UCLA (45k a year) vs. Berkeley (full price) Forum

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Sun May 18, 2014 10:56 pm

I would love some real quick advice as I have to make a decision by June 3rd. I have 45k a year at UCLA and nothing at Berkeley. I had a 24k at Duke and did not get a matching scholly and asked again telling them I would go if they gave me anything and then did not say they would. I want to do entertainment law, but i am aware at how difficult that is and how sure can you really be at this point. I want to stay in California probably LA, but i am worried about the job prospects coming out of UCLA. Is Berkeley worth it to go there for the full price? The last option would be my parents kicking in about 50k for Berkeley help, but even that seems like I am paying too much for Berkeley when i have 135k at UCLA? Help? please?

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:08 pm

sorry for posting this so many times. first time posting on this. Thanks in advance for any help guys

SnakySalmon · Post by **SnakySalmon** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:21 pm

I think it's actually your fourth or fifth time asking about it

What do you want to do if you don't get entertainment law?

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:23 pm

Hahaha, yeah sorry.

I would be happy with biglaw in Cali, but fine with biglaw anywhere else if not entertainment

papercut · Post by **papercut** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:26 pm

Have you talked to the Dean at UCLA about this? He might bump you up to full tuition + grant if you tell him that's the difference between UCLA and Boalt.

Personally, I'd go UCLA at your current offer. Boalt is not worth 135K more in tuition alone.

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:29 pm

I spoke to the dean, but felt weird asking him to bump the scholarship from 45 to 52 for just the first year. For 2nd and 3rd year they claim it is easy to establish residency and I would only be paying 45k for those 2 years. I am just worried that job prospects for UCLA will make the 135k almost moot.

papercut · Post by **papercut** » Sun May 18, 2014 11:37 pm

tlefky wrote:I spoke to the dean, but felt weird asking him to bump the scholarship from 45 to 52 for just the first year. For 2nd and 3rd year they claim it is easy to establish residency and I would only be paying 45k for those 2 years. I am just worried that job prospects for UCLA will make the 135k almost moot.

The sweet thing about a full scholarship is that it will grow with the tuition costs (which almost certainly will grow). Don't be shy. Ask for more.

According to LST you get about a 10% better chance at Boalt. That's not 135k better. Boalt has more expensive COA too.

That is of course, how I see it. You may see something different.

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Mon May 19, 2014 3:05 pm

True. Thanks for the help guys, I know the money is great and the difference in schools isn't worth the debt, but so many articles talk about UCLA grads having much lower employment stats for private sector. Just want to make sure if i do well I will be able to go into a biglaw firm and people won't shrug their shoulders at a UCLA grad

twenty · Post by **twenty** » Mon May 19, 2014 3:12 pm

The biggest difference being, if you DO get biglaw from UCLA, you get to keep an extra 4k/month of your salary for the next 7 years.

UCLA is far and away your best option.

Princetonlaw68 · Post by **Princetonlaw68** » Mon May 19, 2014 4:34 pm

papercut wrote:
tlefky wrote:I spoke to the dean, but felt weird asking him to bump the scholarship from 45 to 52 for just the first year. For 2nd and 3rd year they claim it is easy to establish residency and I would only be paying 45k for those 2 years. I am just worried that job prospects for UCLA will make the 135k almost moot.
The sweet thing about a full scholarship is that it will grow with the tuition costs (which almost certainly will grow). Don't be shy. Ask for more.

According to LST you get about a 10% better chance at Boalt. That's not 135k better. Boalt has more expensive COA too.

That is of course, how I see it. You may see something different.

Not that I disagree with the general opinon of the other people posting in here, but I think this specific post is oversimplifying things quite a bit. The difference between Boalt and UCLA is far greater than that 10% difference alone would indicate.

I personally can't decide between these two options. Maybe apply to all of the T14s for next cycle and then go to whichever one gives you the largest scholly? You'd have to wait an extra year of course, but maybe it's worth it to you.

Micdiddy · Post by **Micdiddy** » Tue May 20, 2014 5:15 pm

You had 24k/year at Duke? Give up your dreams of doing Entertainment Law now and take that. Otherwise UCLA almost full-ride is fine (though I agree you should always ask for more). What's your LSAT? Take a year off and retaking may easily be the best choice.

WhiskeynCoke · Post by **WhiskeynCoke** » Wed May 21, 2014 2:28 pm

papercut wrote:
tlefky wrote:I spoke to the dean, but felt weird asking him to bump the scholarship from 45 to 52 for just the first year. For 2nd and 3rd year they claim it is easy to establish residency and I would only be paying 45k for those 2 years. I am just worried that job prospects for UCLA will make the 135k almost moot.
The sweet thing about a full scholarship is that it will grow with the tuition costs (which almost certainly will grow). Don't be shy. Ask for more.

According to LST you get about a 10% better chance at Boalt. That's not 135k better. Boalt has more expensive COA too.

That is of course, how I see it. You may see something different.

The underlined is way off. Boalt gives you a much greater than 10% better chance at CA big law than UCLA. You can't straight equate % of grads in big law with chances. It's far more nuanced than that for a number of obvious reasons.

Roughly speaking, Boalt probably gives you a 2x better chance than UCLA
- UCLA = top 1/3 are competitive for CA big law
- B = top 2/3 are competitive for CA big law
(you can still get big law if you miss these marks, but your odds of success drop a lot. If you're at B, bidding NYC is TCR if you are bottom 1/3. Not sure about UCLA)

OP, you've got to decide which type of risk you prefer. 2x higher odds of failure (re CA big law) versus far greater cost of failure should it happen ($$$ debt), though failure is much less likely. COL at either school is probably comparable, so it's basically a straight $135k difference. Also, I doubt landing top 1/3 at UCLA is any easier than doing so at B. Actually, I bet it's even harder since the stakes are higher, so people may be gunning harder (most B kids are super laid back).

UCLA is probably the smarter choice here, but if you are big law or bust UCLA isn't winning by much. On the one hand, if you go to UCLA and wind up top 1/3 w/ big law you'll be stoked with your decision. But on the other hand, if you get median pwned at UCLA and strike out at OCI, you'll probably regret your decision forever. Yikes.

Good luck on choosing your risk OP. It's not as cut and dry as others are making it here.

Hrun · Post by **Hrun** » Wed May 21, 2014 2:53 pm

Is Duke still on the table?

rickgrimes69 · Post by **rickgrimes69** » Wed May 21, 2014 3:15 pm

Berk isn't worth sticker so UCLA

But if you had $24k / year at Duke you're a fool for turning it down

Also if you think entertainment law will be all mottles and bottles a la Ari Gold you are sorely mistaken

e: can someone find the "Life of an Entertainment Lawyer" copypasta?

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Wed May 21, 2014 6:18 pm

No I don't think entertainment will be "mottles and bottles" I love the industry and the city of LA. Duke is no longer on the table, I visited and did not love the school.

Hrun · Post by **Hrun** » Wed May 21, 2014 6:25 pm

tlefky wrote:No I don't think entertainment will be "mottles and bottles" I love the industry and the city of LA. Duke is no longer on the table, I visited and did not love the school.

I get the appeal of a T14. Even though I want you to choose Berk so maybe I could get off UCLA's waitlist, if I were you I'd either go to UCLA or retake.

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Wed May 21, 2014 7:13 pm

plus ari gold isn't an entertainment lawyer...

staysha · Post by **staysha** » Wed May 21, 2014 7:29 pm

Talk to Dean Schwartz about full tuition first year. I think UCLA is the best option here.

Micdiddy · Post by **Micdiddy** » Wed May 21, 2014 7:46 pm

tlefky wrote:No I don't think entertainment will be "mottles and bottles" I love the industry and the city of LA. Duke is no longer on the table, I visited and did not love the school.

Did you already withdraw? Not loving the school is just one concern out of many, the most important concerns being getting a job and not paying too much. Whatever though, it's your life and your call but for others reading this never withdraw anything ever until you commit to a school.

tlefky · Post by **tlefky** » Wed May 21, 2014 8:16 pm

Well you had to put a non refundable deposit for Duke of $500 and they were the only school that said if you put this deposit on April 20th you had to commit and withdraw from everywhere else. so yeah its off the table

dixiecupdrinking · Post by **dixiecupdrinking** » Wed May 21, 2014 9:22 pm

I'd rather take UCLA than Duke at these numbers, FWIW.

Free (at decent school) > not free.

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