Private Office in Small town - Tier of School matter? Forum

[OGR3]

Lay people automatically assume lawyer = prestige and never even think to ask about the school the lawyer got his JD.

I always thought lay people thought lawyer = dbag.

Prestige and dbag are not mutually exclusive.

[NU_Jet55]

Prestige and dbag are not mutually exclusive.

good point

[jeff5170]

Did you apply to NKU or Louisville? You could get in-state tuition, and a lot more people in KY (who could be your future clients) have heard of Louisville than OKC Law...

[Anonymous User]

Did you apply to NKU or Louisville? You could get in-state tuition, and a lot more people in KY (who could be your future clients) have heard of Louisville than OKC Law...

Yes. I have applied to UK, Louisville, and Chase (aka NKU). I expect to be accepted at all three but no decisions from any of them just yet. This post becomes obsolete if accepted at UK. I can afford 10K a year debt after grants for being dirt poor. Again its really just a money thing - Free law degree from a T3 or paid (or partially paid) at a T2/T1. I don't know what chase will offer being they are a T3 in state. I don't think they are known for their scholarship offers. I honestly don't like the city of Louisville so it is actually the least attractive of all three.

I also wanted to know how graduating in the top 25% from a T3 would affect getting into a law firm if necessary compared to being just one of the crowd in a T2/T1. A fallback to opening my own small town law office. Do you have any feedback on that other than what the others are dead set on focusing on?

[Fark-o-vision]

Prestige and dbag are not mutually exclusive.

good point

I think most people assume they go hand in hand, actually.

[HowdyYall]

Lay people automatically assume lawyer = prestige and never even think to ask about the school the lawyer got his JD.

I always thought lay people thought lawyer = dbag.

dbag, but a smart edumucated dbag

[Interested Observer]

Yes I am serious about the top 10-25 percentile. Regardless of the tier of the school.

Yes, regardless of the tier of the school, your chances of landing in the top 25% are... drumroll please... twenty five percent!

You are being a monumental idiot if you assume otherwise. Everybody thinks they can be in the top 10%, 90% of those people end up being wrong.

Not trying to be a jerk or anything here (and you probably already know this), but your chances of being in the top 25% at a school are not 25% -- that sort of suggests that the process is completely random (which may be the point you're trying to make).

Law school grades are not completely random (there's a reason some people somehow get straight A's). The real problem for someone not yet in law school is that you can't predict your future performance based on how hard you think you'll work or even on how smart you think you are. A lot of people think, "Well, I didn't study in my undergrad studies and I did moderately well (B+'s), therefore if I actually try, I'm sure to get A's."

That's flawed thinking. First, this is a completely different beast (law school does not equal undergrad). Second, almost everyone tries to step their game up. Third, a law school exam is probably unlike any other exam you've taken before coming to law school (including the LSAT -- and, yes, I know you took ConLaw as an undergrad).

So, while law school performance will not be random, it's also something that isn't predictable (or something you should probably stray away from trying to predict). The best form of analysis will involve hypotheticals where you do extremely well, where you do moderately well, where you perform in the average, and where you perform below average (and any other variation therein). If, by chance, all scenarios appeal to you, then you probably should go to law school (essentially, you're happy with the worst possible outcome). If some appeal to you, and some don't, then you need to figure out if you're willing to take the risk.

But as the poster I quoted above suggests, I wouldn't assume a certain outcome from the get-go.

[jeff5170]

Did you apply to NKU or Louisville? You could get in-state tuition, and a lot more people in KY (who could be your future clients) have heard of Louisville than OKC Law...

Yes. I have applied to UK, Louisville, and Chase (aka NKU). I expect to be accepted at all three but no decisions from any of them just yet. This post becomes obsolete if accepted at UK. I can afford 10K a year debt after grants for being dirt poor. Again its really just a money thing - Free law degree from a T3 or paid (or partially paid) at a T2/T1. I don't know what chase will offer being they are a T3 in state. I don't think they are known for their scholarship offers. I honestly don't like the city of Louisville so it is actually the least attractive of all three.

I also wanted to know how graduating in the top 25% from a T3 would affect getting into a law firm if necessary compared to being just one of the crowd in a T2/T1. A fallback to opening my own small town law office. Do you have any feedback on that other than what the others are dead set on focusing on?

It's been pretty rough for Louisville and UK students the past two years. Big Law Louisville/Lexington means you probably need to be better than top 10%.

But if the end game goal for you is to open up your own shop in a small town, Louisville/UK/NKU is probably better than a T2 elsewhere.