For WUSTL Applicants Forum

[robin600]

So this has really nothing do to with admissions but I decided to post here anyways. Why is WUSTL getting such a bad rap on TLS for hiring prospects and such? Like I see people choosing ND or Vanderbilt over WUSTL with a lot of money? Am I on crack or what am I missing here?

Vanderbilt is a TLS favorite because of their biglaw placement, the campus/atmosphere, degree portability, and Nashville. It is an objectively better school than WUSTL, but if you want the Midwest (like myself), then WUSTL is the better option. I turned down 60k at Vandy for 75k at WUSTL, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't second-guess myself. But I think I made the right choice since I want STL and the Midwest. But Vandy clearly owns everywhere else though.

ND... meh. They have some big-time trolls on this site and I think they drown a lot a lot of people out. WUSTL/ND are peers so it mostly comes down to preference. I'd also so ND is better for California, but I think a person would be wrong to pick either if they want the West Coast. Don't worry too much about people picking ND over WUSTL, because I know a few people who picked WUSTL over ND.

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit. Maybe more people go to Vandy wanting a biglaw job so they get it? I don't think there's going to be some employer who's like well they're from Vandy so I need to choose him/her over someone with the same qualifications from WUSTL (unless he's a Vandy grad himself).Maybe more WUSTL students want to stay in the midwest, whereas Vandy students don't like the south central area (not a huge amount of prospects)? IDK it's really boggling my mind right now as I'm contemplating withdrawing from waitlists.

PS- romo you're always on FB and TLS when I am, stalker (lol j/k )!

[Regionality]

So this has really nothing do to with admissions but I decided to post here anyways. Why is WUSTL getting such a bad rap on TLS for hiring prospects and such? Like I see people choosing ND or Vanderbilt over WUSTL with a lot of money? Am I on crack or what am I missing here?

Vanderbilt is a TLS favorite because of their biglaw placement, the campus/atmosphere, degree portability, and Nashville. It is an objectively better school than WUSTL, but if you want the Midwest (like myself), then WUSTL is the better option. I turned down 60k at Vandy for 75k at WUSTL, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't second-guess myself. But I think I made the right choice since I want STL and the Midwest. But Vandy clearly owns everywhere else though.

ND... meh. They have some big-time trolls on this site and I think they drown a lot a lot of people out. WUSTL/ND are peers so it mostly comes down to preference. I'd also so ND is better for California, but I think a person would be wrong to pick either if they want the West Coast. Don't worry too much about people picking ND over WUSTL, because I know a few people who picked WUSTL over ND.

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit. Maybe more people go to Vandy wanting a biglaw job so they get it? I don't think there's going to be some employer who's like well they're from Vandy so I need to choose him/her over someone with the same qualifications from WUSTL (unless he's a Vandy grad himself).Maybe more WUSTL students want to stay in the midwest, whereas Vandy students don't like the south central area (not a huge amount of prospects)? IDK it's really boggling my mind right now as I'm contemplating withdrawing from waitlists.

PS- romo you're always on FB and TLS when I am, stalker (lol j/k )!

I've thought a lot about this concept as well...and I find it boggling that any T15-T35 school can't place reasonably well throughout the country because they all have about the same median GPA's and LSAT's coming in (so about the same skill potential)...why are employers so incapable/lazy of knowing that William and Mary students are as good as Iowa students are as good as Davis students etc etc?? What's up with the REGIONALITY of all law schools that clearly have highly competent students in the first place?

Whatever the answer to this question is is the same answer as to why WUSTL doesn't place well in CA.

[romothesavior]

So this has really nothing do to with admissions but I decided to post here anyways. Why is WUSTL getting such a bad rap on TLS for hiring prospects and such? Like I see people choosing ND or Vanderbilt over WUSTL with a lot of money? Am I on crack or what am I missing here?

Vanderbilt is a TLS favorite because of their biglaw placement, the campus/atmosphere, degree portability, and Nashville. It is an objectively better school than WUSTL, but if you want the Midwest (like myself), then WUSTL is the better option. I turned down 60k at Vandy for 75k at WUSTL, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't second-guess myself. But I think I made the right choice since I want STL and the Midwest. But Vandy clearly owns everywhere else though.

ND... meh. They have some big-time trolls on this site and I think they drown a lot a lot of people out. WUSTL/ND are peers so it mostly comes down to preference. I'd also so ND is better for California, but I think a person would be wrong to pick either if they want the West Coast. Don't worry too much about people picking ND over WUSTL, because I know a few people who picked WUSTL over ND.

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit. Maybe more people go to Vandy wanting a biglaw job so they get it? I don't think there's going to be some employer who's like well they're from Vandy so I need to choose him/her over someone with the same qualifications from WUSTL (unless he's a Vandy grad himself).Maybe more WUSTL students want to stay in the midwest, whereas Vandy students don't like the south central area (not a huge amount of prospects)? IDK it's really boggling my mind right now as I'm contemplating withdrawing from waitlists.

PS- romo you're always on FB and TLS when I am, stalker (lol j/k )!

Well you should be friendly and say hi sometime! Haha...

And yes, I do think Vanderbilt is a better school. They outplaced the lower T14s this year according the NLJ 250 Go-To Schools list and were the only school to improve their biglaw placement. The consensus seems to be that the south's legal market wasn't hit as hard, but Vandy also sends a good chunk to NYC and D.C. as well. They also do very well in clerkships. Turning down Vanderbilt was a hard thing for me to do, and I still question myself sometimes. It is a very, very good school with "older prestige" than Wash U, which has only been a T20 for a little while.

As for the Jewish presence, yes, WUSTL's overall campus has a lot of Jewish folks. There is even a kosher option at the cafeteria. I have no idea how the law school is, but there are a lot of Jews despite the non-religious nature of WUSTL. I'm excited... I'm going to tap into this Jewish network to find out where the cave is.

http://www.southparkstudios.com/clips/2 ... g=jew+cave

[robin600]

So this has really nothing do to with admissions but I decided to post here anyways. Why is WUSTL getting such a bad rap on TLS for hiring prospects and such? Like I see people choosing ND or Vanderbilt over WUSTL with a lot of money? Am I on crack or what am I missing here?

Vanderbilt is a TLS favorite because of their biglaw placement, the campus/atmosphere, degree portability, and Nashville. It is an objectively better school than WUSTL, but if you want the Midwest (like myself), then WUSTL is the better option. I turned down 60k at Vandy for 75k at WUSTL, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't second-guess myself. But I think I made the right choice since I want STL and the Midwest. But Vandy clearly owns everywhere else though.

ND... meh. They have some big-time trolls on this site and I think they drown a lot a lot of people out. WUSTL/ND are peers so it mostly comes down to preference. I'd also so ND is better for California, but I think a person would be wrong to pick either if they want the West Coast. Don't worry too much about people picking ND over WUSTL, because I know a few people who picked WUSTL over ND.

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit. Maybe more people go to Vandy wanting a biglaw job so they get it? I don't think there's going to be some employer who's like well they're from Vandy so I need to choose him/her over someone with the same qualifications from WUSTL (unless he's a Vandy grad himself).Maybe more WUSTL students want to stay in the midwest, whereas Vandy students don't like the south central area (not a huge amount of prospects)? IDK it's really boggling my mind right now as I'm contemplating withdrawing from waitlists.

PS- romo you're always on FB and TLS when I am, stalker (lol j/k )!

I've thought a lot about this concept as well...and I find it boggling that any T15-T35 school can't place reasonably well throughout the country because they all have about the same median GPA's and LSAT's coming in (so about the same skill potential)...why are employers so incapable/lazy of knowing that William and Mary students are as good as Iowa students are as good as Davis students etc etc?? What's up with the REGIONALITY of all law schools that clearly have highly competent students in the first place?

Whatever the answer to this question is is the same answer as to why WUSTL doesn't place well in CA.

I get the regional thing, already took that into account. I think I got the answer I needed though....maybe

PS-SP clip=epic!

[JCougar]

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit.

This already happens when firms choose to do OCI at some schools and not others. Vanderbilt places more people into biglaw than some of the T14. In fact, as far as big firm placement, there really is no more T14. There's a T15, and Vanderbilt isn't even on the bottom of the T15.

As far as non-biglaw jobs go, I'm not sure how much of a difference there would be. But I really think Vanderbilt should have a lock on that 15th ranking. The other 15-18 schools are all super-regionals (like Texas, UCLA, and USC), but Vandy places its students nationally (although it is aided in this by not having a huge home market that sucks everybody in).

As far as Notre Dame goes, it certainly is no better than WUSTL, and St. Louis beats them in quality of life by a mile. ND's placement the last couple of years has been virtually identical to Wash U., despite its national name recognition.

[quadsixm]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

[Regionality]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

LA sucks. Go Giants.

[Regionality]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

And LA does suck: traffic, pollution, urban sprawl, superficial people, organic vegetarian diets for pets, plastic surgery everywhere, and not too many interesting, walkable neighborhoods.

[Thomas Jefferson]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

You just listed 5 reasons not to go Cali. To recap: (1) high cost of living (expensive just to get a meal), (2) big cities (read: congestion, among other things), (3) slutty women, (4) stuck up movie star types, and (5) the Lakers. I'll concede the weather though; that was the only one I couldn't twist

[Regionality]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

You just listed 5 reasons not to go Cali. To recap: (1) high cost of living (expensive just to get a meal), (2) big cities (read: congestion, among other things), (3) slutty women, (4) stuck up movie star types, and (5) the Lakers. I'll concede the weather though; that was the only one I couldn't twist

+ ∞ (qualified just to SoCal...so infinity might be a bit much)

[quadsixm]

Ha! Didn't mean for this to turn into a thread hijack.

Most people who live and work in SoCal love it... It's always outsiders (or people from NorCal) that hate on the place.

LA is a bit crowded, to be sure... but have you visited San Diego? Orange County? It's like living in Hawaii but with big-city amenities.

[Regionality]

Ha! Didn't mean for this to turn into a thread hijack.

Most people who live and work in SoCal love it... It's always outsiders (or people from NorCal) that hate on the place.

LA is a bit crowded, to be sure... but have you visited San Diego? Orange County? It's like living in Hawaii but with big-city amenities.

I thought that was Honolulu...but yea, NorCalifornians hate on you guys for baseball and lifestyle reasons. I personally love fog.

[myq]

As for the Jewish presence, yes, WUSTL's overall campus has a lot of Jewish folks. There is even a kosher option at the cafeteria. I have no idea how the law school is, but there are a lot of Jews despite the non-religious nature of WUSTL. I'm excited... I'm going to tap into this Jewish network to find out where the cave is.

I'm Jewish (from South Florida) and whenever a Cohen or Goldstein find out I'm going to WUSTL they're really impressed, while it seems like most gentiles here are like "Oh. Um, in Seattle? Is that a good school?" Apparently about one-third of the undergrad is Jewish. I was just at Beijing's only kosher deli a couple weeks ago and I ran into the director of WUSTL's Beijing program there.

[fl0w]

Now that we are addressing how the trolls portray WashU, is there any merit to their WashJew remarks?...

went there for undergrad. it is absolutely 100% verified.

[sibley]

As for the Jewish presence, yes, WUSTL's overall campus has a lot of Jewish folks. There is even a kosher option at the cafeteria. I have no idea how the law school is, but there are a lot of Jews despite the non-religious nature of WUSTL. I'm excited... I'm going to tap into this Jewish network to find out where the cave is.

I'm Jewish (from South Florida) and whenever a Cohen or Goldstein find out I'm going to WUSTL they're really impressed, while it seems like most gentiles here are like "Oh. Um, in Seattle? Is that a good school?" Apparently about one-third of the undergrad is Jewish. I was just at Beijing's only kosher deli a couple weeks ago and I ran into the director of WUSTL's Beijing program there.

I can only compare my family to my boyfriend's, but his is always super impressed and talking about how excellent it is. Mine (is not jewish) and is just like "that's good." but I can't do MO. too far. my undergrad was 'officiall' 18% jewish but that was just what the tour guides said, the real numbers were over 1/3. washu law's old dean became our president. he's a seligman.

[karmakmsa]

my undergrad was 'officiall' 18% jewish but that was just what the tour guides said, the real numbers were over 1/3.

well hey that's terrible.

[JCougar]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Just got in off the hold list!!

[JCougar]

Can anyone tell me how long it takes to get scholarship info?

[fl0w]

Can anyone tell me how long it takes to get scholarship info?

congrats bud! i know a lot of people were pulling for you.

I was admitted March 22nd.
I got scholly info March 25th.

Dunno if it will take longer because of 2nd deposit just passing and all.

[JCougar]

Can anyone tell me how long it takes to get scholarship info?

congrats bud! i know a lot of people were pulling for you.

I was admitted March 22nd.
I got scholly info March 25th.

Dunno if it will take longer because of 2nd deposit just passing and all.

Thanks!

And thanks to all that were pulling for me. When I visited the campus, I knew it was the right place for me. So I got a little obsessed.

[lawcycle2010]

Can anyone tell me how long it takes to get scholarship info?

congrats bud! i know a lot of people were pulling for you.

I was admitted March 22nd.
I got scholly info March 25th.

Dunno if it will take longer because of 2nd deposit just passing and all.

Thanks!

And thanks to all that were pulling for me. When I visited the campus, I knew it was the right place for me. So I got a little obsessed.

So does that mean you're freeing up a spot for me at UW??? Please....

[JCougar]

Can anyone tell me how long it takes to get scholarship info?

congrats bud! i know a lot of people were pulling for you.

I was admitted March 22nd.
I got scholly info March 25th.

Dunno if it will take longer because of 2nd deposit just passing and all.

Thanks!

And thanks to all that were pulling for me. When I visited the campus, I knew it was the right place for me. So I got a little obsessed.

So does that mean you're freeing up a spot for me at UW??? Please....

I'll wait to see about scholarship money to make any final decisions. I guess if I get offered similar money to others with my numbers, my decision will be made.

[romothesavior]

I have a hard time believing people from Vanderbilt are going to get assumed favor over people from WUSTL with same class placement/experience/other important shit.

This already happens when firms choose to do OCI at some schools and not others. Vanderbilt places more people into biglaw than some of the T14. In fact, as far as big firm placement, there really is no more T14. There's a T15, and Vanderbilt isn't even on the bottom of the T15.

As far as non-biglaw jobs go, I'm not sure how much of a difference there would be. But I really think Vanderbilt should have a lock on that 15th ranking. The other 15-18 schools are all super-regionals (like Texas, UCLA, and USC), but Vandy places its students nationally (although it is aided in this by not having a huge home market that sucks everybody in).

As far as Notre Dame goes, it certainly is no better than WUSTL, and St. Louis beats them in quality of life by a mile. ND's placement the last couple of years has been virtually identical to Wash U., despite its national name recognition.

A lot of this is simply ITE though. I think it is too soon to say Vandy>>>lower T14 for biglaw. Recently? Yes. But if and when the legal economy bounces back, I don't think it will stay that way. Especially if NYC starts to get back on its feet, I'd imagine Cornell will reassert itself.

[JOThompson]

Coming from SoCal, I think that UCLA and SC are regional because of self-selection. I was born out of state, but after living there for many, many years... to be honest, I can't see why anybody would want to leave. Beautiful weather, amazing dining, huge legal market right there in your backyard, tanned & gorgeous women, and lots and lots to do (the Hollywood scene, miles and miles of beaches, the Lakers, etc...) If I had the GPA to get in, I'd have gone to UCLA or SC in a heartbeat.

As far as ND in SoCal, there is a lot more lay prestige than WUSTL. Everybody knows ND; most people have never heard of Wash U. They usually think I'm talking about the University of Washington. That could be because Notre Dame plays USC and UCLA on a regular basis. I have no idea how that difference in lay prestige translates to hiring partners, though.

You just listed 5 reasons not to go Cali. To recap: (1) high cost of living (expensive just to get a meal), (2) big cities (read: congestion, among other things), (3) slutty women, (4) stuck up movie star types, and (5) the Lakers. I'll concede the weather though; that was the only one I couldn't twist

Smog sometimes undercuts the value of the nice weather IMO.

[NU_Jet55]

my undergrad was 'officiall' 18% jewish but that was just what the tour guides said, the real numbers were over 1/3.

well hey that's terrible.

+1