Top Law Schools

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 12:17 pm

I am from Florida and I intend on practicing in FL. I’m very motivated to succeed in law school but it is important for me to give myself the best possible odds.

Can you be more specific about your career goals? Do you want to give yourself the best possible odds at Miami biglaw? At local firms around Stetson? At the U.S. Attorney's Office?

Of the three, Stetson is the only defensible choice, and $80,000 debt (although this seems like a low number based on what you said your scholarship was) from there is manageable with the jobs you're likely to get from Stetson. But if your goals don't involve small firms, solo practice, or local government/PI, then Stetson isn't a good choice either.

What are your current numbers?

cavalier1138 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 1:17 pm

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 12:17 pm

I am from Florida and I intend on practicing in FL. I’m very motivated to succeed in law school but it is important for me to give myself the best possible odds.

Can you be more specific about your career goals? Do you want to give yourself the best possible odds at Miami biglaw? At local firms around Stetson? At the U.S. Attorney's Office?

Of the three, Stetson is the only defensible choice, and $80,000 debt (although this seems like a low number based on what you said your scholarship was) from there is manageable with the jobs you're likely to get from Stetson. But if your goals don't involve small firms, solo practice, or local government/PI, then Stetson isn't a good choice either.

What are your current numbers?

Well, first off thank you for replying. I really appreciate it. I’m set on practicing in Florida, I love it here and already have significant small law firm experience in the Miami area. I’m not sure what part of law I want to practice as my only experience is civil lit. However, I am open to both small and large law firm. I don’t want to limit my employment opportunities. My stats are [MOD NOTE- STATS DELETED BY USER REQUEST], and strong LOR and resume

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 3:16 pm

I’m not sure what part of law I want to practice as my only experience is civil lit. However, I am open to both small and large law firm. I don’t want to limit my employment opportunities. My stats are 3.2/3.3 gpa and 156 LSAT, and strong LOR and resume

If you don't want to limit your employment opportunities, retake the LSAT and reapply next year. Your best schools for Florida (outside the T13) are going to be Miami or UF. Your current options will not give you a reasonable shot at any large firms.

cavalier1138 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 5:17 pm

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 3:16 pm

I’m not sure what part of law I want to practice as my only experience is civil lit. However, I am open to both small and large law firm. I don’t want to limit my employment opportunities. My stats are 3.2/3.3 gpa and 156 LSAT, and strong LOR and resume

If you don't want to limit your employment opportunities, retake the LSAT and reapply next year. Your best schools for Florida (outside the T13) are going to be Miami or UF. Your current options will not give you a reasonable shot at any large firms.

I agree with this. If this makes you upset, simply look at these schools' employment numbers. They are not very good when the economy is doing well. They will only be worse with a shaky economy.

Your best bet is to take the year off and improve your LSAT scores. These schools will leave you in significant debt with limited employment outcomes. Simply improve your LSAT score and go to UF or Miami at a minimum. You really should aim for the T14.

For personal reasons I feel like it’s best for me to go to law school this year, I know it isn’t the best situation

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 6:34 pm

For personal reasons I feel like it’s best for me to go to law school this year, I know it isn’t the best situation

If you can't handle starting law school next year, then you can't handle being a 2L next year. Contrary to popular belief, you don't get less busy as the years go on.

The economy is taking a massive hit from the pandemic. So assume that all the bad hiring numbers you see for these schools are only going to get worse. Law school isn't going anywhere, and you will be cutting off your options by rushing this decision.

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 6:34 pm

For personal reasons I feel like it’s best for me to go to law school this year, I know it isn’t the best situation

The 2018 ABA disclosures show a full quarter of the NSU and STU class unemployed. For the people that are employed in private practice, the median salary for STU grads is $59k (mean is $62k), and NSU doesn't report. By comparison, Stetson has 90% employment, and the median salary for private practice is $67.5k (mean is $76k).

Another thing to consider is a possible downturn in the economy. The ABA website has disclosures going back to 2011 (a couple years after the last crash). At that point, only ~60% of the graduating classes from NSU and STU found long-term employment, compared to ~%68 of Stetson graduates. Nobody knows the future, but it's something to consider.

If you are hell-bent on going right now, I would probably pony up the extra $60k and do Stetson. I think the salary bump and the better employment numbers justify it. Between the other two, I would take NSU off the table since it is more expensive and doesn't give you anything you can't get at STU.

JustinG1 wrote: ↑

Sat May 09, 2020 6:34 pm

For personal reasons I feel like it’s best for me to go to law school this year, I know it isn’t the best situation

Then go and hope for the best. It's silly to say one option is better as they're both very imprudent. If you're foregoing logic and banking on divine intervention, then go where feels best. If we say divine intervention is possible but exceedingly unlikely, a 1% vs 2% of a good outcome is irrelevant. Nobody here can forecast which reality is the one in which divine intervention on your behalf is most likely, and a good outcome will not happen on paper so divine intervention is your only logical approach.

On paper, they are all terrible options so you have to go based on the force or whatever spiritual platform you subscribe to. You would do best to consult a medium. You really need someone robed with a long white beard and staff guided by the whispers of the gods as objective analysis will not provide the answer you want to hear. The question you posed is like someone approaching a financial manager asking which lottery tickets they should invest their life savings in. The financial adviser will feel unethical advocating the plan in any shape or form so the person buying the lottery tickets would consult with a psychic or some addicts in the alleyway. These are the kinds of places where you'd get an answer more responsive to your question, and if retaking the LSAT is not an option, their perspective is just as likely to lead to your desired outcome.