Texas Tech C/O 2016 Applicants Forum

[SPerez]

The Facebook group should be working now. I thought that "Secret" just meant the random public couldn't find the page through search or see who members were (IMO, it's no one's business where you were admitted), but apparently it means "double super underground bunker secret".

I moved it to "Closed", and I've already received a join request so it's working. I just ask that, if your Facebook name is not your real name send me an email with a heads up. I declined one student's join request like 9 times last year because I thought it was spam.

Dean Perez

[lnh819]

Thanks!! You rock!

[JXander]

Withdrew the other day. I hope this opens up a spot for someone else soon.

(And since I totally didn't know this thread was here... here are my dates:
10-15-12: Received
11-05-12: Complete
11-28-12: Admit
11-30-12: Scholly of $13k per semester)

Numbers are on my profile.

[biggemflowers]

Congrats!!!

[JS281]

Any idea how generous Tech is when it comes to scholarships?

[b.gump81]

Any idea how generous Tech is when it comes to scholarships?

I'd say they're fairly decent, but it of course depends on the applicant, like it does at every school. Your numbers, when you apply, etc. will determine how much you will get.

Play around with this site to get a better, more tailored idea. http://texastech.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants

Now, you have to keep in mind that Tech has the second lowest tuition in the state and Lubbock has a low cost of living, so Tech is already relatively cheap, even without a scholarship. It kind of blows my mind when I look at all these people on LSN say, " Wow, I just got offered $75,000 for all three years at Baylor/SMU if I stay in top half or whatever." Well, first of all, you are only guaranteed $25,000 of that $75000, so I don't really understand the lumping it all together. Second, even if you do keep the scholarship all three years you still will be paying $60,000 or whatever in tuition because the school's original tuition is so high in the first place. I think people get mesmerized by the dollar amount and lose track of common sense. So just keep in mind that an $8k scholarship per year at tech is about equivalent to a $25k/ year at Baylor/SMU, and that is only IF you even keep it all three years. Just imagine losing the scholarship at Baylor/SMU (or even UH to an extent) and paying sticker for the last two years.

Which brings me to another quick point. Tech will offer merit scholarships to successful students after first and second year. So let's say you kick ass in first year courses and are top 10% or so, Tech will give you a scholarship for the following year. You can also get scholarships (pretty hefty ones too) for attaining certain positions in organizations. I think SBA gets some, and I know exec officers on board of barristers get some pretty big ones. I wouldn't be surprised if the editors in chief and other positions on the journals got some too.

I got a half-ride to Tech, which was a significant reason why I matriculated. I have been very pleased so far, comparing what my debt will be to that of my peers at other Texas schools.

[SPerez]

Any idea how generous Tech is when it comes to scholarships?

Not to hijack this thread, but information on average scholarship amount and % of students receiving scholarships is (and has always been) available in the LSAC/ABA Official Guide to Law Schools online. You just have to click through to view the "ABA Law School Data" PDF for each school.

2 pieces of info: First, the data in the OG is still for the Fall 2011 entering class. Second, the scholarship info is for the whole student body, not just the entering class.

So for example, below is the info for Tech Law.

Total # of FT Students: 671
Total % Receiving Grants: 64.4%
% Less than 1/2 Tuition: 38.9%
% Half to Full Tuition: 15.2%
% Full Tuition: 8.0%
% More than Full Tuition: 2.2%
Median Grant Amount (Full Time Students): $5,384

It amazes me that this data isn't used and discussed more on here.

Dean Perez

[JS281]

Any idea how generous Tech is when it comes to scholarships?

Not to hijack this thread, but information on average scholarship amount and % of students receiving scholarships is (and has always been) available in the LSAC/ABA Official Guide to Law Schools online. You just have to click through to view the "ABA Law School Data" PDF for each school.

2 pieces of info: First, the data in the OG is still for the Fall 2011 entering class. Second, the scholarship info is for the whole student body, not just the entering class.

So for example, below is the info for Tech Law.

Total # of FT Students: 671
Total % Receiving Grants: 64.4%
% Less than 1/2 Tuition: 38.9%
% Half to Full Tuition: 15.2%
% Full Tuition: 8.0%
% More than Full Tuition: 2.2%
Median Grant Amount (Full Time Students): $5,384

It amazes me that this data isn't used and discussed more on here.

Dean Perez

Thanks! Yeah I had no idea. I don't know if my 1 post (I guess 2 now) is any indication of that haha

[A12345]

I do know that it seems Tech has changed from giving more full-ride scholarships in the past to now giving out more scholarships in general, but in lower amounts. This can work both ways depending on where your scores fall on Tech's medians.

[shaker2016]

Very sad right now. My app status hasn't updated in weeks. Doesn't even say in review. My application probably already has dust on it by now. There's probably mold growing on it. Probably a two week old coffee ring on the top page. Already getting word back from other schools I applied to after... Dean Perez, what's goin on over there in Lubbock? I'm dyin for an update here.

[JS281]

Any idea how generous Tech is when it comes to scholarships?

I'd say they're fairly decent, but it of course depends on the applicant, like it does at every school. Your numbers, when you apply, etc. will determine how much you will get.

Play around with this site to get a better, more tailored idea. http://texastech.lawschoolnumbers.com/applicants

Now, you have to keep in mind that Tech has the second lowest tuition in the state and Lubbock has a low cost of living, so Tech is already relatively cheap, even without a scholarship. It kind of blows my mind when I look at all these people on LSN say, " Wow, I just got offered $75,000 for all three years at Baylor/SMU if I stay in top half or whatever." Well, first of all, you are only guaranteed $25,000 of that $75000, so I don't really understand the lumping it all together. Second, even if you do keep the scholarship all three years you still will be paying $60,000 or whatever in tuition because the school's original tuition is so high in the first place. I think people get mesmerized by the dollar amount and lose track of common sense. So just keep in mind that an $8k scholarship per year at tech is about equivalent to a $25k/ year at Baylor/SMU, and that is only IF you even keep it all three years. Just imagine losing the scholarship at Baylor/SMU (or even UH to an extent) and paying sticker for the last two years.

Which brings me to another quick point. Tech will offer merit scholarships to successful students after first and second year. So let's say you kick ass in first year courses and are top 10% or so, Tech will give you a scholarship for the following year. You can also get scholarships (pretty hefty ones too) for attaining certain positions in organizations. I think SBA gets some, and I know exec officers on board of barristers get some pretty big ones. I wouldn't be surprised if the editors in chief and other positions on the journals got some too.

I got a half-ride to Tech, which was a significant reason why I matriculated. I have been very pleased so far, comparing what my debt will be to that of my peers at other Texas schools.

I can't believe I completely looked over this post. Great points in there! Truthfully the price is a huge reason why I'm considering Tech. The merit scholarships that you mentioned also caught my attention.

Despite the price tag, I'm still hesitant about Tech. Mainly because of Lubbock. I really haven't heard the greatest things about the city (I'm open minded about it though). I'm currently at UT and I absolutely love Austin. I definitely have the fear of going from Austin to Lubbock and being miserable. Can anyone provide any insight or comment on this?

[b.gump81]

I can't believe I completely looked over this post. Great points in there! Truthfully the price is a huge reason why I'm considering Tech. The merit scholarships that you mentioned also caught my attention.

Despite the price tag, I'm still hesitant about Tech. Mainly because of Lubbock. I really haven't heard the greatest things about the city (I'm open minded about it though). I'm currently at UT and I absolutely love Austin. I definitely have the fear of going from Austin to Lubbock and being miserable. Can anyone provide any insight or comment on this?

I personally love Lubbock, but it definitely isn’t for everyone. I do think it catches a lot of undeserved flak from people that have never been here or just want to bad mouth Tech undergrad. The best way to decide if you will like a certain town is to visit. I recommend to anyone that is on the fence about Lubbock to just come and visit, and you’ll likely see that its reputation is undeserved and that it is just your typical college town. Lubbock isn’t some podunk town like a lot of people try to make it out to be. It is the 11th biggest city in Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ci ... population), bigger than Waco and College Station combined. It is the third largest city in the Big 12, behind Austin and Ft. Worth. It is the 83rd largest city in the U.S, ahead of Ann Arbor, Charlottesville, Durham, Chapel Hill, Ithaca, Cambridge, Athens, Oxford, etc. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Un ... population)

I like to say that Lubbock is a small town with a big city feel. It has great concerts (Bon Jovi and Awolnation are coming in March), college sports, bars, and restaurants, yet it doesn’t have any traffic and the crime rate is relatively low. The COL should be another consideration. It costs about half of what it would cost to live in Houston or Dallas, which only improves the COA for Tech. Also, the people here are your typical Texans, nice and considerate.

The typical comments against Lubbock are that it always smells and blows dust. There is a stockyard outside of Lubbock, and if the wind blows just right you can smell it. But it isn’t nearly as prevalent as the critics would like you to believe. It happens maybe 5-7 times a year, not nearly enough for it to be a consideration at all. Lubbock does occasionally have dust storms, but who cares? Just go to a car wash a couple extra times a year than you would have in another town. Every city has its negatives, but often they are insignificant or too infrequent. No one really decides not to move to Dallas because they occasionally have tornadoes, do they?

Austin is a great town and a sharp contrast to Lubbock, but that shouldn’t necessarily be an automatic turn-off. You have to keep in mind that you’re not really going to have a lot of time to blow. As a law student, you won’t really have a social life outside of law school, and a huge majority of your time will be spent on class and studying. Lubbock provides everything you need, without too many distractions. And plus, we have an airport, so if you want to travel, it’s not like you’re disconnected from the world. You’re just an hour or so plane ride away from anywhere in the state, and I’m pretty sure Southwest still has that $100 round trip deal to Austin.

Hope that helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Phoebe3216]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

[b.gump81]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

That is a tough decision. To me, it really depends on your resolve for biglaw. If you are absolutely certain that is what you want, then I think you should go to UT. You could get biglaw from Tech with little debt, but you will have a better chance of getting biglaw from UT. If that added opportunity is worth the difference in COA, then you have your answer. Good luck.

[JS281]

I can't believe I completely looked over this post. Great points in there! Truthfully the price is a huge reason why I'm considering Tech. The merit scholarships that you mentioned also caught my attention.

Despite the price tag, I'm still hesitant about Tech. Mainly because of Lubbock. I really haven't heard the greatest things about the city (I'm open minded about it though). I'm currently at UT and I absolutely love Austin. I definitely have the fear of going from Austin to Lubbock and being miserable. Can anyone provide any insight or comment on this?

I personally love Lubbock, but it definitely isn’t for everyone. I do think it catches.....

Thanks! I'll definitely take all of that in consideration.

[A12345]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

If all you want is biglaw then you should go to UT. Biglaw can happen at Tech, but it is not common. Out of my 2L class there is myself and about 10 or so other people (as far as I know) who will be working at a firm with > 100 attorneys this summer. That accounts for about 5% of the class. UT is probably around 35%, but at the same time you will also be competing against smarter classmates (if you assume that lsat and gpa is indicative of intelligence). I wanted biglaw but graduating with a very small amount of debt was also very important to me. I wasn't deadset on biglaw though. I mainly just wanted a decent job.

[Phoebe3216]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

If all you want is biglaw then you should go to UT. Biglaw can happen at Tech, but it is not common. Out of my 2L class there is myself and about 10 or so other people (as far as I know) who will be working at a firm with > 100 attorneys this summer. That accounts for about 5% of the class. UT is probably around 35%, but at the same time you will also be competing against smarter classmates (if you assume that lsat and gpa is indicative of intelligence). I wanted biglaw but graduating with a very small amount of debt was also very important to me. I wasn't deadset on biglaw though. I mainly just wanted a decent job.

Thanks for the reply! Do you mind if I ask how you and the others with the big firm summer jobs got the position? I ask because from my NALP searches I haven't been able to find a ton of mid-size to larger firms that do OCI's at Texas Tech. That is my main concern going in - I don't want to limit my opportunities just because a lot of firms don't want to make the trip out to West Texas.

Making biglaw has always been a dream for me, but I am also extremely debt averse. Really the only reason I am even wavering now is because I'm afraid I'll get passed over for positions just because I would not be graduating from a T20 school.

[Phoebe3216]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

That is a tough decision. To me, it really depends on your resolve for biglaw. If you are absolutely certain that is what you want, then I think you should go to UT. You could get biglaw from Tech with little debt, but you will have a better chance of getting biglaw from UT. If that added opportunity is worth the difference in COA, then you have your answer. Good luck.

Thanks for the reply. Do you have any idea of about how many Tech grads end up in big firms? Also do you by chance know whether those that have ended up there were well connected or made it on grades alone?

[b.gump81]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

That is a tough decision. To me, it really depends on your resolve for biglaw. If you are absolutely certain that is what you want, then I think you should go to UT. You could get biglaw from Tech with little debt, but you will have a better chance of getting biglaw from UT. If that added opportunity is worth the difference in COA, then you have your answer. Good luck.

Thanks for the reply. Do you have any idea of about how many Tech grads end up in big firms? Also do you by chance know whether those that have ended up there were well connected or made it on grades alone?

http://www.law.ttu.edu/career/employment_data.asp

http://employmentsummary.abaquestionnaire.org/

Grades alone or a combo of grades and journal.

[b.gump81]

This is from a tech football forum, and I thought I would copy and paste it over here because it had some good info about Lubbock. It is two years old, so it is a little outdated. I also didn't include all of the pictures the guy had on there because I started getting tired of copying and pasting. They were mainly just pictures of random people partying down in the Depot, so I figured you guys wouldn't care to see those anyways.



Posted: 1/26/2011 5:25 PM
Info On Lubbock
Thought I would share some info for any prospects out there on the city I love and call home: Lubbock, Texas. Lubbock is the 3rd largest city in the Big 12 and the 88th largest city in America. Being a young person in Lubbock is awesome because there are so many other young people, I mean the average age in the city is 29. This makes Lubbock the largest/youngest city in the nation.

A decade ago, Lubbock started the largest urban redevelopment project in the US. The city along with private developers invested $450 million into transforming the old Overton Park neighborhood (across from Tech) into an urban oasis of 10 apartment complexes, 15 restaurants, 10 nightspots, and a 16 story four star hotel. This neighborhood is bordered by Broadway to the south, Marsha Sharp Freeway to the north, University Ave. to the west, and Ave. U to the east. The majority of Tech students and all Tech football players live here (it is located directly across from the football training facility and stadium).

The Overton Park redevelopment coincides with a $200 million dollar commitment by Texas Tech to provide the best facilities for student athletes. Jones AT&T Stadium (named AT&T because a Tech alum was CEO) received $120 million in two new press boxes (84 sky boxes and a restaurant overlooking the field), a 12 story parking garage and rooftop lounge, a new football training facility, and the addition of ten thousand seats. In December 2012 after having the third highest attendance in the Big 12, Tech decided to expand again. The Board of Regents approved "bowling in" the north endzone and adding the eighth largest video board in the nation. Okay, so now that I've given you the rundown... Here's some pics. Enjoy!


CITY STATS:

Lubbock Population: 234,342
City Neighborhoods: 46
City Parks: 72
City Lakes: 21
Average Age: 29


STUDENT POPULATION:

Texas Tech 32,611
South Plains College 10,729
Lubbock Christian 2,135
Wayland Baptist 1,200
Total: 46,675


PLACES TO EAT (In Overton Park across from the stadium):

Blue Mesa Grill (Good)
Blue Monkey Grill
Chick-fil-A
Chili's
Chipotle
Dion's
Firehouse Subs
Jack in The Box
Overton Park Hotel Restaurant
Papa John's
Raising Caine's
Red Hana
Ruby Tequilas (Recommended)
Spanky's
Starbucks
Which Which


NIGHTLIFE:

DEPOT DISTRICT:
Klusoz - Capacity: 400 - Music: Hip Hop & Electro
Taboo - Capacity: 300 - Music: Hip Hop & Electro
Kongs Lounge - Capacity: 200 - Music: Hip Hop & Electro
Melt Lounge - Capacity: 200 - Music: Eclectic
The Library - Capacity: 400 - Music: Hip Hop
Louie Louie's Piano Bar - Capacity: 300 - Music: Live
La Diosa Cellars - Capacity: 100 - Music: Live
Lone Star Oyster Bar - Capacity: 300 - Music: Live
Tequila Jungle - Capacity: 700 - Music: Hip Hop
Triple J Brewery - Capacity: 200 - Music: Eclectic
Cactus Courtyard - Capacity: 800 - Music: Live
Blue Light - Capacity: 300 - Music: Country
Tom's Daquiri Lounge - Capacity: 100 - Music: Eclectic
Thirsty Turtle - Capacity: 200 - Music: Hip Hop
O'Reillys Irish Pub - Capacity: 100 - Music: Eclectic
Bash Riprocks - Capacity: 200 - Music: Live
Firehouse - Capacity: 500 - Music: Live

SOUTH DEPOT DISTRICT:
Wild West - Capacity: 1500 - Music: Country
Daquiri Lounge - Capacity: 1500 - Music: Hip Hop
Heaven - Capacity: 400 - Music: Electro
Van Gogh - Capacity: 400 - Music: Hip Hop
Diablo's Cantina - Capacity: 300 - Music: Hip Hop/Tejano

BROADWAY/OVERTON PARK:
Chimy's - Capacity: 200 - Music: Eclectic
Mesquites - Capacity: 200 - Music: Eclectic
Bar PM - Capacity: 300 - Music: Live & Eclectic
Crickets - Capacity: 400 - Music: Live
Blue Monkey - Capacity: 400 - Top 40 / Electro
Fuzzy's - Capacity: 200 - Music: Eclectic
Overton Hotel Lounge: 100 - Music: Lounge
The Roof @ 12th Story RaiderPark: 500 - Music: Electro
Local - Capacity: 200 - Music: Live
Bash Riprocks - Capacity: 400 - Music: Live
The Raider - Capacity: 300 - Music: Hip Hop


LARGEST SHOPPING MALLS:

South Plains Mall: 167 Stores
Kingsgate: 46 Stores
Canyon West: 25 Stores


MOVIE THEATERS:

Cinemark Movies 16: 16 Screens
Cinemark Tinseltown: 17 Screens
Premiere Cinemas: 16 Screens
Science Spectrum Omnimax: 2 Screens
Stars & Strips Drive-In: 4 Screens


WINERIES:

Caprock Winery
Llano Estacado Winery
McPherson Cellars Winery
Pheasant Ridge Winery


GOLF COURSES:

Chaparral Ridge
Hillcrest Country Club
Lakeridge Country Club
Lubbock Country Club
Meadowbrook Golf Course
Reese Golf Course
Shadow Hills Golf Course
Stone Gate Golf Course
Texas Tech's Rawls Course (Ranked 2nd out of 1,000 public golf courses in Texas)


SCHOOL/CITY SIZE:

1. Texas 50,995
2. Texas Tech 32,611
3. Oklahoma 29,931
4. West Virginia 29,616
5. Kansas 29,462
6. Iowa State 28,682
7. Kansas State 24,378
8. Oklahoma State 23,459
9. Baylor 14,769
10. Tcu 9,518

1. Austin (Texas) 817,402 (National Rank: 13)
2. Fort Worth (Tcu) 780,161 (National Rank: 16)
3. Lubbock (Texas Tech) 234,342 (National Rank: 88)
4. Waco (Baylor) 125,705 (National Rank: 213)
5. Norman (Oklahoma) 113,620 (National Rank: 239)
6. Lawrence (Kansas) 89,069 (National Rank: 359)
7. Ames (Iowa State) 60,259 (National Rank: 622)
8. Manhattan (Kansas State) 53,513 (National Rank: 734)
9. Stillwater (Oklahoma State) 46,777 (National Rank: 873)
10. Morgantown (West Virginia) 30,293 (National Rank: 1405)

KNOWN FOR:

Texas Tech
Beautiful Women - (2010, 2009)
Music (Buddy Holly, John Denver)
Wineries & Emerging Art Scene - Link
300 Days of Sunshine A Year - (Summer Pool Parties Are Amazing!)


THE CITY:
















TEXAS TECH:


























LIFESTYLE AND FOOTBALL GAMEDAY:








--ImageRemoved--

[A12345]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

That is a tough decision. To me, it really depends on your resolve for biglaw. If you are absolutely certain that is what you want, then I think you should go to UT. You could get biglaw from Tech with little debt, but you will have a better chance of getting biglaw from UT. If that added opportunity is worth the difference in COA, then you have your answer. Good luck.

Thanks for the reply. Do you have any idea of about how many Tech grads end up in big firms? Also do you by chance know whether those that have ended up there were well connected or made it on grades alone?

A couple of people i know of with big firm jobs this summer were well-connected. They still had good/great grades and were on law review. Around 5%, give or take a couple of percentage points either way, will probably end up with big law jobs (firms with 100+). I don't know of anyone that has a big firm job that isn't on a journal for what that's worth. If you come to Tech you need to do a journal (preferably law review) if you want a high-paying job.

[A12345]

So I'm super excited about Tech and was given a very very generous scholarship here. My mind was pretty much made up. And then today I got the call that I'm in at UT with some money. I would like to go into Big Law so now I have a very hard decision to make...do I stick with my original plan of attending Tech and hope to do well enough to impress someone in big law, or do I go to the T14 school (I think they may have moved down to 15th with the latest release of rankings but you get the idea)??? Help?

If all you want is biglaw then you should go to UT. Biglaw can happen at Tech, but it is not common. Out of my 2L class there is myself and about 10 or so other people (as far as I know) who will be working at a firm with > 100 attorneys this summer. That accounts for about 5% of the class. UT is probably around 35%, but at the same time you will also be competing against smarter classmates (if you assume that lsat and gpa is indicative of intelligence). I wanted biglaw but graduating with a very small amount of debt was also very important to me. I wasn't deadset on biglaw though. I mainly just wanted a decent job.

Thanks for the reply! Do you mind if I ask how you and the others with the big firm summer jobs got the position? I ask because from my NALP searches I haven't been able to find a ton of mid-size to larger firms that do OCI's at Texas Tech. That is my main concern going in - I don't want to limit my opportunities just because a lot of firms don't want to make the trip out to West Texas.

Making biglaw has always been a dream for me, but I am also extremely debt averse. Really the only reason I am even wavering now is because I'm afraid I'll get passed over for positions just because I would not be graduating from a T20 school.

I got both of my jobs for this summer through OCI. I know a couple of people got theirs through mass mailing, one of which I know had some sort of connection to get the interview. I was able to get other callbacks with larger firms through mass mailing, but the ones I ended up with were at OCI. If you have anymore specific questions feel free to PM me. I don't want to get into too many details here.

[b.gump81]

If you come to Tech you need to do a journal (preferably law review) if you want a high-paying job biglaw.

I know what you're saying, but I just wanted to clarify that biglaw isn't the only "high paying job." With that said, journal can never hurt. But it's definitely not a requisite for making good money (e.g. Greg Fouratt, Mark Lanier, and tons of other examples).

[A12345]

If you come to Tech you need to do a journal (preferably law review) if you want a high-paying job biglaw.

I know what you're saying, but I just wanted to clarify that biglaw isn't the only "high paying job." With that said, journal can never hurt. But it's definitely not a requisite for making good money (e.g. Greg Fouratt, Mark Lanier, and tons of other examples).

I meant coming out of law school. Obviously your law career is what you make of it.

[b.gump81]

That's exactly what I meant too. Using the Greg Fouratt example, USAO may not pay as much as starting biglaw, but I would still qualify it as a "high paying job." Same would go for a starting job at a litigation boutique, some midlaw gig, small oil and gas firm, etc. I was just clarifying that "high paying job" doesn't automatically mean biglaw for everyone and that journal isn't an absolute requirement for a decent paying job. $75,000 or whatever may not be high to you, but it may be high to others, and it certainly is high relative to most fresh law grad jobs.