* Forum

[carolinainmymind]

()

[Nelson]

Am I crazy for seriously considering attending Duke instead of HLS or a "better" T14 (UVA/Penn for the same COA)?

No. T14 for free is pretty much always a reasonable choice.

[Tiago Splitter]

Am I crazy for seriously considering attending Duke instead of HLS or a "better" T14 (UVA/Penn for the same COA)?

Not at all. I actually think it's a pretty easy decision.

[Mack.Hambleton]

Duke or UVA based on preferences

[McAvoy]

Am I crazy for seriously considering attending Duke instead of HLS or a "better" T14 (UVA/Penn for the same COA)?

Not at all. I actually think it's a pretty easy decision.

But UVA has all those school funded jobs though. So Duke is the stealth prefstige choice.

Yeah, personal preference on Duke or UVA, and you're looking good!

[Winston1984]

Duke or UVA based on preferences

+1

[Winston1984]

Actually, maybe edge to UVA because of DC.

[carolinainmymind]

Thanks - my nerves have been calmed. Sometimes TLS can make a person a little crazy, but it's also helped me out a lot through this process.

[lawschool22]

Given the fact that you don't have any really "esoteric" goals, and simply want biglaw in one of a few cities, it makes no sense to not choose one of the full scholarships. I would visit UVA and Duke, and go to whichever you prefer. UVA may have a slight edge in DC but I think it's slim and probably hard to prove (may not exist). Anecdotal evidence suggests you have more UVA folks targeting biglaw in the first place.

Also as mentioned before UVA's employment numbers are probably slightly exaggerated, so I would put it and Duke on pretty equal footing. Since you mentioned you prefer to be in NC, I would probably give the edge to Duke (that's what I voted for), but I don't think you can go wrong with either.

Just do not choose Harvard, whatever you do. UVA or Duke would be a fine choice, it's up to you.

Congrats on having a fairly easy decision imho.

[lecsa]

UVA placed a couple more percentage into federal clerkships for Class of 2013 and Duke placed one percent more into biglaw.

UVA, however, had the second highest real unemployment rate out of the T-14 (behind Georgetown). Nearly 20% of UVA's class of 2013 was on a school funded fellowship. That said, UVA has since decreased its class size and the differences aren't massive, so I think Duke and UVA are pretty equal for employment. I would pick one of those. Plus if you don't get biglaw, it's not the end of the world with that debt amount.

[Law Sauce]

UVa all day. Congrats!

Edit: I see that you say that you prefer NC to VA. If you feel strongly about this, it would not be crazy to choose Duke over UVA, but visit UVa to make sure that you actually have a strong preference fro Duke.

[Doorkeeper]

If you want DC or Southern biglaw, UVA/Duke is the no brainer here.

[Gooner91]

I would visit both UVa and Duke. I do not know why you prefer NC but depending on why that is you may want to check out UVa before you decide for sure. C-ville seems like a pretty cool city.

[3L2014]

For you, UVA or Duke is a no-brainer. Choose whichever you like better/feel more comfortable at. Don't choose UVA because it is a "better" school--it's not, it's a peer school.

[lawschool22]

For you, UVA or Duke is a no-brainer. Choose whichever you like better/feel more comfortable at. Don't choose UVA because it is a "better" school--it's not, it's a peer school.

+1 to this. They really aren't all that different as far as employment outcomes. Arguably Duke's underemployment situation is better even, depending on how you view UVA's school-funded positions.

[Law Sauce]

For you, UVA or Duke is a no-brainer. Choose whichever you like better/feel more comfortable at. Don't choose UVA because it is a "better" school--it's not, it's a peer school.

Yes they are peer schools. However, UVa has a ton of DC connections, I would give it an edge for DC, certainly for a good number of firms; UVa also kills it in the south but Duke probably does too (however it seems that Duke is more full of kids who want to go to NY and UVa has a lot more southern kids, maybe because Duke is a bigger national name in the non-legal world).

And seriously enough with 0Ls crying about school funded positions. It is an ok point, but impossible to calculate who could have got what. Yes it messes up your precise outcome calculations, but its a good thing for students and more schools ought to do it.

Still, if you have a compelling personal reason for living in Durham, however, go there.

[PrideandGlory1776]

Gosh what an awesome life - God bless you bro what a dream scenario full-ride at UVA or Duke can't go wrong either way!

[jbagelboy]

Voted UVA, but could go to Duke too.

[jrf12886]

I agree that UVA or Duke makes the most sense (go to Duke for the basketball). I assume you already figured out what need-based aid HLS would offer?

[Law Sauce]

I agree that UVA or Duke makes the most sense (go to Duke for the basketball). I assume you already figured out what need-based aid HLS would offer?

UVA is better at basketball this year lol

[lecsa]

.

[lawschool22]

For you, UVA or Duke is a no-brainer. Choose whichever you like better/feel more comfortable at. Don't choose UVA because it is a "better" school--it's not, it's a peer school.

Yes they are peer schools. However, UVa has a ton of DC connections, I would give it an edge for DC, certainly for a good number of firms; UVa also kills it in the south but Duke probably does too (however it seems that Duke is more full of kids who want to go to NY and UVa has a lot more southern kids, maybe because Duke is a bigger national name in the non-legal world).

And seriously enough with 0Ls crying about school funded positions. It is an ok point, but impossible to calculate who could have got what. Yes it messes up your precise outcome calculations, but its a good thing for students and more schools ought to do it.

Still, if you have a compelling personal reason for living in Durham, however, go there.

I wouldn't say I was exactly "crying" about school-funded positions. I didn't even take a side actually.

I think one reason you see more people at UVA staying in the south is due to the requirement that 40% of admitted students be VA residents. That is going to lead to more people targeting the South, which leads to the impression that UVA cleans up in the south, imho. In this situation I do not think there is a right or wrong answer between Duke & UVA, and therefore I think OP would be justified choosing either one based on personal preference.

There is something to be said for being happy at LS. I imagine it would translate into slightly higher grades, all things equal.

[Law Sauce]

And seriously enough with 0Ls crying about school funded positions. It is an ok point, but impossible to calculate who could have got what. Yes it messes up your precise outcome calculations, but its a good thing for students and more schools ought to do it.

The ones crying about school funded positions aren't 0Ls; they're practicing attorneys. It's misleading when nearly 20% of your class is school funded yet your school tries to make it out like they're employed.

That said the job opportunities out of UVA and Duke are similar, plus there have been class size changes for both so who knows what employment outcomes will be for the entering classes.

Eh.. true it is misleading. But it may be less misleading than not counting any of them as having a job at all.

"A recent follow-up study of the Class of 2010 found post-fellowship employment information for 35 of the 40 fellows. All 35 are now employed in permanent, full-time positions — 32 as lawyers, two in jobs for which a J.D. was an advantage, and one in a position that did not require a law degree." (http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2 ... NT0000AE76)

So, the program seems to have led eventually to a job for at least a majority of the people that year. Looks like at least one eventually ended up at a firm (paul hastings) and one landed a clerkship at the 4th circuit CoA.

Also, sorry about the 0L dig, I just had a little bit of a negative reaction, a bit unfairly, to ln22 since he recently asked advice on his own thread and then has posted advice on many other people's thread at the same time (and his advice often seems to differ from my experience). It shouldn't have been a big deal, I overreacted.

Anyway, my bad for the distraction, back to OP, and I think we all pretty much agree there.

[lawschool22]

And seriously enough with 0Ls crying about school funded positions. It is an ok point, but impossible to calculate who could have got what. Yes it messes up your precise outcome calculations, but its a good thing for students and more schools ought to do it.

The ones crying about school funded positions aren't 0Ls; they're practicing attorneys. It's misleading when nearly 20% of your class is school funded yet your school tries to make it out like they're employed.

That said the job opportunities out of UVA and Duke are similar, plus there have been class size changes for both so who knows what employment outcomes will be for the entering classes.

Eh.. true it is misleading. But it may be less misleading than not counting any of them as having a job at all.

"A recent follow-up study of the Class of 2010 found post-fellowship employment information for 35 of the 40 fellows. All 35 are now employed in permanent, full-time positions — 32 as lawyers, two in jobs for which a J.D. was an advantage, and one in a position that did not require a law degree." (http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2 ... NT0000AE76)

So, the program seems to have led eventually to a job for at least a majority of the people that year.

Also, sorry about the 0L dig, I just had a little bit of a negative reaction, a bit unfairly, to ln22 since he recently asked advice on his own thread and then has posted advice on many other people's thread at the same time (and his advice often seems to differ from my experience). It shouldn't have been a big deal, I overreacted.

Anyway, my bad for the distraction, back to OP, and I think we all pretty much agree there.

One thing I'm confused about. You're taking issue with me asking for advice and then offering advice to they people in return?

[cotiger]

One thing I'm confused about. You're taking issue with me asking for advice and then offering advice to they people in return?

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