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I need some help answering this question: How much more is Duke worth than Vandy?

Long time lurker, so here is my information:

Gpa, LSAT: 3.6x, 171

COA: Duke-100k, Vandy-60k

How will you pay: Those COA numbers are after a little help from parents and S/O so the rest will be through loans.

Goals: After fairy tale goals like DOJ and academics, I would like to be a criminal lawyer/public defender/district attorney back in my home state. I would probably take big law first though to pay off loans. Would try for litigation. I don't want to go to either NYC or out west. Would love to clerk.

Goals cont.: From the south. Want to stay in the south. Is southern big law even a thing? I know it is but how realistic is it to aim for?

Is Duke worth 40k more than Vandy?

Appreciate the help. Thanks!

Duke

BigZuck wrote:Duke

Duke. No Question.

Not that I disagree with you all, but their employment numbers are almost identical on LST.

Can you give help give me some reasoning to ease my mind why it is no question?

Thanks

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Not that I disagree with you all, but their employment numbers are almost identical on LST.

Can you give help give me some reasoning to ease my mind why it is no question?

Thanks

Not all jobs are equal. Vanderbilt is a good school, but Duke places far more students into quality firms and the like.

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Not that I disagree with you all, but their employment numbers are almost identical on LST.

Wrong. There's a handy chart below compiling employment outcomes for 2014 of the different schools:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... d=14086468

The best metric we have for comparison is full-time, long-term BigLaw and Federal Clerkship placement (the best outcomes that actually let you pay back loans).

Duke: 70.23%
Vandy: 41.24%

If you go to Duke, you've got almost a 3/4 chance of getting a good job afterwards. If you go Vandy, you have well less than half a chance. You do the math.

zacharus85 wrote:

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Not that I disagree with you all, but their employment numbers are almost identical on LST.

Wrong. There's a handy chart below compiling employment outcomes for 2014 of the different schools:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... d=14086468

The best metric we have for comparison is full-time, long-term BigLaw and Federal Clerkship placement (the best outcomes that actually let you pay back loans).

Duke: 70.23%
Vandy: 41.24%

If you go to Duke, you've got almost a 3/4 chance of getting a good job afterwards. If you go Vandy, you have well less than half a chance. You do the math.

But with 60k debt he doesn't necessarily have to get Big Law

But yeah go to Duke

adil91 wrote:

zacharus85 wrote:

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Not that I disagree with you all, but their employment numbers are almost identical on LST.

Wrong. There's a handy chart below compiling employment outcomes for 2014 of the different schools:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... d=14086468

The best metric we have for comparison is full-time, long-term BigLaw and Federal Clerkship placement (the best outcomes that actually let you pay back loans).

Duke: 70.23%
Vandy: 41.24%

If you go to Duke, you've got almost a 3/4 chance of getting a good job afterwards. If you go Vandy, you have well less than half a chance. You do the math.

But with 60k debt he doesn't necessarily have to get Big Law

But yeah go to Duke

Sure he doesn't have to, but he mentioned both BigLaw and clerking in the OP. Duke gets you everywhere Vandy does and more. And 100K all in ain't a bad price at which to do it.

Vandy is a defensible option. Duke is a good option.

Thanks guys.

Does anybody have insight into my questions about southern big law and how competitive/available it is?

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Thanks guys.

Does anybody have insight into my questions about southern big law and how competitive/available it is?

0L opinion, but you can't point at a zoo and ask if the animals have hooves. You're talking about too many animals to make any helpful generalizations.

Some markets are very strong, some are remarkably weak, and all have different interest in ties. You need to set priorities based on salary, quality of life and region - which is to say, be prepared for a choice between NYC BigLaw or Atlanta MidLaw.

Confusedbutnotdazed wrote:Thanks guys.

Does anybody have insight into my questions about southern big law and how competitive/available it is?

Yeah, the question really is too vague to answer. It depends- on your toes, your grades, the specific market, etc.

BigZuck wrote:Yeah, the question really is too vague to answer. It depends- on your toes, your grades, the specific market, etc.

Gotta get them pedicures, bro.

NoLieAbility wrote:

BigZuck wrote:Yeah, the question really is too vague to answer. It depends- on your toes, your grades, the specific market, etc.

Gotta get them pedicures, bro.

CSO said no open-toed shoes at interviews now that I think of it so I take it back

Ironically, my phone autocorrected "toed" to "tied"

Vandy 2L here. I'd take duke if your numbers are right. Southern markets are fickle. Which market are you targeting, i.e. where are your ties at?

can we assign $ number figures to approximate the value per % big law and federal clerk placement.

If Cornell places 75% into BLFC and NYU places 60%, how much more valuable would Cornell be (controversial example i know) i think $2k per % is fair. So Cornell is worth 30k more than Penn.

The problem is that as the schools with BLFC numbers get lower, the value per % point would obviously increase.

and duke is the answer here