Top Law Schools

Hi all,

I've been extremely fortunate this cycle so far and I've been accepted at the schools above (Penn, UVA, Berkeley, Michigan, Duke, Northwestern). However, I'm having a really tough choice even beginning to decide and figured it would be nice to hear your thoughts/opinions/views.

I have yet to hear back regarding scholarships but I have enough savings to finance my entire education/COL so for the sake of this discussion, money is no object.

I am interested in BigLaw, NYC ideally but pretty flexible (considering moving to California or abroad somewhere along the road). All of these schools have national reach and are great for BigLaw.

So, here's where I need your help. Where would you choose and why? I know they're all in very different places and I am planning on visiting them all, but I'd like to hear what you think, cause basically I have to start looking at the little things to help decide...

Thanks everyone

If just big law, pick the one you like best. They all place pretty well in big law. Michigan is a little weaker than the rest, but that probably has to do with higher PI self-selection at Michigan. I know you say savings will cover it, but unless you have seven figures of savings, you should still consider what schools are giving you $.

CONGRATULATIONS on all of the fantastic options!

If it were me, I'd choose Penn or UVA based on my OWN personal preference of school/location (so this isn't necessarily a suggestion, just an idea that you should look around and see which location and campus you like best!). Honestly, I'd just visit them (if you have the time or means) and see which one would be the best fit/you like best/city you like best. If money isn't an object, I'd still take scholarships into consideration solely because that means you have more savings to start off with in life, putting you in a great position post law school.

Congrats again.

Well done! If you have specific question Re: Penn feel free to PM me.

If I were you I'd go to UPenn

They have the highest USNWR of all the schools at #7 (Even though some people treat all non-T6 schools in the T13, sorry GULC, as having no difference).

Also in terms of % BigLaw placement, they are second only to Columbia. Plus they are #1 in Best Career Prospects, not sure if the latter ranking holds much water (see links below):
http://tippingthescales.com/2015/02/the ... w-schools/
https://www.princetonreview.com/law-sch ... -prospects

And while the lay person might think Duke and Berkeley are more prestigious than UPenn (whose name sounds like your average college), UPenn's Ivy status and overall ranking are a good plus.

Lastly, you'd be able to take advantage of Wharton's high MBA ranking (#4) by taking some MBA electives while networking with the students.

No comments on location, quality of life, etc... I could care less if the returns are there

At Michigan, going back to NYC for big law after. Picked it over NYU. NYC easily achievable. PM me if you want a full pitch.

Penn is the best choice in this group. Fabulous reputation with excellent placement power. Congratulations.

Penn for sure. Best biglaw placement (for both NYC and overall), best prestige/reputation. UVA/Duke/NU would also be fine if any of them stands out for personal reasons.

rizzlebizness wrote: They have the highest USNWR of all the schools at #7 (Even though some people treat all non-T6 schools in the T13, sorry GULC, as having no difference).

On topic: OP, if you want generic Biglaw, then I would go with Penn or Northwestern, because they are just Biglaw giants.

Off topic: Yeah, and you're treating it as if there is an actually difference between T6 and the rest of the T13 (also sorry Georgetown). The only real special tier of schools is HYS. Chicago, Columbia, and NYU compete evenly with Northwestern, Cornell, Berkeley, Michigan, UVA Penn, and Duke with minor differences that can be boiled down to self-selection. A lot of those schools do far better in clerkship numbers than NYU and Columbia, and UVA competes with Chicago on Clerkship numbers, and a lot of the other T14 schools are only a few percentage points off. It's a bad distinction, because there is no real strong argument that NYU provides much better outcomes than say Cornell, yet there is good evidence that Yale, Harvard, and Stanford consistently provide better outcomes than the rest of the pack.

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Don't let 0L's influence your decision. The data they spew out is not nearly the complete picture.

I'd pick the cheapest option. If money truly is not a concern, then pick based on what atmosphere you'd like to live in for 3 years. All schools will place into NYC easily. Penn, Michigan and Berkeley likely have a slight edge in ability to place graduates nationally.

0L here but I am legitimately curious what has you hung up? If you want NYC why not go to Penn, a short train ride away and great employment prospects. If you are leaning back towards California then Berkeley seems like a no brainer. For me, I would want to be relatively close to my desired market (and yea that is despite the fact that T6-T10 are placing nationally). It just seems like a good idea (imo) to be near your desired market for networking and general connections.

Also do you have any more specific career ambitions beyond BigLaw? Niche interests might tip the scales for a specific school.

I'd follow the money.
All things equal, Penn for NYC BigLaw.

Rigo wrote:I'd follow the money.
All things equal, Penn for NYC BigLaw.

I agree with this. Even if you have the money, throwing away your savings to finance law school if you could go to a school with similar outcomes seems ridiculous to me. All things being equal I guess Penn is the best choice, but any of these schools are likely to get you NYC biglaw if you want it.

Thanks everyone so far! Yes I'm definitely going to take money into account, but I didn't want it to be the main factor in this particular discussion (just because I want to hear opinions other than $$).

ac2012 wrote:Thanks everyone so far! Yes I'm definitely going to take money into account, but I didn't want it to be the main factor in this particular discussion (just because I want to hear opinions other than $$).

Money should be the only non-personal factor to take into account when you're deciding between peer schools with the sole goal of NYC biglaw.

Even though you can pay with savings, I'd still pick the cheapest option. These are peer schools. Save your $.