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I am currently top 1% at a 50-60 ranked school, trying to decide if transferring to a top10 school in the same market is a wise choice. I have a full scholarship currently, so an increase in debt is a fear. I am interested in patent law at biglaw after school (I have the technical background). I had a very high LSAT score, but ended up where I did because of VERY low undergrad GPA that I am trying to put behind me. But I did very well in my first year, got LR etc, and being so near the top of my class even if the stats are bad for biglaw placement, some people do get placed at my school.

Does transferring drastically help my immediate OCI chances? Does it matter that I know I want to go into patent law, and have the background (albeit with a low GPA, but also some work experience in that field after undergrad)? And also, how much does it really matter 10 years from now where your degree came from? Any advice is helpful, I am paralyzed right now when considering the extra ~120K it would be in debt, but the extra prestige of graduating from a great school.

Anonymous User wrote:I am currently top 1% at a 50-60 ranked school, trying to decide if transferring to a top10 school in the same market is a wise choice. I have a full scholarship currently, so an increase in debt is a fear. I am interested in patent law at biglaw after school (I have the technical background). I had a very high LSAT score, but ended up where I did because of VERY low undergrad GPA that I am trying to put behind me. But I did very well in my first year, got LR etc, and being so near the top of my class even if the stats are bad for biglaw placement, some people do get placed at my school.

Does transferring drastically help my immediate OCI chances? Does it matter that I know I want to go into patent law, and have the background (albeit with a low GPA, but also some work experience in that field after undergrad)? And also, how much does it really matter 10 years from now where your degree came from? Any advice is helpful, I am paralyzed right now when considering the extra ~120K it would be in debt, but the extra prestige of graduating from a great school.

The good thing is you have two very good choices. Especially, if you have the technical background to go into patent law, you should have an easier time finding a job than most of your classmates. Add to that your ranking at your current school and LR, and you should be in pretty good shape even if you stay at your current school. On the other hand, your degree stays with you for life, and even if it is not as important after you get your first job, if you feel that the extra prestige of graduating from a T10 school is worth the extra $120K in debt, then I'm sure your job prospects will be just as good, if not better, at your new school, especially if you keep getting good grades.

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I'm not sure exactly what I want from a firm, but I know I'm not shooting for the top of the top necessarily. And I have other opportunities through the national patent law interview process at Loyola. There are also a lot of firms I'm interested in that, although they won't visit my school, do have a resume collect option, so at least that is a foot in the door.

If all I'm buying is a slightly higher chance at a slightly better biglaw firm, and the prestige on my bio page 10 years from now, I don't know if that is worth the money right now.