USF Law Current Students Forum

[longroad]

Hello,

I was just admitted to USF from the waitlist and I am accepting and depositing. Everything seems great about the school and I am very excited. It is my ideal location, etc. I was just wondering if any current students would be willing to answer some questions for me. I don't know anyone who goes/has gone there and I would really appreciate feedback from employment prospects to summer work to feelings about the school.

Thank you in advance!

[scuzle]

Congratulations! Well, I am still waitlisted and am probably going attend McGeorge, but I went undergrad at USF, so I can tell you a little. One, the area in which the school is located is safe and comfortable, but does not offer that much in the ways of entertainment. However, as you will be a 1L, and wont be doing thaaaat much it should be negligible, but the beautiful thing about San Francisco is that everything is about a 12 dollar cab ride away. The Haight is close which offers a lot of boutique shopping and good dining. As an undergrad they gave you a muni pass, so if they do that for law students then transportation is very easy. The law school is really nice. We had access to the law library as undergrads and I did many hours of studying there. Its brand new and is absolutely gorgeous, there are many extremely quiet places to study, and great reading rooms to reserve. When I visited there everyone was super nice and there is a really cool vibe. It doesn't seem, from what I have gathered from visiting and talking to students, as an overtly competitive place.

In terms of job prospects this is where it gets sketchy. One thing that is awesome is that it has an extremely high bar pass rate and the avg starting salary is 90k for private practice. However, considering SF is one of the most expensive places in the country in terms of COL 90k, if you add debt will be a stretching finances, that is if you chose to live in SF. With BART you can easily commute from alternate bay area living locations. You have to remember that the schools you will be competing for, in terms of job opportunities, are Boalt, Stanford, Hastings and Santa Clara all of which are higher ranked, not to mention the imports from similarly ranked McGeorge (largely isolated to Sac though) and new powerhouse Davis. If you are ranked top 15% and higher in the class you will be competitive for big law. However, there is an 85% chance that says you wont do that. However, SF boasts a humongous legal market, so USF, like many regional law schools in the molds of McGeorge and Santa Clara, thrive on placement in mid-level firms. If you look to many of these firms in SF you will see USF grads. My suggestion would be to email one of them and see if they will talk to you! That is the best way to get candid advice. But, overall, in ignorance of what many of the cynics who post here, USF is a good law school, not great but good. You have to remember that its about you and how you take advantage of the opportunity. If you are ambitious and a hard worker you should be able to excel! I hope this helps! PM me if you want to know anything else! Congratulations again!

[longroad]

thank you for the reply. that was helpful! if anyone else who went there for school (law or otherwise) and has more info, please post. thank you

[itforthat]

I was accepted to USF.
So I don't know if I should go to USF or McGeorge.
Good luck at USF!

[scuzle]

I was accepted to USF.
So I don't know if I should go to USF or McGeorge.
Good luck at USF!

Come to McGeorge!

[itforthat]

I was accepted to USF.
So I don't know if I should go to USF or McGeorge.
Good luck at USF!

Come to McGeorge!

How come?

[scuzle]

Because I am going there. Lol, no. If you want candid advice I feel that they are the same from an educational standpoint. From a reputation standpoint, USF probably has a slight edge in employment in San Francisco, but you still have to grad top 15% and higher to have a shot. I wasn't not trying to pass a value judgement just trying to be funny. In my opinion they are apples and apples.

[itforthat]

You're right. USF and McGeorge are similarly ranked. It depends on where one wants to live and work.