Top Law Schools

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It's tough to make a sweeping generalization about this. Maybe yes maybe no. Easier to work with a specific scenario, which is why you should come back once you have real offers on the table.

depends what your goals are, public interest can be a ton of different things.

If you want elite public interest work, I imagine a T14 is pretty much mandatory and for the truly elite HYS at that. Beyond that I think a lot depends on where you want to practice and what specific public interest you want to practice.

Chrstgtr wrote:If you want elite public interest work, I imagine a T14 is pretty much mandatory and for the truly elite HYS at that.

That's super terrible advice.

OP, as has already been said, specifics dictate the optimal path. Not all of the T14 offer similar support for PI, including - but not limited to - LRAPs. As an opening play in your cycle, apply to the T14 and strong regional schools. Take a look at what your cost of attendance would be at each, and then ask yourself some hard questions about what gives you the best chance of success - highest ceiling, lowest floor stuff. Bear in mind that [many/most] PI-dedicated students end up aiming for firm jobs before they graduate.

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What sort of public interest work do you want?

It varies a lot between Legal Aid, the ACLU, groups like Public Citizen, and public-interest law firms. A top school may be more conducive to some of those but not eithers. Either way, LRAP's your friend.

sorry4lurking wrote: Finally, is it silly to pass up money at a school with a good "public interest reputation" such as American, Northeastern, or CUNY for a T14 school?

Depends on what you want to do within the big tent that is PI, but I'd be wary of these schools especially if T14 is already within reach. Definitely retake though if you left points on the table.

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As others have noted, specific career goals are important. Without more, NYU has several PI scholarships & a significant number of students looking for PI positions. Northwestern has a wrongful convictions clinic that seems to work primarily (maybe exclusively) in the state court/penal system. Michigan is rumored to be accepting students with expressed interest in PI work. If you know CUNY, then you know it is primarily focused on PI placement at dirt cheap tuition for New York state residents. Colorado arguably has the best run statewide PD offices in the country.
Attaining PI positions is largely dependent upon one's demonstrated interest. This means working for your targeted type of PI during the summers & during 2L & 3L years. This, therefore, brings internship/externship opportunities into consideration when selecting a law school.

P.S. Even mentioning any interest in working as a prosecutor (ADA or Ass't State's Attorney) will almost certainly eliminate you for PD positions (but not vice-versa).

If you want to do PI you should minimize debt (and also go to a school with a great LRAP program). A lot of PI hiring has to do with connections (some PI orgs in NYC at least don't even bother reading your app without a connection since they get hundreds of applications for one single position), so having a large base of law school alumni in PI is beneficial.

Just based on the PI orgs that I am familiar with, the schools that come to mind for PI in the T-14 are NYU, Berkeley (if on the West Coast anyway), and Michigan. Maybe Georgetown. I don't know about elite hiring, but I am close with people who do hiring at regular PI orgs on the East Coast, which is where I am getting this info.

If you're in NYC, a lot of PI orgs hire from CUNY, since it's super cheap and everyone goes there to go into PI. If you're at a local NY school, you can also do a third year fellowship program where they work part time for a PI org in NYC - that's how some PI hiring gets done.

PI hiring is a completely different ballgame to biglaw hiring. Connections are very important and also showing your dedication to PI. Also, you likely have to work for free (or on a fellowship) after graduation to get that PI job, which is why you should minimize debt.