Top Law Schools

If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)
(Please let's skip the part where you all tell me international law doesn't exist )

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

Put up a poll

S_annora wrote:If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

I doubt almost anyone is going to tell you to take sticker over a Dillard, even if you have specific career goals. UVA might not have as strong an infrastructure for international law, but for anything that is not easy to get into assuming a ton of debt is likely not going to be worth it.

saf18hornet wrote:Put up a poll

Poll coming up!

You'd be crazy to pass up a Dillard unless NYU and Columbia made it close in terms of scholarship

TexasENG wrote:

S_annora wrote:If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

I doubt almost anyone is going to tell you to take sticker over a Dillard, even if you have specific career goals. UVA might not have as strong an infrastructure for international law, but for anything that is not easy to get into assuming a ton of debt is likely not going to be worth it.

Not going to have a ton of debt as I probably won't be taking out any loans (or if I do it'll be like 20-30K at MOST). Fortunate enough that my family is supporting me but even without the scary loans issue, it's still a sh*t ton of money to fork over

trebekismyhero wrote:You'd be crazy to pass up a Dillard unless NYU and Columbia made it close in terms of scholarship

I've heard that Columbia doesn't negotiate with offers from any school lower ranked than NYU, no clue if that's true though so I'll certainly try...

.

S_annora wrote:

TexasENG wrote:

S_annora wrote:If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

I doubt almost anyone is going to tell you to take sticker over a Dillard, even if you have specific career goals. UVA might not have as strong an infrastructure for international law, but for anything that is not easy to get into assuming a ton of debt is likely not going to be worth it.

Not going to have a ton of debt as I probably won't be taking out any loans (or if I do it'll be like 20-30K at MOST). Fortunate enough that my family is supporting me but even without the scary loans issue, it's still a sh*t ton of money to fork over

Exactly, use that money for other things in life. No point in spending an extra $200k on something that will likely get you the same results as at UVA

I strongly doubt one of these schools has any palpable advantage in international law placement than another. It's understandable that you might look at the USNWR rankings and find it hard to say no to CLS, but the reality is that these schools are far more alike than different. The main difference is $180,000 of free money that you have to UVA. Take it.

Congratulations. Dillard for sure. What a great opportunity. If HYS becomes an option then maybe just maybe rethink.

katthegreat11 wrote:If you don't have to take out loans then... which one do you like best?

Yeah because it's cool to just tell your parents to drop $180k just cuz.

Edit: 180k is probably low balling it too. 3 years of sticker and living at CLS/NYU will probably be more than 200k more expensive than UVA w/ Dillard

katthegreat11 wrote:If you don't have to take out loans then... which one do you like best?

I could see myself happy at any of them honestly and I wasn't expecting to feel that way!

UVA seems like a cool place to be and it'd be awesome to get a full ride and the individualized attention that the Dillard can offer me, but if I'm committing to international law then I might be cutting myself off from the resources NYU/Columbia can give me

I like NYU's area way better than Columbia's (obviously), but I actually like the schools atmospheres equally

I can't seem to figure out if NYU actually is better for international law than Columbia, so Im doubting there even is a clear answer to that, and they are both so similarly ranked overall!

Clemenceau wrote:

katthegreat11 wrote:If you don't have to take out loans then... which one do you like best?

Yeah because it's cool to just tell your parents to drop $180k just cuz.

Lol yeah exactly, it's nice to not be facing debt but after mine and my brothers (who's a 3L now) school expenses, if I pay sticker then whatever finances I could have used down the line for a safety net/house/adult things will be entirely used up

S_annora wrote:

katthegreat11 wrote:If you don't have to take out loans then... which one do you like best?

I could see myself happy at any of them honestly and I wasn't expecting to feel that way!

UVA seems like a cool place to be and it'd be awesome to get a full ride and the individualized attention that the Dillard can offer me, but if I'm committing to international law then I might be cutting myself off from the resources NYU/Columbia can give me

I like NYU's area way better than Columbia's (obviously), but I actually like the schools atmospheres equally

I can't seem to figure out if NYU actually is better for international law than Columbia, so Im doubting there even is a clear answer to that, and they are both so similarly ranked overall!

What exactly do you mean is "better for international law?" What resources does UVA (plus a mentor)lack? What are you looking for?
What international law do you want to do?

Could you explain a little what you mean by practicing international law?

You keep saying you want international law, but then say you've heard that it doesnt exist. So can you give better examples of what the ideal international law job looks like for you? For example, specific firm, organization, etc. This may help judge how unique the outcome you want is.

edit: scooped

The idea of passing on a Dillard to go to a CCN-tier school at sticker for a marginally improved chance at *insert goal here (international law, clerkships, impact lit, etc.)* is financially horrifying. I'd be a coin flip--at best--if Yale sticker was the hypothetical, and probably wouldn't do it for Harvard or Stanford either.

Ultimately, I'd be surprised if the poll shows anything other than unanimous support for UVA in this scenario.

E: (Just checked...one vote in fifteen for Columbia...disappointing TLS, disappointing)

trebekismyhero wrote:

S_annora wrote:

TexasENG wrote:

S_annora wrote:If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

I doubt almost anyone is going to tell you to take sticker over a Dillard, even if you have specific career goals. UVA might not have as strong an infrastructure for international law, but for anything that is not easy to get into assuming a ton of debt is likely not going to be worth it.

Not going to have a ton of debt as I probably won't be taking out any loans (or if I do it'll be like 20-30K at MOST). Fortunate enough that my family is supporting me but even without the scary loans issue, it's still a sh*t ton of money to fork over

Exactly, use that money for other things in life. No point in spending an extra $200k on something that will likely get you the same results as at UVA

Do you really think the result would be similar enough? Such an impossible question for anyone to answer I know haha.

If anyone has been to the UVA open house and is interested in int law let me know! I haven't had a chance to visit yet.

rich parent thread

UVA is the obvious choice. This thread has to be stopped. This is a no-brainer.

That being said, I would happily take your seat at UVA while you pay st00pid money in NYC

S_annora wrote:

trebekismyhero wrote:

S_annora wrote:

TexasENG wrote:

S_annora wrote:If these posts are getting super redundant I apologize in advanced! I could really use some feedback that isn't either my friends/family or cold law school rankings

I am interested in both public international law (human rights, humanitarian) and private international law (transactional, etc)

I haven't heard anything on scholarship info from either NYU or Columbia but I'm assuming it won't be much at all so the UVA Dillard is very tempting (not just the full ride but I would get a mentor too!)

I am fortunate to not have to take out loans but of course the cost of Columbia/NYU at sticker or very little off would hurt.

Anyone know about UVAs strength in international law?

I'm leaning towards Columbia, as it seems to me that the resources NYU and Columbia have for international law are so similar that it doesn't matter and Columbia has that slightly higher name rec
^^^Do you guys agree/disagree? Please give me your informed opinions if y'all have any

I doubt almost anyone is going to tell you to take sticker over a Dillard, even if you have specific career goals. UVA might not have as strong an infrastructure for international law, but for anything that is not easy to get into assuming a ton of debt is likely not going to be worth it.

Not going to have a ton of debt as I probably won't be taking out any loans (or if I do it'll be like 20-30K at MOST). Fortunate enough that my family is supporting me but even without the scary loans issue, it's still a sh*t ton of money to fork over

Exactly, use that money for other things in life. No point in spending an extra $200k on something that will likely get you the same results as at UVA

Do you really think the result would be similar enough? Such an impossible question for anyone to answer I know haha.

If anyone has been to the UVA open house and is interested in int law let me know! I haven't had a chance to visit yet.

Almost certainly. What do you think Columbia/NYU affords in results that UVA doesn't? Besides a couple spots on USNews.

I get being in NYC might be helpful, but the difference in outcomes among the three are to the point where a $30k difference might be worth discussing. In no world is Columbia/NYU worth $200k more than UVA

smile0751 wrote:You keep saying you want international law, but then say you've heard that it doesnt exist. So can you give better examples of what the ideal international law job looks like for you? For example, specific firm, organization, etc. This may help judge how unique the outcome you want is.

edit: scooped

Yes I am interested in working in human rights at the United Nations office of legal affairs, or an NGO like human rights watch or maybe the state department. For human rights watch in particular I know Columbia has a lot of connections/great fellowships.

I am also curious about the ways in which public int law and private intersect (which is surprisingly a lot!), as an example a suit between a foreign investor company and the state in which it is investing will typically go to international arbitration and deal with bi or multilateral treaties rather than the domestic courts in one of the countries. If I take some classes and end up loving this kind of law then I wouldn't be opposed to a firm, but I still think I would either want to do some public work before or after or at least on a pro bono basis.

(1) Columbia more the more eminent law school and university for international law. Hands down.

(2) "International law" means very little for an incoming student. The scholarship of the faculty in the area, the resources in moot courts, journals, clinics, centers, study abroad programs, ect., all the points where Columbia has the advantage, are only considerations at the margins. This is not a marginal case.

(3) You'd be crazy not to take the Dillard.

Nebby wrote:rich parent thread

I'm not trying to make it sound like I'm bragging about money or anything so sorry if it came out that way! I just mentioned it bc it's relevant to the decisions I'm weighing.