Top Law Schools

I've narrowed my selection down to these four. I see pros and cons associated with each. Obviously none are "top law schools" in the truest sense, but I'm okay with that; I have no particular interest in biglaw.

All offered me full tuition. Top third stip at Iowa, top 50%(ish) at MSU and SH, "satisfactory progress" at Indiana.

I live overseas at the moment, so I don't have any particularly strong regional ties. I understand this is something of a disadvantage for career prospects; on the other hand, it means none of these schools is potentially better than the other as far as ties are concerned.

Where would you go?

What exactly is "satisfactory progress?" If it's simply good academic standing, then IU-B is your best bet.

If it's not and you truly have no preference between the four, I'd try a little negotiating with the stips. Go the school that's the most stip friendly (which, at the moment, appears to be IU-B).

Worst thing a school can do is say no if you try.

Satisfactory progress is considered a 2.3 or higher at IUB. I believe their curve is very generous as well.

Indiana sounds like a great option in that case.

Indiana, unless you can get Iowa to remove their stips. They are so goddamn TTT about their scholarships. SH and MSU are two big fat no's.

Where are you from originally? Do you have any ties to the Midwest?

Originally from Michigan, but it's been years since I lived there.

Did my undergrad in southern Ohio, but I didn't want to attend Cincinnati.

I think Indiana is the strongest choice. To be honest, though, I've been a little disappointed with their admissions dept...seem a little slow / nonresponsive. I've had much better luck with questions answered at the other schools.

Fair point re: Iowa the TTT scholarship distributor. It's odd that such a highly-ranked school would be so merciless.

get in touch with an iub 2L and find out which firms were at OCI; if there's a healthy representation of ohio/michigan firms, then take that.

cedarseoul wrote:I think Indiana is the strongest choice. To be honest, though, I've been a little disappointed with their admissions dept...seem a little slow / nonresponsive. I've had much better luck with questions answered at the other schools.

Don't let this be a factor. You literally have no interaction with admissions ever again unless you work for them or something.

YourCaptain wrote:get in touch with an iub 2L and find out which firms were at OCI; if there's a healthy representation of ohio/michigan firms, then take that.

I'm guessing not, since their NLJ250 placement is abysmal, but OP says he doesn't want biglaw (he will when OCI rolls around though).

That's quite possible, Grizz--maybe I'll regret my decision to attend a somewhat lower-ranked school. Certainly, none of these are serious biglaw contenders.

Then again, I've worked in small office contexts for the last five years, and I really enjoy the camaraderie of a tight-knit group--even if it's less financially rewarding. I interned once for a large multinational corporation, and I hated that I didn't really know anyone--and they didn't me.

:shrug: