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say you went to a non-14 JD program with median grades, can subsequently going to a t-14 LLM program and placing in the top 30% or x% help you towards biglaw? or is it better to obtain work experience after the jd?

Only if its a tax LLM. Even then, only maybe.

Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Or possibly the free Duke LLM you still get within three years with your JD. It does nothing for your career, but you're not wasting any time, so c'est la vie.

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Unless the person is from Florida or seeking to work in Florida, when I see a Florida LLM, I tend to think it was because they didn't get into NYU or GULC.

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

And yeah, I don't know anything about tax, but the conventional wisdom is NYU/GULC/FLA are the only 3 worth a damn for American JDs.

Big4 will acknowledge a tax LLM from Northwestern as well.

I'd also consider Northwestern. Their program is relatively new (2002) but worth a look. They post their employment statistics and for the most part it looks comparable to the other schools minus the law firm category.

nealric wrote:

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Unless the person is from Florida or seeking to work in Florida, when I see a Florida LLM, I tend to think it was because they didn't get into NYU or GULC.

I think that's a mistaken assumption. Florida is really strong in the Southeast as a whole. Although, the program is going through a bit of turmoil right now.

I agree that it's worth it only if you get a tax LLM from NYU or Georgetown. Depending on your locality, schools like FL, BU, NW or Loyola (LA) are good, too, from what I hear.

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Unless the person is from Florida or seeking to work in Florida, when I see a Florida LLM, I tend to think it was because they didn't get into NYU or GULC.

I think that's a mistaken assumption. Florida is really strong in the Southeast as a whole. Although, the program is going through a bit of turmoil right now.

But that's just it. I'm not in the Southeast. It's a regional school, which only makes sense if you are from that region and/or work in it. Its reach may extend a bit beyond Florida, but not that much. Personally, I'd only recommend a local LLM if you are already working in the region.

nealric wrote:

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Unless the person is from Florida or seeking to work in Florida, when I see a Florida LLM, I tend to think it was because they didn't get into NYU or GULC.

I think that's a mistaken assumption. Florida is really strong in the Southeast as a whole. Although, the program is going through a bit of turmoil right now.

But that's just it. I'm not in the Southeast. It's a regional school, which only makes sense if you are from that region and/or work in it. Its reach may extend a bit beyond Florida, but not that much. Personally, I'd only recommend a local LLM if you are already working in the region.

Eh, not really. The LLM program places like a t14 or t13 or whatever school does in terms of jobs. That's what's most important. It just so happens to be that the network is mainly in the Southeast. A school like Columbia mainly places in New York. That doesn't make it a regional school.

I'm not trying to convince anyone to go to UF right now, but the program was every bit as good as NYU and GULC. Now, I don't know.

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:

tfer2222 wrote:

cron1834 wrote:Someone post the "Should I do an LLM?" graphic...

I searched for it and couldn't find it immediately so I gave up. But yeah longstanding TLS wisdom - LLM not worth it unless its tax LLM at NYU or GULC. I think Florida's tax LLM is also mentioned as a contender.

Unless the person is from Florida or seeking to work in Florida, when I see a Florida LLM, I tend to think it was because they didn't get into NYU or GULC.

I think that's a mistaken assumption. Florida is really strong in the Southeast as a whole. Although, the program is going through a bit of turmoil right now.

But that's just it. I'm not in the Southeast. It's a regional school, which only makes sense if you are from that region and/or work in it. Its reach may extend a bit beyond Florida, but not that much. Personally, I'd only recommend a local LLM if you are already working in the region.

Eh, not really. The LLM program places like a t14 or t13 or whatever school does in terms of jobs. That's what's most important. It just so happens to be that the network is mainly in the Southeast. A school like Columbia mainly places in New York. That doesn't make it a regional school.

I'm not trying to convince anyone to go to UF right now, but the program was every bit as good as NYU and GULC. Now, I don't know.

It really doesn't though. I very rarely run into Florida grads in the tax world. I see GULC/NYU all the time, and I don't practice on the East Coast. I'm sure it is/was a good program educationally, but that not so relevant for a prospective student who needs a job.

nealric wrote:It really doesn't though. I very rarely run into Florida grads in the tax world. I see GULC/NYU all the time, and I don't practice on the East Coast. I'm sure it is/was a good program educationally, but that not so relevant for a prospective student who needs a job.

Well, there's your problem.

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:It really doesn't though. I very rarely run into Florida grads in the tax world. I see GULC/NYU all the time, and I don't practice on the East Coast. I'm sure it is/was a good program educationally, but that not so relevant for a prospective student who needs a job.

Well, there's your problem.

? If he's not on the east coast, and sees grads from the other 2 east coast schools all the time, and doesn't see Florida grads all the time, doesn't that suggest that Florida is regional in a way that the other 2 aren't?

What about Northwestern's Tax LLM, which I think was established only a few years ago, but seems to have a good rep. It's #4 right behind the big three.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:It really doesn't though. I very rarely run into Florida grads in the tax world. I see GULC/NYU all the time, and I don't practice on the East Coast. I'm sure it is/was a good program educationally, but that not so relevant for a prospective student who needs a job.

Well, there's your problem.

? If he's not on the east coast, and sees grads from the other 2 east coast schools all the time, and doesn't see Florida grads all the time, doesn't that suggest that Florida is regional in a way that the other 2 aren't?

Florida is less of a national brand, but my point is that job placement is the most important thing. You go to Florida if you want to work on the East coast (most likely in the Southeast). Schools like Columbia and Penn place like 70% to 80% of its graduates in the Northeast/DC. The reason why those are such highly regarded schools is because of your odds of getting a great job after graduating from there.

Regardless, this isn't really a debate worth having because Florida isn't a t14, and I'm not trying to convince anyone to go to Florida.

lavarman84 wrote:

A. Nony Mouse wrote:

lavarman84 wrote:

nealric wrote:It really doesn't though. I very rarely run into Florida grads in the tax world. I see GULC/NYU all the time, and I don't practice on the East Coast. I'm sure it is/was a good program educationally, but that not so relevant for a prospective student who needs a job.

Well, there's your problem.

? If he's not on the east coast, and sees grads from the other 2 east coast schools all the time, and doesn't see Florida grads all the time, doesn't that suggest that Florida is regional in a way that the other 2 aren't?

Florida is less of a national brand, but my point is that job placement is the most important thing. You go to Florida if you want to work on the East coast (most likely in the Southeast). Schools like Columbia and Penn place like 70% to 80% of its graduates in the Northeast/DC. The reason why those are such highly regarded schools is because of your odds of getting a great job after graduating from there.

Regardless, this isn't really a debate worth having because Florida isn't a t14, and I'm not trying to convince anyone to go to Florida.

I don't think we really disagree. My comment was only applicable to people who don't want to work in Florida.

As an aside, CLS may place mostly on the East coast, but a lot of that is because that's where the prestigious jobs are. CLS grads can go anywhere in a way regional school grads can't.

. . . . and to state the obvious, don't do a tax LLM at NYU/GULC/FL unless you are really, really positive you want to do tax or T&E for a living. Those areas are super complex and very dry. Putting your life on hold for a year, pulling your hair out on difficult subject matters, and spending $70K (or whatever), and then not using the degree for work is rather silly, IMHO.