Case Western Reserve vs. University of Kentucky Forum

[cnwo21]

I just recently got off the waitlist at Case Western with a $10,000 scholarship. only stip is remaining in academic good standing (2.33). My previous plan was to take a year off and work in Kentucky since I am presently considered out-of-state. That way I could save up money, and retake the LSAT for Scholarship consideration, etc. However, being from Ohio I do very much so like Case Western, but am still wondering if most would advice this to be a good decision since even with the 10,000 a year scholarship it would be quite a bit of money. Tuition is $42,564 a year originally.Opinions? Uk out of state around $37,000 and in state 20,000

LSAT: 155
GPA 3.35

from Ohio, undergrad in kentucky

[t-14orbust]

Please study for the LSAT for 6+ more months and then take your pic of infinitely better options.

edit: U of K has much better employment outcomes than I expected, I had no idea it would have a 74% employment score on LST. Either way your chances at servicing 120K from U of K are pretty low. So you should retake nonetheless

[timbs4339]

I just recently got off the waitlist at Case Western with a $10,000 scholarship. only stip is remaining in academic good standing (2.33). My previous plan was to take a year off and work in Kentucky since I am presently considered out-of-state. That way I could save up money, and retake the LSAT for Scholarship consideration, etc. However, being from Ohio I do very much so like Case Western, but am still wondering if most would advice this to be a good decision since even with the 10,000 a year scholarship it would be quite a bit of money. Tuition is $42,564 a year originally.Opinions? Uk out of state around $37,000 and in state 20,000

LSAT: 155
GPA 3.35

from Ohio, undergrad in kentucky

Retake. No question. Case is going to be 150K+ easily- there's no way starting salaries of 40-55K justify that. And it's not even worth it over UK since you'll get in-state there after 1L year, wiping out the scholarship savings.

[jingosaur]

1. Do the work experience in Kentucky.
2. Retake the LSAT.
3. Get into UK with in-state tuition and maybe a scholarship.
4. Profit.

Not only will you make the money that you'd make from the work experience, you'd essentially make whatever money you save on tuition for Kentucky. This decision isn't even close. Kentucky also has great employment stats compared to Case Western.

http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school= ... n&show=ABA

http://www.lstscorereports.com/?school= ... y&show=ABA

[Lavitz]

My previous plan was to take a year off and work in Kentucky since I am presently considered out-of-state. That way I could save up money, and retake the LSAT for Scholarship consideration, etc.

Stick with this plan.

[cnwo21]

My only concern is that I will take a year off and not be in any better of a situation. For example, no additional scholarships or be declined in-state tuition at UK

[Lavitz]

My only concern is that I will take a year off and not be in any better of a situation. For example, no additional scholarships or be declined in-state tuition at UK

It sounded like you would get in-state if you waited one year. Either way, with apps dropping I don't see any way you'd be in a worse position. And if you score higher and/or qualify for in-state you'll be in a much better position. Not to mention the year off could be a valuable experience in itself.

[WokeUpInACar]

My only concern is that I will take a year off and not be in any better of a situation. For example, no additional scholarships or be declined in-state tuition at UK

If you research the requirements for residency and fulfill them they aren't going to deny you in-state tuition. Also these two schools are far too expensive to attend at those prices. Further, unless you spent hundreds of hours studying for the LSAT, you haven't come close to maximizing your potential, and a better score could save you tens of thousands of dollars.

[timbs4339]

My only concern is that I will take a year off and not be in any better of a situation. For example, no additional scholarships or be declined in-state tuition at UK

Well, you'll have an extra year of $$$ from working. Best case scenario you get a much better school or save tens of thousands of dollars. Going to either school at those prices is a bad move.

[PRgradBYU]

Retake and it's not even close.

[romothesavior]

My previous plan was to take a year off and work in Kentucky since I am presently considered out-of-state. That way I could save up money, and retake the LSAT for Scholarship consideration, etc.

Stick with this plan.

+1.

[californiauser]

Stay in Kentucky, work for a year, retake for better schools, and enjoy 1 more year of SEC football.

[20141023]

.

[BigZuck]

You shouldn't be aiming for UK; UK should be a backup plan at best. With a 3.35, you could get into T14 schools like Georgetown, Cornell, Northwestern, or UVA (and possibly elsewhere) if you can score well enough on the LSAT. You should not attend anywhere with a 155 if you haven't already put in the time and effort to seriously study for this test.

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist. If someone wants to work at a small firm and has ties there is nothing wrong with attending a school like Kentucky (assume the cost is reasonable of course). Not everyone needs to be T14 or bust.

While I certainly agree that the OP should not go to either of these schools at these costs and that sitting out a year and retaking is their best course of action, LOL at saying "just work and save up money bro." People say that on this site all the time but if the average college grad is working whatever job they can get with their BA and supporting themselves its highly doubtful they are going to make an excess amount of money on top of that that can be put toward law school.

OP, retake. If you don't have ties but want to work as a lawyer in Kentucky then go work there for a year before law school.

Edit: just saw the OP went to UG in Kentucky. I still think its not a bad idea to work there while studying for a retake if the goal is to work as a lawyer in Kentucky

[20141023]

.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

You shouldn't be aiming for UK; UK should be a backup plan at best. With a 3.35, you could get into T14 schools like Georgetown, Cornell, Northwestern, or UVA (and possibly elsewhere) if you can score well enough on the LSAT. You should not attend anywhere with a 155 if you haven't already put in the time and effort to seriously study for this test.

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist. If someone wants to work at a small firm and has ties there is nothing wrong with attending a school like Kentucky (assume the cost is reasonable of course). Not everyone needs to be T14 or bust.

While I certainly agree that the OP should not go to either of these schools at these costs and that sitting out a year and retaking is their best course of action, LOL at saying "just work and save up money bro." People say that on this site all the time but if the average college grad is working whatever job they can get with their BA and supporting themselves its highly doubtful they are going to make an excess amount of money on top of that that can be put toward law school.

OP, retake. If you don't have ties but want to work as a lawyer in Kentucky then go work there for a year before law school.

Edit: just saw the OP went to UG in Kentucky. I still think its not a bad idea to work there while studying for a retake if the goal is to work as a lawyer in Kentucky

Elitism is kind of a funny notion. It's sometimes hard to balance not wanting to come off as elitist while at the same time wanting to gently make the point that the grass is WAY greener on the other side of the T14.

But Zuck is right. If you're okay with not bringing home the $$$/staying in one state for probably the rest of your career, going to a school like Kentucky on a full ride is totally defensible. Depends on the first question that should be asked in these threads: "What are you trying to do with your life?" I'm assuming OP's retake won't go well enough for the T14 to come into play, so I'd suggest shooting for the residency and the full ride.

[BigZuck]

You shouldn't be aiming for UK; UK should be a backup plan at best. With a 3.35, you could get into T14 schools like Georgetown, Cornell, Northwestern, or UVA (and possibly elsewhere) if you can score well enough on the LSAT. You should not attend anywhere with a 155 if you haven't already put in the time and effort to seriously study for this test.

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist. If someone wants to work at a small firm and has ties there is nothing wrong with attending a school like Kentucky (assume the cost is reasonable of course). Not everyone needs to be T14 or bust.

While I certainly agree that the OP should not go to either of these schools at these costs and that sitting out a year and retaking is their best course of action, LOL at saying "just work and save up money bro." People say that on this site all the time but if the average college grad is working whatever job they can get with their BA and supporting themselves its highly doubtful they are going to make an excess amount of money on top of that that can be put toward law school.

OP, retake. If you don't have ties but want to work as a lawyer in Kentucky then go work there for a year before law school.

No, because if OP's setting their target LSAT score as something that is just good enough to get into UK, then they would be selling themselves short. Even if they ultimately do attend UK, they should set their sights higher so that they will likely be offered big $$$ at "safety" schools like UK. I am not trying to make fun of UK (where a couple of my friends are actually currently attending); rather, I am trying to offer financially sound advice in case the OP doesn't do as well as they hoped during law school.

We are in agreement that the OP should Noodley the LSAT and that virtually nobody should attend law school with a 155.

But you're changing your tune now. You said that a school like Kentucky should be a backup plan at best and that the OP had the potential to go to a school like UVA, implying that a school like that should be their target. That's elitist and I don't agree at all. If all the OP aspired to do was work in a small law firm (or the like) in Kentucky then it makes a lot more sense to go to a school like Kentucky for freesies (or at least for cheapsies) than a school like UVA for a 150K+ cost of attendance (which is probably what happen for someone with that GPA unless they really do Noodley the LSAT).

There is nothing wrong with targeting a strong regional as long as the price is right. Not everyone has to set their sights on a T14.

[BigZuck]

You shouldn't be aiming for UK; UK should be a backup plan at best. With a 3.35, you could get into T14 schools like Georgetown, Cornell, Northwestern, or UVA (and possibly elsewhere) if you can score well enough on the LSAT. You should not attend anywhere with a 155 if you haven't already put in the time and effort to seriously study for this test.

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist. If someone wants to work at a small firm and has ties there is nothing wrong with attending a school like Kentucky (assume the cost is reasonable of course). Not everyone needs to be T14 or bust.

While I certainly agree that the OP should not go to either of these schools at these costs and that sitting out a year and retaking is their best course of action, LOL at saying "just work and save up money bro." People say that on this site all the time but if the average college grad is working whatever job they can get with their BA and supporting themselves its highly doubtful they are going to make an excess amount of money on top of that that can be put toward law school.

OP, retake. If you don't have ties but want to work as a lawyer in Kentucky then go work there for a year before law school.

Edit: just saw the OP went to UG in Kentucky. I still think its not a bad idea to work there while studying for a retake if the goal is to work as a lawyer in Kentucky

Elitism is kind of a funny notion. It's sometimes hard to balance not wanting to come off as elitist while at the same time wanting to gently make the point that the grass is WAY greener on the other side of the T14.

But Zuck is right. If you're okay with not bringing home the $$$/staying in one state for probably the rest of your career, going to a school like Kentucky on a full ride is totally defensible. Depends on the first question that should be asked in these threads: "What are you trying to do with your life?" I'm assuming OP's retake won't go well enough for the T14 to come into play, so I'd suggest shooting for the residency and the full ride.

I'm old as dirt and have a spouse to think of and decently strong roots to a particular region that I would like to stay in (and that doesn't have a T14- at least not most years ), so I can understand why some people don't want to (or can't) be T14 or bust like a lot of people on this site. I understand the greenery on the T14 side of the fence-models and bottles for all once you catch DAT inevitable big law offer- but that's not always the most important thing for some people. And I realize that the school I chose is pretty much the strongest strong regional there is and closer to a T14 than it is to a school like, say, Kentucky, but I did willingly give up some good higher ranked offers at the risk of worse job prospects. But I'm ok with that because my priorities, like that of many people who choose strong regionals, are different than those of a lot of T14 TLSers.

tl;dr- I'm old and there is room for people on both sides of the great T14 divide.

[shifty_eyed]

You shouldn't be aiming for UK; UK should be a backup plan at best. With a 3.35, you could get into T14 schools like Georgetown, Cornell, Northwestern, or UVA (and possibly elsewhere) if you can score well enough on the LSAT. You should not attend anywhere with a 155 if you haven't already put in the time and effort to seriously study for this test.

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist. If someone wants to work at a small firm and has ties there is nothing wrong with attending a school like Kentucky (assume the cost is reasonable of course). Not everyone needs to be T14 or bust.

While I certainly agree that the OP should not go to either of these schools at these costs and that sitting out a year and retaking is their best course of action, LOL at saying "just work and save up money bro." People say that on this site all the time but if the average college grad is working whatever job they can get with their BA and supporting themselves its highly doubtful they are going to make an excess amount of money on top of that that can be put toward law school.

OP, retake. If you don't have ties but want to work as a lawyer in Kentucky then go work there for a year before law school.

Edit: just saw the OP went to UG in Kentucky. I still think its not a bad idea to work there while studying for a retake if the goal is to work as a lawyer in Kentucky

Elitism is kind of a funny notion. It's sometimes hard to balance not wanting to come off as elitist while at the same time wanting to gently make the point that the grass is WAY greener on the other side of the T14.

But Zuck is right. If you're okay with not bringing home the $$$/staying in one state for probably the rest of your career, going to a school like Kentucky on a full ride is totally defensible. Depends on the first question that should be asked in these threads: "What are you trying to do with your life?" I'm assuming OP's retake won't go well enough for the T14 to come into play, so I'd suggest shooting for the residency and the full ride.

[Cicero76]

While obviously I agree with some of this I think this statement is why TLS is accused of being elitist. And this statement is elitist.

No, not everybody needs a T14. But we're on www.top-law-schools.com for Chrissake. If you don't want elitist advice, go somewhere else! I at least feel like people shouldn't complain when this website seems like exactly what it is-- a group of self-selecting applicants aiming for top schools who want to encourage others to do the same.

[20141023]

.

[Ohiobumpkin]

My previous plan was to take a year off and work in Kentucky since I am presently considered out-of-state. That way I could save up money, and retake the LSAT for Scholarship consideration, etc.

Stick with this plan.

+Study more for the LSAT and get more $$$.

[BigZuck]

Again, I think you took my statement the wrong way, BigZuck. Like you, I don't think that everyone has to attend a T14 to be happy. However, what I am saying is that the OP should be shooting for admittance to a T14 when they're studying for the LSAT instead of just trying to get a 75th percentile score for UK (161). If the reason for not going to a T14 is an atrocious GPA (which is usually too late to change) or ties to a certain region, then I can understand not attending. However, if the reason for not attending a T14 is "I wasn't able to get a good score on the LSAT, which I only took once," then that person needs to reconsider their approach.

Additionally, it already sounds like the OP is going to have to move to Lexington anyway, so I don't think that their situation is like yours where you're already established in Texas and trying not to move from there. If the OP is going to move to a new place either way, it makes even more sense to shoot higher.

Lastly, I was actually raised in Lexington and spent a little bit at UK for undergrad before transferring to a T15 private school (because I ran out of credits to take for my major after 4 semesters), so I promise you that I do not dislike UK.

I guess I'm just too dense as usual. Because to me what you initially said reads as "Regional schools are backups that you shouldn't really attend unless you absolutely have to, you actually should be trying to go to a T14." Even after two long posts explaining what you said the original statement reads the same to me. My reading comprehension just isn't there I guess. That's probably why you're going to go to a T14 overflowing with RIGOR and why I am only going to go a lowly regional school

Cicero- I hear you brother, lots of people here are trying to get into Yale and some of them even manage to luckbox their way in ( ). But still, TLS is a lot more than a place for the Pacifica's of the world to exchange application tips with each other and to console each other when they only get a Butler. For example, if you google "LSAT studying" then TLS is the second link and has a ton of links on the first page. I'm sure all types of people stumble over here and not everyone is striving to (or neccessarily needs to IMO) go to a T14. And really, I'm not sure where else there is for people to go even if they are just trying to get into a school like the University of Alabama on a full ride. There is no strongregionallawschools.com and things like the LSAT forum here are the best around. Basically all law school applicants have to come here if they want the best advice, methods, etc. I'm all for people going to school in the best possible situation for themselves and I'm totally down with TLS being for people trying to get into the very top schools but I think there's definitely room to give advice for people who "only" want to go to a strong regional school.

Tl;dr-

[rwhyAn]

After seeing what a shyster the dean at Case truly is, I would never go there. The guy really is despicable.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/29/opini ... money.html

http://www.bloomberg.com/video/dean-the ... ISI9w.html

OP, if you want Kentucky, stay in KY and retake for dat scholly $$$$ + in-state tuition. Avoid Case like the plague.

[cnwo21]

I thought most schools in the T14 wanted higher overall GPAs than a 3.35? But, I do have a strong grade trend of a around a 3.9 my junior year and a 3.8 my senior year.