Fully from left field... HLS vs Chicago? Forum

[HonestlyThough]

I wonder what OP did.

Taking bets.

I bet Harvard. The fact that he was asking the question meant that he already knew his answer. Because there is objectively not a question.

Not too bad a read on my priors. I'll give 3:2 odds to H

Hi hopping in because I just got offered the ruby but still want to got to harvard and feel slightly insane.
however, chicago's institutional...vibe...sounds like a nightmare to me

[star fox]

I wonder what OP did.

Taking bets.

I bet Harvard. The fact that he was asking the question meant that he already knew his answer. Because there is objectively not a question.

Not too bad a read on my priors. I'll give 3:2 odds to H

Hi hopping in because I just got offered the ruby but still want to got to harvard and feel slightly insane.
however, chicago's institutional...vibe...sounds like a nightmare to me

Go to Chicago. Deposit right now.

[Npret]

I wonder what OP did.

Taking bets.

I bet Harvard. The fact that he was asking the question meant that he already knew his answer. Because there is objectively not a question.

Not too bad a read on my priors. I'll give 3:2 odds to H

Hi hopping in because I just got offered the ruby but still want to got to harvard and feel slightly insane.
however, chicago's institutional...vibe...sounds like a nightmare to me

Have you visited the school?
What's your goal and your debt from Harvard because turning down Ruby is insane.

[HonestlyThough]

I wonder what OP did.

Taking bets.

I bet Harvard. The fact that he was asking the question meant that he already knew his answer. Because there is objectively not a question.

Not too bad a read on my priors. I'll give 3:2 odds to H

Hi hopping in because I just got offered the ruby but still want to got to harvard and feel slightly insane.
however, chicago's institutional...vibe...sounds like a nightmare to me

Have you visited the school?
What's your goal and your debt from Harvard because turning down Ruby is insane.

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

[Rigo]

Chicago makin a late cycle move.

[Npret]

I wonder what OP did.

Taking bets.

I bet Harvard. The fact that he was asking the question meant that he already knew his answer. Because there is objectively not a question.

Not too bad a read on my priors. I'll give 3:2 odds to H

Hi hopping in because I just got offered the ruby but still want to got to harvard and feel slightly insane.
however, chicago's institutional...vibe...sounds like a nightmare to me

Have you visited the school?
What's your goal and your debt from Harvard because turning down Ruby is insane.

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

That's not a good reason to go deeply in debt. You can find supportive people everywhere. Two of my best friends went to Chicago and they are great people. Don't let the supposed reputation of the school you haven't even seen push you into needless debt.

[Npret]

It's like someone saying "hey you can have this free house $200,000 house" and you're saying "no thanks I would rather take out a mortgage for it and sweat paying for it for the next 10-25 years."
Except with a house you have a tangible asset and dischargeable debt.
So this is worse decision.

[HonestlyThough]

That's not a good reason to go deeply in debt. You can find supportive people everywhere. Two of my best friends went to Chicago and they are great people. Don't let the supposed reputation of the school you haven't even seen push you into needless debt.

That's the terrifying part, though
I've never even been to the city of chicago
the devil you know, ya know?

[AnMzungu]

Chicago is a pretty miserable experience compared to Harvard, but it's still stupid not to take the money.

[UVA2B]

That's not a good reason to go deeply in debt. You can find supportive people everywhere. Two of my best friends went to Chicago and they are great people. Don't let the supposed reputation of the school you haven't even seen push you into needless debt.

That's the terrifying part, though
I've never even been to the city of chicago
the devil you know, ya know?

It shouldn't be terrifying, though. You're going to find a supportive, welcoming community, and you'll be without debt.

At minimum, reach out to talk to current students to get their take on life at Chicago. That'll at least open your eyes to your misguided fears based on other people's perceptions of the parent university. Despite people drumming up vast cultural gulfs between law schools, it's mostly fantasy. The students/culture at Chicago are not going to be so demonstrably different from Harvard or Columbia or Penn or Northwestern to allow this to make a $200k+ gamble on "the devil you know." Take the ruby. It'll be the best decision you've ever made to this point in your life.

[Rigo]

Chicago is a pretty miserable experience compared to Harvard, but it's still stupid not to take the money.

Hard to definitively say without attending both.

[Npret]

That's not a good reason to go deeply in debt. You can find supportive people everywhere. Two of my best friends went to Chicago and they are great people. Don't let the supposed reputation of the school you haven't even seen push you into needless debt.

That's the terrifying part, though
I've never even been to the city of chicago
the devil you know, ya know?

I think you know this is a bad idea. Try to get to Chicago and visit. Or at least talk to people there about your concerns.
You will regret having that unnecessary debt at some point in your life. At least investigate Chicago more.

By the way, I forgot to say congrats on getting the Ruby. It's a huge accomplishment.

[Npret]

Chicago is a pretty miserable experience compared to Harvard, but it's still stupid not to take the money.

Hard to definitively say without attending both.

Either school can be what you make it.

[Rigo]

I think having the flexibility to seek out non-legal truly unicorn opportunities in PI that might come your way is something to consider. You never know what can happen and if you are tied to six figures of debt for 10 years then you won't be able to take those opportunities. Some unicorn stuff falls outside the bounds of being covered by LIPP. Less than $50k debt is a beautiful thing even if you plan on utilizing LRAP. A lot of cool things can happen in a decade, and it won't be hard to pay off the debt if you need to bail on a repayment plan.

Awesome outcome though OP. I'm sorry it seems super rushed and you haven't had a chance to visit, but I hope you seize the opportunity. Good luck!

[armc808]

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

As a 0L who will be attending Chicago this fall, I just wanted to offer my two cents based on my visit to the law school.

The institutional culture of "where fun goes to die" and crass competition was something everyone had told me about when I said I was going to visit Chicago. It was something I felt very uneasy about before I visited the school, and on the flight there I was actually questioning whether I had just sunk $500 in airfare for a miserable 2 days. Once I was there, however, I actually laughed to myself because all those things I had heard about Chicago being this dreary place was absolutely not what I saw. The people there are wicked smart, you can tell that just by talking to them, but they're not jerks or crass people. Every current student I talked to (about 12 from my last count) was very friendly and upfront about their experience at the law school--what they liked, what they didn't like, and whether they felt they made the right choice (they all said yes)--and they were unanimous in saying that discussion of grades pretty much never happens there. Most of the current students also seemed to know each other (some better than others, but nevertheless still well enough to say hi and have a friendly conversation), and I think the school's small size plays a big role in allowing for those bonds to develop. My visit to Chicago was the best ASW experience I had, and thinking back to how comfortable I felt while I was there was what ultimately led me to send in my deposit check last week.

[Lavitz]

I think having the flexibility to seek out non-legal truly unicorn opportunities in PI that might come your way is something to consider. You never know what can happen and if you are tied to six figures of debt for 10 years then you won't be able to take those opportunities. Some unicorn stuff falls outside the bounds of being covered by LIPP. Less than $50k debt is a beautiful thing even if you plan on utilizing LRAP. A lot of cool things can happen in a decade, and it won't be hard to pay off the debt if you need to bail on a repayment plan.

Awesome outcome though OP. I'm sorry it seems super rushed and you haven't had a chance to visit, but I hope you seize the opportunity. Good luck!

Honestly though. I graduated last year, my career goals are very different than when I started law school, and I can see myself going down multiple different paths in the near future. I'm grateful I have relatively little debt and can pursue whatever opportunities arise.

I'd definitely take the Ruby here.

[magnum_law]

rigo, y is ur tar Lizzie Mcguire?

[shadowfax]

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

As a 0L who will be attending Chicago this fall, I just wanted to offer my two cents based on my visit to the law school.

The institutional culture of "where fun goes to die" and crass competition was something everyone had told me about when I said I was going to visit Chicago. It was something I felt very uneasy about before I visited the school, and on the flight there I was actually questioning whether I had just sunk $500 in airfare for a miserable 2 days. Once I was there, however, I actually laughed to myself because all those things I had heard about Chicago being this dreary place was absolutely not what I saw. The people there are wicked smart, you can tell that just by talking to them, but they're not jerks or crass people. Every current student I talked to (about 12 from my last count) was very friendly and upfront about their experience at the law school--what they liked, what they didn't like, and whether they felt they made the right choice (they all said yes)--and they were unanimous in saying that discussion of grades pretty much never happens there. Most of the current students also seemed to know each other (some better than others, but nevertheless still well enough to say hi and have a friendly conversation), and I think the school's small size plays a big role in allowing for those bonds to develop. My visit to Chicago was the best ASW experience I had, and thinking back to how comfortable I felt while I was there was what ultimately led me to send in my deposit check last week.

Cambridge is way better than Chicago. Still take the Ruby.

[armc808]

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

As a 0L who will be attending Chicago this fall, I just wanted to offer my two cents based on my visit to the law school.

The institutional culture of "where fun goes to die" and crass competition was something everyone had told me about when I said I was going to visit Chicago. It was something I felt very uneasy about before I visited the school, and on the flight there I was actually questioning whether I had just sunk $500 in airfare for a miserable 2 days. Once I was there, however, I actually laughed to myself because all those things I had heard about Chicago being this dreary place was absolutely not what I saw. The people there are wicked smart, you can tell that just by talking to them, but they're not jerks or crass people. Every current student I talked to (about 12 from my last count) was very friendly and upfront about their experience at the law school--what they liked, what they didn't like, and whether they felt they made the right choice (they all said yes)--and they were unanimous in saying that discussion of grades pretty much never happens there. Most of the current students also seemed to know each other (some better than others, but nevertheless still well enough to say hi and have a friendly conversation), and I think the school's small size plays a big role in allowing for those bonds to develop. My visit to Chicago was the best ASW experience I had, and thinking back to how comfortable I felt while I was there was what ultimately led me to send in my deposit check last week.

Cambridge is way better than Chicago. Still take the Ruby.

Disagree with the former, agree with the latter.

[candidlatke]

i think it's pretty clear that OP just wants validation to hear that harvard is the right choice; most of the valid points have been made already.

look OP, if your dream is H and you really want to go, then just go

[enoca]

hi chicago I will a rake a ruby please if you are still handing them out thank you

[HonestlyThough]

I haven't visited.
But I'm far more pragmatic/practice minded than intellectual/academic minded. I want to use the law as a tool, not thought exercise.
I do not want a competitive, cut-throat environment
and people dear to me have told me chicago and the university will not make me happy

goal is PI - probably impact or movement lawyering.
I'd be LIPP bound at Harvard, probably with full debt

As a 0L who will be attending Chicago this fall, I just wanted to offer my two cents based on my visit to the law school.

The institutional culture of "where fun goes to die" and crass competition was something everyone had told me about when I said I was going to visit Chicago. It was something I felt very uneasy about before I visited the school, and on the flight there I was actually questioning whether I had just sunk $500 in airfare for a miserable 2 days. Once I was there, however, I actually laughed to myself because all those things I had heard about Chicago being this dreary place was absolutely not what I saw. The people there are wicked smart, you can tell that just by talking to them, but they're not jerks or crass people. Every current student I talked to (about 12 from my last count) was very friendly and upfront about their experience at the law school--what they liked, what they didn't like, and whether they felt they made the right choice (they all said yes)--and they were unanimous in saying that discussion of grades pretty much never happens there. Most of the current students also seemed to know each other (some better than others, but nevertheless still well enough to say hi and have a friendly conversation), and I think the school's small size plays a big role in allowing for those bonds to develop. My visit to Chicago was the best ASW experience I had, and thinking back to how comfortable I felt while I was there was what ultimately led me to send in my deposit check last week.

This was reassuring! Thank you.

Based off of the earnest urging to seriously consider (read: take) the ruby, I'm sinking the $1000 in last minute airfare (thank god for credit cards?) to go visit Chicago this weekend. I'm hoping it will make my decision clear. I wish I could have attended actual ASW...

[Rigo]

Maybe take it with a grain of salt bc finals. Be sure to get out in Chicago the city too to make the most of your trip!

[HonestlyThough]

i think it's pretty clear that OP just wants validation to hear that harvard is the right choice; most of the valid points have been made already.

look OP, if your dream is H and you really want to go, then just go

I do feel confident enough in my path that I'm comfortable with debt under LIPP (which is great), but I also do realize that Chicago's offer merits full consideration. I think I'll know once I experience it what that debt-free life is worth, and what it isn't worth

[HonestlyThough]

Maybe take it with a grain of salt bc finals. Be sure to get out in Chicago the city too to make the most of your trip!

I plan to spend sat and sun doing that, and will visit the school formally monday!