Top Law Schools

Just really curious, I have made a few threads asking "where should I go" almost always asking between: BU,BC, Emory & Fordham. The "winner" of these polls and threads varies, but what really never does is the fact Emory is last or hardly mentioned. I wondered if maybe it was just my "goals" that caused this, but looking around the site it seems that peer and lower ranked schools such as: Wash U, Fordham, BC, BU, GW, almost always are preferred by TLS members over Emory (provided the financial incentive is comparable.) Am I missing something here? Emory is ranked in the top 20, is one of the most respected universities in the country and is in a very desirable climate/location, housing seems to be very reasonable (compared to what i have looked at in Boston and DC) but still very rarely do i see a "definitely go to Emory" post? Please advise I am heavily leaning towards Emory and am just wondering if I have overlooked something

http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/emory/2013/

23% of the class is employed by the school

it costs $290,000 to attend at sticker price

If you're looking at Emory you should probably be a Georgia resident/targeting Georgia for post-law school employment, which means U Georgia is almost always a better option considering how much cheaper it is

Emory is a great option for someone with a very large scholarship who wants to stay and practice in Atlanta. It just so happens that hardly anyone ever satisfies both of those elements.

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Rampant gaming. 22% of that employment score is school funded, meaning their real placement power is like 60%. 25th LSAT has fallen from 166 to 157 in last four years, meaning class is full of splitters/ reverse splitters who are outmanned by the scholly kids at the top of the class. (Also see other schools that get shit for this, UMinn, Maryland)

Costs 1/4 million. Yeah.

But look if your cost is reasonable and you want to work in the south, go for it. Not a bad school just an unpopular one on TLS.

Ngoblue2014 wrote:Just really curious, I have made a few threads asking "where should I go" almost always asking between: BU,BC, Emory & Fordham. The "winner" of these polls and threads varies, but what really never does is the fact Emory is last or hardly mentioned. I wondered if maybe it was just my "goals" that caused this, but looking around the site it seems that peer and lower ranked schools such as: Wash U, Fordham, BC, BU, GW, almost always are preferred by TLS members over Emory (provided the financial incentive is comparable.) Am I missing something here? Emory is ranked in the top 20, is one of the most respected universities in the country and is in a very desirable climate/location, housing seems to be very reasonable (compared to what i have looked at in Boston and DC) but still very rarely do i see a "definitely go to Emory" post? Please advise I am heavily leaning towards Emory and am just wondering if I have overlooked something

Part of it may be employment statistics/outcomes. Of the schools you list, Emory comes in last in terms of employment in the biggest 250 law firms and also comes in last among them in the most recent ATL rankings ("outcomes" ranking). Wash U, Fordham, BC, BU, and GW all are ranked ahead of Emory in these rankings. Emory is still an excellent law school and is especially ranked high on the most recent USNWR ranking, but most people would place more weight on employment outcomes/rankings like those I mentioned than on the USNWR rankings. Emory does have very strong employment statistics, don't get me wrong, but a lot of people on TLS place a lot more weight especially on biglaw placement, which Emory lacks in comparison with the other schools you're considering. This might be one possible explanation.

what about cost side, if i am paying exactly the same for Emory as i am for BC/BU/GW, what do you guys think is the pecking order? I was just at BU and they told me the class is shrinking to about 185 this year (it was 270 in 2009) so I am guessing this means the median lsat and gpa will improve, and the ranking will subsequently rise. Am i wrong?

Ngoblue2014 wrote:what about cost side, if i am paying exactly the same for Emory as i am for BC/BU/GW, what do you guys think is the pecking order? I was just at BU and they told me the class is shrinking to about 185 this year (it was 270 in 2009) so I am guessing this means the median lsat and gpa will improve, and the ranking will subsequently rise. Am i wrong?

Drastically shrinking the class size like that is good because it helps you get a job, not because of rankings silliness.

yes i know but my parents are borderline obsessed with the rankings, they have strongly advocated Minnesota, 100% due to its ranking. Though its employment numbers are not comparable and we hated the campus (i withdrew)

Ngoblue2014 wrote:yes i know but my parents are borderline obsessed with the rankings, they have strongly advocated Minnesota, 100% due to its ranking. Though its employment numbers are not comparable and we hated the campus (i withdrew)

Are your parents going to law school? It's really nice of you to help them out with their search!

Ngoblue2014 wrote:yes i know but my parents are borderline obsessed with the rankings, they have strongly advocated Minnesota, 100% due to its ranking. Though its employment numbers are not comparable and we hated the campus (i withdrew)

Will they revoke their funding if you choose BU over Emory? If so, please invite them over to this board for a little chat. If not, then I don't see why you care.

If you want to sate their rankings obsession, note that according to ATL, BU is 23 and Emory is 29. And according to USNWR in 2011, BU was 22 and Emory was 30. QED.

Also, one thread per topic.

no they won't revoke (i don't think) but they strongly prefer Emory.

Ngoblue2014 wrote:no they won't revoke (i don't think) but they strongly prefer Emory.

Well then thank them for their input and move on.

Beyond the other reasons already mentioned, there could be some regional bias. It seems like most people on this site prefer the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic to the South, and more specifically, Boston/NYC/DC to Atlanta (which is reasonable because they are better legal markets).

OP, maybe you stated this in another thread, but where are your ties and where do you want to work? I really don't understand it when people apply to different regional schools all across the country. MN is a reasonable school if you get a fat scholarship, have some connection to MN, and definitely want to work there. BC/BU are reasonable schools if you get a fat scholarship, have some connection to Boston, and definitely want to work there. Emory is a reasonable school if you get a fat scholarship, have some connection to Atlanta, and definitely want to work there. How are all of these schools simultaneous options for you?

It's actually quite silly to compare them. Comparisons within the T14 make sense, because they're national schools and their national placement power is exactly what needs measuring. Comparisons within the same market (USC/UCLA, GSU/Emory) make sense, because they're direct competitors. It seems ridiculous to compare in the apples-and-oranges manner you're asking for, though.

Ngoblue2014 wrote:yes i know but my parents are borderline obsessed with the rankings, they have strongly advocated Minnesota, 100% due to its ranking. Though its employment numbers are not comparable and we hated the campus (i withdrew)

Tell your parents to PM me.

rayiner wrote:[email address]

Oh shit you fancy

so streamlined

cotiger wrote:

rayiner wrote:[email address]

Oh shit you fancy

so streamlined

I've posted my phone number on TLS before, and someone called me mewing like a cat.

rayiner wrote:I've posted my phone number on TLS before, and someone called me mewing like a cat.

Post removed.

Ngoblue2014 wrote:yes i know but my parents are borderline obsessed with the rankings, they have strongly advocated Minnesota, 100% due to its ranking. Though its employment numbers are not comparable and we hated the campus (i withdrew)

Show them the US News rankings for Emory over the last 4 years. Spoilers:

• US News 2012: 30
• US News 2013: 24
• US News 2014: 23
• US News 2015: 19

They're rising by gaming the crap out of the rankings, now go show your parents the NLJ 250 numbers on Emory over the last 4 years. More spoilers:

• NLJ 2010: 21.18%
• NLJ 2011: 12.44%
• NLJ 2012: 15.42%
• NLJ 2013: 13.7%

If you show your parents this post, and they still don't get it, then Edit: explain it again

Post removed.

MistakenGenius wrote:I agree with your basic premise but there's no need to be an asshole about it.

This guy seems to have already explained to his parents why Minnesota was a bad call and they were still pushing for it until he withdrew. Now they're pushing for Emory, which is once again the worst call, just because of the rankings. If he's done his due diligence and showed them the data it wasn't being an asshole, just being honest.

But, in the spirit of TLS, I shouldn't have gone that far and will edit.

Thanks for the advice everyone I really appreciate it. My pre law advisor is so busy I couldn't get a meeting until May 24th, this has been immensely helpful

"better" probably wasn't the right word. But most people on this sight are partial to those markets over Atlanta, which was my only point. No need to be a dick about it