Top Law Schools

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Is clerking > transactional credited? I thought clerking was more valuable for lit people. Also, if all you want is NYC transactional it sounds like you'll be better off taking the money at CCN, whether a full ride or otherwise. If you're just sold on H/Y because of less grade pressure I get that though, and would choose Y.

Do not underestimate how amazing law school without real grades would be. That being said, I think that this is mostly a personal decision and nobody can fault you for taking any of the options you have listed. All of them are a good step to your ultimate goals.

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For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

COAP does not cover clerking, but neither does Harvard's LRAP.

Your reasons for going to H aren't good enough. See you in New Haven!

First of all, congratulations on achieving one of the most preposterously difficult feats in the graduate admissions universe, and for humbling 99% of the smartest liberal arts students to ever fathom the possibility of achieving greatness.

As you mentioned, you are shooting as high as you possibly can. Yale will open every single door in our universe, and probably every door in the broader multiverse as well. There's no significant CCN money on the table. Go to Yale or GTFO. Seriously.

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

Clerkship for transactional? Why? Waste of time.

Pneumonia wrote:

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

I'd like to see some of these "doors" that only Yale opens.

Desert Fox wrote:

Pneumonia wrote:

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

I'd like to see some of these "doors" that only Yale opens.

Yale "only" opening certain doors is probably an overstatement. Your chances of certain things are just way higher at Yale, because you're competing with fewer people but have the highest possible amount of tools and opportunities. So you can do stupid things like being an entertainment lawyer bigshot in Hollywood a few years out or a save-the-whales lawyer or a Supreme Court clerk. Actually planning to do those types of things out of other schools is not usually a good idea.

Pretty irrelevant to wanting an NYC biglaw job though

Desert Fox wrote:

Pneumonia wrote:

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

I'd like to see some of these "doors" that only Yale opens.

More academia jobs, UN, etc. jobs abroad, certain more prestige-oriented practice groups (trusts & estates at some biglaw firms). At biglaw firms Harvard grads are a dime a dozen whereas Yalies aren't (probably in part because they go into other fields).

I don't know why you'd go to YH over CCN with $$$ for transactional (if you're sure that's what you want), but Yale is a lot more prestigious than Harvard, so I would never pick H over Y.

lecsa wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:

Pneumonia wrote:

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

I'd like to see some of these "doors" that only Yale opens.

More academia jobs, UN, etc. jobs abroad, certain more prestige-oriented practice groups (trusts & estates at some biglaw firms). At biglaw firms Harvard grads are a dime a dozen whereas Yalies aren't (probably in part because they go into other fields).

I don't know why you'd go to YH over CCN with $$$ for transactional (if you're sure that's what you want), but Yale is a lot more prestigious than Harvard, so I would never pick H over Y.

So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

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lecsa wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:

Pneumonia wrote:

lecsa wrote:For me it'd be between Yale and CCN with $$$.

Yale opens a lot of doors that the other schools, including Harvard, don't.

yeah but NYC transactional isn't one of them.

I'd like to see some of these "doors" that only Yale opens.

More academia jobs, UN, etc. jobs abroad, certain more prestige-oriented practice groups (trusts & estates at some biglaw firms). At biglaw firms Harvard grads are a dime a dozen whereas Yalies aren't (probably in part because they go into other fields).

I don't know why you'd go to YH over CCN with $$$ for transactional (if you're sure that's what you want), but Yale is a lot more prestigious than Harvard, so I would never pick H over Y.

None of those things are closed to CCN students or to (lol) Harvard students.

Desert Fox wrote: So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

I'd say it's much better chances are certain, rarer jobs. Still if it's equal cost I don't know why anyone would ever go to H over Y.

lecsa wrote:

Desert Fox wrote: So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

I'd say it's much better chances are certain, rarer jobs. Still if it's equal cost I don't know why anyone would ever go to H over Y.

Based on what? The word of 0L Yale groupies?

If all you want is NYC biglaw then hell go to Penn or something. Even if you get full aid at Harvard you're looking at easily 150k debt assuming a 2L SA and interest.

OP if you aren't taking money I think its worth pointing out that if you're eligible for financial aid grants, Yale is likely to give you more than Harvard. Maybe like 5k a year more so not that big, but its also much cheaper COL than Cambridge.

NYC transactional is probably the easiest thing to get out of any of the top schools and I don't think Yale will benefit you in that regard over Harvard to any significant degree. That being said you haven't really made a compelling reason to take Harvard over Yale either. I'd say visit both and go where you like it best, but default to Yale.

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Pneumonia wrote: None of those things are closed to CCN students or to (lol) Harvard students.

No, but better odds from Yale.

And much better as to academia etc.

why do you want to do transactional law?

and how did you get into yale but you do not think you're competitive for a hamilton?

Desert Fox wrote: So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

It's mostly just much better chances at clerkships and biglaw (and especially particular firms/cities), actually. (Which means I agree with you.) I think the other super fancy or unusual jobs that people get from Y has more to do with the inputs than the school. Academia maybe is slightly different because of the amount of institutional support.

lecsa wrote:

Desert Fox wrote: So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

I'd say it's much better chances are certain, rarer jobs. Still if it's equal cost I don't know why anyone would ever go to H over Y.

Even assuming this is true which I am not at all convinced that it is, OP is not interested in any of these types of jobs. Bigger class size and proximity to HBS two reasons re: your second point. Not everyone wants to clerk or do academia/policy.

Elston Gunn wrote:

Desert Fox wrote: So these doors are hypothetical slightly better chances at nebulous jobs?

It's mostly just much better chances at clerkships and biglaw (and especially particular firms/cities), actually. (Which means I agree with you.) I think the other super fancy or unusual jobs that people get from Y has more to do with the inputs than the school. Academia maybe is slightly different because of the amount of institutional support.

Unless you have a wildly different definition of "much better" I don't think that's even true.