Law schools in great family places Forum

[Danteshek]

There are also very good Catholic schools that charge under $15,000.

Loyola High School:

Tuition: $13,240
Registration: $350
Fees: $650

[Danteshek]

I went to Harvard Westlake (the best private school in LA). Tuition is not $40,000.

Tuition $29,200
New Student Fee
$2,000
Bus Service (optional) $1,850*
Other Costs $2,000**

*Middle School service.
Upper School service (subsidized) is $999.

**Books, meals, activities, etc. Typical, but subject to variation.

$30K a year for K-12? That's insane.

7-12. You get what you pay for. Over 50% of my classmates went to Ivy League colleges.

[03121202698008]

There are also very good Catholic schools that charge under $15,000.

Loyola High School:

Tuition: $13,240
Registration: $350
Fees: $650

$15K for K-12 is still insane...especially on student loans when your wife doesn't work (read OP). They aren't raising your student budget for that either.

[03121202698008]

I went to Harvard Westlake (the best private school in LA). Tuition is not $40,000.

Tuition $29,200
New Student Fee
$2,000
Bus Service (optional) $1,850*
Other Costs $2,000**

*Middle School service.
Upper School service (subsidized) is $999.

**Books, meals, activities, etc. Typical, but subject to variation.

$30K a year for K-12? That's insane.

7-12. You get what you pay for. Over 50% of my classmates went to Ivy League colleges.

I know people who went to Ivy leagues that are idiots and unemployed. I know people who went to Penn State that make $400K a year. I think I'd rather my kid go to a good public school and not grow up feeling entitled.

Besides, you could probably save that $15K a year and make a donation to any ivy league school and get your kid in anyhow.

[Danteshek]

Loyola High School is not K-12.

There are lots of Catholic K-8 schools that charge around 6-8k per year.

[Danteshek]

I went to Harvard Westlake (the best private school in LA). Tuition is not $40,000.

Tuition $29,200
New Student Fee
$2,000
Bus Service (optional) $1,850*
Other Costs $2,000**

*Middle School service.
Upper School service (subsidized) is $999.

**Books, meals, activities, etc. Typical, but subject to variation.

$30K a year for K-12? That's insane.

7-12. You get what you pay for. Over 50% of my classmates went to Ivy League colleges.

I know people who went to Ivy leagues that are idiots and unemployed. I know people who went to Penn State that make $400K a year. I think I'd rather my kid go to a good public school and not grow up feeling entitled.

Besides, you could probably save that $15K a year and make a donation to any ivy league school and get your kid in anyhow.

Haha you obviously know nothing about (1) the advantages of attending an elite college and (2) how admission to elite colleges work.

[03121202698008]

Loyola High School is not K-12.

There are lots of Catholic K-8 schools that charge around 6-8k per year.

The early years are the most formative and when you get the biggest bang for private school. Why would you go public in LA and then switch then? I was estimating same amount for K-6. $15K for K-12 is still ridiculous...especially for a student.

[KMaine]

I will just say that I know that Ithaca is not everybody's cup of tea, and that is fine. For my kids, it has been great (of course, they are school-age, so the school system was a big factor for me). Yes, it is true that, in many ways, there is "nothing to do" in Ithaca, but this seems more of a consideration for spouses than children. My kids kept pretty busy, and my wife and I can't think of a better place to raise our kids near a good law school.

We live on a dead end street where my kids can ride their bikes. Kids ride their bikes and walk to school in my neighborhood. There is an event at school nearly every week, good town sports, friends in the neighborhood. We have a house with a stream in the back yard, but are 3 minutes from campus, close to downtown (such as it is) and shopping. Of course, I do not know as much about AA, but we did visit there and it seemed pretty nice too, but I did not go there b/c I have an East Coast bias.

[03121202698008]

Haha you obviously know nothing about (1) the advantages of attending an elite college and (2) how admission to elite colleges work.

I was joking about the donation. What are the advantages of "elite" college. BTW, the ivy league is a sports league...nothing to do with educational quality.

[Danteshek]

Loyola High School is not K-12.

There are lots of Catholic K-8 schools that charge around 6-8k per year.

The early years are the most formative and when you get the biggest bang for private school. Why would you go public in LA and then switch then? I was estimating same amount for K-6. $15K for K-12 is still ridiculous...especially for a student.

Wrong again. And once again, you would not pay 15k until 9th grade. K-8 would be around 6-8k. That is a ridiculous steal considering how much better the Catholic schools compared to the public schools. Of course, the child will be better off if his parents can afford to pay for one of the better private schools (which are better than the Catholic schools).

[kevin261186]

Consider the University of Washington. The Pacific Northwest has a ton of family activities, the university is gorgeous and people here have a very nice lifestyle. It's also a regional powerhouse, placing very well into the Seattle market.

[03121202698008]

Loyola High School is not K-12.

There are lots of Catholic K-8 schools that charge around 6-8k per year.

The early years are the most formative and when you get the biggest bang for private school. Why would you go public in LA and then switch then? I was estimating same amount for K-6. $15K for K-12 is still ridiculous...especially for a student.

Wrong again. And once again, you would not pay 15k until 9th grade. K-8 would be around 6-8k. That is a ridiculous steal considering how much better the Catholic schools compared to the public schools. Of course, the child will be better off if his parents can afford to pay for one of the better private schools (which are better than the Catholic schools).

I admit there are some great private schools. There are also some public schools that score higher on standardized tests. I went to a semi-decent public school in PA...classmates went on to MIT, VTech Engineering, etc. Private =/= good. There is something to be said for diversity and life experiences as well though.

You still haven't told me the "benefit" of going to a "elite" school for an undergrad education either...

[Danteshek]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

But it probably wasn't the right choice for me. I wish I had attended USC for undergrad.

[Remnantofisrael]

Minnesota is easily the best place to raise a family!!


http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag ... 18116.html

But one of the worst places to go to law school...

Is it really? Its top 20 is it not? I am missing why it is getting knocked when U Washington and other lower ranking schools aren't? Minnesota was on my long list, should it not be? I mean, obviously T-14 is what I'm hoping for, but is Minnesota higher ranked than it should be?

Also, Private school tuition isn't in the cards right now. And frankly (you can hate me for saying this) any town that has terrible public schools is likely not as "family friendly" as everyone likes to suggest. There are very nice rich areas in LA, I'm sure. But would you let your kids bike over to a neighbor who lives half a mile away or go by themselves to the public swimming pool? At night?

Times are different, I know, but where I grew up, all the kids played outside all summer, no one was worried anything would happen, neighbors looked out for eachother, all the moms hung out and each little community (lets say 4 square miles) had a public pool and so everyone knew lots of people around them. There were block-parties, always people out grilling or drinking a cooler, etc.

[czelede]

Loyola High School is not K-12.

There are lots of Catholic K-8 schools that charge around 6-8k per year.

The early years are the most formative and when you get the biggest bang for private school. Why would you go public in LA and then switch then? I was estimating same amount for K-6. $15K for K-12 is still ridiculous...especially for a student.

Wrong again. And once again, you would not pay 15k until 9th grade. K-8 would be around 6-8k. That is a ridiculous steal considering how much better the Catholic schools compared to the public schools. Of course, the child will be better off if his parents can afford to pay for one of the better private schools (which are better than the Catholic schools).

I admit there are some great private schools. There are also some public schools that score higher on standardized tests. I went to a semi-decent public school in PA...classmates went on to MIT, VTech Engineering, etc. Private =/= good. There is something to be said for diversity and life experiences as well though.

You still haven't told me the "benefit" of going to a "elite" school for an undergrad education either...

I personally don't think you can qualify a school as "elite" unless you're looking at one of the Phillips-esque Academies, but that's just my opinion....

I would also argue that at top public schools, probably the same NUMBER of graduates end up in elite universities in comparison to most private schools like Loyola. Your $ would probably be better saved if your kid was smart enough to go to a magnet school.

[03121202698008]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

[czelede]

Also, Private school tuition isn't in the cards right now. And frankly (you can hate me for saying this) any town that has terrible public schools is likely not as "family friendly" as everyone likes to suggest. There are very nice rich areas in LA, I'm sure. But would you let your kids bike over to a neighbor who lives half a mile away or go by themselves to the public swimming pool? At night?

Times are different, I know, but where I grew up, all the kids played outside all summer, no one was worried anything would happen, neighbors looked out for eachother, all the moms hung out and each little community (lets say 4 square miles) had a public pool and so everyone knew lots of people around them. There were block-parties, always people out grilling or drinking a cooler, etc.

This is another reason to give heavy consideration to AA/Chicago suburbs, in my opinion.

[03121202698008]

Minnesota is easily the best place to raise a family!!


http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag ... 18116.html

But one of the worst places to go to law school...

Is it really? Its top 20 is it not? I am missing why it is getting knocked when U Washington and other lower ranking schools aren't? Minnesota was on my long list, should it not be? I mean, obviously T-14 is what I'm hoping for, but is Minnesota higher ranked than it should be?

Also, Private school tuition isn't in the cards right now. And frankly (you can hate me for saying this) any town that has terrible public schools is likely not as "family friendly" as everyone likes to suggest. There are very nice rich areas in LA, I'm sure. But would you let your kids bike over to a neighbor who lives half a mile away or go by themselves to the public swimming pool? At night?

Times are different, I know, but where I grew up, all the kids played outside all summer, no one was worried anything would happen, neighbors looked out for eachother, all the moms hung out and each little community (lets say 4 square miles) had a public pool and so everyone knew lots of people around them. There were block-parties, always people out grilling or drinking a cooler, etc.

I said Ann Arbor. MN isn't bad if you want to live in MN forever. MN isn't getting you a solid job in NYC. Outside of the T14, rankings mean less and less. There is no difference between 15 and 50. (They don't really mean much in the T14 either except for what firms tend to hire from there.) I also told the OP with his scores he should be concentrating more on top schools. I never mentioned LA.

Edit: Just realized you are the OP. You should be aiming at T14. Outside of there it is regional. Where do you want to live and work after school? Would you want to live in MN permanently? Ann Arbor has great public schools btw.

[czelede]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Some elite preparatory boarding schools do give you a better chance at admissions...arguably through connections, more likely because its self selected (if you can get into and afford a place like Deerfield/Exeter you probably have family connections to begin with or are brilliant enough to go on scholarship)

Most private schools do not fall into this category.

[Danteshek]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite[/b]. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Are you dense? I said "ivy" is shorthand for "elite." Of course MIT is elite.

And of course you can get a great education at a crappy school.

I have very little respect for people who don't value liberal education. I don't care how "elite" their engineering degree is.

[Danteshek]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Some elite preparatory boarding schools do give you a better chance at admissions...arguably through connections, more likely because its self selected (if you can get into and afford a place like Deerfield/Exeter you probably have family connections to begin with or are brilliant enough to go on scholarship)

Most private schools do not fall into this category.

In the LA Area, Harvard Westlake, Malborough and Brentwood do fall into this category. None of these are boarding schools.

[03121202698008]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite[/b]. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Are you dense? I said "ivy" is shorthand for "elite." Of course MIT is elite.

And of course you can get a great education at a crappy school.

I have very little respect for people who don't value liberal education. I don't care how "elite" their engineering degree is.

It's just such an odd designation. Is Cornell for undergrad really that elite? Penn is respected but for undergrad it isn't doing anything for you that justifies $15K a year for high school. Why not send your kid to public school and tutor him/her until they can get a magnet school and then support with tutoring and summer programs?

[czelede]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite[/b]. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Are you dense? I said "ivy" is shorthand for "elite." Of course MIT is elite.

And of course you can get a great education at a crappy school.

I have very little respect for people who don't value liberal education. I don't care how "elite" their engineering degree is.

It's just such an odd designation. Is Cornell for undergrad really that elite? Penn is respected but for undergrad it isn't doing anything for you that justifies $15K a year for high school. Why not send your kid to public school and tutor him/her until they can get a magnet school and then support with tutoring and summer programs?

Penn is actually ranked 4th in the nation for undergraduate studies, behind HYP and tied with CalTech, MIT, and Stanford.

*Not that I'm negating your argument, just saying.

[03121202698008]

Penn is actually ranked 4th in the nation for undergraduate studies, behind HYP and tied with CalTech, MIT, and Stanford.

*Not that I'm negating your argument, just saying.

It is and my brother went to Penn and later work for Penn's business office. But it wasn't like there were recruiters lined up at the door or a sense of awe when he said Penn or anything. Yale/Harvard/Princeton have way more prestige.

Also, he went to public school and I don't know one of his college friends that went to private...

[czelede]

"Ivy" is shorthand for elite. A better school means a better education, more interesting classmates, and more opportunity to do things like research, write a thesis etc.

How does any of that transfer into a better life post-school? MIT is no an ivy. Neither is Virginia Tech (engineering). Those are all elite schools. The ivy has 8 members. There are way more schools that provide those opportunities. I'm not anti-ivy either btw, I have a friend who went to Princeton. But many ivy grads (and private school grads until they hit the real world) have a sense of entitlement and that everything will be gravy because of where they went. The truth is, it's all up to the student. You can get a great education at a shitty school and a shitty education at Harvard.

I'm not sure the school makes any of those benefits except that students who are more motivated to do those things score higher in HS and on SAT and go there.

Some elite preparatory boarding schools do give you a better chance at admissions...arguably through connections, more likely because its self selected (if you can get into and afford a place like Deerfield/Exeter you probably have family connections to begin with or are brilliant enough to go on scholarship)

Most private schools do not fall into this category.

In the LA Area, Harvard Westlake, Malborough and Brentwood do fall into this category. None of these are boarding schools.

I'll give you HW as its the only prep school of the three to ever appear on a top 20 list, but I would argue that East Coast prep school attendees most likely come from families that are connected in more relevant ways.

This entire argument is pointless - OP can't afford private schools to begin with, and even if he could it would be more financially prudent just to live in an area with a great public/magnet school. Numerically wise, many of those schools have excellent placement into elite universities. I think the point blowhard is trying to make is that it's hard to justify 30k a year on high school education alone when you can likely get to the same place through a public school. And to be totally honest, if you aren't well connected/smart enough to get to that place through a top rated public magnet to begin with, your "elite" college degree probably won't get you very far in the long run anyways.