some advice on choosing money over rankings Forum

[theoptimist]

Hi,

i was wondering if anyone had any advice on whether I should choose money over rankings? I've been offered 4 full scholarships (some with living expenses as well) at schools that rank outside the top 40

but i've also been offered $20,000 a year from Minnesota (ranks 20) and $24,000 a year from Vanderbilt (17)

I am not a bit interested in corporate law and at this stage think I would like to be a public defender.

On paper the honors offer from chicago kent looks really good - but would it be better to take full scholarship without living expenses from Temple instead as it is higher ranked? does anyone have any experience of how the honors program at Kent is perceived?

or would it be better to go to one of the higher schools on half money??

for anyone who is interested here are all my offers. I got 170 in the december lsat and have no GPA as I am foreign educated. I have an MA as well as a BA.


Temple University - full scholarship
S J Quinney School of Law, University of Utah - full scholarship plus $3,00 living expenses
Chicago- Kent - accepted onto Honors Program which is full scholarship plus $10,000 expenses a year plus special honors program activites, including working with the dean on a publishable paper.
University of St Thomas, Minneapolis - full scholarship
Lewis and Clark Law School - $20.000 scholarship - fees total $34,000
University of San Francisco - $25,000 scholarship - fees total $37,000
University of Minnesota - $20,000 scholarship - fees total $44,000
Vanderbilt University - $24,000 scholarship - fees total $44,000
University of Maryland - no scholarship - fees total $19,000
CUNY law school - no scholarship - fees total $ 9,500
Emory - Accepted by email - waiting for mailed packet
Penn - waitlisted
U of Virginia - waitlisted

still waiting to hear from...
UCLA
Duke
Benjamin Cardozo School of law

[A'nold]

If you have no interest at all in firm work I really can't see how you can turn down Kent's offer. Take that and be happy! Congrats.

[Mosca]

If you have no interest at all in firm work I really can't see how you can turn down Kent's offer. Take that and be happy! Congrats.

+1 That's a great offer.

[KMaine]

I remember reading about that ITT scholarship when I was looking at schools and thinking that it is a great opportunity. I really don't see any advantage in taking the offer from Temple over the one from Kent. If I were you, I may be tempted by the Vanderbilt offer. You may want to check out their loan repayment. At some schools, you could pretty much get complete loan forgiveness for doing the kind of work you are going to do. If Vandy does, I would be tempted by their offer because of the quality of faculty and fellow students as well as the weather.

[MURPH]

Look into every schools PI program too. Some are better than others at helping you pay back loans if you do PI. Some consider goverment work to = PI.
Also consider going to school where you want to live/work upon graduation. You can make a lot of contacts while you are in school.

[as stars burn]

If you have no interest at all in firm work I really can't see how you can turn down Kent's offer. Take that and be happy! Congrats. :)

+1 That's a great offer.

+2

That is an awesome offer! I'm attending Kent in August with some money but nowhere near that! Congrats!