Top Law Schools

Hi all - first post on the site. Graduated from Syracuse's Newhouse School of Public Communications last May with a degree in Television, Radio, and Film. I've held several internships both in NYC and LA in the entertainment industry (NHL, Warner Brothers, and some other boutiques). I've had the opportunity to shadow general counsel at the my previous internships and one day aspire to land a similar job. Essentially entertainment law with a background in transactional, copyright, trademark, negotiations, etc. I have made some strong contacts that will hopefully land me a job down the line.

I took the LSAT in December and scored a 160 for the first time. I was PTing slightly higher at 162 but was wasn't shocked by the 160 on test day. With practice I'm sure I could get up to the mid 160s but cracking 170 would be a stretch. I've been offered 34k from Cardozo and 36k from Brooklyn per year. COL is taken care of as I will be living with my parents. I've also been wait listed at Fordham. Definitely want to go to law school in NYC so I didn't apply out in California.

My question to all of you is whether these schools can ever be worked to a students advantage, especially with Cardozo's IP offerings. Even if Fordham takes me off the wait list, I'd be hard pressed to accept paying almost 100k more for attendance. I do understand these schools offer very slim chances of finding a job in big law. While big law might provide some valuable experience in transactional corporate law and open up doors, minimal debt might allow for a lower paying job (at first anyway).

I do plan on taking the LSAT again in June and seeing what I can pull off. Any advice is greatly welcomed. Thanks in advance for your time.

STATS:
160, first time
3.5 gpa

are there stips on the scholarships and what is total COA for each?

What do your PTs look like now? If your practice tests aren't getting up to the 170s range you might want to consider delaying the LSAT to study more, but I don't know what your study habits are like right now.

I'd say the fifth option is probably the most prudent one. Sit it out a year and retake

I won't say top 14 or don't go. There are ok options that aren't T-14.
However, Cardozo and Brooklyn are not among them.
Take a year off, find a job and just crush the LSAT prep for as long as it takes to start seeing improvement in you PTs.
If you can get that LSAT into the high 160s you'll have better options, low 170s could do even more.

If you insist on staying in NYC then you could get money at Fordham with an improved LSAT. (to me it would have to be no more than say $50K total debt to be worth the 3 years) Getting into the 170s should open up NYU at full freight which is borderline.

Staying in NYC will limit your options, though it does probably save you $50-60K in living expenses elsewhere.

danielspencer247 wrote:I took the LSAT in December and scored a 160 for the first time. I was PTing slightly higher at 162 but was wasn't shocked by the 160 on test day. With practice I'm sure I could get up to the mid 160s but cracking 170 would be a stretch. I've been offered 34k from Cardozo and 36k from Brooklyn per year. COL is taken care of as I will be living with my parents. I've also been wait listed at Fordham. Definitely want to go to law school in NYC so I didn't apply out in California.

My question to all of you is whether these schools can ever be worked to a students advantage, especially with Cardozo's IP offerings. Even if Fordham takes me off the wait list, I'd be hard pressed to accept paying almost 100k more for attendance. I do understand these schools offer very slim chances of finding a job in big law. While big law might provide some valuable experience in transactional corporate law and open up doors, minimal debt might allow for a lower paying job (at first anyway).

Current 3L at Cardozo, and I have to disagree with some of the responses, especially for someone going into IP. Cardozo has a huge IP program with a great reputation, and if you know this is the field you want to go into, the fact that you have a great scholarship to Cardozo is awesome (plus covered COL in this city is amazing). There are clinics, classes, etc, as well as really great faculty members. One cool opportunity is the Indie Film Clinic, a program that was new when I started and that I know is popular with students interested in IP. A couple of those films were at SXSW, which is really cool and shows that the program is a serious one. There's also the Arts and Entertainment Law Journal, which is one of the best in the country.

I like Cardozo in general, so I could go into more detail about what's good about it, but I think to start with it's worth pointing out that considering Cardozo for IP is a different comparison than it might be in other areas.