Top Law Schools

Not sure which one, non resident of penn, so i will have a high first year cost. and hofstra gave me a 20 k a year scholly. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

thanks!

Where are you hoping to work? Is the Hofstra scholarship conditional, and if so, how exactly? My absolutely uninformed impression is that Pitt is the better school (even by a wide margin) but I don't know that this is reflected in employment outcomes, etc. so irrespective of that consideration Hofstra may be the prudent choice. But I would be reckless and still go with Pitt. Besides, I prefer Pittsburgh to Long Island (that is where Hofstra is right?)

Not quite sure yet where i want to work, NYC is very appealing to me as well as DC, but i am from CA (San Diego) and could see myself returning after law school. And the condition is top 40% of class at hoftra to maintain the scholarship.

If you have no interest in working in Pittsburgh (it's a great city by the way) you shouldn't go to Pitt. I wouldn't recommend Hofstra in this economy.

Any idea how the Pittsburgh law market is, and does Hofstra place better in NYC than Pitt? I've heard a lot of good things about Pittsburgh but have only been there briefly. Thanks for your input Haribo, it helps.

If you absolutely must attend law school in order to secure employment, study for the LSAT and reapply next cycle. Hofstra is a TTT and Pitt is meh at best and will only place you in the city of Pittsburgh.

even though I'm pretty sure i could post a higher LSAT I don't want to waste another year out of school. Is Hofstra as bad as people on top law schools say it is, or are some people just being a little bit snobby?

Joeshaeff wrote:even though I'm pretty sure i could post a higher LSAT I don't want to waste another year out of school. Is Hofstra as bad as people on top law schools say it is, or are some people just being a little bit snobby?

Fairly sure they have bad employment prospects.

If scoring better on the LSAT is feasible and can then get you into better schools, I would say retake/reapply.

Joeshaeff wrote:even though I'm pretty sure i could post a higher LSAT I don't want to waste another year out of school. Is Hofstra as bad as people on top law schools say it is, or are some people just being a little bit snobby?

Hofstra had something like 30 firms for OCI. 30. And that was during the boom years. And it is located 30 miles away from the largest legal market in the world. That should tell you about employment prospects.

If you want to work in San Diego, you need to retake and apply to some CA schools. If you are okay with working in Pitt/PA, or possibly the surrounding areas like OH, go to Pitt.

Joeshaeff wrote:Any idea how the Pittsburgh law market is, and does Hofstra place better in NYC than Pitt? I've heard a lot of good things about Pittsburgh but have only been there briefly. Thanks for your input Haribo, it helps.

here ya go...missed it by a day http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=119980

pjo wrote:

Joeshaeff wrote:Any idea how the Pittsburgh law market is, and does Hofstra place better in NYC than Pitt? I've heard a lot of good things about Pittsburgh but have only been there briefly. Thanks for your input Haribo, it helps.

here ya go...missed it by a day http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=119980

thanks, quite helpful.

retake.

In this economy, both are a bad idea.

Hofstra... If you must.

From a financial standpoint, both are about on par with borrowing 150k, taking it to Vegas, and putting it all on black in roulette. Actually, gambling is better. The debt might be discharged in bankruptcy that way.

Full disclosure = I'm a Pitt 3L.
Anyway....If you want the west coast don't go to either school. Retake and/or reapply. If you can get into Pitt you can probably get into Pepperdine or something. Without your own connections neither school will place you on the west coast.
Hofstra will get you small law NYC area if you do decent.
Pitt will get you a Pittsburgh area job if you do decent.
If you perform VERY well at either school you may get a decent NYC job. Odds are strongly against that.
So to summarize:
If you don't want to spend awhile working in PA or maybe DC don't go to Pitt.
If you aren't willing to work in long island don't go to Hofstra.

I think your chance of getting a job in CA is bad from both. Your chance of getting a decent job anywhere is best at Pitt. Hofstra is a bad school in a very crowded market. Pitt is a decent school in a fairly crowded market. I am a Burgh native, there are several of us on here. The city is actually nice, thought downtown is pretty empty. Still, there are a lot of cool neighborhoods, some nice theaters, good bars on the South Side, and some great sports. Still, this is not Manhattan, LA, or even San Diego. If you are really thinking about only Hofstra or Pitt then you owe it to yourself to visit because you WILL be here for at least a decade. Still, a year off may be best even if you find the 'Burgh tolerable.