Top Law Schools

I am between four or fives schools, and insight from TLS has been solid thus far, so I thought I'd look for some more advice.
(Schools listed with scholarship offer)
Illinois- 42 per year (out of state)
W&M- 18 per year (out of state)
BC- 21 per year
Northeastern- full ride plus stipend
Loyola- 36 per year

WUSTL- wait list

I have good connections within Chicago, and Illinois' offer will lead to the least debt apart from Northeastern. I am curious how differently employers regard Illinois after the couple scandals 5 years back. I really liked W&M, but have no meaningful legal connections in Virginia/DC. BC is probably the school I would most like to attend, but I'm unsure if it is worth it with such a small scholarship. Northeastern would be free, but I would be risking it with employment. Obviously, given the schools on my list, big law is not the end goal, but making money would be nice. Loyola (chicago) doesn't seem justifiable as a better school competing in the same region would be cheaper. However, I love Chicago and would like to stay in the city. In terms of cities I would like to work in, Chicago is first by a large distance, with Boston following.
WUSTL would be great but the odds of getting off the WL are low, and my desire to go hugely into debt are low as well.


I am primarily interested in real estate law, but I am not set on that. Any advice?

If you're seriously considering UIUC, another factor to consider, albeit probably less important than cost, job placement, etc. is, well, living in Champaign. I drove down there yesterday to visit the school and I have to say, I really don't think I could spend three years there. Now there's a good chance you end up in Chicago after graduation, but those three years... I think I would lose my mind in the cornfields.

I don't know how big of a city you're coming from or what you're expectations/preferences are, but it's something to consider. Obviously take everything I've said with a grain of salt. I live in the Chicago loop and I actually enjoy being surrounded by skyscrapers all the time. If you think you'd like living in a smaller town then you'd probably enjoy your time there. Maybe some current students could give you more information about the area.

To answer your question about employers, I don't think they really care about the scandal. There are a lot of UIUC grads at major firms in the city and they seem to like hiring from their alma mater.

jfiaff wrote:If you're seriously considering UIUC, another factor to consider, albeit probably less important than cost, job placement, etc. is, well, living in Champaign. I drove down there yesterday to visit the school and I have to say, I really don't think I could spend three years there. Now there's a good chance you end up in Chicago after graduation, but those three years... I think I would lose my mind in the cornfields.

I don't know how big of a city you're coming from or what you're expectations/preferences are, but it's something to consider. Obviously take everything I've said with a grain of salt. I live in the Chicago loop and I actually enjoy being surrounded by skyscrapers all the time. If you think you'd like living in a smaller town then you'd probably enjoy your time there. Maybe some current students could give you more information about the area.

To answer your question about employers, I don't think they really care about the scandal. There are a lot of UIUC grads at major firms in the city and they seem to like hiring from their alma mater.

I live in Lakeview, so the change would definitely be a shock at first. I've never lived in a city with less than one million people. However, I am trying to embrace the idea that (having outgrown frat parties and tailgating) I will be able to focus more on academics in a setting like UIUC than in a big city. Maybe that's bs though.