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I recently was accepted to both St. Louis University Law and Southern Illinois-Carbondale Law. I'm looking for a little insight before I make my decision on where to attend in the fall. If I decide to go to SLU I would be essentially paying triple what I would if I went to SIUC. I do know that SLU is a better school and great job opportunities when you graduate. I'm not sure if SIUC's job outlook is as good as SLU's. Really, I need to know if the debt to go to SLU would be worth it, or should I go for the cheapest possible option? We're talking a difference of having over $100,000 in debt after graduation or $35,000.

What do you want to do with your degree?

SLU is not worth $100k in debt. Take the cheaper option

SLU is definitely not worth $100k in debt. $35k in debt isn't bad, but I believe SIU has the worst legal employment outcomes in Illinois right now so $35k can become hard to payoff if you don't get a job. What do you want to do after graduation?

I was really looking into doing health law. I know SLU has one of the best health law programs in the country, but I wasn't sure if the cost was worth it. Carbondale does have direct connection with BJC Healthcare.

smessy13 wrote:I was really looking into doing health law. I know SLU has one of the best health law programs in the country, but I wasn't sure if the cost was worth it. Carbondale does have direct connection with BJC Healthcare.

I'd be very wary of relying on specialty program rankings/reputation. They don't actually impact job outcomes, which are abysmal from SIUC and mediocre from SLU. What are your numbers? I'm guessing a retake on the LSAT could solve your problem by giving you better options.

smessy13 wrote:I was really looking into doing health law. I know SLU has one of the best health law programs in the country, but I wasn't sure if the cost was worth it. Carbondale does have direct connection with BJC Healthcare.

Specialty rankings are meaningless except MAYBE a tiebreaker between equivalently ranked schools. Most good healthcare jobs are at large law firms (or in-house jobs that require large law firm experience), which neither school places well at. Even WUSTL would be a big gamble for the gig you want.

If you are OK with taking any sort of legal work, the cheap option might make sense. If you are really fixated on healthcare, you need to retake and reapply. Retaking and reapplying is likely a good idea regardless, as it could save you tens of thousands of dollars.