Top Law Schools

The school/Columbia how has the experience been?

Bump

Apparently there arnt too many snowed in sc kids on at 2am

lol

140orBust wrote:The school/Columbia how has the experience been?

+1
Hellllooooo out there...

I applied and would also like some info.... someone please help!

city is abhorrent. poor, high unemployment, high crime, and nothing to do save for college football (with a subpar team)

school's buildings are inferior as well. professors are good from what i gather, but overall not a good place to live/practice

StudentAthlete wrote:city is abhorrent. poor, high unemployment, high crime, and nothing to do save for college football (with a subpar team)

school's buildings are inferior as well. professors are good from what i gather, but overall not a good place to live/practice

Making the SEC Championship is subpar?

StudentAthelete forgot a few things. The place is a stone's throw away from the legislature and the Supreme Court, and the not-for-profit lady is pretty well connected with it. It's one of the nation's oldest nonprofit law departments. If you want to practice law in South Carolina, DO NOT go elsewhere. 90% of the lawyers in one of the most insular markets come from this place. Do the math.

I did a tour two months ago, and had a blast. The students were smart, happy, and very friendly. I and about 10 1Ls (they wanted to learn to do tours and this was the last day to do it) walked around the building. The professors were smart and friendly, and I enjoyed the experience. Couple of caveats: I was flatout told by the students that it was all about contacting and networking rather than 'talent'. The building was a bit dirty, but overall well maintained. There is also a thriving free food stand every day around lunch apparently.

Sure, the building is crappy, but so what? How is that going to seriously impact your legal education? The cost to go is one of the lowest in the nation's and they give out a fair bit of scholarships. http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&start=50

It's my top choice after doing a fair bit of research. Do research and find a good place for you, don't just take other's advice.

Parking sucks though. Find some other mode of transport or prepare to spend time locked in parking-garage combat for spots. The roads are a bit rough around the University as well.

Lived 25 years of my life in South Carolina. Columbia is a hole.

Don't go unless if you want to practice in SC. That is literally the only reason to go to USC. And even then, only go if you can't go to a T1 school.

Could you elaborate on it being a hole? I'm curious, since I'm likely going to move there.

How long have you lived in Columbia, tfleming09? What is your experience based on?

I'm not asking to be say that you don't know what you're talking about, I'd just like to know.

tfleming09 wrote:

Scotusnerd wrote:Could you elaborate on it being a hole? I'm curious, since I'm likely going to move there.

It just sucks. It's dirty and the social scene revolves around football. Bar scene is terrible unless you like bros in visors vomiting on themselves.

It is THE school to go to if you want to practice in South Carolina. I went to undergrad at College of Charleston and know many people that went on to go to law school at South Carolina. The overwhelming majority of lawyers in South Carolina went there.

Also remember that South Carolina is super insular and has a giant network of good ol' boys. Get ready to network your face off, and if you're not from the south or didn't go to a southern undergrad you're going to have a tough time,

I agree with parts of this but not entirely. I've lived in SC my entire life (including undergrad) and I currently work in a law office in Charleston...this is the basis for what I'm about to say.

If you want a GOOD job in SC, you need to go to a tier one school AND have connections. Although the majority of older practicing lawyers went to USC, the most recently hired lawyers in our firm went to UVA and Georgetown. USCjr. is graduating a ton of lawyers, and so is charleston school of law. From what I've heard, many of these lawyers are unemployed.

With that said, I completely agree about Columbia...it's commonly referred to as the armpit of SC.

Thanks for the info, this is the first time I've heard some of it. I'm surprised I haven't heard from too many lawyers or South Carolina/Charleston law students in this thread.

Hopefully some will chime in! I know you're out there!

tfleming09 wrote:

Scotusnerd wrote:Thanks for the info, this is the first time I've heard some of it. I'm surprised I haven't heard from too many lawyers or South Carolina/Charleston law students in this thread.

Hopefully some will chime in! I know you're out there!

I shouldn't give the impression that it's the worst place to live ever, by the way. You just need to be aware that Columbia isn't somewhere you'll probably want to be long term and you should be prepared for a very undergrad-centric lifestyle.

I know plenty of people that went and liked it. Don't mean to be a downer, you just need to know what to expect if you don't already.

+1. Charleston and Greenville are much nicer places to live, but if you can survive Columbia, you can survive anywhere.

Some of my best friends went to USCjr.One of them was robbed twice during undergrad, another was robbed once. All three incidents at gunpoint btw. I'm sure they didn't use their best judgement to get themselves in these situations, but to say that this stuff doesn't ever happen even in the best of circumstances would be misleading. That being said, they loved USC and have been Gamecocks through and through for as long as I've known them. Would definitely NOT recommend moving your family there, my family lived there before I was born and they still talk about how much they hated it. The football team is poised to make some pretty good runs in the next few years if that interests you as well.

Columbia sucks. Don't do it. Greenville and Charleston are the only parts of SC worth being around.