Top Law Schools

Lurker but first time poster. Friend of mine is thinking about ED'ing to Duke. I just saw this: http://abovethelaw.com/2013/01/duke-law ... ncrease/2/The petition slams Duke's employment prospect pretty hard. Is Duke worth it at sticker for someone who is from the South, wouldn't mind staying, and is dead set on biglaw?

I guess this really depends on what his other options are

What are his current career prospects? What kind of money does he make now?

Poly Sci, working as a legal assistant at a (successful) solo

I would probably do it in his shoes, but I would retake first to avoid paying sticker at Duke if possible. I think TLS in general is fairly split over whether T14 is worth sticker

I wouldn't do it for private/Biglaw. I would do it if I wanted to PI/IBR. That that doesn't mean I wouldn't be stupid.

He also has cost of living expenses covered via family, if that makes a difference since it's not technically sticker.

GoIgnant wrote:He also has cost of living expenses covered via family, if that makes a difference since it's not technically sticker.

I'm guessing that "he" is actually "you"

GoIgnant wrote:He also has cost of living expenses covered via family, if that makes a difference since it's not technically sticker.

That's still technically sticker.

Duke is not worth sticker even for someone "willing" to work biglaw in the South (I used quotes because that is not an easy goal to obtain at all--even from Duke).

If someone has the stats to get into Duke at sticker and wants to work in the South, what that really means is that they should attend Vanderbilt with a small scholarship or one of Bama, UNC, UGA for free (or close to it). The difference in class ranking that Southern firms will accept from Duke as opposed to Vandy in particular is pathetic in terms of using it as a justification to pay sticker.

I wouldn't.

nmop_apisdn wrote:

GoIgnant wrote:He also has cost of living expenses covered via family, if that makes a difference since it's not technically sticker.

That's still technically sticker.

Sticker price tuition, not the full debt-financed school-stated sticker cost of attendance.

To be fair when most people say sticker they mean the whole 9 yards including COL.

OP if that is only t14 offer, and no flagship local offer + $ in area your buddy wants to practice, I would say go for it.

Would his COL be covered at any school or only Duke? Regardless, if he isn't willing to work non-BigLaw in the South or move elsewhere to obtain BigLaw then it's probably a bad decision.

Tiago Splitter wrote:Would his COL be covered at any school or only Duke? Regardless, if he isn't willing to work non-BigLaw in the South or move elsewhere to obtain BigLaw then it's probably a bad decision.

+1. From the OP "wouldn't mind staying in the south" it sounded like he was open to other regions, but if you're not open to working in New York I definitely wouldn't do it, and aim for a regional with money

see here:

http://abovethelaw.com/2013/01/duke-law ... ncrease/2/

prezidentv8 wrote:see here:

http://abovethelaw.com/2013/01/duke-law ... ncrease/2/

? OP posted that link already.

I would't do Duke at 10K per year scholly, so I would say no to sticker - COL

Tiago Splitter wrote:Would his COL be covered at any school or only Duke? Regardless, if he isn't willing to work non-BigLaw in the South or move elsewhere to obtain BigLaw then it's probably a bad decision.

It's not worth it for New York either. He will AT LEAST need to be median to even have a mediocre shot at NYC biglaw. And if he does land it sticker debt is too much to safely service with NYC biglaw. Between taxes, COL, and the fact that he will have a very small chance at working more than 3 years at a NYC big firm sticker simply isn't a good idea. Sticker would actually be more feasible if he did land Southern biglaw.

BruceWayne wrote:

Tiago Splitter wrote:Would his COL be covered at any school or only Duke? Regardless, if he isn't willing to work non-BigLaw in the South or move elsewhere to obtain BigLaw then it's probably a bad decision.

It's not worth it for New York either. He will AT LEAST need to be median to even have a mediocre shot at NYC biglaw. And if he does land it sticker debt is too much to safely service with NYC biglaw. Between taxes, COL, and the fact that he will have a very small chance at working more than 3 years at a NYC big firm sticker simply isn't a good idea. Sticker would actually be more feasible if he did land Southern biglaw.

The point is that geographic flexibility is important when taking on six figure debt. Since his COL is covered he can keep the debt around 175K when repayment, which is like saying he'll have to pay for his COL but landed a 60K scholarship.

But the truth is most people considering Duke at sticker can avoid the issue altogether by retaking. The only exception would be if he already has a shitty GPA and his COL will only be covered at Duke.

Suralin wrote:

prezidentv8 wrote:see here:

http://abovethelaw.com/2013/01/duke-law ... ncrease/2/

? OP posted that link already.

My response is:

1) Derpppppp.
2) Who actually reads before posting?
3) He already has the answers

prezidentv8 wrote:

Suralin wrote:

prezidentv8 wrote:see here:

http://abovethelaw.com/2013/01/duke-law ... ncrease/2/

? OP posted that link already.

My response is:

1) Derpppppp.
2) Who actually reads before posting?
3) He already has the answers

For some reason I voted yes even though I will probably have this decision to make and I'm personally leaning toward taking the money at a state flagship over sticker at Duke. Although I would strongly consider it with 15K+ a year and that is basically what your "friend" is getting with COL taken care of.

People who are saying No aren't the same who say ED UVA with a straight face are they? Because as far as I can tell if Duke isn't worth it at sticker then neither is UVA, Michigan, Berkeley, Cornell, or Georgetown.

I turned down Duke with 60k for a lower ranked school full ride plus named scholarship. I talked to students and faculty in duke law who encouraged me that Duke at that price was a poor decision. I don't think there is really any circumstance when Duke @ sticker is a good decision.

EDing doesn't necessarily guarantee sticker. I applied ED and ended up with $8k/year; it seems that many (most?) ED applicants ended up with something, typically in the $5k-$10k/year range. This isn't a huge windfall, but it definitely takes some of the edge off of sticker shock.

FWIW, I would make the same decision again. I'm very happy at Duke, and the employment situation has worked out well for me thus far.