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Hey TLSers, I've been on here long enough to know what kind of answers to expect to this question and I'm pretty sure I know which way I'm leaning, but I still want to do my due diligence. And in this case that means getting the advice of internet strangers. (This being said, I'm especially interested in the opinions of current students and recent grads who have experience with both the job market and debt financing. Cause it's all theoretical to me...)

Both schools have similar COA at about 78k. At face value the HLS grant is roughly 53k over 3 years vs the NYU of 75k. The HLS grant will preclude my from keeping summer income though, and at NYU at least that money will still be mine. Then again, NY is more expensive to live in. All in all, I'd guess that HLS will cost roughly 30k more than NYU after the 3 years are up. Not a tremendous difference, but still a significant percent of my total debt.

I know everyone gets off on HLS here (and frankly I do too) but is it truly worth the extra cost? Does the Jacobson provide any tangible benefit that elevates the NYU degree and makes this a tougher choice? Or is this an easy 'take HLS' no-brainer? Thanks!

Have fun at Harvard.

I was made aware of the Jacobson business program roughly 30 seconds ago. Would this be a JD/MBA or just a program without an additional degree?

What are your goals?

Although I can't imagine HLS not being the choice here, I also don't know anything about what a Jacobson entails.

0L here but...Harvard is frickin Harvard

sinfiery wrote:What are your goals?

Although I can't imagine HLS not being the choice here, I also don't know anything about what a Jacobson entails.

Big law for a few years, stay if I like it or go in-house if I don't. Probably leaning towards a law/business hybrid type job in entertainment (which is where my background is) but want to stay flexible in case I really dig another field. Jacobson isn't a joint degree by default, though it can be. You do take business classes though (which I realize I can also do by cross-registering at HLS/HBS) and you're assigned a mentor in the business field of your choice. And I'd imagine you get a little extra attention from relevant faculty since you have a named scholly, which can help with employment opportunities, though I don't know for sure.

FlowBro wrote:0L here but...Harvard is frickin Harvard

And yeah man... That was my attitude for the whole application process. Honestly it still is - as everyone can probably pick up on, I'm heavily leaning towards HLS because it's HLS and I really loved the visit... Just want to make sure I'm not missing something before taking out a billion dollars in loans. I guess this is debt-inspired cold feet and with other good options it's easy to question

trojandave wrote:Probably leaning towards a law/business hybrid type job in entertainment (which is where my background is) but want to stay flexible in case I really dig another field.

If there was any doubt, this probably makes it clear that HLS is worth the extra ~30k.

Harvard, anyone that suggests otherwise is crazy. The extra cost in chump change compared to the benefit you get.