Top Law Schools

-The schools you are considering:
Texas v. Georgetown, and waitlists.

-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each:
Texas 3 year COA (including scholarship - 30k plus in-state): $138,732
Georgetown 3 year COA: $244,286

-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
Straight up loans. Financially independent and have enough savings for some cost of living expenses.

-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
Grew up in Virginia, would like to end up there. Love the mid-atlantic area. Have family ties to Texas.

-Your general career goals
Unsure, would like to go clerkship/biglaw initially, but also interested in government work.

-Your LSAT/GPA numbers:
Not disclosing, on the median for these schools, retake isn't an option as I'm non-traditional and looking to return to school next year.

Additional info:
Georgetown has placed me on "Alternate" list for scholarships, pending people that don't accept their offer (if at all). Columbia has me on "hold" in their application process, and I'm waitlisted at Berkely/UVA. I loved the environment at Texas and Austin, but I think in the long term, I'd rather be on the east coast and more preferably DC or VA than in Texas. I'm pretty much debating whether Georgetown's cost is worth it given the increase in opportunity and exposure to government work through their externship programs.

Texas...but I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be taking out that much for UT. With that said, that is too much for GULC!

Both are too expensive. Definitely retake. Also, don't go to UT hoping for east coast big law and needing it to pay off the debt.

Just to clarify, that's including COL, 3 year tuition only:

Texas: $71,402
GULC: $158,857

Again retake not an option.

Kinglsey wrote:Just to clarify, that's including COL, 3 year tuition only:

Texas: $71,402
GULC: $158,857

Again retake not an option.

Why would just tuition matter? You're not going to eat or pay rent or anything like that?

As a non traditional student at UT I can tell you that's an absurd amount to pay. Especially without Texas ties and especially 2X when wanting east coast big law. That's also an absurd amount to pay for Georgetown. You probably won't get big law or a clerkship from either.

Since retake is not an option your only other sensible choice is to not go to law school.

I made this exact same decision 2 years ago. However, I wanted Texas Biglaw. By some fluke UT offered me no scholarship money and GULC did. So I was choosing between UT @ $170K total COA and GULC @ $135K total COA. I ended up at GULC and I have a SA lined up for Texas Biglaw this summer. I do not regret my choice to attend GULC. Having said that ...

Since you want to be on the east coast and want big law GULC is the correct choice, but I just couldn't justify it at full price. At least 1/3 of my classmates that wanted Biglaw did not get it from EIW or mass mailing. I would guess that 15 to 20 percent of my class opted out of EIW.

I am assuming your are not a URM. You are going to have to be in the top 40% of the class after 1L to have a realistic shot of Big Law. Probably top 1/3 for DC. That is a pretty risky proposition considering your debt load and the fact that IBR/PSLF is in flux. I would probably not pick either unless it was UT and you wanted to be a lawyer, not just Biglaw, in Texas.