Does a NU transfer need ties to bid Chicago? Forum

[shock259]

About to put down my deposit as a transfer, but having a scare about markets. I was hoping to get it cleared up before dropping the money, and the career people won't talk to me until I deposit. Cue TLS.

Transferring to NU from CU Boulder. My only ties are CO and DC. I grew up in CO plus went to CU for a year. I went to DC for undergrad and worked there for a year after.

Any thoughts on what market I should bid? Given NU's location and my good vibes from the city, I was originally planning on doing about 75% Chicago 25% NYC. But I've been hearing recently that many Chicago firms want Chicago ties. True/false? Would going to NU be sufficient to prove my ties? If that isn't sufficient, I would be in trouble. I haven't even visited the city before, and I will only be there a few days OCI starts. Eek.

Bidding heavily on DC as an NU transfer seems like a great way to strike out. My ties aren't that great, anyway.

CO has an almost non-existent biglaw market. And I don't know if NU has any CO firms. But even if NU does, the CO firms would probably see me as a flight risk because I was willing to move away from law school in Colorado for NU.

So I guess that leaves ... 100% NYC? I'm not as crazy about NYC (would prefer Chicago or DC), but I could swing it if that was my best/only option for biglaw. Consensus is that they don't care about ties.

Any thoughts?

[IAFG]

If I were in your shoes, I would bid NY, massmail CO and forget about Chicago.

[shock259]

Thanks for reply - that sounds like a good plan.

Anyone else have any thoughts/opinions?

/shameless bump

[FlightoftheEarls]

If I were in your shoes, I would bid NY, massmail CO and forget about Chicago.

I'm inclined to agree with IAFG.

Think about it from the firm's perspective: You've just showed up at NU and you're going to be living in Chicago for the very first time. For all they know, that may only be because it's the best transfer school you've landed at. If they're trying to recruit people who are interested in staying in Chicago long-term (or at least long enough that you become profitable for them), you're a pretty risky bet from their perspective. It's not your fault, but I wouldn't be particularly confident that you won't dislike the city and jump ship elsewhere within the first year or two.

New York, on the other hand, is a much easier sell for someone without ties.