Top Law Schools

Need help deciding between three schools:

Washington and Lee, Howard, or Notre Dame

I visited both Howard and W&L liked both of them could easily see myself going to either three schools...mostly its going to come down to job prospects...I want to end up in either NYC or DC biglaw...I know what the numbers say for all three but numbers dont always paint a true picture..so anyone with first hand knowledge or that knows someone or just actually knows what their talking about and not relying completely on numbers I would love to hear your thoughs.

If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

mcdeeremitch wrote:Need help deciding between three schools:

Washington and Lee, Howard, or Notre Dame

I visited both Howard and W&L liked both of them could easily see myself going to either three schools...mostly its going to come down to job prospects...I want to end up in either NYC or DC biglaw...I know what the numbers say for all three but numbers dont always paint a true picture..so anyone with first hand knowledge or that knows someone or just actually knows what their talking about and not relying completely on numbers I would love to hear your thoughs.

Any scholarships? If so, stipulations?

bk187 wrote:If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

What about Howard... don't they place like the top 20% in biglaw when firms go looking for diversity? I thought I heard that...

bk187 wrote:If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

of the four 2ls I talked to at Howard very briefly 3 of them had biglaw SA lined up...and of the about 25-30 2l and 3ls I spoke to about 10 or 12 of them had biglaw jobs lined up

mcdeeremitch wrote:of the four 2ls I talked to at Howard very briefly 3 of them had biglaw SA lined up...and of the about 25-30 2l and 3ls I spoke to about 10 or 12 of them had biglaw jobs lined up

Howard even at the best of times only seemed to place about 20% of its class into biglaw (NLJ250 data: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=181578). I wouldn't recommend going somewhere where your goal has an 80% chance of not happening (it's likely closer to 90% due to the economy). Especially when you consider the fact that schools exist where your goals actually have a >50% chance of happening.

spleenworship wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:Need help deciding between three schools:

Washington and Lee, Howard, or Notre Dame

I visited both Howard and W&L liked both of them could easily see myself going to either three schools...mostly its going to come down to job prospects...I want to end up in either NYC or DC biglaw...I know what the numbers say for all three but numbers dont always paint a true picture..so anyone with first hand knowledge or that knows someone or just actually knows what their talking about and not relying completely on numbers I would love to hear your thoughs.

Any scholarships? If so, stipulations?

12,500 at Howard they havent released their stips yet......and 13,500 at W&L with a 3.25 stip but the Dean sai that over the past 4 classes only 18 people have had their schollys reduced and only 1 has lost it completly he said that not meeing the stips isnt automatic that you lose it

Retake.

JasonR wrote:Retake.

Retake is 100% not an option im happy with my options..just need to make the right choice about which option to attend....

Howard is going to be cheaper... but I think they place less in biglaw than W&L.... somebody who knows their numbers on W&L want to chime in?

mcdeeremitch wrote:

JasonR wrote:Retake.

Retake is 100% not an option im happy with my options..just need to make the right choice about which option to attend....

There is no right choice.

Dany wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:

JasonR wrote:Retake.

Retake is 100% not an option im happy with my options..just need to make the right choice about which option to attend....

There is no right choice.

Should have said make the right choice for me...somewhere in these three choices plus a waitlist at Fordham there is a right choice FOR ME

.

I'm not retaking these are the three or four options I'm going with so if anyone else has any thing to say besides retake or don't go or anything of the like I would love to hear responses

Howard, I guess.

mcdeeremitch wrote:I'm not retaking these are the three or four options I'm going with so if anyone else has any thing to say besides retake or don't go or anything of the like I would love to hear responses

If you want to make a bad decision, that's on you. I (and I suspect many other members of TLS) just can't in good conscience tell you that any of these schools are a good financial or life decision for your goal of biglaw.

You stand something like 92% chance of not getting biglaw by attending these schools. If you want to do biglaw you need to go to a top 14 school to have realistic odds, top 6 to have good odds or odds in your favor.

Whichever you go to you're going to have to bust your balls, so choose the school/location that appeals most.
If you can get in off the waitlist, go to Fordham - it'll give you a better shot at biglaw (although, at sticker it is a risky proposition; they have been known to give schollys off the waitlist, so good luck)

Dany wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:I'm not retaking these are the three or four options I'm going with so if anyone else has any thing to say besides retake or don't go or anything of the like I would love to hear responses

If you want to make a bad decision, that's on you. I (and I suspect many other members of TLS) just can't in good conscience tell you that any of these schools are a good financial or life decision for your goal of biglaw.

Credited.

mcdeeremitch wrote:

bk187 wrote:If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

of the four 2ls I talked to at Howard very briefly 3 of them had biglaw SA lined up...and of the about 25-30 2l and 3ls I spoke to about 10 or 12 of them had biglaw jobs lined up

You randomly went up to people at the school or these are people the school presented to you in some kind of session?

rad lulz wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:

Dany wrote: There is no right choice.

Should have said make the right choice for me...somewhere in these three choices plus a waitlist at Fordham there is a right choice FOR ME

Given that your desire is for NYC or DC biglaw, there is no right choice, especially given those prices.

+1

MrAnon wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:

bk187 wrote:If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

of the four 2ls I talked to at Howard very briefly 3 of them had biglaw SA lined up...and of the about 25-30 2l and 3ls I spoke to about 10 or 12 of them had biglaw jobs lined up

You randomly went up to people at the school or these are people the school presented to you in some kind of session?

At Howard just randomly I was only in dc for about 5 or 6 hours so I sat in on a class and talked to students and went up to people that were in the library and around campus....w&l I talked to many people out on the town and around campus during asw nobody was hand picked to talk to me Or presented cause they had good jobs or anything like that

If your goal is NYC or DC biglaw, none of the above. It's pretty clear cut.

mcdeeremitch wrote:

MrAnon wrote:

mcdeeremitch wrote:

bk187 wrote:If you truly want biglaw I probably wouldn't go to any of those schools.

If you're okay without biglaw then cost is important.

of the four 2ls I talked to at Howard very briefly 3 of them had biglaw SA lined up...and of the about 25-30 2l and 3ls I spoke to about 10 or 12 of them had biglaw jobs lined up

You randomly went up to people at the school or these are people the school presented to you in some kind of session?

At Howard just randomly I was only in dc for about 5 or 6 hours so I sat in on a class and talked to students and went up to people that were in the library and around campus....w&l I talked to many people out on the town and around campus during asw nobody was hand picked to talk to me Or presented cause they had good jobs or anything like that

How do you know the firms they mentioned were biglaw? Are you that familiar with law firm names that you would recognize them? did they say "I got biglaw" or "I got a nice firm job"?

Wherever is cheapest because your odds of biglaw are about 15-20% at the most.