Top Law Schools

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If you desperately want to be in Chicago or are very debt averse, go with NU. Otherwise Harvard is your best shot. It opens so many doors.

If those are your actual, final options, NU. But you should keep negotiating to get the most money possible.

sarahpp99 wrote:Hi, tlsers. My career orientation is biglaw. So, I'm wondering which school is the best for biglaw jobs? Harvard at sticker vs NU 150k,which one should I choose?

Thanks in advance. Any input would be tremendously appreciated.

I was going to ask if you had been accepted at Harvard before I saw you posted recently about negotiating a NW scholarship after being accepted to Northwestern through binding ED. If you have been admitted to NW ED, you should withdraw all other applications now if you have not already.

Harvard obviously gives you a better shot for biglaw, but paying sticker for Harvard unless you are loaded is retarded.

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sarahpp99 wrote:

EnderWiggin wrote:

sarahpp99 wrote:Hi, tlsers. My career orientation is biglaw. So, I'm wondering which school is the best for biglaw jobs? Harvard at sticker vs NU 150k,which one should I choose?

Thanks in advance. Any input would be tremendously appreciated.

I was going to ask if you had been accepted at Harvard before I saw you posted recently about negotiating a NW scholarship after being accepted to Northwestern through binding ED. If you have been admitted to NW ED, you should withdraw all other applications now if you have not already.

I was thinking about transferring...

You haven't started law school yet and you are thinking of transferring to Harvard after a year at NU? Or you are already at NU and have done well enough to transfer to Harvard?

sarahpp99 wrote:

whysoseriousbiglaw wrote:Harvard obviously gives you a better shot for biglaw, but paying sticker for Harvard unless you are loaded is retarded.

Money is really that important? How much would a really competent,top of the class student earn at a biglaw?

Huh? The same as everyone else in biglaw....which is not enough to service your $300k in loans

GreatBraffsby wrote:If you desperately want to be in Chicago or are very debt averse, go with NU. Otherwise Harvard is your best shot. It opens so many doors.

Terrible answer. The difference in firm placement between Northwestern and Harvard is roughly 15% among those who want it. Harvard doesn't "open[] so many doors" (lol at that butchered idiom) that Northwestern doesn't, it just provides security for a greater number of students in the class and the same opportunities to a larger slice.

OP: At $150k cost delta, if you know corporate biglaw is your goal, Northwestern is the correct choice. If you think you might be interested in the public sector, in a small, competitive market (DC), or in a niche field, then Harvard is justified.

sarahpp99 wrote:

whysoseriousbiglaw wrote:Harvard obviously gives you a better shot for biglaw, but paying sticker for Harvard unless you are loaded is retarded.

Money is really that important? How much would a really competent,top of the class student earn at a biglaw?

Wrong question, because they'd make the same from NU or HLS. If you have the grades to transfer up from NU than you can get nearly any biglaw you'd want.

Unless you're receiving substantial support from a family member, paying sticker cost to attend any law school is insane--assuming you plan on doing big law and paying back all the debt you owe.

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sarahpp99 wrote:

jbagelboy wrote:

sarahpp99 wrote:

whysoseriousbiglaw wrote:Harvard obviously gives you a better shot for biglaw, but paying sticker for Harvard unless you are loaded is retarded.

Money is really that important? How much would a really competent,top of the class student earn at a biglaw?

Wrong question, because they'd make the same from NU or HLS. If you have the grades to transfer up from NU than you can get nearly any biglaw you'd want.

Do people make the same from NU or hls? Is a 160k salary the median? I think a better school may make me better prepared for the biglaw, thus earning more? I just wonder if Harvard has an edge over NU when it comes to a good corporate law education and whatever law areas that are crucial to a successful biglaw practice?

First off, before you made biglaw your career goal you should have done a little more market research.

Once you get into a firm, you get paid the same regardless of where you went to school. And most big firms in major markets pay 160k as starting salary with some minor variations in bonus that may be tied to the firm's performance and your billables. (In fact, I can't think of an industry where a company pays people in same jobs differently based on where they went to school.)

School ranking means nothing in terms of the quality of education, and especially transactional practice because law schools suck at this generally.

Lastly, if you have the grades to transfer from NU to HLS then you're pretty much golden for getting biglaw from NU anyway, so it's pointless to transfer just for biglaw unless you're really interested in a firm that recruits at HLS but not NU and even that's not worth throwing away your full ride for.

sarahpp99 wrote: Do people make the same from NU or hls? Is a 160k salary the median? I think a better school may make me better prepared for the biglaw, thus earning more? I just wonder if Harvard has an edge over NU when it comes to a good corporate law education and whatever law areas that are crucial to a successful biglaw practice?

Yes. First year associates make 160k regardless of whether they went to Yale or Uncle Chuckle's School of Legal Learnin'.

It sounds like you're trying to get people to tell you to go to Harvard. It's your call, but unless you A) have some form of outside support like rich parents or the GI Bill or B) are diehard committed to some public interest work and can rely on the school's LRAP, paying sticker for law school is idiotic. The quality of the "corporate law education" whatever that means, will be equally good at NU or Harvard. And transferring from NU to Harvard would mean giving up a huge scholarship for no gain, since someone near the top of the class at NU will have great opportunities anyway.

Just take the money. I can't tell you how nice it is to go to law school without debt hanging over your head.

I would say neither, but if you must, then Harvard. 150k is an enormous amount of debt and considering that a significant amount of NW students don't get biglaw, it's not an amount you should be comfortable with. Granted, sticker at Harvard is even worse debt-wise, but you're more likely to get a job that would ultimately pay it off, so I'd suggest there if you must go to one.

What's your GPA/LSAT combo? If not a splitter, then retake for t14 at less than 100k debt - that would be a justifiable decision. If a splitter, then really make sure you want to be a lawyer. But I just want to emphasize that law school with these options is something you shouldn't consider.

Why people keep responding like this is a serious thread after OP made clear they ED'd to NU and their only path to Harvard is by transferring, on the basis of grades yet to be earned, is one of those typical TLS mysteries.

Hand wrote:Why people keep responding like this is a serious thread after OP made clear they ED'd to NU and their only path to Harvard is by transferring, on the basis of grades yet to be earned, is one of those typical TLS mysteries.

Even if true, maybe somebody with a genuine decision to make will view this.

Otunga wrote:I would say neither, but if you must, then Harvard. 150k is an enormous amount of debt and considering that a significant amount of NW students don't get biglaw, it's not an amount you should be comfortable with. Granted, sticker at Harvard is even worse debt-wise, but you're more likely to get a job that would ultimately pay it off, so I'd suggest there if you must go to one.

What's your GPA/LSAT combo? If not a splitter, then retake for t14 at less than 100k debt - that would be a justifiable decision. If a splitter, then really make sure you want to be a lawyer. But I just want to emphasize that law school with these options is something you shouldn't consider.

This makes absolutely no sense to me, what offers would really be better? Harvard's aid is need-based, so no amount of money is guaranteed. It's not like a retake would change this. Plus NU outperforms its rank in regards to biglaw, so going somewhere else (even with the assumption that you can get the same amount of aid) doesn't really scream a better outcome to me. And while Harvard gives a better chance at biglaw, it doesn't guarantee it either. OP, It sounds like you are H or bust, and should likely reapply to H next year instead of trying to transfer (something you could easily fail to do).

sarahpp99 wrote:

EnderWiggin wrote:

sarahpp99 wrote:Hi, tlsers. My career orientation is biglaw. So, I'm wondering which school is the best for biglaw jobs? Harvard at sticker vs NU 150k,which one should I choose?

Thanks in advance. Any input would be tremendously appreciated.

I was going to ask if you had been accepted at Harvard before I saw you posted recently about negotiating a NW scholarship after being accepted to Northwestern through binding ED. If you have been admitted to NW ED, you should withdraw all other applications now if you have not already.

I was thinking about transferring...

Transferring from Northwestern to Harvard is dumb. The same firms interview at Northwestern and Harvard and even if you do end up getting into Harvard, it doesn't really change anything except the amount of debt you'll have. The firms pay the same to everyone.

Otunga wrote:I would say neither, but if you must, then Harvard. 150k is an enormous amount of debt and considering that a significant amount of NW students don't get biglaw, it's not an amount you should be comfortable with. Granted, sticker at Harvard is even worse debt-wise, but you're more likely to get a job that would ultimately pay it off, so I'd suggest there if you must go to one.

What's your GPA/LSAT combo? If not a splitter, then retake for t14 at less than 100k debt - that would be a justifiable decision. If a splitter, then really make sure you want to be a lawyer. But I just want to emphasize that law school with these options is something you shouldn't consider.

Pretty sure the OP meant they were getting $150k in merit aid at NU - that's what the ED admission comes with.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:

Otunga wrote:I would say neither, but if you must, then Harvard. 150k is an enormous amount of debt and considering that a significant amount of NW students don't get biglaw, it's not an amount you should be comfortable with. Granted, sticker at Harvard is even worse debt-wise, but you're more likely to get a job that would ultimately pay it off, so I'd suggest there if you must go to one.

What's your GPA/LSAT combo? If not a splitter, then retake for t14 at less than 100k debt - that would be a justifiable decision. If a splitter, then really make sure you want to be a lawyer. But I just want to emphasize that law school with these options is something you shouldn't consider.

Pretty sure the OP meant they were getting $150k in merit aid at NU - that's what the ED admission comes with.

I can't tell if OP applied yet. I can't tell if OP is an international applicant. I can't tell if OP knows about need based aid at Harvard.
If OP applied and was accepted ED, they can't go to Harvard, as others have said.
OP seems completely lost or possibly obsfucating.

Oh, I'm honestly not sure if OP has even applied yet, either. But I think the scenario was supposed to be whether NU with $150k was better than sticker at Harvard, not NU costing $150k. But it is a confusing thread.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:

Otunga wrote:I would say neither, but if you must, then Harvard. 150k is an enormous amount of debt and considering that a significant amount of NW students don't get biglaw, it's not an amount you should be comfortable with. Granted, sticker at Harvard is even worse debt-wise, but you're more likely to get a job that would ultimately pay it off, so I'd suggest there if you must go to one.

What's your GPA/LSAT combo? If not a splitter, then retake for t14 at less than 100k debt - that would be a justifiable decision. If a splitter, then really make sure you want to be a lawyer. But I just want to emphasize that law school with these options is something you shouldn't consider.

Pretty sure the OP meant they were getting $150k in merit aid at NU - that's what the ED admission comes with.

That's quite different then. If the debt total at Northwestern would be less than 100k, that's undoubtedly the better choice over Harvard sticker/minimal scholarship.