Top Law Schools

Please help. With the first deposit less than a week away I am torn between two schools. I attended Loyola for undergrad and am very comfortable at the university. Both schools offered similar scholarships and the only thing that sways my heart from Loyola is Kent being ranked 5 spots higher (67th to 62nd). I hope to go into corporate law and stay in the Chicago area if this helps? Thanks for your time!

What is the total cost of attendance at both schools and the stipulations on the scholarships?

If you are dead set on corporate law (meaning transactional work) you need to seriously think about a retake. Corporate law = biglaw and neither of those schools is a good option unless you are at full ride and are willing to roll the dice.

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I understand what I'm up against going to a tier 2 school. Total out of pocket would be $50,000 at Loyola with a 3.0 GPA stip and $55,000 at Kent with no GPA stip. I know that I would need to rank top 10-20% to have a shot at big law but I kind of what to start law school now and feel like I have that potential. I unfortunately concentrated more on athletics in college and finished with a 3.2 GPA but did really well on the LSAT. My GPA is what held me back with a waitlist at NU. I am coming in with 0 undergrad debt because I had nearly a full academic ride which also lightens my load a bit to consider these schools.

k

savak wrote:I understand what I'm up against going to a tier 2 school. Total out of pocket would be $50,000 at Loyola with a 3.0 GPA stip and $55,000 at Kent with no GPA stip. I know that I would need to rank top 10-20% to have a shot at big law but I kind of what to start law school now and feel like I have that potential. I unfortunately concentrated more on athletics in college and finished with a 3.2 GPA but did really well on the LSAT. My GPA is what held me back with a waitlist at NU. I am coming in with 0 undergrad debt because I had nearly a full academic ride which also lightens my load a bit to consider these schools.

It's important to work hard that first semester- but that's a necessary not sufficient condition. Everyone will be working hard. What sets you apart from other students is some intangible X factor that allows you to "get" law school exams a month before everyone else does. This is not something you can prepare for or grind your way to.

Biglaw firms do their hiring after the first year of law school. Given this, if you want biglaw you need to go to a school where you have some breathing room in case you end up median. Median at either Loyola or Kent is a hole you can't get out from at either of these schools- the Chicago market has been savaged and both are having trouble placing top 10% kids in biglaw.

The good news is if you don't get top 15% after your first year you will not have to worry about stips because the next best thing to do would be drop out. If you do not get biglaw after 1L you are not going to get it period.

savak wrote:I understand what I'm up against going to a tier 2 school. Total out of pocket would be $50,000 at Loyola with a 3.0 GPA stip and $55,000 at Kent with no GPA stip. I know that I would need to rank top 10-20% to have a shot at big law but I kind of what to start law school now and feel like I have that potential. I unfortunately concentrated more on athletics in college and finished with a 3.2 GPA but did really well on the LSAT. My GPA is what held me back with a waitlist at NU. I am coming in with 0 undergrad debt because I had nearly a full academic ride which also lightens my load a bit to consider these schools.

10-20% is a very generous estimate for big law at those schools. More like top 5%

What was your LSAT?