Cornell (sticker) vs vandy (60k) Forum

[mnevins]

3.76/167 mexican URM, applications sent out feb 1st

just received my financial aid package from cornell and was really surprised i didn't even qualify for need based grants (my parents combined income is ~75k/yr) after being accepted april 30th .

I have 20k in undergraduate loans

biglaw

no strong preference for north or south, though i feel that with 250k++ debt i'd be safer in NYC

nashville is way more my scene than ithaca, but law school is only 3 years long and i dont want this to weigh in on my decision

im also waitlisted at columbia, chicago, nyu, northwestern. it'd be sweet to get into any of these, but i only have til the 14th to put a deposit down on cornell.

sorry for the double post, but i wanted to add the financial aid info and a poll. Anybody have any experience negotiating cornell for $$? I've read most of the cornell vs ??/vanderbilt vs ?? posts on the board and the general consensus seems to be that you had better graduate top 1/3rd of your class at vandy or 2/3rd at cornell. is the extra security worth ~80k in debt?

[Doorkeeper]

I'm surprised that you got waitlisted at all of the schools that you did. Most URMs with your numbers have multiple T14 acceptances to choose from in the lower half. I think it's very much because you applied so late in the cycle. I would strongly consider retake and reapply if you don't get into one of the schools that you're waitlisted at with some scholarship. If you did this, I would make sure to get your applications in during Sept. or Oct.

Of your options, Cornell is much more secure for NYC biglaw. I would place that premium at around 50-60k at least compared to Vandy, so I think it's the "better" option. This being said, Cornell at sticker is a shitty option.