Top Law Schools

I'm currently trying to decide between Michigan with a $45,000 scholarship, NYU at sticker, and UVA at sticker. I've visited all three schools, and I've liked each of them. However, I definitely liked the atmosphere of Michigan the best.

My numbers: 172 LSAT / 3.33 GPA. Wish I could retake that GPA, but that's not really an option.

As for after graduation, my two interests are becoming a prosecutor and working in sports law. I understand these two interests are at different ends of the spectrum, hopefully I will discover over my 1L year which one that I want. I've been living in Denver for the past two years, and I really enjoy it here. I also really love my home city, DC. After graduation I'd like to end up in either Denver or DC, though preferably Denver.

One of my worries is that NYU might be a bit distracting and difficult to live in, whereas UVA and Michigan would be easier places to concentrate on academics. I'm from DC originally, so UVA would be a quick 2.5 hour drive to home.

I visited Michigan and absolutely loved it. I could really see myself there. However, I'm a bit concerned about the employment statistics of recent years. At the same time, will the smaller class sizes of recent years help these stats?

I'd greatly appreciate whatever advice you all have to offer.

Negotiate that scholly up. Worse numbers than you and waitlisted somewhere you got in, but got $$ from Mich. Shouldn't be tough if you're persistent.

Definitely email Michigan and say you cannot afford it unless they bump up to 75

My guess is most people will recommend you take Michigan's offer to UVA and ask for a match. It's unlikely, but the worst they can do is say no. If it's matched, UVA is your best bet. If it isn't matched, then Michigan is the winner here. But still ask for a bump from them as well.

Ultimately, you need to very carefully consider if any of these schools at a quarter million dollars of debt is worth it to you. Most people on this board would say no (check out the Berkley at sticker thread below). Do you have any T1 options with a full ride available to you? If not, any willingness on your part to retake?

Thank you for the advice so far. I did ask UVA to match Michigan's $ and they said no. I also asked Michigan to up their $ and they also said no. I got in off the wait list at NYU so my guess is that they will not be offering me a scholarship.

As for my LSAT, I really doubt the number would go up on a retake. I studied for 8 months, everyday, and had just about perfect conditions on test day.

My parents will be financing law school. I am incredibly grateful for this. I wouldn't want my parents to pay $45,000 for a marginal advantage between UVA and Michigan or $100,000 (including cost of living, etc.) for a marginal advantage between NYU and Michigan. My main concern is that Michigan's lower employment numbers might mean that UVA and NYU have more than a marginal advantage.

As long as you don't finish bottom 1/4 in the class, you will have no problem in Mich for jobs. Even if you were bottom 1/4, if you aren't antisocial, you'll be okay.
But email Mich again to negotiate for more, especially if you got into NYU after you talked to them last. Having Admissions people P/O'd with you has 0 effect on your law school experience. You'll never see them. Make sure you get 5 'No's' in a row before you quit bugging them.

torcherino wrote:Thank you for the advice so far. I did ask UVA to match Michigan's $ and they said no. I also asked Michigan to up their $ and they also said no. I got in off the wait list at NYU so my guess is that they will not be offering me a scholarship.

As for my LSAT, I really doubt the number would go up on a retake. I studied for 8 months, everyday, and had just about perfect conditions on test day.

My parents will be financing law school. I am incredibly grateful for this. I wouldn't want my parents to pay $45,000 for a marginal advantage between UVA and Michigan or $100,000 (including cost of living, etc.) for a marginal advantage between NYU and Michigan. My main concern is that Michigan's lower employment numbers might mean that UVA and NYU have more than a marginal advantage.

Have you told Michigan you got into NYU yet? If not try that for sure!

c/o employment stats are out and Michigan BL+FC is 61% (a 7 point rise from the previous year) so it does seem that the smaller class sizes (and other factors) are working. NYU was at 67% and UVA was at 70%.

Definitely try to negotiate with UVA (and Michigan).

Source: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1&t=262376

IDK if UVA is necessarily better than Michigan. Some of the recent data could probably be explained by the markets students entering both schools are trying to break into. You also have a lot of Michigan residents going to Michigan hoping to work in a Detroit legal market that's nearly dead.