Asking for my brother who is facing this choice.
Berkeley: full-tuition scholarship - Total COA: 120K
Harvard: Expected 60k financial aid over 3 years - Total COA: 260K
- Only interested in public interest law (nonprofit or gov), maybe would want to clerk in college if its useful for PI
- Says he wants to settle down in CA eventually (we're from CA) but I believe he would go anywhere for a great job opportunity
- Parents can help with finances if needed (but not rich)
My brother is a go-getter and a passionate student, and I know he would take advantage of all the resources at whichever school he chooses. He would definitely be very involved in public interest clinics and collaborating with professors. Finances favor Berkeley, but are there reasons to still choose Harvard? In my mind, it could be worth it if he has a significant advantage in getting top PI jobs/opportunities coming from Harvard but I don't know if this is the case. Looking any insights/thoughts on this decision, thanks!
Harvard ($) vs Berkeley ($$$) for PI Forum
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helpingafriendchoose
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Tue Apr 19, 2022 2:36 am
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talons2250
- Posts: 198
- Joined: Wed Mar 16, 2022 11:15 pm
Re: Harvard ($) vs Berkeley ($$$) for PI
You can't go wrong with either choice. In order to compare the schools, you have to really split hairs.
I would do Harvard for the stronger national name recognition and better placement in super selective clerkship/bigfed positions (DC Court of Appeals clerkship, Bristow fellows, etc.). That said, I'm less debt averse than most people on this website seem to be.
Harvard has LRAP/LIPP which can help to take care of the debt. That plus your family assistance minimizes the financial burden: https://hls.harvard.edu/dept/sfs/lipp/.
On the West Coast, there's not much difference between how Berkeley and Harvard are perceived. But Harvard definitely has better name recognition in the Northeast. In the Northeast, median at HLS probably gets you further than median at Berkeley.
One not-irrational way to make the decision might be: if your brother is over 90% sure he'll spend the majority of his career in California, then do Berkeley. If not, then Harvard.
I would do Harvard for the stronger national name recognition and better placement in super selective clerkship/bigfed positions (DC Court of Appeals clerkship, Bristow fellows, etc.). That said, I'm less debt averse than most people on this website seem to be.
Harvard has LRAP/LIPP which can help to take care of the debt. That plus your family assistance minimizes the financial burden: https://hls.harvard.edu/dept/sfs/lipp/.
On the West Coast, there's not much difference between how Berkeley and Harvard are perceived. But Harvard definitely has better name recognition in the Northeast. In the Northeast, median at HLS probably gets you further than median at Berkeley.
One not-irrational way to make the decision might be: if your brother is over 90% sure he'll spend the majority of his career in California, then do Berkeley. If not, then Harvard.
