UC Hastings Students Taking Questions Forum

[rmp]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

[Lasers]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

[westbayguy]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

Unless you are sure you will be top 20% at Hastings, goto NYU. Maybe if you want SF Big Law and think you'll be top of class, then MAYBE Hastings has an edge. Otherwise, NYU has MUCH better job prospects. You may have to do time in NYC Big Law, where NYU gives you a huge leg up , but once you do 3 years Big Law in NYC you'll be set to come back to the west coast. You'll have to take the Cali bar, but if you can swing it, do it this way

[lisavj]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

It sounds to me like hastings is free for him (It's a UC law school), which makes it a tough choice for me. I think the only contenders would be NYU at sticker, Davis, or Hastings (b/c Davis/Hastings seem like they'd be free for you?)

What do you want to do? Biglaw or bust? B/c then top 10% is important (westbayguy is right). I don't know anyone outside top 10% who got biglaw. (correction, I know one 3L). Of course your LSAT doesn't determine how you do in law school, I'm proof of that IMHO. Or do you want to do something else? (make sure it's law, or else you're just wasting 3 years, even if they are free)...Like I said, hard decision to make.

edit: there is no way to be sure you will be top 20% as far as I know.

[Lasers]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

It sounds to me like hastings is free for him (It's a UC law school), which makes it a tough choice for me. I think the only contenders would be NYU at sticker, Davis, or Hastings (b/c Davis/Hastings seem like they'd be free for you?)

What do you want to do? Biglaw or bust? B/c then top 10% is important (westbayguy is right). I don't know anyone outside top 10% who got biglaw. (correction, I know one 3L). Of course your LSAT doesn't determine how you do in law school, I'm proof of that IMHO. Or do you want to do something else? (make sure it's law, or else you're just wasting 3 years, even if they are free)...Like I said, hard decision to make.

edit: there is no way to be sure you will be top 20% as far as I know.

just wanted to stress how important this is. top 10% at hastings gives you a good shot at biglaw; anything from 10-15% you have a shot (but not a good one), and anything outside top 15% is rough. i know several people in the 15-25% range that have had a lot of trouble landing decent gigs. the only people i know outside top 10% that landed something at hastings were those that went to foreign offices (proficient in another language) or had good backgrounds for IP work.

[Lasers]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

Unless you are sure you will be top 20% at Hastings, goto NYU. Maybe if you want SF Big Law and think you'll be top of class, then MAYBE Hastings has an edge. Otherwise, NYU has MUCH better job prospects. You may have to do time in NYC Big Law, where NYU gives you a huge leg up , but once you do 3 years Big Law in NYC you'll be set to come back to the west coast. You'll have to take the Cali bar, but if you can swing it, do it this way

top 20% is unlikely to get you biglaw, if that's what OP wants. and i wouldn't bank on making it to the top of the class; hastings is not nearly as competitive as it was years ago, but it is still a very competitive school. students are far more grade conscious than many of the students i've seen at other law schools.

[kapital98]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

It sounds to me like hastings is free for him (It's a UC law school), which makes it a tough choice for me. I think the only contenders would be NYU at sticker, Davis, or Hastings (b/c Davis/Hastings seem like they'd be free for you?)

I think this is TCR. If Hastings is free then it is a pretty good deal. All you will be paying is cost of living (~$20k per year). Even if you do poorly the first semester, you can just drop out.

IMO, the only reason to go to NYU is if you are hell bent on biglaw.

[Mick Haller]

Top 15 and 20% at Hastings is not likely to land big law or fed gov or anything else highly desirable. Possible, but not likely.

I was top 15% and have a nice job at a mid size insurance defense firm at $75k.

[hiima3L]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons. question is -- i'm waitlisted at USC and NYU. should i be admitted, what are your thoughts on accepting a quarter of a million in debt for the job prospects at these schools? visited both and loved them. i have not visited hastings yet. i would prob not be top of class as i'm coming in under both medians, but should i get accepted, do you think the employment prospects are worth the loans? i'm confident i can perform well if i am dedicated, but likely not top 10%. cost of living is covered regardless by my parents, but tuition is all me. i love all three cities and would be confident and happy to practice in all three markets. your thoughts are appreciated.

is it possible to retake so you can get some money from the other schools next cycle? how much will your debt load be at all the schools, including hastings? only way i'd go to hastings now is if it were free, or damn close to it.

It sounds to me like hastings is free for him (It's a UC law school), which makes it a tough choice for me. I think the only contenders would be NYU at sticker, Davis, or Hastings (b/c Davis/Hastings seem like they'd be free for you?)

I think this is TCR. If Hastings is free then it is a pretty good deal. All you will be paying is cost of living (~$20k per year). Even if you do poorly the first semester, you can just drop out.

IMO, the only reason to go to NYU is if you are hell bent on biglaw.

I agree, but even then, sticker at NYU can lead to $200k+ of debt. Assuming OP would get biglaw, it's not anywhere near certain that OP could pay that off in the 2-4 years in biglaw that people typically stay.

I think graduating without any debt at a respectable school in your market is hard to pass up. (UCH has horrible employment, but it's still very respected in CA, and I assume OP wants to stay in CA.) I would pick free over banking on biglaw, but that's an entirely personal decision.

[Civic Duty]

Top 15 and 20% at Hastings is not likely to land big law or fed gov or anything else highly desirable. Possible, but not likely.

I was top 15% and have a nice job at a mid size insurance defense firm at $75k.

Did you get a large scholarship from UCH? Or is making $75k a year enough to payback loans? I hope my questions aren't too personal.

[Mick Haller]

Top 15 and 20% at Hastings is not likely to land big law or fed gov or anything else highly desirable. Possible, but not likely.

I was top 15% and have a nice job at a mid size insurance defense firm at $75k.

Did you get a large scholarship from UCH? Or is making $75k a year enough to payback loans? I hope my questions aren't too personal.

I only borrowed about 70k. My after tax income is approx 4400$ per month, loans are 750$ per month. So its a good chunk of my paycheck.

Even if I paid 2000$ per month toward my debt, it would take me roughly 3 years to repay in full. Debt is no joke.

[onionskin]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons.

Can I ask why you, or anyone for that matter, chose UCH over Davis? Given better prospects at UCD and lower COL. Is it really just the difference between living in SF and living in Davis?

[apollo2015]

hastings students - i'm currently deposited and 95% planning to go here. i have a tuition waiver so i can attend any UC law school for free - got into hastings and davis, choosing hastings for several reasons.

Can I ask why you, or anyone for that matter, chose UCH over Davis? Given better prospects at UCD and lower COL. Is it really just the difference between living in SF and living in Davis?

Have the prospects at Davis improved relative to Hastings over the past couple of years? When I was applying to schools Hastings had a clear advantage (not a huge one, but a significant one) over Davis in pretty much every category other than USN&R ranking.

There are a couple of good reasons for picking Davis over Hastings. If you have kids, they would almost certainly be better off in Davis schools over SF schools. If you intend to become a professor of the law, you would probably be better off in the more grad student centric environment of Davis.

Otherwise, when you are starting your career you would be better off in a major urban area where the professional action is.

[onionskin]

Yes Davis's prospects are much better than Hastings's, according to LSN, which is what's making the decision so damn hard.

[kapital98]

Yes Davis's prospects are much better than Hastings's, according to LSN, which is what's making the decision so damn hard.

Tough choice. It comes down to personal preferences. For me, I'd rather live in San Francisco for 3 years and enjoy the amazing weather and urban environment.

It's worth the extra 14% in employment. Keep in mind, this extra 14% is all small to midsized firms. They are essentially equal regarding biglaw and salary.

[jump_man]

Yes Davis's prospects are much better than Hastings's, according to LSN, which is what's making the decision so damn hard.

Tough choice. It comes down to personal preferences. For me, I'd rather live in San Francisco for 3 years and enjoy the amazing weather and urban environment.

It's worth the extra 14% in employment. Keep in mind, this extra 14% is all small to midsized firms. They are essentially equal regarding biglaw and salary.

I haven't been able to find any sources to prove this, but I'm fairly certain that Hastings grads have an easier time finding work in SF than Davis grads. I've heard than many Davis grads end up working in Sacramento, or at smaller firms in the Stockton/Modesto/Lodi/Fresno area.

Many of the older lawyers in SF are completely oblivious to the fact that Hastings has fallen so far in the rankings; they still think the school is T10 material. Just sayin' . . .

[Mick Haller]

You mean I can't be a "professor of the law" with my Hastings JD?

Should have chosen Davis!

[Lasers]

Yes Davis's prospects are much better than Hastings's, according to LSN, which is what's making the decision so damn hard.

Tough choice. It comes down to personal preferences. For me, I'd rather live in San Francisco for 3 years and enjoy the amazing weather and urban environment.

It's worth the extra 14% in employment. Keep in mind, this extra 14% is all small to midsized firms. They are essentially equal regarding biglaw and salary.

not to mention it seems davis has double the school funded jobs. really, hastings and davis are peer schools; davis places too many into sacramento for my liking. both are bad options nowadays.

[hiima3L]

Yes Davis's prospects are much better than Hastings's, according to LSN, which is what's making the decision so damn hard.

Tough choice. It comes down to personal preferences. For me, I'd rather live in San Francisco for 3 years and enjoy the amazing weather and urban environment.

It's worth the extra 14% in employment. Keep in mind, this extra 14% is all small to midsized firms. They are essentially equal regarding biglaw and salary.

I haven't been able to find any sources to prove this, but I'm fairly certain that Hastings grads have an easier time finding work in SF than Davis grads. I've heard than many Davis grads end up working in Sacramento, or at smaller firms in the Stockton/Modesto/Lodi/Fresno area.

Many of the older lawyers in SF are completely oblivious to the fact that Hastings has fallen so far in the rankings; they still think the school is T10 material. Just sayin' . . .

I don't have the raw data either, but it seems generally understood that UCD's employment stats are suspicious. I will credit UCH for being 100% transparent in its employment data.

Also, it's true about UCH's reputation. I've met so many boomer lawyers and laypeople familiar with the school who have said, "Wow, that's impressive!" without a hint of sarcasm when I've told them I went to UCH. I mean, in the 90's it was a top 20 school, so it's not like they're that out of touch.

[onionskin]

The question is will Hastings do a USF in the next three years that we'll be enrolled?

[Lasers]

The question is will Hastings do a USF in the next three years that we'll be enrolled?

what did usf do?

[sfhaze]

I don't have the raw data either, but it seems generally understood that UCD's employment stats are suspicious.

Suspicious is putting it very diplomatically. A couple years ago around the time Davis orchestrated its recent significant rise in USNWR rank all the way into the low 20s (i.e., the 2011 version) it was claiming 9 month employment on par with Stanford and Boalt. Higher than both actually, if I recall correctly, and well above that of UCLA/USC. Even if this was honest reporting, hard to believe Davis' claimed employment was/is comparable. Anyway, this should speak for itself unless you're inclined to believe Davis is actually a peer of these schools.

[lisavj]

The question is will Hastings do a USF in the next three years that we'll be enrolled?

what did usf do?

I'm guessing it's a reference to the 38 slot nosedive...

[hiima3L]

The question is will Hastings do a USF in the next three years that we'll be enrolled?

It doesn't matter, really. The difference between the top 20ish schools and top 70ish schools is not that significant.

[onionskin]

38 slots was only this year, it's been slipping for the past few.

Where was Davis before it shot up into the 20s?