.A. Firms as well as NYC Firms + Nashville isn't THAT bad.

Anyways, breaking into the NYC Legal Market is more about being a networking ninja or a lucky bastard from a Top-14 than being some random from a decently ranked school applying for jobs hoping for a miracle to happen.

[fingersxd]

Seems like although last yr was pretty crappy, Vandy has traditionally done reasonably well placing in NY. You think top 20% at Vandy is still not enough? I'm an 0L so I have a bad sense of this, but just how good would one need to be at Vandy, or UCLA for that matter to have a good shot at NYC Biglaw?

I thought that of all the major legal markets NYC was by far the easiest to break into, no? I'm also from the Northeast, went to undergrad here and do have a pretty strong legal network in NY. Also, I think 'the plan' is to be a bit more than just some random, ha-ha. And maybe I'm wrong but it seems like you are underselling Vandy. "Decently ranked" brings to my mind regional schools that don't crack the T20 and I'd say Vandy is a good deal more than that.

[drylo]

Seems like although last yr was pretty crappy, Vandy has traditionally done reasonably well placing in NY. You think top 20% at Vandy is still not enough? I'm an 0L so I have a bad sense of this, but just how good would one need to be at Vandy, or UCLA for that matter to have a good shot at NYC Biglaw?

I thought that of all the major legal markets NYC was by far the easiest to break into, no? I'm also from the Northeast, went to undergrad here and do have a pretty strong legal network in NY. Also, I think 'the plan' is to be a bit more than just some random, ha-ha. And maybe I'm wrong but it seems like you are underselling Vandy. "Decently ranked" brings to my mind regional schools that don't crack the T20 and I'd say Vandy is a good deal more than that.

You are correct on all counts in this post. Top 20% definitely gives you at least a decent shot at NYC from Vandy. I don't honestly know the GPA that you would want to have, but I feel pretty confident that people outside the top 20% get good NYC jobs every year. We send a decent number of people to NYC, but there are a lot of people toward the top of the class that have no interest in NYC. It's not like NYC is the holy grail at Vandy.

[Grizz]

Seems like although last yr was pretty crappy, Vandy has traditionally done reasonably well placing in NY. You think top 20% at Vandy is still not enough? I'm an 0L so I have a bad sense of this, but just how good would one need to be at Vandy, or UCLA for that matter to have a good shot at NYC Biglaw?

I thought that of all the major legal markets NYC was by far the easiest to break into, no? I'm also from the Northeast, went to undergrad here and do have a pretty strong legal network in NY. Also, I think 'the plan' is to be a bit more than just some random, ha-ha. And maybe I'm wrong but it seems like you are underselling Vandy. "Decently ranked" brings to my mind regional schools that don't crack the T20 and I'd say Vandy is a good deal more than that.

You are correct on all counts in this post. Top 20% definitely gives you at least a decent shot at NYC from Vandy. I don't honestly know the GPA that you would want to have, but I feel pretty confident that people outside the top 20% get good NYC jobs every year. We send a decent number of people to NYC, but there are a lot of people toward the top of the class that have no interest in NYC. It's not like NYC is the holy grail at Vandy.

THIS

The people I know who balled out first semester, most of them want to work in TN or down South. I don't know a ton of people who want NYC. But from the 2Ls I know, people who do want NYC don't seem to be held back in the least by the "Southern school" perception or whatever.

[bigjinjapan]

Yeah, I think the guy above is reading the situation too narrowly. Sure T14 gives you an easier in, but Vandy has a strong reputation and a broad and very loyal alumni network. It's not going to take a miracle to get a job in a big market like NYC or LA.

[monarchylover]

http://www.law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNL ... hbxlogin=1

[fingersxd]

Most posters look to be favoring Vandy, but the poll has started skewing in favor of UCLA, particularly of late.

Can anyone voting for UCLA explain their reasoning?