Crunch Time Campbell or NC Central Forum

[johnson1993]

I need to commit, and honestly I am not sure what to do. I like the price point of Central, but Campbell has a much better reputation.

Anyone, have an opinion on either school that would be helpful?

[lymenheimer]

I need to commit, and honestly I am not sure what to do. I like the price point of Central, but Campbell has a much better reputation.

Anyone, have an opinion on either school that would be helpful?

I realize you may not have made it down to this subforum yet, but at least answer all of the questions in this post and then we can help you better: http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... 1&t=206299

[johnson1993]

sorry my bad

-The schools you are considering ---

Campbell Law, NCCU School of Law, both already accepted

-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each.

Campbell 160-200k depending on living situation that I can work out. NCCU 90-120k depeding on living situation

-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings

Loans

-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)

NC, small town between Raleigh and the Coast

-Your general career goals

I would like to start in a DA's office and then move on to solo practice, or work with a defense firm.

-Your LSAT/GPA numbers

3.0 gpa
154 LSAT 3 times with prep course before getting the 154

[kellyfrost]

NCCU - since you are financing law school and your career goals are attainable from either school, I would go with the school with the lowest cost.

[lymenheimer]

Honestly, I'd say wait until you can get your LSAT up to get you into UNC. Campbell isn't worth 150k+ and NCCU isn't worth 90k+. And that's being generous (when a lot of people will say neither are worth the degree at all). Especially since you are competing with UNC+Wake grads trying to stay local.

[Alive97]

90k is a lot of money to pay for a school that only puts 37-49% of its graduates into jobs requiring bar passage.

[mist4bison]

Waiting to retake isn't the answer you want to hear, but it's the best answer you'll get, honestly. Hop on over to the LSAT forum if you're serious about choosing the best option.

[ponderingmeerkat]

Campbell's employment outlook 57.8%: http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/campbell/2014/

NC Central 37.3%: http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/nccu/2014/

Both outlooks are horrific...I'm talking slasher film, the pretty blonde, in the barn, running away from the serial killer at night, in the rain horrific. Blood everywhere (not even a comedic element or dark-humor backdrop to this). Your odds of inviting Ted Bundy into your family home, spending a pleasant evening at dinner with him and seeing him on his way are higher than the odds of your being able to service the level of debt you are considering inviting into your household finances. Hell, I'd be hesitant to advise someone to attend Emory/Vandy for $120K of non-dischargeable.

The only way you can afford to service that kind of debt would be to land a mid-law/Big-law gig. These two school's give you a 1% or less chance to accomplish that. I don't care if you have used up your three retakes. Get thee a job, wait thee a year, and retake thine LSAT as much as possible until you grab $$$$ at Wake, $$$ at UNC, $$ Vandy/Emory or $ from Duke/UVA (I'm thinking 165+ minimum).

[jdcumlaude]

Campbell grad here. Top 25%. Teaching high school history in a poor county an hour away from my home. Enough said.

[Mikey]

Retake

[GFox345]

Retake

Retake.

[johnson1993]

So is Campbell just not a good school? I hear good things. Are they just all lies?

[asdfdfdfadfas]

This isn't real.

[jdcumlaude]

This isn't real.

It was pretty real to me when I chose Campbell over Central 6 years ago. I chose Campbell because it had a better "reputation" and solid alumni network.....it was all lies.

OP please do not go to Campbell or better yet find another career path. Going to Campbell you risk putting your entire life on hold for a little sheet of paper that says "I am a lawyer now" and that is about it. NC is a horrible legal market, and Campbell has been on a downslide for years. Buyer beware.

[jzachman]

I am a 1LE at NCCU this year, going into my 2L year. I chose Central due to cost and the evening program. I can work FT while attaining my degree, which GREATLY decreases costs. Central has a stellar reputation for public service and a great alumni network as well. Campbell is great, but I didn't find it worth the money. Especially if you ever move out of NC... no one is going to know Campbell from NCCU.

I plan to hang a solo shingle myself or work in public service, so Central will get me where I need to go at a fraction of the price. Maybe consider the evening program if you'd like to work FT as well to keep costs down. I love that its more professionals who have established careers and very professional and supportive.

[emkay625]

sorry my bad

-The schools you are considering ---

Campbell Law, NCCU School of Law, both already accepted

-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each.

Campbell 160-200k depending on living situation that I can work out. NCCU 90-120k depeding on living situation

-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings

Loans

-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)

NC, small town between Raleigh and the Coast

-Your general career goals

I would like to start in a DA's office and then move on to solo practice, or work with a defense firm.

-Your LSAT/GPA numbers

3.0 gpa
154 LSAT 3 times with prep course before getting the 154

Considering your career goals, I don't think either of those schools is necessarily a bad option—if you were going for free/close to free. 100K+ is not a smart amount of debt for either one of those schools. You could buy a house in NC for the amount of money you'll be taking out in loans. My vote is take a few years off, work, and save up some money. If you still want to go to law school after 2-3 years in the work force, at least you'll have some savings and won't have to take out as much in loans.

[Nachoo2019]

This isn't real.

[jdcumlaude]

I think it is worth noting that since OP made this thread the Jobs report has come out.


Campbell had about a 50% employment for full-time, long-term, and bar passage required. The unemployment rate was at 17% 9 months after graduation.

This may be par for the course with law in general, but for Campbell this is a drop of about 10% from 60% FT, LT, Bar employment for the class of 2014.

In Sum. Campbell Law is taking a serious dive in the employment stats. I doubt the bottom has been seen yet. Add to this that reputable economists believe a recession is around the corner (no matter what party wins in the fall), the outlook at Campbell is bleak.

[asdfdfdfadfas]

This isn't real.

It was pretty real to me when I chose Campbell over Central 6 years ago. I chose Campbell because it had a better "reputation" and solid alumni network.....it was all lies.

OP please do not go to Campbell or better yet find another career path. Going to Campbell you risk putting your entire life on hold for a little sheet of paper that says "I am a lawyer now" and that is about it. NC is a horrible legal market, and Campbell has been on a downslide for years. Buyer beware.

Well, I'd say 6 years ago you didn't have as many resources available for you to validate that information.

However, I think there was still enough information to come to the conclusion you were going to get ripped off.

In addition, if OP is serious, there is a plethora of information on this site and Law School Transparency that will give you enough information to make an informed decision on whether either of these schools is worth going to.

[jdcumlaude]

This isn't real.

It was pretty real to me when I chose Campbell over Central 6 years ago. I chose Campbell because it had a better "reputation" and solid alumni network.....it was all lies.

OP please do not go to Campbell or better yet find another career path. Going to Campbell you risk putting your entire life on hold for a little sheet of paper that says "I am a lawyer now" and that is about it. NC is a horrible legal market, and Campbell has been on a downslide for years. Buyer beware.

Well, I'd say 6 years ago you didn't have as many resources available for you to validate that information.

However, I think there was still enough information to come to the conclusion you were going to get ripped off.

I take my fair share of the blame, but if you look at th jobs report for the class to 2010 (the class that was leaving as I entered) the data is not detailed and not broken down the way the reports are issued now. From the 2010 report Campbell appears to have an 80% employment rate...in the midsts of a recession.

[asdfdfdfadfas]

This isn't real.

It was pretty real to me when I chose Campbell over Central 6 years ago. I chose Campbell because it had a better "reputation" and solid alumni network.....it was all lies.

OP please do not go to Campbell or better yet find another career path. Going to Campbell you risk putting your entire life on hold for a little sheet of paper that says "I am a lawyer now" and that is about it. NC is a horrible legal market, and Campbell has been on a downslide for years. Buyer beware.

Well, I'd say 6 years ago you didn't have as many resources available for you to validate that information.

However, I think there was still enough information to come to the conclusion you were going to get ripped off.

I take my fair share of the blame, but if you look at th jobs report for the class to 2010 (the class that was leaving as I entered) the data is not detailed and not broken down the way the reports are issued now. From the 2010 report Campbell appears to have an 80% employment rate...in the midsts of a recession.

Is that 80% of job requiring bar passage and what percentage of those are employed by the school? I'd pull the report and I am sure break down those god awful statistics, but quite frankly I am too lazy to argue with you. In addition, simply because you took the LSAT doesn't entitle you to a nice legal job and a white picket fence. A 154 is what 60th percentile? Congrats, you beat half of the 105,000 other people who decided to take the test that year.

Also, let me provide some perspective, in 2010 I graduated college with a double major in Finance and Economics and nearly went homeless multiple times trying to desperately get my foot in the door at a decent company. I too considered law school as an easy way out. What, just go on a three year vacation from applying to thousands of jobs and grinding it out at unreasonable workplaces to get some experience? Just borrow the money for now and it will be easy!!!

Moral of the story? I don't really feel too sorry for you and I'd be willing to bet no one else does either. We all make mistakes, you just grin and bare it bud.

OP- I'll shorten your research, don't go to law school.

[lymenheimer]

I take my fair share of the blame, but if you look at th jobs report for the class to 2010 (the class that was leaving as I entered) the data is not detailed and not broken down the way the reports are issued now. From the 2010 report Campbell appears to have an 80% employment rate...in the midsts of a recession.

Is that 80% of job requiring bar passage and what percentage of those are employed by the school? I'd pull the report and I am sure break down those god awful disingenuous statistics, but quite frankly I am too lazy to argue with you.

Moral of the story? I don't really feel too sorry for you and I'd be willing to bet no one else does either. We all make mistakes, you just grin and bare it bud.

http://employmentsummary.abaquestionnaire.org/

year: 2010
school: campbell university

It's a 1-pager. Good luck finding where it says bar passage required, etc.

[Nachoo2019]

I take my fair share of the blame, but if you look at th jobs report for the class to 2010 (the class that was leaving as I entered) the data is not detailed and not broken down the way the reports are issued now. From the 2010 report Campbell appears to have an 80% employment rate...in the midsts of a recession.

Is that 80% of job requiring bar passage and what percentage of those are employed by the school? I'd pull the report and I am sure break down those god awful disingenuous statistics, but quite frankly I am too lazy to argue with you.

Moral of the story? I don't really feel too sorry for you and I'd be willing to bet no one else does either. We all make mistakes, you just grin and bare it bud.

http://employmentsummary.abaquestionnaire.org/

year: 2010
school: campbell university

It's a 1-pager. Good luck finding where it says bar passage required, etc.

God that page is awful. At a glance it looks like they have 81/106 grads employed and 72 of them in NC.....

what a scam.

[asdfdfdfadfas]

I take my fair share of the blame, but if you look at th jobs report for the class to 2010 (the class that was leaving as I entered) the data is not detailed and not broken down the way the reports are issued now. From the 2010 report Campbell appears to have an 80% employment rate...in the midsts of a recession.

Is that 80% of job requiring bar passage and what percentage of those are employed by the school? I'd pull the report and I am sure break down those god awful disingenuous statistics, but quite frankly I am too lazy to argue with you.

Moral of the story? I don't really feel too sorry for you and I'd be willing to bet no one else does either. We all make mistakes, you just grin and bare it bud.

http://employmentsummary.abaquestionnaire.org/

year: 2010
school: campbell university

It's a 1-pager. Good luck finding where it says bar passage required, etc.

I guess, perhaps, I am a bit better at sniffing out scams than most people so I should take that into account. I am also not saying what the schools did was admirable. However, I am sure there is more information about that school on the internet in 2009.

Either way, the point is it is a personal choice whether or not you borrow a bunch of money and attend law school expecting a payout at some later point in time. Law school in no way guarantees your outcome.

[johnson1993]

OP here

I opted out of both. The ABA job stats came out and I really see no future in law anymore. My parents keep trying to get me to retake the LSAT, but I am just burned out.

I am thinking about looking into either an MBA or going into coding.