Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA? Forum

(Applications Advice, Letters of Recommendation . . . )
Post Reply
pleaseberkeley

New
Posts: 49
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2016 2:39 pm

Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by pleaseberkeley » Sat Jun 03, 2017 7:21 pm

With a 46.7% BigLaw placement, it's higher than GULC's 46.2%, UCLA's 40.2%, and UT's 35.9%. Vanderbilt' federal clerkship at 9.9 is higher than GULC's 5.4%, UCLA's 2.5%, and UT's 9.1%. It is also going to be cheaper than GULC and UCLA. What to make of these stats? Has Vandy closed the gap? Should it belong in the top 14 over UT/GULC? If my goal is strictly biglaw does this mean I should go to Vandy over these other 3?


https://www.reddit.com/r/lawschooladmis ... t_reports/

User avatar
UVA2B

Gold
Posts: 3570
Joined: Sun May 22, 2016 10:48 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by UVA2B » Sat Jun 03, 2017 7:38 pm

They're peers more or less. When comparing them, choose the cheapest one in the region you want to practice (although GULC places nationally more than the rest).

grades??

Silver
Posts: 985
Joined: Thu Jan 21, 2016 6:55 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by grades?? » Sat Jun 03, 2017 7:52 pm

Its the t13, then the GULC, vandy, ucla, ut, wustl top 20 tier. There isn't much difference between these, go to which is cheaper and in the market you want to work in. If you want Texas, go to Texas not UCLA. If you want NY, probably georgetown or vandy. Etc etc. They are all regional schools with georgetown being more national, but not having the national employment numbers of the t13 (hence why they have been completely expelled).

Big Dog

Silver
Posts: 1205
Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 9:34 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by Big Dog » Sat Jun 03, 2017 9:12 pm

Don't forget that, given its location, GULC has quite a few folks who are Big Gov or bust. They have no interest in Big Law. Thus there is plenty of self-selection at that school.

User avatar
cavalier1138

Moderator
Posts: 8007
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2016 8:01 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by cavalier1138 » Sat Jun 03, 2017 9:18 pm

Big Dog wrote:Don't forget that, given its location, GULC has quite a few folks who are Big Gov or bust. They have no interest in Big Law. Thus there is plenty of self-selection at that school.
But the numbers don't support that being the major factor in the less-than-stellar employment outcomes for Georgetown. Their LST score is low, even accounting for the extra placement in government.

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


pleaseberkeley

New
Posts: 49
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2016 2:39 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by pleaseberkeley » Sat Jun 03, 2017 9:52 pm

Big Dog wrote:Don't forget that, given its location, GULC has quite a few folks who are Big Gov or bust. They have no interest in Big Law. Thus there is plenty of self-selection at that school.
Can someone confirm this? This would swing the pendulum in my opinion. Similarly, UC Berkeley only had a 49% biglaw placement but considering its antiestablishment culture I can understand that it's due to self selection.

User avatar
UVA2B

Gold
Posts: 3570
Joined: Sun May 22, 2016 10:48 pm

Re: Is Vanderbilt a better law school than GULC, UT, and UCLA?

Post by UVA2B » Sat Jun 03, 2017 11:26 pm

pleaseberkeley wrote:
Big Dog wrote:Don't forget that, given its location, GULC has quite a few folks who are Big Gov or bust. They have no interest in Big Law. Thus there is plenty of self-selection at that school.
Can someone confirm this? This would swing the pendulum in my opinion. Similarly, UC Berkeley only had a 49% biglaw placement but considering its antiestablishment culture I can understand that it's due to self selection.
Even if it were true, not enough of GULC students are getting Big Gov jobs based on statistics to swing any pendulum. If there were seriously 25% (or whatever percent you deem significant) of the class gunning for federal government positions, then a significant portion of those students aren't getting those jobs, and that leaves a still significant portion of the class not getting other traditionally desirable jobs. So your best interpretation would be generously half of Big Gov or bust types are getting those jobs they definitively want (cause I personally refuse to believe their ~20% going into public service are all FedGov, but if you want to believe that, it's on you), and now the rest of the 75% of the class is fighting to be in the ~40% of Biglaw placement. That's being generous and doesn't dramatically change how you should view GULC. It's still on a bit of an island as a nationally placing school that places ~50-60% of its graduates into traditionally desirable outcomes. That's how you should understand it.

The statistics aren't perfect and there is some room for interpretation in them, but there is no way you can see GULC in a significantly brighter light relative to its placement statistics that makes it demonstrably better than its placement peers like Vandy, UT, etc. You should still go to the cheapest one and/or the one that places the strongest in the region you want to practice following graduation. If you want demonstrably better opportunities, trust the statistics and believe that the T13 get progressively more capable of putting you in the job you want as you go higher up (it's not strictly linear as you go up the ranks, it's more like concrete steps, but for simplicity sake, just understand that the statistics aren't lying to you).

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


Post Reply

Return to “Law School Admissions Forum”