BU vs BC vs W&M: Does it "really" matter? Forum

[Cellar-door]

Main reason is better public schools in Williamsburg/Newton areas (2 kids).

Also, haven't heard back from either yet... assuming the worst.

If you are looking for good schools go to one of the Boston schools, housing might be more expensive but the area has a ton of schools that end up on most of the "best schools in the US" lists.
The state as a whole ranks first in the nation in most categories on the NAEP tests (4th and 8th grade math and reading standardized tests)

[secretagentman811]

Yeah, definitely leaning that direction. It seems BC would be a great fit.

Thanks!

[B90]

Yeah, definitely leaning that direction. It seems BC would be a great fit.

Thanks!

Have you visited them? BU and BC are VERY different as far as location, atmosphere, etc. I know hundreds of people who have gone to each, and at least 30 who have gone to both (one for UG, one for grad school). EVERYONE has a preference. As far as rank, jobs, etc. - you know the important stuff - they are comparable. People always advise visiting both. It is very easy to do, even in the same day. They are less than 10 miles away from each other.
If you have any questions, feel free to pm me. I live in the area, and I know many BU and BC law grads.

[suralin]

Yeah, definitely leaning that direction. It seems BC would be a great fit.

Thanks!

Have you visited them? BU and BC are VERY different as far as location, atmosphere, etc. I know hundreds of people who have gone to each, and at least 30 who have gone to both (one for UG, one for grad school). EVERYONE has a preference. As far as rank, jobs, etc. - you know the important stuff - they are comparable. People always advise visiting both. It is very easy to do, even in the same day. They are less than 10 miles away from each other.
If you have any questions, feel free to pm me. I live in the area, and I know many BU and BC law grads.

Mind sharing what's different between them with respect to atmosphere? Is one more gunner-ish, maybe?

Their placement stats seem very similar, so it'd be interesting to know the intangibles that separate them.

[B90]

Yeah, definitely leaning that direction. It seems BC would be a great fit.

Thanks!

Have you visited them? BU and BC are VERY different as far as location, atmosphere, etc. I know hundreds of people who have gone to each, and at least 30 who have gone to both (one for UG, one for grad school). EVERYONE has a preference. As far as rank, jobs, etc. - you know the important stuff - they are comparable. People always advise visiting both. It is very easy to do, even in the same day. They are less than 10 miles away from each other.
If you have any questions, feel free to pm me. I live in the area, and I know many BU and BC law grads.

Mind sharing what's different between them with respect to atmosphere? Is one more gunner-ish, maybe?

Their placement stats seem very similar, so it'd be interesting to know the intangibles that separate them.

A friend of mine was dead set on BU until she visited both schools. When she stepped on the BC campus, she could just see herself there, so she chose it over BU. As far as the law school, BC has a rep for being more laid back and not gunnerish. Everyone I know who went there has confirmed this to be true in their experience. Personally, BU I feel is about as gunnerish as any other law school, no more, no less.
What I meant by atmosphere was the actual buildings and surroundings of each. BC has a real campus, and it is set apart from Boston by a couple miles. It is a real pain to get anywhere by public transportation. You kinda need a car, which adds a whole other expense and headache. BU on the other hand has an abundance of public transportation options. I think you also have more choice of apartments with BU, since you can travel a little farther on public transportation. Housing is expensive in Boston, and will be expensive for either of the two schools.
While normally it might seem foolish to choose a law school (as opposed to undergrad) based on such quality of life issues, BU and BC are so similar academically that it makes sense. You will be spending three years there, after all.

tl/dr: BC has a suburban, campusey feel. BU is very urban, and doesnt't really have a true campus. You should apply to both; if you are accepted to both, definitely visit each campus.
If you want the email of my friend who went to BC law, pm me. She doesn't mind answering questions.

[Big Dog]

Is it better to be at the top of a less prestigious school, or the middle of a highly regarded school?

Unlike undergrad, where attending directional state community college generally does mean an extremely low competitive bar, LS aren't the same. There is no assurance whatsoever that attending a lower ranked LS will enable you to graduate with a higher rank. (There are a lot of scholarship students at lower ranked schools who have GPA stipulations to maintain that scholarship, so they are 'gunning' for those high grades.)

Thus, between those three I'd choose solely on lifestyle issues, or a specific program in your interest that only one of the three offers.

Personally, I'm a fan of BC for some of the reasons stated up thread, as well as big-time D1 sports -- as much as the ACC can be considered a big-time football conference -- lol. But note, that BC Law is separate from the main campus, (which straddles the Boston City line). Newton campus, where the LS is, (and half of the Frosh housing), is about 1.5 miles away from the main campus. Shuttle busses continually loops between the two.

[B90]

Is it better to be at the top of a less prestigious school, or the middle of a highly regarded school?

Unlike undergrad, where attending directional state community college generally does mean an extremely low competitive bar, LS aren't the same. There is no assurance whatsoever that attending a lower ranked LS will enable you to graduate with a higher rank. (There are a lot of scholarship students at lower ranked schools who have GPA stipulations to maintain that scholarship, so they are 'gunning' for those high grades.)

Thus, between those three I'd choose solely on lifestyle issues, or a specific program in your interest that only one of the three offers.

Personally, I'm a fan of BC for some of the reasons stated up thread, as well as big-time D1 sports -- as much as the ACC can be considered a big-time football conference -- lol. But note, that BC Law is separate from the main campus, (which straddles the Boston City line). Newton campus, where the LS is, (and half of the Frosh housing), is about 1.5 miles away from the main campus. Shuttle busses continually loops between the two.

Your commute from BC law to downtown Boston will be about 45-60 minutes longer than from BU law, depending on how frequent this "continuous loop" occurs. Once you get to the main campus of BC, you will wait for the B line train for up to 30 minutes. It "should" run every 15 minutes or less, but it is the oldest subway system in the country. Once you get on the B line, it will take 30-45 minutes to get to Kenmore Square, where you can get just about anywhere via several types of public transportation.
Conversely, if you are in the BU law building, you walk three blocks to Kenmore Square. BC is very isolated from the city. This is what many people like about it. However, if you are a true city person, you will hate it, especially after three years.

[richrogers]

Edit: Looks like it is going to come down to BU, BC, or W&M.

Thoughts?


Hi all,
Unique situation... hoping to get an outside perspective.
I am active duty military and just got picked up for a program where the military will send me to law school. I'm extremely fortunate since I'll be getting all expenses paid in addition to full salary and benefits for the entire time I'm in school. In return, I'll spend 5 years as JAG after graduation.

That being said, does it "really" matter what school I go to? I won't be looking for employment outside the military for at least 12 years after graduating law school (I'll be 7 years shy of retirement when my payback is finished... might as well stay in at that point). The program's only guideline is that I go to an ABA approved school. Is it better to be at the top of a less prestigious school, or the middle of a highly regarded school? (cost and job placement are not factors in this case)

At this point, my goal is to get into the best school possible to get the most from the program.

Thanks for the input!

What is the program for JAG? I'm looking into the military because I'm about to graduate college and would appreciate the info.

[secretagentman811]

What is the program for JAG? I'm looking into the military because I'm about to graduate college and would appreciate the info.

I can't really speak about any other services than CG. (plus there's a ton of info on Army/Navy/AF in the Military Law thread)

For CG, there's a Direct Commission Officer program that would be available to you once you're in law school. The program I got into is open to active duty officers only.

The DCO program website is: http://www.gocoastguard.com/find-your-c ... n-programs

I can answer any other questions you like as far as what you can do, how much you'd be paid, where you'd live, etc.

[epiphinous7]

http://www.lawschooltransparency.com/

[Cellar-door]

http://www.lawschooltransparency.com/

Employment stats are probably of minimal use to the OP if you had read the actual post. He is going to leave school with a JAG job where he will serve for a minimum of 5 years and likely at least 12. He isn't doing OCI or applying for Clerkships etc. LST numbers mean basically nothing since 5 or 12 years down the road if he goes looking for private firm jobs they will care far more about his experience than which of 3 essentially peer schools he went to.
LST is great for most situations, but this isn't one of them.