UVA at sticker v. Emory/Vandy with $$$ Forum

[keekztresq]

Hey everyone! I'm just trying to get some opinions from people so I can make a decision because my thoughts just keep getting all jumbled up. Any insight or thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!

Here's what I have on the table:
Emory: half scholly, would probably end up with about 85k in loans
Vandy: same as above
UVA: no scholly, would probably end up with 175k in loans

I have visited all three and fell in love with Emory and UVA, but was a bit disappointed with Vandy. Vandy remains tempting because I feel that it has more reach outside of the south, which is important to me because I would like to get out of the south and hopefully end up in DC. But the people at Emory seemed way more genuine and the career services at Emory really impressed me.

As for UVA, I loved it! Plus, it's obviously a really great school, but extremely expensive. I have zero ties to Virginia which makes it a bit scary, but I would go there in a heart beat if they gave me money. Unfortuanately, it doesn't look like that will happen. I would like to live in DC and work big law for a few years to gain experience (and of course to pay off some debt) but ultimately would like to do art law (working with museums, theatres, dance companies, etc.), but I'm 100% willing to explore my options and change my mind once I'm in school and see what I like.

Thank you!!!

[OhBoyOhBortles]

In order to receive the best feedback in this forum, please provide as much of the following information in your original post as possible:

-The schools you are considering
-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each. COA = cost of tuition + fees + books + cost of living (COL) + accumulated interest - scholarships. Here is a helpful calculator.
-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
-Your general career goals
-Your LSAT/GPA numbers
-How many times you have taken the LSAT

[keekztresq]

In order to receive the best feedback in this forum, please provide as much of the following information in your original post as possible:

-The schools you are considering
-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each. COA = cost of tuition + fees + books + cost of living (COL) + accumulated interest - scholarships. Here is a helpful calculator.
-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
-Your general career goals
-Your LSAT/GPA numbers
-How many times you have taken the LSAT

Considering Emory, Vandy, UVA
COA Emory: approx. 225k (-72k scholly-75k help from parents)= 78k remaining, will cover with loans and savings
COA Vandy: same as above
COA UVA: 225k (-75k help from parents)=150 k remaining, will cover with loans and savings

I'm currently living in Atlanta, but would ultimately like to live in DC. My only ties are in Atlanta (family/friends/network), but I'm willing to pick up and make a drastic move alone if necessary. Would like to work big law for a few years after school, but ultimately would like to work in art law. But I'm trying to keep an open mind when I get to school, so this may change. I'm not at all anticipating wanting to work PI though.
-163 LSAT (took twice), 3.9 GPA

[OhBoyOhBortles]

3.9 is amazing. Please keep studying and retake. If you can get that score into the high 160s or low 170s you'll have huge offers at schools that will be much more likely to make DC a possibility for you.

[Auxilio]

I dislike suggesting any school at sticker, but I think UVA is the credited response here. Worth 70k for that extra security.

ETA: did not see the 3.9, definitely consider retaking and waiting a year. (and apply more broadly)

[CanadianWolf]

Unlikely that you'll experience a drastic cultural change among Atlanta, Nashville & Charlottesville as they're all Southern.

Clearly, Virginia is the most likely to get you placed in Washington D.C. So it comes down to cost. Virginia is probably more likely to place you with paid summer work than the other two.

With a 3.9 GPA, it's certainly worthwhile to retake if you're willing to put forth substantial effort in an attempt to increase your LSAT score by a few points.

Nevertheless, if you can get a full tuition scholarship from either Emory or Vanderbilt, then you would have two great options for this admissions cycle.

[lawdoggy]

Retake or UVA.

[Nomo]

What exactly do you mean by art law? Who do you see as your clients and what kinds of issues do you want to resolve for them? Can you name some specific firms, government agencies, or nonprofits do the type of work you're talking about?

[keekztresq]

What exactly do you mean by art law? Who do you see as your clients and what kinds of issues do you want to resolve for them? Can you name some specific firms, government agencies, or nonprofits do the type of work you're talking about?

As of right now, "art law" is a pretty new field that hasn't fully developed yet, so it's hard to define. But I danced professionally and have a lot of experience in museum work, so ideally i would act as in house council for a dance company or museum or some other arts organization. A lot of the type of work involved would be transactional (rather than litigation), and probably a lot of copyright/trademark would be involved also. I like DC because it's a city with a lot of these kinds of organizations there, relatively speaking, and I like it much better than NYC, and because the option of helping shape policy for these organizations is also there.

[BrazilBandit]

I guess this would be Art Law?

http://law.vanderbilt.edu/courses/132

[keekztresq]

I guess this would be Art Law?

http://law.vanderbilt.edu/courses/132

Kind of. I spoke with the professor in charge of this quite a bit when I went to visit, and he said that they do a lot of IP and patents type work and hardly no art law. But yes what they describe on that page is basically what I would be doing.

[Nomo]

I'm guessing that "art law" is not a developing field. To my knowledge there isn't a burgeoning body of laws that governs the work of museums, theaters, and dance companies in the way that there is a body of law governing commercial transactions, the environment, oil and gas rights, etc. Rather, a dance company hires an employment lawyer to draft employment contracts, a litigator to handle an unfinished construction project, a bankruptcy lawyer to handle bankruptcy, etc. There are some specific areas of law that hit museums, like NAGPRA. And the larger museums and dance companies do have an in house lawyer (sometimes multiple lawyers). But those are absolute unicorn jobs; and they aren't really "art law" jobs any more than General Mills' in house lawyers are "cereal law" attorneys, or American Standard's lawyers are "toilet law" attorneys.

I'm saying this as a warning. Be careful. Make sure you know what you're getting into here. You sound like you might be the type of person who is going to law school because you're fairly smart, you liked you're liberal arts education, you're not satisfied with your current career options, and you're not sure what else to do. If that's you then it probably would have made sense to attend law school in 1995. In 2015 its a recipe for disaster. Almost everyone who meets that profile ends up feeling like they made a mistake.

[keekztresq]

I'm guessing that "art law" is not a developing field. To my knowledge there isn't a burgeoning body of laws that governs the work of museums, theaters, and dance companies in the way that there is a body of law governing commercial transactions, the environment, oil and gas rights, etc. Rather, a dance company hires an employment lawyer to draft employment contracts, a litigator to handle an unfinished construction project, a bankruptcy lawyer to handle bankruptcy, etc. There are some specific areas of law that hit museums, like NAGPRA. And the larger museums and dance companies do have an in house lawyer (sometimes multiple lawyers). But those are absolute unicorn jobs; and they aren't really "art law" jobs any more than General Mills' in house lawyers are "cereal law" attorneys, or American Standard's lawyers are "toilet law" attorneys.

I'm saying this as a warning. Be careful. Make sure you know what you're getting into here. You sound like you might be the type of person who is going to law school because you're fairly smart, you liked you're liberal arts education, you're not satisfied with your current career options, and you're not sure what else to do. If that's you then it probably would have made sense to attend law school in 1995. In 2015 its a recipe for disaster. Almost everyone who meets that profile ends up feeling like they made a mistake.

I can see where you're coming from and how you might be getting that impression. Like I said though, being able to work as a lawyer for the arts would be my dream/ideal job, but I'm certainly opening to exploring other possibilities. I do know, for example, that I definitely would prefer transactional work over litigation. The art law thing is an ultimate goal, but I'm totally open to changing that goal of that's how things go. I don't think I would be unhappy working as a lawyer in a different field

[Hikikomorist]

Nevertheless, if you can get a full tuition scholarship from either Emory or Vanderbilt, then you would have two great options for this admissions cycle.

I'd say OP already had a great cycle for those numbers, and I don't see it improving much without a retake.

[hillz]

Nevertheless, if you can get a full tuition scholarship from either Emory or Vanderbilt, then you would have two great options for this admissions cycle.

I'd say OP already had a great cycle for those numbers, and I don't see it improving much without a retake.

I agree with this. OP, you really should consider retaking and reapplying. Even just 5-7 more points could net you $$ at UVA. I don't think that UVA is worth paying sticker if you're taking out loans and don't have rich parents who will take care of you. You don't seem sold on Vandy or Emory, and it seems like getting a unicorn position or even leaving the South aren't going to be easy if you attend either school. Retaking and reapplying gives you a better chance at the flexibility you desire.

[Informative]

Go with UVA for DC.