FORDHAM VS UC DAVIS vs loyola/pepp/usd Forum

[Newb2law]

Hi.
I would like to practice in LA, but San Diego is also fine for me. If l go to Pepperdine or LMU I can live at home which would save me 15k in rent a year.

USD- Tuition would be 8.5k a year. My scholarship is guaranteed.
LMU- Tuition would be 17k a year. I must remain in the top 75% of the class (2.85)
PEPPERDINE- Tuition would be 12k a year. I must remain in the top 50% of the class.

UC DAVIS and FORDHAM I was admitted into only a couple of days ago (sent in all my applications in mid March like a fool) so I am still waiting to hear back about merit aid. I was really excited about the idea of going to Fordham because I think it would be amazing to live in NY, but I'm starting to think it might be a quite a gamble moving to NY because I don't have experience living in NYC and I don't have any connections there so in the event that i realized i'm not cut out for everyday life in new york, l guess l'm screwed bcz l don't know how difficult it would be to find a job outside of NY.

I love Pepperdine and it is much higher ranked and lmu right now (which has PLUMMETED in the rankings) but the top 50% stipulation worries me. I was originally thinking of going to USD because of the guaranteed scholarship, but I feel that LMU has a better reputation than USD, whenever I talk about USD to anyone they just say wait do you mean UC? or UCSD?? lol which has been kind of a downer...

From what I find LMU has a fairly good reputation... but I may be sorely mistaken. I was considering UC Hastings as well, but I cut it out of my considerations as from what I have read it's really going downhill... but hey that maybe the same case with LMU considering its current trends.

Thank you guys for your opinions/input it is much appreciated.

[francesfarmer]

What are your stats? What are you career goals? How much will each school cost at repayment, including interest?

[NYC2012]

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[Nova]

I love Pepperdine and it is much higher ranked and lmu right now (which has PLUMMETED in the rankings) but the top 50% stipulation worries me.

From what I find LMU has a fairly good reputation... but I may be sorely mistaken.

"reputation" & USNWR do not matter. look at job stats on LST. Both Pepp & Loyola give you a 50/50ish shot at ever being a real lawyer. USD is prob the same. Almost all real legal jobs grads get from those schools will start out at like 40-60k.

[NorCalLaw]

Given that all the schools you've listed are essentially the same thing, if you really must go this year, pick the one that will put you in the least amount of debt. USD with no stipulations is probably the "best deal" here, even if you have to pay something in rent. That said, if you don't finish in the top 50% at these schools after 1L year, you should drop out anyway, so if you're playing it "smart" the stips might not matter too much.

Any chance of getting into UCLA on a retake? If you really want SoCal law, you should be shooting for a top 8ish school, UCLA, or USC, in that order.

[Jchance]

GUSD with no stipulations is probably the "best deal" here

+1. UCD has LST score of about 20% higher than LMU or Pepperdine. But UCD will most likely not get you SoCal though.

[Nomo]

I don't think I, or anyone else can give competent advice without knowing what your total debt at repayment will be. That said, I'm guessing the best answer will be: don't got to law school.

Whatever you do, don't go without finding out what your total debt at repayment will be. You also should check the LST data on all schools you're considering.

[yeslekkkk]

Yeah, cross out Fordham.

I was in a similar boat considering USD and UC Davis. I threw out Loyola due to their numbers. I'm from San Diego, so that is why I was considering USD. USD is pretty generous, and I don't think you should really consider ranking too much when comparing Pepperdine, USD, and Loyola. The one with the most money sounds like the best choice.

UC Davis is also very generous. I actually got the same scholarship from UC Davis as USD. I tried to negotiate USD further, but it didn't work out. What has UC Davis offered you? I went to ASW, and they get a good amount of people to Los Angeles. I think if you're from California and network, you could get back to L.A. Also, you could work in another part of CA and then eventually get back. If UC Davis gives you good money, that would definitely be a contender.

Or retake for UCLA/USC. I would not pay very much to go to USC though if UC Davis is offering you big bucks. I don't know if it's worth the premium. UC Davis and USC had similar LST scores for this past year.

[BigZuck]

Yeah, cross out Fordham.

I was in a similar boat considering USD and UC Davis. I threw out Loyola due to their numbers. I'm from San Diego, so that is why I was considering USD. USD is pretty generous, and I don't think you should really consider ranking too much when comparing Pepperdine, USD, and Loyola. The one with the most money sounds like the best choice.

UC Davis is also very generous. I actually got the same scholarship from UC Davis as USD. I tried to negotiate USD further, but it didn't work out. What has UC Davis offered you? I went to ASW, and they get a good amount of people to Los Angeles. I think if you're from California and network, you could get back to L.A. Also, you could work in another part of CA and then eventually get back. If UC Davis gives you good money, that would definitely be a contender.

Or retake for UCLA/USC. I would not pay very much to go to USC though if UC Davis is offering you big bucks. I don't know if it's worth the premium. UC Davis and USC had similar LST scores for this past year.

USC>>>>>>>>>>>UCD

OP- please answer everything in the thread that is stickied at the top of this forum

[yeslekkkk]

Yeah, cross out Fordham.

I was in a similar boat considering USD and UC Davis. I threw out Loyola due to their numbers. I'm from San Diego, so that is why I was considering USD. USD is pretty generous, and I don't think you should really consider ranking too much when comparing Pepperdine, USD, and Loyola. The one with the most money sounds like the best choice.

UC Davis is also very generous. I actually got the same scholarship from UC Davis as USD. I tried to negotiate USD further, but it didn't work out. What has UC Davis offered you? I went to ASW, and they get a good amount of people to Los Angeles. I think if you're from California and network, you could get back to L.A. Also, you could work in another part of CA and then eventually get back. If UC Davis gives you good money, that would definitely be a contender.

Or retake for UCLA/USC. I would not pay very much to go to USC though if UC Davis is offering you big bucks. I don't know if it's worth the premium. UC Davis and USC had similar LST scores for this past year.

USC>>>>>>>>>>>UCD

OP- please answer everything in the thread that is stickied at the top of this forum

Oh for sure. I just don't know if it's worth 100 K (or however much) more than a huge scholly at Davis.

[BigZuck]

Yeah, cross out Fordham.

I was in a similar boat considering USD and UC Davis. I threw out Loyola due to their numbers. I'm from San Diego, so that is why I was considering USD. USD is pretty generous, and I don't think you should really consider ranking too much when comparing Pepperdine, USD, and Loyola. The one with the most money sounds like the best choice.

UC Davis is also very generous. I actually got the same scholarship from UC Davis as USD. I tried to negotiate USD further, but it didn't work out. What has UC Davis offered you? I went to ASW, and they get a good amount of people to Los Angeles. I think if you're from California and network, you could get back to L.A. Also, you could work in another part of CA and then eventually get back. If UC Davis gives you good money, that would definitely be a contender.

Or retake for UCLA/USC. I would not pay very much to go to USC though if UC Davis is offering you big bucks. I don't know if it's worth the premium. UC Davis and USC had similar LST scores for this past year.

USC>>>>>>>>>>>UCD

OP- please answer everything in the thread that is stickied at the top of this forum

Oh for sure. I just don't know if it's worth 100 K (or however much) more than a huge scholly at Davis.

Yeah, it probably depends on what your goals are. I think 100K max is about what USC is worth anyway.

[eljefe1]

Moody's rating agent here.

All options are AAa. Go ahead.

[Salsa]

Don't bother with UC Davis or Fordham if you want to practice in Southern California. It will be much harder to find positions without the help of your school's alumni network. Other than that, I think you need to evaluate several factors of the remaining schools to see what best suits you (what type of law are you trying to pursue, will you be paying out of your pocket or will family be assisting, etc).