Top Law Schools

I have seen many times on this forum people talking about applying to T14 and "strong regional schools". I have a decent idea, but what would be considered the strong regional schools for the south? More specifically markets like Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, Birmingham...

University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

UNC at a big discount is probably good for North Carolina if you didn't get into Duke.

You can find some really long threads debating Florida vs. Florida State. Florida State is arguably better for someone who wants to work for the state government in Florida as opposed to private practice.

Duke/UVA> Vanderbilt> (maybe Emory?) > state flagships. If Duke, UVA, and Vandy are off the table, you really should think about where you want to practice specifically. I don't think Emory has a better shot at Birmingham biglaw than Alabama. Although Alabama is ranked higher by US News, I'm sure Tennessee grads do better in Nashville than Alabama grads do. To answer your question, I really think only Duke, UVA, and Vanderbilt have regional recognition throughout the southeast.

runinthefront wrote:University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

Pretty much this (except FSU/UF are interchangeable).

Mack.Hambleton wrote:

runinthefront wrote:University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

Pretty much this (except FSU/UF are interchangeable).

Eh, not really. It depends on your goals. They're peer schools but if you want a government job, FSU is a better choice. If you want to work for a firm, especially mid/biglaw, UF is the better choice.

Georgia & Alabama are both strong for their respective regions. Florida & FSU are NOT strong regionals.

lawman84 wrote:

Mack.Hambleton wrote:

runinthefront wrote:University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

Pretty much this (except FSU/UF are interchangeable).

Eh, not really. It depends on your goals. They're peer schools but if you want a government job, FSU is a better choice. If you want to work for a firm, especially mid/biglaw, UF is the better choice.

If you're going to UF with big/midlaw goals you've already goofed

OP- I wouldn't count on any school giving you opportunities in all of the cities you listed, I think you're going to have to acquire a bit more focus. Once you figure out where you want to end up then you can start considering which schools align with that goal.

(and saying you want to work in the monolithic "The South" or "I'm flexible" isn't the way to approach choosing a law school IMO)

BigZuck wrote:

lawman84 wrote:

Mack.Hambleton wrote:

runinthefront wrote:University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

Pretty much this (except FSU/UF are interchangeable).

Eh, not really. It depends on your goals. They're peer schools but if you want a government job, FSU is a better choice. If you want to work for a firm, especially mid/biglaw, UF is the better choice.

If you're going to UF with big/midlaw goals you've already goofed

OP- I wouldn't count on any school giving you opportunities in all of the cities you listed, I think you're going to have to acquire a bit more focus. Once you figure out where you want to end up then you can start considering which schools align with that goal.

(and saying you want to work in the monolithic "The South" or "I'm flexible" isn't the way to approach choosing a law school IMO)

I guess I'm about to dun goof my way into mid/biglaw then.

lawman84 wrote:

BigZuck wrote:

lawman84 wrote:

Mack.Hambleton wrote:

runinthefront wrote:University of Alabama at a very discounted price for Alabama. university of Florida at a very discounted price for Florida (or FSU at an even more discounted price). UGA/Emory for Georgia at a very discounted price. Vanderbilt for Tennessee (and the general south) at a discounted price.

Just go to the best school in the State you want to practice. Save for Duke and UVA, there isn't really a school that has strong placement power in the South as a whole. Vandy comes the closest, though.

Pretty much this (except FSU/UF are interchangeable).

Eh, not really. It depends on your goals. They're peer schools but if you want a government job, FSU is a better choice. If you want to work for a firm, especially mid/biglaw, UF is the better choice.

If you're going to UF with big/midlaw goals you've already goofed

OP- I wouldn't count on any school giving you opportunities in all of the cities you listed, I think you're going to have to acquire a bit more focus. Once you figure out where you want to end up then you can start considering which schools align with that goal.

(and saying you want to work in the monolithic "The South" or "I'm flexible" isn't the way to approach choosing a law school IMO)

I guess I'm about to dun goof my way into mid/biglaw then.

A goof with the benefit of hindsight is still a goof, goofball

CanadianWolf wrote:Georgia & Alabama are both strong for their respective regions. Florida & FSU are NOT strong regionals.

You don't think UF and FSU are strong in the state of Florida? What?

What about someone who wants to practice in a southern state where the flagship is perhaps not as strong? Think Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Kentucky, or South Carolina.

i think he means FSU and UF aren't as readily portable to other parts of the SE, not that they don't dominate the florida market. i'd tend to agree with him; you usually need to be like top 10% to get something outside florida.

.

I agree that UF and FSU don't do much for employers outside of Florida. But Florida is a really big state.

stasg wrote:What about someone who wants to practice in a southern state where the flagship is perhaps not as strong? Think Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Kentucky, or South Carolina.

UGA, Emory, Bama, and Vandy sound like good schools to apply to for you. If you do really well on your retake you might want to apply to UVA, Duke, and Georgetown. Those schools would be very unlikely with your current LSAT but if you improve by 4+ points they might be worth a reach.

lawschoolletsgo wrote:Thanks for the responses! To be more specific I am targeting Atlanta first and foremost with the possibility of Nashville or Birmingham.

From the responses I take it that UGA, Emory, Bama, and possibly Vandy sound like the schools I should target?

I am a 3.75, 164 (1st take). Planning on taking again in October...

I'd say Vandy > Emory/UGA (depending on costs, don't pay much more for Emory) > Alabama with those goals. Also don't forget Duke if you do well in Oct. With your current stats I'd say you are a shoo in at UGA and Alabama, a probably at Emory, and a maybe at Vanderbilt (I think you'll need a few more points on the LSAT).

lawschoolletsgo wrote:Thanks for the responses! To be more specific I am targeting Atlanta first and foremost with the possibility of Nashville or Birmingham.

From the responses I take it that UGA, Emory, Bama, and possibly Vandy sound like the schools I should target?

I am a 3.75, 164 (1st take). Planning on taking again in October...

Again, I wouldn't count on any school giving you opportunities in all those cities. That's not really how legal hiring works, especially in "The South."