Duke vs. IUB Forum

[Chekhov'sGun]

Didn't expect to be in this forum at this point.
Deposited at Duke with $81k scholarship. COA about $140k
Had withdrawn from IUB but just received a full tuition scholarship offer. COA $25k There is a possibility I could also receive a stipend to cover fees/books which I assume would amount to about $3k a year.
Will be financing mainly through loans. I have some savings/family/SO to help with COL.

I'm from IN and an IUB alum. Have work experience and good connections in Indianapolis with both law firms and courts/gov.
I want biglaw in either NYC or DC but would be absolutely happy to work at a firm in Indianapolis.

I'm really set on Duke but wanted to get some outside feedback before making a decision. Other question: should I use this offer to try to negotiate some more $ out of Duke? (I only negotiated once)
170(3rd retake) and 3.73. Still on the WL at Chicago, Columbia, NYU and Penn.

[lastsamurai]

Definitely try with Duke - what can it hurt? But I wouldn't go to IUB

[BigZuck]

Can't go to IUB if you want big law. I would try to negotiate with Duke one more time and regardless of what happens, attend. I had virtually the same numbers and got 90K but that was them matching a 90K offer at Cornell (for whatever that's worth)

[BillPackets]

If you want Indy, then you shouldn't go to IUB.

I was just talking with an attorney the other day about hiring at the big firms in Indy (barnes, ice, etc.) one firm recently hired TWO new grads: one from Vandy and one from Harvard.

The attorney also says that those firms are basically hiring 1-2 associates/class. And that's for big firms.

I didn't even ask about hiring at mid size firms.

[kathj06]

Didn't expect to be in this forum at this point.
Deposited at Duke with $81k scholarship. COA about $140k
Had withdrawn from IUB but just received a full tuition scholarship offer. COA $25k There is a possibility I could also receive a stipend to cover fees/books which I assume would amount to about $3k a year.
Will be financing mainly through loans. I have some savings/family/SO to help with COL.

I'm from IN and an IUB alum. Have work experience and good connections in Indianapolis with both law firms and courts/gov.
I want biglaw in either NYC or DC but would be absolutely happy to work at a firm in Indianapolis.

I'm really set on Duke but wanted to get some outside feedback before making a decision. Other question: should I use this offer to try to negotiate some more $ out of Duke? (I only negotiated once)
170(3rd retake) and 3.73. Still on the WL at Chicago, Columbia, NYU and Penn.

I was about to say don't do it b/c Duke technically required you to withdraw from all other schools immediately after depositing. But if IUB sent you the offer after you had already withdrawn from them, I see absolutely no harm in trying for more $ from Duke.

[Chekhov'sGun]

Update: was able to get the stipend, $3,000 a year. Sent a negotiation request to Duke. We'll see what happens.

Thanks to everyone who responded! Pretty much confirmed a lot of what I was thinking. Any of the IUB voters want to chime in though?

[Nomo]

If you go to Duke and don't get biglaw, or find out quickly that you hate it you'll regret not choosing IUB.

If you go to IUB and don't get biglaw you'll wish you'd have gone to Duke.

Not rocket science, but its worth remembering that goals and interests do change. 140k of debt does limit your options, but so does going to IUB.

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

IUB has like 17% big law +clerkship, which is lower than I would have guessed given their ranking. I think this is kind of a tough call, and I would honestly consider sitting out and reapplying next year (unless you applied super early this year). If you kill it at IUB grade wise you will be in a great position, but it looks like there is not much room for error.

[Chekhov'sGun]

It wasn't an easy decision. Didn't get the scholarship increase but decided to stay with Duke regardless. It is a better fit for my goals. Thanks again to everyone for helping me deliberate.

[Mr Cooper]

Isn't half the point of big law to be miserable for several years to pay off your LS debt and then go do something else? If you don't mind working in Indy and can avoid debt, it just seems like you'd be saving yourself a lot of time and money by skipping the debt and big law misery factor and going straight to Part 2 of your legal career. Big law job security is also terrible. It can never be looked at as more than a 5 year plan until you reach year 4.

Working big law as a SA, you're not going to have time to be enjoying the best parts of either NYC or DC. Also, you have to look at this from a macro level perspective. You're going to be graduating in 2017, after interest rates on Quantitative Easing go up, the cheap money propping up the economy is gone, and we're likely back in recession. Having no debt will be a godsend in a situation like that.

Being from Indiana and going to IUB undergrad will give you a huge leg up when applying to Indy firms. The biggest problems that Indy firms are having when it comes to hiring is that since IUB's ranking increased with the Mauer donation and subsequent application standards increase, the school has been attracting a lot of applicants who barely fall outside the T14 range, but still have T14 expectations of job placement and degree mobility. The kids are bolting Indianapolis after a few years of WE. The city isn't South Carolina bad when it comes to having ties, but it's heading in that direction in regards to IUB grads. If you can demonstrate your ties and commitment to staying in the area, you'll have a pretty big advantage over your classmates.