Top Law Schools

I'm looking to apply to a number of T14 schools, but I am hesitant to even apply at some of them because I am married with two kids and I'm not so sure living in a place like NYC or Chicago would be optimal for them.

We have lived in suburbs and small-medium sized cities, and the safe, laid back atmosphere would be nice for the fam - especially with my time largely occupied by law school. Does anybody have insights on what it would be like having a family at NYU, Columbia, Chicago, Northwestern, etc.?

Also, how bad would the commute be to schools relatively close to suburbs, like UPenn or Georgetown?

You'll have a commute, but that's just how it goes.

Why not go to Cornell bro? Probably give you everyhting your looking for plus more scholly money? Sorry for not answering the question tho.

Dont have family but I would say most T14 schools are in areas where you do not want to raise kids. Commuting is probably the way to go. You can always commute from NJ to NY but unsure if it's a good idea during your first year

There are people with kids living in my building and nearby, and those who attend and commute. The biggest hurdle will be cost in Manhattan. Kids means 2BDR at least, which runs $2800-3000/month minimum in rent (and easily over $4k) unless you move out to the Burroughs. Commuting from Queens is a bitch but I know folks who do it so they can live "affordably" w/ a family.

As far as actual lifestyle, it doesn't seem impossible as long as your non-law partner is willing to pick up some extra responsibility during 1L. Assuming your partner works full time, you'll need a nanny during 1L which , again, is just added expense. But with the right allowance anything is doable.

As for schools et. al it depends on whether you want public or private. I wouldn't send a kid to Chicago or NY public schools but you have to decide that for your own comfort.

NYU is a doable commute from Jersey if you can take the PATH. Columbia would tack on probably another 30 minutes. As for Chicago, you're looking at a decent drive in from areas where it sounds like you would want to raise a family/with good schools, etc.

Source: Live in NYC, Lived in Chicagoland.

Biased, but Ann Arbor is a great mix of a medium-sized city, affordable living, and a great place to be.

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If you have kids UVA might be the best law school in the entire top 14 to attend. We had a ton of students with families/kids and once you go to Charlottesville it's easy to understand why. Very safe, not too big, decent bit of children's activities, and very good schools. I know you didn't ask about UVA but it's really something to consider if you have a family.

BruceWayne wrote:UVA

jrthor10 wrote:Ann Arbor

Lacepiece23 wrote:Cornell

I already plan to apply to those schools, precisely because of the family-friendly communities I'm just trying to decide whether I would want to go to the schools in bigger cities at all, because if not there isn't much point applying. If I could pick and choose I would, but my problem is that I'm a big splitter (3.1, 176) so I need to apply to as many schools as I can if I'm looking at T14's.

What does your spouse do. Can they just find a jerb anywhere,.

Desert Fox wrote:What does your spouse do. Can they just find a jerb anywhere,.

She's a stay-at-home mom - so... I suppose the answer to your question is 'yes'.

the neighborhoods in the city known for being family friendly (park slope, upper east side, come to mind) r all pretty expensive
personally, if i were in ur shoes i'd rent a house in westchester and take the metro north. hartsdale/scarsdale are nice towns, white plains is more small-cityish like you mentioned
in 2008 i rented a very very decent 3bdrm house in white plains for 2400, great location 2
takes like a half hour to get into the city, then transfer to subway

skidoo1066 wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:What does your spouse do. Can they just find a jerb anywhere,.

She's a stay-at-home mom - so... I suppose the answer to your question is 'yes'.

How are you going to pull that off when you have no income.

Georgetown would be very doable from MD suburbs. Bethesda -> Shady Grove stretch of the red line is in the vicinity of great public schools, and Bethesda is only ~20 minutes to the GULC stop.

Nova would probably be fine too, but don't know that much about Nova.

Feel free to PM me if you have further questions.

skidoo1066 wrote:

BruceWayne wrote:UVA

jrthor10 wrote:Ann Arbor

Lacepiece23 wrote:Cornell

I already plan to apply to those schools, precisely because of the family-friendly communities I'm just trying to decide whether I would want to go to the schools in bigger cities at all, because if not there isn't much point applying. If I could pick and choose I would, but my problem is that I'm a big splitter (3.1, 176) so I need to apply to as many schools as I can if I'm looking at T14's.

Look, #1 issue is getting into a T14--that's going to be most important for your family's future. Once you do that and you have acceptances, then you can decide which offer to accept based on this issue, right?

Anyway, if you have a family and are a splitter you are literally the prototypical UVA student

jbagelboy wrote:There are people with kids living in my building and nearby, and those who attend and commute. The biggest hurdle will be cost in Manhattan. Kids means 2BDR at least, which runs $2800-3000/month minimum in rent (and easily over $4k) unless you move out to the Burroughs. Commuting from Queens is a bitch but I know folks who do it so they can live "affordably" w/ a family.

As far as actual lifestyle, it doesn't seem impossible as long as your non-law partner is willing to pick up some extra responsibility during 1L. Assuming your partner works full time, you'll need a nanny during 1L which , again, is just added expense. But with the right allowance anything is doable.

As for schools et. al it depends on whether you want public or private. I wouldn't send a kid to Chicago or NY public schools but you have to decide that for your own comfort.

Honestly, there are some fantastic public schools in NYC, just depends on which neighborhood you live in, and how much you are willing to hustle to place your kid. Granted, if you are not living in a relatively affluent area, your job becomes all that much harder.

skidoo1066 wrote:

BruceWayne wrote:UVA

jrthor10 wrote:Ann Arbor

Lacepiece23 wrote:Cornell

I already plan to apply to those schools, precisely because of the family-friendly communities I'm just trying to decide whether I would want to go to the schools in bigger cities at all, because if not there isn't much point applying. If I could pick and choose I would, but my problem is that I'm a big splitter (3.1, 176) so I need to apply to as many schools as I can if I'm looking at T14's.

I'd honestly apply to those 3 schools. Take the best offer you get out of the 3 $ wise. Sorry its been a few years, but I'd have to imagine a 176 would get some money at Cornell even with a 3.1.

Desert Fox wrote:

skidoo1066 wrote:

Desert Fox wrote:What does your spouse do. Can they just find a jerb anywhere,.

She's a stay-at-home mom - so... I suppose the answer to your question is 'yes'.

How are you going to pull that off when you have no income.

This is a good question.

There are some T14's in affordable areas where you can have space for your family - Virginia, Michigan, and Cornell all fit the bill and were already mentioned, and I would add in Duke as well. Other have mentioned commuter options at some other schools as well if that is something that you choose to consider.

TCR is Duke and rent a home in Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill city school district is excellent, col is low and quality of life is great.

Just moved to ithaca with my wife and 3-year-old daughter. We definitely do not regret the decision. Lots of activities for kids, small town atmosphere and really friendly people here. Worth a look in terms of quality of life for a family.

I know plenty of people who went to UChicago who had kids. You'd probably want to live in a part of the city that isn't complete garbage and commute in, but plenty of people do it. Heck, if you're worried about city life being too hustle-bustle, live in a row house or apartment in Hyde Park. You really don't feel like you're even in the city, which normally sucks but maybe it's up your alley.

vball1 wrote:TCR is Duke and rent a home in Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill city school district is excellent, col is low and quality of life is great.

+1 -- if you can live in CH near UNC-CH there's a 20 minute bus that brings you from the UNC campus to the Duke campus. It's super easy and for university affiliates theres a $25 a year pass. Chapel Hill is great and super family friendly (Durham also has some really nice areas, but the public schools aren't as strong, I think). There's also other towns nearby that you could consider commuting to Duke from (esp. with a car) that are nice, affordable (huge difference compared to the northeast) and have strong schools.

I think UVA, Cornell, Ann Arbor, and Duke would all be great places. I know NYU has family housing on campus. I don't remember the cost though. Also, I know you're focus is T14 but if you want to work in Texas following LS, UT would be great option too. Austin is an amazing city and with your numbers you should get lots of $$$.