NYU/GULC Tax LLM v. $90k/year offer
Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2014 3:25 am
Anon because I'd rather not risk outing myself.
I’ve read over all of the "should I do a tax LLM" threads and none are specifically on point.
The TL;DR version: 3L at a T2, top 1%, ~$100k total debt at graduation. Want to do tax LLM at NYU/GULC. Have offer on the table for $90k+$10k/year tuition with a 2-year commitment at a non-big 4 accounting firm in my non-preferred specialty group.
1) Assuming admission to NYU/GULC, would turning down the offer in favor of doing the full time LLM be totally insane?
2) If I take the offer, do I still do the LLM part time assuming I get into NYU?
3) Does anyone know anything about scholarships at NYU/GULC? Are PT students eligible/equally competitive?
The longer version:
I’m a 3L at a T2, top 1% of my class. I like tax, want to do tax work, have taken a bunch of tax classes (and gotten As in all of them), and will have taken all the tax classes my school offers by the time I graduate. My UG degree isn't underwater basketweaving, but it's not accounting/business/engineering/anything even remotely useful.
I summered at a large, but not Big 4, accounting firm in a specialty tax department in NYC. I'm staying part time during 3L because paychecks are better than PLUS loans and I genuinely like it there. I have an offer to stay post-grad. Pay’s ~$90k. The hours are good, I really like the people I work with, and find the work itself interesting, but I'm in a specialty group that isn’t necessarily my first choice and the offer is to stay in that group. When I graduate, I’ll have about $100k of debt between law school and undergrad, though I may make some payments during 3L to try to get it down a bit or, at the very least, keep interest from compounding.
Before getting the offer, I was pretty much dead-set on doing a tax LLM at either NYU or GULC next year, assuming either/both accept me. I would rather not do an LLM at all than move to Florida for a year, so I'm not applying to UF.
The firm knows that I'm interested in doing the LLM and everyone I’ve spoken with about it has actively encouraged it. They will pay $10k of tuition a year, which would cover about 4 credits per year at NYU part time. The LLM requires 24 total credits, so $10k/year would help, but it won't make a substantial dent. If I took the $10k, I’d have to commit to stay for 2 years or return the money. Basically, I’d be committing to stay for 3-5 years to save between $20k and $30k, depending on how long it took me to complete the LLM. I like the job, but the idea of committing to anything for 4 years terrifies me. (This may be why I don’t have a dog. Or a wife.)
NYU’s LLM application opens in September, GULC’s in October, and I need to choose between PT and FT before I apply. NYU, at least, allows admits to request to change from PT to FT and vice versa.
The first question, really, is do I accept the offer at all, when the alternative isn’t another job but, rather, an LLM and more debt? On the one hand, it’s a good place to work with good people, LLM hiring’s a black box, and a job >>>>>>>>>>>> no job. On the other hand, I fell into the specialty group by accident and would like the opportunity to get a somewhat broader range of experience before becoming incredibly specialized. Also, $90k is okay, but it’s not great.
The second is, if I do accept the offer, do I do an LLM starting next year at all? It’s encouraged and partially paid for, but it’s not required. I imagine that I’d lose much of the career benefits of doing the LLM if I didn’t participate in TIP, but if I'm taking advantage of the tuition reimbursement, participating in and finding a job through TIP would mean having to repay the $10k to the firm within 30 days of leaving. Also, I don’t even know whether PT students are eligible to participate in TIP or how they fare. (I should investigate this, I know, and I will.)
Finally, does anyone have any information about how competitive, if at all, I would be for scholarships and whether PT applicants are even remotely competitive or eligible for scholarships?
I’ve read over all of the "should I do a tax LLM" threads and none are specifically on point.
The TL;DR version: 3L at a T2, top 1%, ~$100k total debt at graduation. Want to do tax LLM at NYU/GULC. Have offer on the table for $90k+$10k/year tuition with a 2-year commitment at a non-big 4 accounting firm in my non-preferred specialty group.
1) Assuming admission to NYU/GULC, would turning down the offer in favor of doing the full time LLM be totally insane?
2) If I take the offer, do I still do the LLM part time assuming I get into NYU?
3) Does anyone know anything about scholarships at NYU/GULC? Are PT students eligible/equally competitive?
The longer version:
I’m a 3L at a T2, top 1% of my class. I like tax, want to do tax work, have taken a bunch of tax classes (and gotten As in all of them), and will have taken all the tax classes my school offers by the time I graduate. My UG degree isn't underwater basketweaving, but it's not accounting/business/engineering/anything even remotely useful.
I summered at a large, but not Big 4, accounting firm in a specialty tax department in NYC. I'm staying part time during 3L because paychecks are better than PLUS loans and I genuinely like it there. I have an offer to stay post-grad. Pay’s ~$90k. The hours are good, I really like the people I work with, and find the work itself interesting, but I'm in a specialty group that isn’t necessarily my first choice and the offer is to stay in that group. When I graduate, I’ll have about $100k of debt between law school and undergrad, though I may make some payments during 3L to try to get it down a bit or, at the very least, keep interest from compounding.
Before getting the offer, I was pretty much dead-set on doing a tax LLM at either NYU or GULC next year, assuming either/both accept me. I would rather not do an LLM at all than move to Florida for a year, so I'm not applying to UF.
The firm knows that I'm interested in doing the LLM and everyone I’ve spoken with about it has actively encouraged it. They will pay $10k of tuition a year, which would cover about 4 credits per year at NYU part time. The LLM requires 24 total credits, so $10k/year would help, but it won't make a substantial dent. If I took the $10k, I’d have to commit to stay for 2 years or return the money. Basically, I’d be committing to stay for 3-5 years to save between $20k and $30k, depending on how long it took me to complete the LLM. I like the job, but the idea of committing to anything for 4 years terrifies me. (This may be why I don’t have a dog. Or a wife.)
NYU’s LLM application opens in September, GULC’s in October, and I need to choose between PT and FT before I apply. NYU, at least, allows admits to request to change from PT to FT and vice versa.
The first question, really, is do I accept the offer at all, when the alternative isn’t another job but, rather, an LLM and more debt? On the one hand, it’s a good place to work with good people, LLM hiring’s a black box, and a job >>>>>>>>>>>> no job. On the other hand, I fell into the specialty group by accident and would like the opportunity to get a somewhat broader range of experience before becoming incredibly specialized. Also, $90k is okay, but it’s not great.
The second is, if I do accept the offer, do I do an LLM starting next year at all? It’s encouraged and partially paid for, but it’s not required. I imagine that I’d lose much of the career benefits of doing the LLM if I didn’t participate in TIP, but if I'm taking advantage of the tuition reimbursement, participating in and finding a job through TIP would mean having to repay the $10k to the firm within 30 days of leaving. Also, I don’t even know whether PT students are eligible to participate in TIP or how they fare. (I should investigate this, I know, and I will.)
Finally, does anyone have any information about how competitive, if at all, I would be for scholarships and whether PT applicants are even remotely competitive or eligible for scholarships?