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USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Thu Mar 29, 2012 3:59 pm
by coldpixies
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Thu Mar 29, 2012 4:19 pm
by thexfactor
coldpixies wrote:History: I'm from Orange County and went to school in SoCal, so I have strong ties here, and I want to stay and practice in the LA/OC/SD area, no preference.
Dilemma: I got my scholarship info back from USC today and basically it looks like I'm going to be paying sticker if I go. I also got into Hastings and Davis, also with no money, but I'm not surprised since I've heard they're pretty stingy with money. I got $32,000/yr from Loyola (with the stip to maintain a 3.2 which they say is top 45-50%), $23,000/yr from San Diego (no stip), and a full ride from Chapman (with stip to maintain a 3.0). I also got into Pepperdine but with no money (which I'm told is strange with my numbers but oh well). Also on the WL for UCLA + UCI and out at Berkeley. From my perspective and everything I read, it seems like USC is the clear choice, but I'm nervous at the prospect of paying sticker. As you can see, I don't have much to negotiate with either. Yet I am lucky in that my parents have repeatedly told me that they want to help me out as much as they can, but they're preferring me to take the full ride at Chapman because they have a friend who graduated from there years ago that's pulling in millions a year. Trust me, I've tried telling them that is a pretty big outlier. I have thought about a retake, but honestly, I studied hard this past cycle and pulled a score that was around what I was scoring on practice tests (albeit on the lower end) and it was something short of a miracle that I got into USC with my LSAT esp as a non-URM. I suspect that my GPA and personal statement helped, but didn't expect it to help that much. Even if I score 5 points higher, I'd be hitting around their 25 percentile and I don't think that puts me in a better position to get money. So I guess what I'm asking is if USC in my situation is worth paying sticker for? I will be aiming for big law, which I know USC puts about a 1/3 into, but I know it's no guarantee. Any other thoughts on the situation is more than welcomed, thanks!
The way I see it is this:
You prob majored in a useless undergrad degree like most students ( including me) ie (psychology, sociology, english, english lit, history, poly sci... ... etc...) Why not take a gamble to see if you can enter into the legal profession and make 100k+ straight out of school.
Loyola places around 5% into NLJ250 firms while USC is around 35%. Even though loyola is "free" in terms of money, it is not free in terms of time. There is prob a 80%+ chance that you fail to get a decent job out of Loyola and in 3 years time, you will be in the same position you are in now.
There is only a 50% chance of failure happening at USC. However, to soften the blow of failure, IBR allows you to pay off your loans at 10% of your income for 20 years. With IBR to soften the blow of failure, I think USC is the right answer.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Thu Mar 29, 2012 4:21 pm
by rad lulz
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2012 12:19 pm
by coldpixies
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2012 12:46 pm
by rad lulz
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2012 11:24 pm
by coldpixies
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2012 7:17 pm
by coldpixies
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2012 8:25 pm
by uci2013
I personally am not a fan of stips for scholarships. So in your shoes I think it would be between San Diego and USC for me based on current options. If you want to work in SD, I would definitely go with SD. But I do think one of USCs strength is their alumni network, and they are almost certainly stronger than SD if you prefer the OC. But debt to me is a very personal choice, and if I were you I would visit both and evaluate how debt averse you are and then choose.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:13 am
by Doorkeeper
USC for 120k wanting Cali placement is ok. Go with that.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:34 am
by jarofsoup
USC. Don't go to a SoCal T2 thinking it will work out. Take the debt at USC or UCLA. You will have a lot more options coming out of those schools than at T2.
Loyola, USD, and Chapman are very regional. I would say that UCLA is probably the best pick because it can actually carry you to Northern California or other markets a bit better.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:40 am
by Aberzombie1892
$120K worth of debt is still pretty steep, even for USC.
That's a tough one. If you don't choose USC, remove any schools that have contingent scholarships/no scholarships. So, it appears that you should end up choosing between USC and San Diego. How much debt would you have at San Diego?
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:22 am
by jarofsoup
Aberzombie1892 wrote:$120K worth of debt is still pretty steep, even for USC.
That's a tough one. If you don't choose USC, remove any schools that have contingent scholarships/no scholarships. So, it appears that you should end up choosing between USC and San Diego. How much debt would you have at San Diego?
120K with the chance of a job or going to USD and no chance or little chance of work. It is a bit of a myth that USD places in San Diego, they are pushing most there graduates to off markets like North Dakota.
If you want a good job in SoCal pick a top school in SoCal. Yes you will take on some debt, but you will be competitive and will not have to be at the tippy top of your class to have yourself summarily rejected because of your school by an AMJ. With a lot of schools like USD, Loyola, and Chapman these firms do not actually hire. Rather they just have a couple of OCI slots to keep face with the school.
I go to a T2. People get rejected from these firms who have great grades. Pick USC or UCLA. Some debt is ok.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:24 am
by flem
Doorkeeper wrote:USC for 120k wanting Cali placement is ok. Go with that.
Pretty much. The Cali market is so saturated with schools you need to put yourself in the best position possible to succeed.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:37 am
by CanadianWolf
If unwilling to retake, then consider the $32,000 per year scholarship from Loyola Marymount. As a non-URM with a 161 LSAT score, you were fortunate to get into USC. Might be tough to be in the top third of your class which is what you'll need to pay off your loans.
P.S. If your LSAT is 161, then it would be unusual to receive money from Pepperdine even with a 3.8 GPA according to lawschoolnumbers.com.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 8:56 pm
by coldpixies
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Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 11:35 pm
by JasonR
uci2013 wrote:I personally am not a fan of stips for scholarships. So in your shoes I think it would be between San Diego and USC for me based on current options. If you want to work in SD, I would definitely go with SD. But I do think one of USCs strength is their alumni network, and they are almost certainly stronger than SD if you prefer the OC. But debt to me is a very personal choice, and if I were you I would visit both and evaluate how debt averse you are and then choose.
+1
Doesn't Chapman section stack? Maybe most/all the shithole schools offering generous schollies do.
Whatever you do, I would absolutely avoid the fool's gold of the schollies at Chapman and Loyola. Chances are too great that you'll wind up paying sticker in your 2nd and 3rd years for a POS degree. Just ignore anything your parents say about Chapman; round up some some stuff from Segal, Campos, ATL, etc. for them to read if they won't leave you alone. I wouldn't feel comfortable with your options, because I would never consider paying sticker (or 120K) for USC, but USC and UCSD are really your
only options out of this group.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 1:08 am
by jarofsoup
FYI. You cannot get a job inside of San Diego with a degree from USD anymore the market is crap.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 1:54 pm
by organic muskrat
My vote is for USC.
If you do well as a 1L, additional funding may emerge.
For right now, check out:
http://www.law.yale.edu/admissions/outs ... rships.htm
Peace
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 2:21 pm
by xcountryjunkie
USC in a heartbeat. It's by far the best and you really can't forget about the Trojan alumni network. It's unreal.
Never assume that a scholarship with stipulations will stick around for all three years. There's a very good chance statistically speaking that it won't even be around come 2L.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 2:26 pm
by splitbrain
My vote is for USC, as well.
But whatever you do, absolutely avoid Chapman like the plague. That 3.0 means a top 33% stip per NALP:NDLS.
Screw. That.
And they have, by far, the worst job prospects out of all of your options: ~15.6% unemployed and seeking, for example.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 7:42 pm
by mewalke1
coldpixies wrote:History: I'm from Orange County and went to school in SoCal, so I have strong ties here, and I want to stay and practice in the LA/OC/SD area, no preference.
Dilemma: I got my scholarship info back from USC today and basically it looks like I'm going to be paying sticker if I go. I also got into Hastings and Davis, also with no money, but I'm not surprised since I've heard they're pretty stingy with money. I got $32,000/yr from Loyola (with the stip to maintain a 3.2 which they say is top 45-50%), $23,000/yr from San Diego (no stip), and a full ride from Chapman (with stip to maintain a 3.0). I also got into Pepperdine but with no money (which I'm told is strange with my numbers but oh well). Also on the WL for UCLA + UCI and out at Berkeley.
From my perspective and everything I read, it seems like USC is the clear choice, but I'm nervous at the prospect of paying sticker. As you can see, I don't have much to negotiate with either. Yet I am lucky in that my parents have repeatedly told me that they want to help me out as much as they can, but they're preferring me to take the full ride at Chapman because they have a friend who graduated from there years ago that's pulling in millions a year. Trust me, I've tried telling them that is a pretty big outlier.
I have thought about a retake, but honestly, I studied hard this past cycle and pulled a score that was around what I was scoring on practice tests (albeit on the lower end) and it was something short of a miracle that I got into USC with my LSAT esp as a non-URM. I suspect that my GPA and personal statement helped, but didn't expect it to help that much. Even if I score 5 points higher, I'd be hitting around their 25 percentile and I don't think that puts me in a better position to get money. So I guess what I'm asking is if USC in my situation is worth paying sticker for? I will be aiming for big law, which I know USC puts about a 1/3 into, but I know it's no guarantee. Any other thoughts on the situation is more than welcomed, thanks!
Name recognition is always big in my mind. USC has excellent name recognition if for no other reason than their football team. The schools you applied to are also on my list. I would pick USC in a second...... Even though it is in a horrible neighborhood.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 7:47 pm
by ilovesf
USC. I'm fucking terrified of being unemployed.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 8:00 pm
by Nammertat
ilovesf wrote:USC. I'm fucking terrified of being unemployed.
Also "under"employed
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 8:14 pm
by Chippy
How did a 161 get into USC? You are going to get destroyed by the competition and will likely end up at the bottom of the class.
Re: USC (sticker) vs. lower ranked CA schools (with money)
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 8:18 pm
by ilovesf
Chippy wrote:How did a 161 get into USC? You are going to get destroyed by the competition and will likely end up at the bottom of the class.
Not necessarily true at all.