Oklahoma vs. Ole Miss Forum

[LBall8287]

So this is pretty straightforward.
OKLAHOMA: $13,000 per year for tuition (plus cost of living, etc.), closer to home (Dallas) Rank:60
OLE MISS: $0 per year for tuition (plus cost of living, etc.) Rank:109

OHIO STATE: Waitlisted (Would attend OSU over both Oklahoma and Mississippi if taken off the WL)

I have no idea what kind of law that I want to practice or where so I need honest opinions.

[Ferrisjso]

Got two questions to ask,A where would you like to practice and B what is your total COA for both schools? Seems to me if Oklahoma is where you want to practice 13k over Ole Miss is worth if, if not go the cheapest option and get ready for a life in Mississippi. Do you really want to practice in Ohio? If not, I do not know why you would be considering taking out 200k in loans(I'm assuming) to attend Ohio State, even if you do I'd advise either Oklahoma or Ole Miss if you're okay with either market those schools feed into. A state flagship will feed into a state really well regardless of a rank, even if Ole Miss is ranked lower than most flagships(most are T's or TT's), it is still the best school in it's market. If you want to practice in Mississippi an Ole Miss degree will get you further than an Ohio State degree, likewise if you want to practice in Oklahoma, an Oklahoma degree will get you the furthest. Ohio State will only do you good in Ohio. National Rank tends to only be relevant as it's a pretty good indicator of the types of students there(Ohio State will no doubt have higher GPA's and LSAT's hanging around).

Not knowing what kind of law you want to practice is fine, knowing where you want to practice seems to be more important. If you want to go to Ohio State because of it's "higher rank" you would be making the wrong choice to go there(besides the T13/T14, there's only a handful of schools that have a reach beyond that of their own state), if you want to go because you are dead set on Ohio, that's more understandable but you'll probably be taking out 200k plus and you should think very very carefully about that, especially when you have two perfectly good far more affordable options. Only ranking that matters(for practical reasons, I'm not going to lie, seeing a school you might be going to go up in US News gives a nice warm fuzzy feeling) is ranking within a state, and Ohio State, Oklahoma and Ole Miss are all number 1 where it matters most if those are the states you want and probably always will be.

[jjcorvino]

A few things we need to know to answer:

What is your GPA/LSAT?
Where do you want to live and work after graduation? (if you do not know this, do not go to law school)
What type of law (doesn't need to be specific, but public interest? Big law? Mid law?)

Then we can help.

[cavalier1138]

I have no idea what kind of law that I want to practice or where so I need honest opinions.

You need to figure that out, then. At least the latter question needs to be answered, because both of these schools lock you into a specific region.

Why do you want to go to law school?

[LBall8287]

A few clarifications:
157
3.51
I have no desire to live in Mississippi at all and don't want to live in Oklahoma either. I would have relatively easy access to the Dallas/Fort Worth market with a degree from either I would say (probably a little bit more from OU) I loved the feel of Ole Miss, but I don't know what its reputation is outside of Mississippi other than the undergraduate party school haha, my feeling is that OU is taken more seriously academically
I would like to practice in a larger law firm (Goal) however I truly have no set preference.

Thanks for all of the help so far!

[cavalier1138]

I have no desire to live in Mississippi at all and don't want to live in Oklahoma either. I would have relatively easy access to the Dallas/Fort Worth market with a degree from either I would say (probably a little bit more from OU)

Then neither of these schools. You are flat-out wrong about having "relatively easy access" to any other market from these schools. Law schools outside of the T14 are highly region-specific. Don't go somewhere you don't want to live and work for quite some time after graduation.

[jjcorvino]

A few clarifications:
157
3.51
I have no desire to live in Mississippi at all and don't want to live in Oklahoma either. I would have relatively easy access to the Dallas/Fort Worth market with a degree from either I would say (probably a little bit more from OU) I loved the feel of Ole Miss, but I don't know what its reputation is outside of Mississippi other than the undergraduate party school haha, my feeling is that OU is taken more seriously academically
I would like to practice in a larger law firm (Goal) however I truly have no set preference.

Thanks for all of the help so far!

Ok, a few things. First of all you should retake. That score and GPA combo will not let you achieve your goals. If you want to practice in Texas, you should go to school in Texas. Neither of your options will give you a realistic chance to practice law in Texas. Additionally, if you want to work for a larger law firm, what school you go to is very important.

Spend some more time studying for the LSAT, meanwhile you should really try to solidify your goals and desired location. Come back after the June LSAT with a better score and a real plan.

[Rigo]

I have no desire to live in Mississippi at all and don't want to live in Oklahoma either.

Neither options then. Seriously.

[trebekismyhero]

Retake and go to UT or at least SMU then if DFW is an area you want to live. Ole Miss will definitely not give you access to that market and Oklahoma won't be that much better

[Ferrisjso]

I really hate saying this but you should wait a year and apply to schools in Texas. Retake depends if you think you can score better.

I feel morally obligated to answer your question though and if you must go this year, Oklahoma would probably be best(its closer)Just dont go to Ohio State off the WL because you think the impressive ranking will lead to you getting employed in Texas, it wont and youll have bills to pay. That's the only life ruining choice you have here. Just have the feeling you're going to go to Ohio State at sticker off the WL because of rank and I just want to make it clear what a tragedy that will likely be if you plan to bring that degree back to Texas. At least you can find jobs in Oklahoma near the Texas border(Dallas is near the Texas border so it's conceivable though still a stretch, OP can find job in Oklahoma and still live in Texas, I know this because when I stayed in Texas, my cousin drove my family into Oklahoma and I don't recall it being a long trip)!

[Rigo]

Why would you even go to Ohio State if you seemingly want Texas? Or are you just saying Dallas because it is the closest big market to Oklahoma?

[Johann]

go somewhere in texas ideally. oklahoma probably wont be too much of a hurdle getting back to texas, but itll be easiest from a texas school. ole miss should be off the table.

[kalvano]

You're not going to be competitive for the better firm jobs in Dallas with an Oklahoma degree. Virtually not at all for any firm in Dallas with an Ohio / Ole Miss degree.