UW vs Cornell Forum

Klz112 · Post by **Klz112** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 3:52 am

Quick background: Washington is where my family lives, coincidentally all of them within 2.5 hrs of UW. I'm a native Washingtonian, so on top of any scholarships I may get, I also get in state tuition. On top of this, I want to work in either WA or CA afterwards. As for Cornell, I'm the first person in my family to go to any sort of schooling after UG, and I've always been in love with Cornell (it's weird, I know). I want the novelty of an ivy school, and I love upstate New York; however I would not want to work there (for long, at least). I recently scored a 169 on my LSAT, while majoring in a T5 finance program in UG. I don't know how much I'm going to get in scholarships, if any, but I do know there is a much higher chance that UW will be much more significant because their admission req's are lower.

What would you do TLS?

rad lulz · Post by **rad lulz** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 3:59 am

See what monetary awards you get and come back.

Klz112 · Post by **Klz112** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 4:08 am

rad lulz wrote:See what monetary awards you get and come back.

Will do, but what (minimum) amount would you say would make either worthy of acceptance?

rad lulz · Post by **rad lulz** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 4:31 am

Klz112 wrote:
rad lulz wrote:See what monetary awards you get and come back.
Will do, but what (minimum) amount would you say would make either worthy of acceptance?

Depends on what your other options are, whether you have savings, parental assistance, or any money saved up from work, etc.

Mr. Somebody · Post by **Mr. Somebody** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 1:08 pm

What kind of law do you want to do?

tennisking88 · Post by **tennisking88** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 1:12 pm

Most Cornell grads do not end up Upstate. Most GTFO as soon as they can. A Cornell degree is quite portable, but if you want to work/live in Washington, UW is TCR.

Klz112 · Post by **Klz112** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 3:14 pm

Mr. Somebody wrote:What kind of law do you want to do?

Something corporate most likely, I'm leaning towards corporate litigation or transactions/mergers.

tennisking88 wrote:Most Cornell grads do not end up Upstate. Most GTFO as soon as they can. A Cornell degree is quite portable, but if you want to work/live in Washington, UW is TCR.

That was my plan too, do you think finding an available job to transition in the west is possible within the first couple of years?

tennisking88 · Post by **tennisking88** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 3:23 pm

Klz112 wrote:
tennisking88 wrote:Most Cornell grads do not end up Upstate. Most GTFO as soon as they can. A Cornell degree is quite portable, but if you want to work/live in Washington, UW is TCR.
That was my plan too, do you think finding an available job to transition in the west is possible within the first couple of years?

Do you have ties to any lawyers/firms in WA? If so, it is possible. If not, it's tougher. You said you were open to CA. You could prob get there from Cornell. Not sure you can from UW (or at least you'd have to do very, very well).

Take cost into consideration as well. If you don't get aid from Cornell you're looking at 225K in debt. I imagine much less if you're at UW. Basically if you're set on working in WA, I think UW makes more sense. It's not out of the question that you'd find work there (or CA) from Cornell, but without firm ties, it's tougher. If you're not set on WA, and are open to other places, Cornell becomes more attractive. Still should take cost into consideration.

thelawyler · Post by **thelawyler** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:05 am

Trying to get a lawyer job out of UW right now in the Seattle area is pretty brutal.

We really need more scholarship info to give good advice, but if you are interested in corporate law, I'd say it's better to have a job than no job. If UW is free or REALLY cheap, sure you can try it, but Cornell might make sense too as it does maximize your chance of getting a job.

bdubs · Post by **bdubs** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:14 am

UW has almost no scholarships available, however in state tuition is relatively low. I take it you wouldn't be living at home since you said your family was within 2.5 hours of North Seattle, so tuition and COL will still be sizable.

Not sure what your GPA is, but a 169 will probably not snag you a huge scholarship at Cornell. Even so, I would probably opt for Cornell over UW. You will probably be the only person from Washington at Cornell and will probably have to do your own legwork, but your chances of biglaw employment are better all around with a Cornell degree. Add to that the fact that you actually seem to want to go to Cornell (many people who end up there don't want to be there) and I think it's a pretty strong case.

northwestgirl · Post by **northwestgirl** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:21 am

Same exact choice last year and I chose Cornell. UW is one of the most represented undergrads in the class of 2014, so you will not be alone. Believe it or not, Cornell has a nice alumni base in Seattle/PNW. I think firms are generally impressed with Cornell in a sea of UW/Seattle U applicants. I had a nice response from my 1L Diversity SA applications. Need-based aid from Cornell didn't hurt (don't forget to negotiate your offer). Feel free to PM with questions.

bdubs · Post by **bdubs** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:25 am

northwestgirl wrote:UW is one of the most represented undergrads in the class of 2014, so you will not be alone. Believe it or not, Cornell has a nice alumni base in Seattle/PNW.

Surprising considering Cornell's size and location.

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