Top Law Schools

UVA (60,500) COA
UCLA (36,500) COA

Paying with loans

From southern california, went to University of Utah and worked for a law firm in Salt lake city, weak family ties to fort lauderdale.

Career goals- medium sized law firm in salt lake, denver or fort lauderdale.

Any advice appreciated.

Is that yearly COA or total? Stats?

Winston1984 wrote:Is that yearly COA or total? Stats?

Total

UVA by a landslide. If your main choices don't materialize, you'll have way better prospects.

UVA. Not close.

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Career goals- medium sized law firm in salt lake, denver or fort lauderdale.

UVA for sure, but neither school is likely to get you into any one of these three markets.

Are you okay with biglaw (probably in NYC) for 1-2 years?

UVA.

And what do you mean by "medium-sized." If you're talking about 100+ attorney firms that pay more thank 70k there are very few in any of those cities and they probably don't hire new attorneys very often. Research this. NALP will help, but it may not be extensive. My concern is that your goal may be a total crapshoot with very bad odds.

Even at UVA only 60% of students are in federal clerkships or biglaw. That's plenty, but there are still 20% doing public-interest work; 15% in school funded jobs; and a few underemployed people. So you can't just say you'd be ok with biglaw as an alternative. But, if you'd be happy with a near worst-case of a 50k legal job that allows you to pay off your loans and gives you potential to make much more one day then Virginia is a slam dunk.

twenty wrote:

Career goals- medium sized law firm in salt lake, denver or fort lauderdale.

UVA for sure, but neither school is likely to get you into any one of these three markets.

Are you okay with biglaw (probably in NYC) for 1-2 years?

I'd be ok with big law in any city other than NYC and/or doing a federal clerkship

Nomo wrote:UVA.

And what do you mean by "medium-sized." If you're talking about 100+ attorney firms that pay more thank 70k there are very few in any of those cities and they probably don't hire new attorneys very often. Research this. NALP will help, but it may not be extensive. My concern is that your goal may be a total crapshoot with very bad odds.

Even at UVA only 60% of students are in federal clerkships or biglaw. That's plenty, but there are still 20% doing public-interest work; 15% in school funded jobs; and a few underemployed people. So you can't just say you'd be ok with biglaw as an alternative. But, if you'd be happy with a near worst-case of a 50k legal job that allows you to pay off your loans and gives you potential to make much more one day then Virginia is a slam dunk.

Thanks for the info will check into Fort Lauderdale and Denver already have a pretty good idea of Utah

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Would be insane not to do UVA here.

UVA by a mile