"Chi Town" Split = U Chicago vs. Northwestern Forum

[Darth Topher]

Which would you choose? Why?

[ari20dal7]

I would probably go to Chicago, but neither school seems my style. Great schools, both of them: but if I got into Chicago, I'd probably just go to NYU or Michigan. If I got into NW, I'd go to Michigan, Duke, or Cornell first.

I'm probably the only guy that wouldn't have strong preferences between these two, but there you go.

[jgarr]

I chose NU. Since Chicago rejected me, it wasn't a difficult choice.

[iwasgoingtobeasenator]

Northwestern- People are cooler, area is much nicer.

[nonunique]

Any additional info? There are lots of reasons to prefer one over the other. If everything else is equal, I believe Senator has the winning argument.

[Mosel]

CHICAGO!!!!!!!


i can't say why. Before I got into this whole law school thingy, Chicago and Michigan were my favorite schools. I'm weird.

That said, I think NU is amazing. They're clearly on the rise, and I would probably consider the schools absolute peers, with the exception that Chicago just seems to have an edge in academia...but that's only important if you care about that.

[Merrill]

I just made this decision and chose Northwestern. Before deciding, I talked to a few current students who were choosing between the two schools. I also talked to several Chicago lawyers I know about whether they hire more from one school or the other (they don't). In fact, the schools are so similar in the long-term prospects they provide (aside from academia), that the choice really does come down to personal preference.

I've got several years of WE, and I wanted to attend a school where most people had done some time in the professional world. Also, I felt that the people and atmosphere at Northwestern were more relaxed and less painfully competitive. I don't mind competition, and I intend to work extremely hard in law school. I just know that, for me, it's better to be around people who consciously attempt to find some sort of balance. Also, having lived in Hyde Park (where the U of C is) and Streeterville (where NU is), I'd have to say that the latter is by far a more pleasant place to live.

This is not intended as a dig at UChicago, and there are certainly people at both NU and UChicago who don't fit the typical student profile of each place. Also, some people prefer the supercharged intellectual atmosphere of the U of C. I'm just telling you why I made the decision in favor of NU. (Plus, in the interest of full disclosure, NU gave me 3x as much $$.)

Good luck with your decision--feel free to pm for any details.

[paisley]

those of us from chicago politely request that in the event that you move here, you do not refer to our city as "chi-town," "chi-city," or "the chi." if you moved to philadelphia you surely would not call it 'phi-town." thank you.

[YoungFogey]

For me, neither, but if I had to choose, Chicago. I was going to take UMich over Chicago and Northwestern.

[jgarr]

Northwestern- People are cooler, area is much nicer.

I like this...not sure if it's true, but I like it

[frazz]

2 years ago, I would have said Chicago hands down because of its faculty and reputation. Since then, however, they've lost many of their big name faculty to Harvard and NYU, and I can't really think of a serious edge that they have anymore. It's really a toss-up now, and I'd say choose Northwestern because it's got a much nicer location.

[bauerahl]

Chicago, still by a mile.

[hokiefan]

those of us from chicago politely request that in the event that you move here, you do not refer to our city as "chi-town," "chi-city," or "the chi." if you moved to philadelphia you surely would not call it 'phi-town." thank you.

By that logic, since Philadelphia is called Philly, it would be correct to call it Chilly? (I amuse myself greatly).

I would choose Chicago. Its ranked higher.

[Corsair]

..

[annon]

Obviously, I have a bias here, but bear in mind that the bias came from an otherwise unbiased decision a year ago (although, in fairness, my decision came down to Chicago or Columbia; not Chicago or Nwestern). As others have stated, there is a clear difference between the schools in terms of academia (and clerking). I also think there is a difference in terms of firm hiring as well (in terms of how deep firms go into a class, firms outside of Chicago, etc.), but this is a much smaller difference than the one that exists in other areas. There are also other differences between the schools, of course (quarter system, size, faculty involvement, etc.).

But in the end, it probably comes down to personal feel. Visit both schools, see which you like.

[USCtrojan86]

Really? This is that close?

Chicago is ostensibly still a "T6" school...NU kind of jumps around between T10 and T14, but always in the lower half.

No offense to anyone attending NU (which I agree is an amazing school both for law and undergrad), but I would hope that there would be some real and pronounced differences between a "T6" school and a lower T-14 school...

[nonunique]

As already noted, there are some real and pronounced differences...primarily in favor of UofC at the academia/clerking level (although NU has been closing this gap), or in favor of NU at the PI/clinical level (although UofC's summer stipend for PI is the largest in the T14...even if they do require you pay some of it back).

[annon]

Really? This is that close?

Chicago is ostensibly still a "T6" school...NU kind of jumps around between T10 and T14, but always in the lower half.

No offense to anyone attending NU (which I agree is an amazing school both for law and undergrad), but I would hope that there would be some real and pronounced differences between a "T6" school and a lower T-14 school...

No, there are differences. Not just in academia/clerking (where the difference is greatly pronounced), but in terms of firms as well. Its just harder to quantify the difference in the latter compared to the former, especially since there are so many different ways to look at it (and it depends on the interests of the person asking the question). Of course, I don't want this post to come off as suggesting job opportunities at NWestern are bad (the opposite is obviously true). I just mean to say that there is a difference between UChicago and NWestern in thi regard.

Note: Don't forget government, too. UChicago has a pretty strong network of people in government service. I don't know anything about Nwestern here.

[Corsair]

..

[joonbug]

Tough choice. I love both of these schools. Both NU and UofChicago offer unparalleled opportunities in all area of US. After long consideration, and careful deliberation, I choose...

Cornell

[Merrill]

I am intrigued by the fact that at least one poster is willing to overlook one school's USN ranking while at the same time criticizing another school for its USN ranking.

It seems fundamentally flawed to insist that a USN ranking in the T6 gives a school some special status and simultaneously to dismiss that school's drop to #7. If you're going to insist that the USN rankings indicate "real and pronounced" differences in school quality, you can't just ignore them when they disagree with your assumptions.

[nonunique]

Whatever...Penn is freaking amazing!

[oscist]

I -think- what USCTrojan was referring to (as a T6 school) was not the actual USNews rank, but its reputation. In other words, Chicago is still seen as one of the top 6 schools, reputation-wise, and Northwestern is not necessarily seen as a Top 10 school.

In all honesty, though, it looks like NW is making a strong push to lift and cement its reputation as a top 10.

[BlueDevilSarah]

I would definitely prefer a program that's on the rise to one that is slowly sinking.

Also.....holy crap when will people learn that it's NU and not NW?


Sorry, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night and I'm cranky.

[nonunique]

Although nu.edu is National University (in San Diego) and Northwestern's domain USED to be (about a decade ago) nwu.edu

Still...it IS NU.