UGA vs. Brooklyn ($$$$) Forum

[steve_o711]

I have been planning on going to UGA and am basically set and ready to go, but, yesterday, I received a call from Brooklyn saying they had increased my award to a full ride plus a 5k stipend. I initially didn't think much about it, but the more I do the harder the decision becomes. UGA isn't giving me anything, but in-state tuition is almost guaranteed for the second and third years, cutting the price almost in half for those years.

Brooklyn is ahead by far in the cost of attendance, even with the substantially higher cost of living over Georgia. My issue is the job prospects coming out of school, but I do realize that being in NYC might give that a boost. In addition, I don't know if I want to deal with the requirement of being in the top 40% to maintain the full scholarship. This number becomes even more daunting considering only 47% of scholarship students retain their full scholarships for the second year.

Basically there are positives and negatives for both schools the most important being:

UGA
(+) Lifestyle I'm familiar with
(+) Lease already signed
(+) Was mentally set on going
(++) Better school/job prospects

Brooklyn
(+)NYC (big legal market)
(+) higher potential to do well due to lower ranked school
(++) Cheaper, less loans to worry about coming out of law school

I'm stuck on the fence and only have until Thursday to decide. Any insight is appreciated.

Just for further reference, it doesn't matter to me a whole lot where I end up after graduation. I'm form Michigan so the chances of coming back home for a legal job are slim to none. In addition, with cost of living included, Brooklyn will be around 17k/year plus the 10k lease I already signed in GA. UGA would be around 52k for the first year and 34k for the last 2 years.

[ndirish2010]

UGA. Two of your reasons for going to Brooklyn are wrong anyway. If you're confident on in-state 2L and 3L year, UGA is the easy choice. If not, retake/reapply.

[The Valkyrie]

COL in brooklyn is going to be high, much much higher than Athens.

[Chouchous]

UGA - don't even consider Brooklyn

[scammedhard]

UGA. Two of your reasons for going to Brooklyn are wrong anyway. If you're confident on in-state 2L and 3L year, UGA is the easy choice. If not, retake/reapply.

+1; also, should you find yourself unemployed and homeless, GA is much warmer than NYC.

[The Valkyrie]

UGA. Two of your reasons for going to Brooklyn are wrong anyway. If you're confident on in-state 2L and 3L year, UGA is the easy choice. If not, retake/reapply.

+1; also, should you find yourself unemployed and homeless, GA is much warmer than NYC.

bad advice. you have a much higher chance of dying in GA from the elements than in NYC. Georgia heatwaves are no joke, and transients and homeless people die from heatstroke on the regular. Georgia also has some very cold winter days, and those are serious as well. It would be much easier to find free shelter in NYC than in Georgia.

[dixiecupdrinking]

You should bank on staying and working near either of these schools. If you really don't care where you live and work, UGA will give you a bigger safety net. Your job prospects should be somewhat better coming from UGA, and you will be a lot less squeezed on a low-paying law salary in Atlanta than NYC. I always think it's odd when people are making choices like this, though. Neither school seems worth moving to a new part of the country for, especially because you will be stuck there with a degree that doesn't carry much weight elsewhere.

[bartleby]

can you break the lease for less than 10k, or at least sublet? i think i'd go to bk on full w/ stipend

[steve_o711]

I can try to sublet, but it's obviously not guaranteed I'll find someone. Breaking the lease is probably not an option. Although if it came down to it I would definitely ask.

[bartleby]

take the other TLS-ers advice, but the way i see it is that you're going to have to be in the top 10% at either school to get a $$$$ job anyway. not sure how it is such a no brainer for everyone since 3 years in NYC will be cheaper than 1 year in athens...

[WSJ_Law]

Your job prospects should be somewhat better coming from UGA

U trollin bro?

[WSJ_Law]

3 years in NYC will be cheaper than 1 year in athens...

lolwut

[Robespierre]

I don't think your reasons for attending BLS hold water:

"NYC (big legal market)" - It's big, but it's overcrowded with grads of the 11 local schools and people who come in from all over the world to make their mark;

"higher potential to do well due to lower ranked school" - It may be lower ranked, but the students are almost as good. Check the UGa and BLS 25/75 ranges for LSAT and GPA; they're not all that different;

"Cheaper, less loans to worry about coming out of law school" - Not if you lose the scholarship, which is a real possibility.

It's either UGa or go back to the drawing board.

[bartleby]

3 years in NYC will be cheaper than 1 year in athens...

lolwut

he said COA was 17k a year at BLS and 52k for the first year at UGA.

[dixiecupdrinking]

Your job prospects should be somewhat better coming from UGA

U trollin bro?

Nope, you? Couldn't care less about either of these schools but I don't think Georgia is a golden ticket and I don't think a full ride to Brooklyn is going to doom anyone. I think biglaw is unlikely from either. Geography is the biggest factor here.

[detectivelogic]

I think your overestimating COA in Athens, you won't need to spend 18k/year on room and board, you can definitely find cheaper rent down in GA

[Transferthrowaway]

This all depends on where you want to live and what you want to do. For ATL biglaw, you have to have top 10-15% grades. I have absolutely zero knowledge of BLS.

With all that said, I voted UGA. Great town, great support in Atlanta, and state flagship school.

(Note: I just finished my first year at UGA)

[blsingindisguise]

I often tell people to take BLS with $$$$ over other schools, but if I had ties to a market like GA and the chance to attend a school like UGA in state I think I'd take that unless I really really wanted to work in NYC.

[Aberzombie1892]

UGA unless you can get the stipulations removed for Brooklyn. If you can get them removed, it would be a toss up.

[Exeter]

Brooklyn, personally.

[mebeSajid]

Doesn't Brooklyn put all the scholarship students in the same section?

[Chippy]

Doesn't Brooklyn put all the scholarship students in the same section?

The way I see it: if you get your scholarship pulled, just drop out. It's not like you were on tract to get a job anyway if you're not in the top 30 percent of your class. Shit, top 30 might be generous, but I'm including shitlaw.

[Bless]

A full ride scholly to Brooklyn is awesome, but if you lost that scholarship, it could (would?) be disastrous.


It seems like you are more comfortable with the thought of attending UGA, so that's your best bet. You'll be a lot happier.

[The Valkyrie]

I went to UGA. it was pretty cool.

[Transferthrowaway]

I went to UGA. it was pretty cool.

favorite profs?