Emory vs W&M vs becoming a hippie barista Forum

[Faconnable]

Hello, thank you for clicking on my link!

So this is another lame Help Me Choose thread; I've been struggling with this decision for quite a while now and I've switched my decision way too many times to really be confident in my little ol' 0L opinion. I've taken a look at all LST reports, employment data spreadsheet courtesy of these forums, the Go-To rankings, etc., and I can't figure out for the life of me where I want to go.

My numbers: ~3.05-~3.15, 169. I guess I could retake (I've taken it twice) but I don't know if my options would change at all with that bum GPA. Don't really have any meaningful work experience / softs.

I've lived in Louisiana, Northern Virginia, New York, and Los Angeles and I generally have found that I like all those regions and have no real geographical preference. I prefer city-life generally but have lived in the quiet, quiet burbs for the past couple of years and I have no real complaints. My family lives in Virginia and my extended family lives in Los Angeles.

My career desire in general is to work in a city (any city), snap some thin necks, cash some fat checks, the usual. I might pursue an MBA afterwards to get into that saucy corporate/securities/m&a law sector, but I know that's a fanciful idea given this economy and the general labor glut.

Money stuff, COL of which is guesstimated / pulled from their websites:
Emory - 84k total scholarship = ~45k total tuition + ~50k total COL = ~95-100k total COA
W&M - 60k total scholarship = ~24k total tuition (instate) + ~35k total COL = ~60-65k total COA

Emory and W&M's stips are just to stay in good standing.

I will be financing my degree via some funds my parents were kind and foresightful enough to save up for my education; at most I will be taking out ~50k for Emory and not really anything above 5-10k for the W&'s. Even then, other people in my family have said they were willing to step in and help out so that 50k number for Emory isn't written in stone.

The biggest dilemma I have is that all three of them have vaguely similar and ominous employment statistics, with somewhat lurching variations every year in terms of placement into NLJ250/Fed/Govt. I've visited all three and have liked all the campuses, each with their very distinctive flair.

[Faconnable]

Anyone recommend just becoming a hippie and/or going into the waiting industry?

[timbs4339]

The prices seem reasonable although Emory is a little high. The problem is that none of those schools have decent placement into the kinds of work you seem to want to do. Corporate law is going to require biglaw or midlaw (much rarer and thus just about as hard to get). If you'd be happy being a PD/DA or a small law practitioner in certain areas (where your clients are Joe and Jane instead of a F500 company) then W+L/W+M look good.

Are your parents super-rich and can really afford to drop six figures? Like, could they burn it and laugh and dance in the flames? If so go to Emory. If not, get WE, retake and go to T14.

[Faconnable]

Thank you for the input. I appreciate it!

[rad lulz]

The prices seem reasonable although Emory is a little high. The problem is that none of those schools have decent placement into the kinds of work you seem to want to do. Corporate law is going to require biglaw or midlaw (much rarer and thus just about as hard to get). If you'd be happy being a PD/DA or a small law practitioner in certain areas (where your clients are Joe and Jane instead of a F500 company) then W+L/W+M look good.

Are your parents super-rich and can really afford to drop six figures? Like, could they burn it and laugh and dance in the flames? If so go to Emory. If not, get WE, retake and go to T14.

This

[Faconnable]

rad lulz has replied to my thread

i can die happy

[Faconnable]

Anyway, would retaking really open up any possibilities with that 3.1 albatross of a GPA hanging over me? Even for the lower T14 there seems to really be a GPA floor apart from GULC or NU, and GULC flatout rejected me this year.

[bzzingbee]

Anyway, would retaking really open up any possibilities with that 3.1 albatross of a GPA hanging over me? Even for the lower T14 there seems to really be a GPA floor apart from GULC or NU, and GULC flatout rejected me this year.

I have a 3.14, 169 and will be going to GULC in the fall. I was waitlisted at 6 other T14s, which is better than a no. The difference, I think, is that I have a year of WE and significant softs. (I also worked so long on my personal statement I think it could win a prize, but that may be the many late nights of stress talking.) Study hard and retake, a 169 can easily be raised (I kinda wish I had retaken in Dec.) and get WE. You definitely can use that as a way to balance the GPA

[hephaestus]

Anyway, would retaking really open up any possibilities with that 3.1 albatross of a GPA hanging over me? Even for the lower T14 there seems to really be a GPA floor apart from GULC or NU, and GULC flatout rejected me this year.

A 3.1 can still get you UVA with a 170 and an ED (or RD occasionally).