Top Law Schools

Hi all,

I'm at MVPB, and ended up with slightly higher than a 3.7 this semester (which puts me in roughly the top 10% or so here). I'm paying sticker, though I will be graduating without any debt thanks to savings from my pre-law school jobs, and a bit of help from my family. My goal is to work in biglaw in CA (where I grew up), NY or DC (and possibly clerk, if my grades are good enough). I do care about exit options, since, like I imagine many others, I don't plan on remaining in biglaw forever.

In light of the above, does it make sense to try to transfer to a T6 school... perhaps NYU or Columbia? I honestly don't know much about transferring and what schools might be possibilities given my GPA/rank. My apologies in advance if this question has already been answered -- I'm fairly new to this site and still learning the ropes, and couldn't find too much on the specific topic of transferring from a T10 to a T6. I also recognize that I still have another semester's worth of grades to go, but I figured it might be worth at least thinking about the transfer process at this point.

Thanks, TLS!

I think it depends on which of mvpb you're at. I would think that berkeley has an edge in CA placement than NYU or Columbia. I'd also say the difference between penn and NYU is marginal but that Michigan vs columbia might be larger. Personally I'd never think about transferring sticker to sticker just based on the lost 1L connections and camaraderie. Now if you can transfer to HYS...maybe? But I think you'd probably be in a great spot for hiring with those grades at a t10 as is

Samurai,

Thank you for your reply. That makes a lot of sense. I suppose I should mention that I'm not at B, and at this point I'm strongly leaning towards remaining on the east coast after graduation. I worked in NYC for four years before coming here, and would definitely be happy returning to NYC after graduation. I'm not sure if this changes the analysis, but I figure it's worth mentioning.

This transfer would make no sense. Top 10% at any of MVPB can get just about every top firm.

I don't see the point in transferring. Your employment outcomes probably won't be improving as you're already top 10% at a top ten. I could see a justification being made to transfer to HYS, especially because you're paying sticker and they so need based grants. I don't think CCN is worth it here.

I was top 10% at Michigan prior to OCI. Got offers from all the big CA firms (not KVN, obviously, but everyone else), and my experience wasn't atypical given our callback medians. My little bro was deciding between Columbia and Michigan, and based on the research we did then (with exceptions at a few firms) Michigan actually has just as strong or a stronger alum base in the Bay Area than Columbia (and if we're talking LA, that's a way easier market to crack than SF/SV).

I think it'd be terribly inadvisable for you to trade T10 for T6 with your grades. T3, sure (although your transfer app almost certainly won't be competitive), but moving up to T6 only gives you a marginal bump in firm hiring and in the case of Columbia (which I think is the only school even worth talking about) you'd actually be hurting your clerkship chances statistically. You'll be giving up Law Review, connections to the 1L professors who you impressed first year--again, bad idea.

thanks everyone! sounds like transferring to a T-6 is ill-advised for a number of understandable reasons. I know that a 3.7/top 10% ranking would put me completely out of the running at Y and S, but what about H? What sort of grades coming from MVP would make someone a viable candidate?

Thank you again!

Tiago Splitter wrote:This transfer would make no sense. Top 10% at any of MVPB can get just about every top firm.

Agreed.

ur probably in at Harvard but i still wouldn't do it

amb2189 wrote:thanks everyone! sounds like transferring to a T-6 is ill-advised for a number of understandable reasons. I know that a 3.7/top 10% ranking would put me completely out of the running at Y and S, but what about H? What sort of grades coming from MVP would make someone a viable candidate?

Thank you again!

From what I've heard, top 10% is competitive for Harvard. If you apply to all three you might snag one. It's far from a certainty of course. H is easily your best shot of the 3.

I don't see what doors open at Columbia that aren't open at top 10% at MVP. Generally those places are (slightly) preferred because those around median do better - at the top, you're going to get the same firms pretty much. I guess Yale would potentially open some doors, but once again, unless you're targeting academia, I don't really see the point.

I was at a T20 and got into H with top 10%. We have a couple of MVPB transfers who were in your position or slightly worse. Since money appears to not be an issue, you should just think about whether you want to move on 3 weeks notice this summer.

thanks everyone. this is all really helpful info. definitely gives me a lot to think about. sounds like a transfer to C/N would be ill-advised.

i'm surprised top 10% at mvp would be competitive for H, i figured i'd need to wind up top 5% at the very least; apparently i don't know enough about this process. either way the more i think about it the more i think this may all be a moot point. i honestly think it was a fluke that i ended up where i did this past semester, i'm so doubtful i'll be able to replicate my exam performance this spring. i got an A+ in one of my classes and it just makes no sense to me (and no, this is not a humblebrag, i am legitimately perplexed as to how the hell that happened). here's to hoping i (and all of you wonderful TLS people) do well this spring!

thanks so much again. you guys are a fantastic bunch

Transfer to HLS.

CounselorNebby wrote:Transfer to HLS.

Eh. Transferring to H won't make a difference for big law prospects and will, if anything, hurt the OP's clerkship prospects.

I suppose it's possible that a HLS degree would improve the OP's exit options for certain career paths. And, relatedly, transferring would expand the OP's network.

Personally, I wouldn't do it, but I can see why one would.

Don't transfer to H.. don't ruin your diploma

As noted above, you'd be giving up a great class rank & almost certain placement at a top firm as well as a strong likelihood of law review membership (although there are some opportunities for transfers to write-on to law review). In my opinion, you need a stronger reason for transferring than just the possibility of added prestige. Top 10% at Penn, Virginia and Michigan should open a lot of doors on both coasts. Nevertheless, Harvard would be tough to turn down. (It would be more interesting if you were seeking placement within the federal government.)

Actually, if you're paying sticker and think you'd qualify for need-based aid at HYS, maybe it's worth transferring up there?

No