Family owned law firm? Benefits Under New USNWR Methodology? Forum

[User1310]

Now that employment is weighted heavier in computing rankings, do you think 2nd, 3rd, and 4th tier applicants, who have a father/mother who is the principal owner/lawyer of a law firm in a big U.S. City, are given an edge in admissions under an assumed post-graduation employment?

Each additional student with a job at graduation would boost an employment statistic to a hypothetical class of 200 by a half a percent, which seems pretty significant. And this is besides assuming that said student has probably worked within the law firm and valuing the benefits that come with that.

Thoughts?

[wannabelawstudent]

Now that employment is weighted heavier in computing rankings, do you think 2nd, 3rd, and 4th tier applicants, who have a father/mother who is the principal owner/lawyer of a law firm in a big U.S. City, are given an edge in admissions under an assumed post-graduation employment?

Each additional student with a job at graduation would boost an employment statistic to a hypothetical class of 200 by a half a percent, which seems pretty significant. And this is besides assuming that said student has probably worked within the law firm and valuing the benefits that come with that.

Thoughts?

I mean. we're just talking about a single outlier over an entire class but surely every school has a couple of students who are guarenteed a job through their parents connections alone. Dats da way life is.

[sinfiery]

Your question makes the assumption that having a characteristic that makes you employable didn't give you an edge before.

As stated, such is life.

[A. Nony Mouse]

I don't think schools will be willing to make those kinds of assumptions about post-grad employment - they don't even know if you'll finish law school, let alone get that hypothetical job. Maybe (god forbid) your relative gets hit by a bus and the law firm gets sold; maybe it just goes under. (And if you want to say, But it's a great firm! None of that will happen!, adcomms don't have time to research the firms that all their applicants may have some connection to.) If you're a marginal candidate for the school, maybe you'll flunk out (admittedly, this is hard, but some people manage it); maybe you'll hate law and drop out halfway through 1L. It's all too nebulous. GPA and LSAT are already in place, so you don't have to gamble on them.