St. Marys, Texas Wesleyan, or South Texas? Forum

[tarheel354]

I am in need of some advice or insight.

I've been accepted to all three of these Texas schools and I don't really see the difference because they are all Tier 4, have "high" bar passage rates, and really have no ties to Dallas. (Where I am from)

Received 21k at St. Mary's. 32k at Wesleyan. No scholarship at South Texas.

Considering these offers, which of these situations should I consider the most?

Any help would be great!

[ggocat]

I think cost (total indebtedness) should drive your decision with location being a secondary consideration. And if you want Dallas, then certainly Wesleyan seems like a decent option (given the scholarship).

[EBGB]

I have to say, I was in a similar boat. Got $30K from St. Mary's, $40K from TxWes, and $37K from South Texas. I'm not a huge fan of San Antonio in general, so even though St. Mary's is a good school, I didn't really want to live there. I was actually very impressed with TxWes, and I think that if they keep up the progress they've made in their first 20 years, 20 more years could deliver them a pretty solid reputation. They appear to hold their own with the SMU grads in the DFW area. As for South Texas, if you want to do litigation, it's one of the best schools for that. They have really great facilities and a really great reputation (much like TxWes) for having faculty and administration who are happily accessible. They also have pretty active alums. I chose to put my seat deposit with South Texas in the long run because TxWes doesn't really have any reach into the Austin market, but if you're looking to stay in DFW, I have to agree that TxWes might be your best bet.

[tarheel354]

I have to say, I was in a similar boat. Got $30K from St. Mary's, $40K from TxWes, and $37K from South Texas. I'm not a huge fan of San Antonio in general, so even though St. Mary's is a good school, I didn't really want to live there. I was actually very impressed with TxWes, and I think that if they keep up the progress they've made in their first 20 years, 20 more years could deliver them a pretty solid reputation. They appear to hold their own with the SMU grads in the DFW area. As for South Texas, if you want to do litigation, it's one of the best schools for that. They have really great facilities and a really great reputation (much like TxWes) for having faculty and administration who are happily accessible. They also have pretty active alums. I chose to put my seat deposit with South Texas in the long run because TxWes doesn't really have any reach into the Austin market, but if you're looking to stay in DFW, I have to agree that TxWes might be your best bet.

The only thing that worries me about Wesleyan is that the jobs that are generally available in the DFW area coming out of school are not very good for TW grads.

[ggocat]

The only thing that worries me about Wesleyan is that the jobs that are generally available in the DFW area coming out of school are not very good for TW grads.

None of those schools offer a good chance at a high-paying firm job, so you might as well limit your debt as much as possible (again, unless you really want a different city). In a good economy, only 3-4% of South Texas grads got biglaw with about 15% of the class unemployed after nine months. http://www.law.com/img/nlj/charts/composite.pdf. And South Texas is arguably the "best" of the three schools if you follow the typical hierarchy posted on TLS.

[jgrin]

I have to say, I was in a similar boat. Got $30K from St. Mary's, $40K from TxWes, and $37K from South Texas. I'm not a huge fan of San Antonio in general, so even though St. Mary's is a good school, I didn't really want to live there. I was actually very impressed with TxWes, and I think that if they keep up the progress they've made in their first 20 years, 20 more years could deliver them a pretty solid reputation. They appear to hold their own with the SMU grads in the DFW area. As for South Texas, if you want to do litigation, it's one of the best schools for that. They have really great facilities and a really great reputation (much like TxWes) for having faculty and administration who are happily accessible. They also have pretty active alums. I chose to put my seat deposit with South Texas in the long run because TxWes doesn't really have any reach into the Austin market, but if you're looking to stay in DFW, I have to agree that TxWes might be your best bet.

+1

[Berg_Nasty]

I am in the same position as you, and I am sort of leaning towards South Texas because I want to work in the oil industry. I am from San Antonio, and I think that people that have not spent much time here have a relatively ignorant view of what San Antonio is actually like. Most people that visit SA only have been downtown and think that the riverwalk is the only nightlife that SA has to offer. People from SA do not really hang out downtown, only tourists do. If you visit, you should check out the Stone Oak area. It is similar to Plano, and has a lot of bars/restaurants like Addison. It is in the hill country, so it is pretty; and there are a lot of nice pga golf courses. If you are thinking about not going to St. Mary's because you dont really want to live in SA, i think you should reconsider. There are a lot of prominent people here that attended St. Mary's law, and there are good connections in Dallas and Austin. Another thing, the starting salary at St. Mary's is almost $20Gs more than TX Wes. In my opinion St. Mary's is a far better school than TX Wes, and is about equal to South Texas depending on where you are looking for work. And don't pay attention to people that say all tier 4's are equal, because they aren't. If you are a Texan and get a law degree from a Tier 4 TX school, you will have a lot better shot at getting a job in TX than if you went to most Tier 1s out of state. The kids on this site are full of crap, and artificially boost their ego by thinking they will automatically make more $ by going to a Top 50 school.

[irenic]

Throwing Texas Tech into the mix, where do you think it mixes in? I'm from Austin and currently live in San Antonio and I'm increasingly interested in St. Mary's. As far as San Antonio and Austin area are concerned, is St. Mary's the best choice (assuming you aren't accepted into UT or Baylor?

[txag10]

I would definately say STCL. TW and St. Mary's are simply...I often forget the exist. STCL has decent job placement, especially in Houston.

[deadpanic]

I would definately say STCL. TW and St. Mary's are simply...I often forget the exist. STCL has decent job placement, especially in Houston.

Adding in TTU, Lubbock for three years sounds like hell on earth. Probably worse than Afghanistan.

But doesn't TX Tech have in-state tuition? And it isn't a directional law school. no way i would pay full tuition at a directional law school.

none of these are good ideas if you really want to be in dallas; retake.

[txag10]

I would definately say STCL. TW and St. Mary's are simply...I often forget the exist. STCL has decent job placement, especially in Houston.

Adding in TTU, Lubbock for three years sounds like hell on earth. Probably worse than Afghanistan.

But doesn't TX Tech have in-state tuition? And it isn't a directional law school. no way i would pay full tuition at a directional law school.

none of these are good ideas if you really want to be in dallas; retake.

Overall agree.

[emhellmer]

Berg_Nasty has an opinion I respect, and probably knows more about this than me, but I'll throw in my two cents:

1. I am in the market for an attorney who can handle a cut and dry matter. I am not even sure if an attorney is necessary, but better safe than sorry. I have legal insurance that will cover all billable hours for this. However, I am not impressed with ANY of the lawyers who take it. Even if it's simple, I don't want to risk some idiot lawyer bungling it up. I decided to shell out the cash for a really good lawyer. I have found a few with excellent reputations here in Houston. They ALL went to South Texas, and that makes me MORE likely to hire them than a lawyer who went to UT, Baylor, Wesleyan, etc (all other things being equal). That reputation for advocacy has found its way into my pocketbook, and I am fixing to pay a couple of grand to a South Texas grad to take care of something I probably don't even need taken care of. So as far as I'm concerned, South Texas is a great school.

2. I asked a partner who is involved with recruiting at a top firm in Houston for advice. He said that UT>UH>Baylor>STCL>St. Mary's, but it was more important to graduate in the top 10% of my class, regardless of where I went. He said the only reason prestige matters is if you want to go into biglaw. So Tech and Wesleyan aren't on the radar for big firms in Houston.

3. Fort Worth 10x cooler than Dallas. San Antonio is 8x cooler than Dallas. Houston is only 2x cooler than Dallas. Besides, are you sure that Wesleyan has no ties to Dallas? It's only an hour or so away, no?

4. Go where you will have the least debt, and where you will be happy.

[Grizz]

Dallas? Retake and get into at least SMU with money or don't go.

[kalvano]

What the fuck is all this? I don't even know where to begin with what is wrong with the advice in this thread.

The only, only, only option that even merits any form of consideration in the current economic climate is South Texas. It does OK in Houston. Not great. OK.

[TT09]

I would definately say STCL. TW and St. Mary's are simply...I often forget the exist. STCL has decent job placement, especially in Houston.

Adding in TTU, Lubbock for three years sounds like hell on earth. Probably worse than Afghanistan.

And yet you went to A&M, where I would rather go to school in Afghanistan than go to school in that place. Horrible, horrible town.

STCL is probably the only real viable option out of it, Texas-Wesl. & St. Mary's ITE. Also, TTU is not a bad law school at all, but will probably isolate you only to that particular region and Eastern New Mexico.

[DamnLSAT]

3. Fort Worth 10x cooler than Dallas. San Antonio is 8x cooler than Dallas. Houston is only 2x cooler than Dallas. Besides, are you sure that Wesleyan has no ties to Dallas? It's only an hour or so away, no?

That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. Sounds like you got thrown out of a bar in Dallas and have bitter feelings. Dallas is by far the best city compared to SA, Fort Worth and Houston. Austin would probably be the best (for someone in their 20s/30s) but Dallas has everything anyone could want if they want to live in the south: great restaurants, great weather, great sports teams, great big-name companies, and an affluent population (for the south ) Fort worth is the armpit of Dallas... There's a reason it's DFW and not FWD.

The only thing you get if you go to SA or Houston is fat. Bet the mortgage on that one.

[DamnLSAT]

And yet you went to A&M, where I would rather go to school in Afghanistan than go to school in that place. Horrible, horrible town.

+1

[brose]

South Texas...

[emhellmer]

That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. Sounds like you got thrown out of a bar in Dallas and have bitter feelings. Dallas is by far the best city compared to SA, Fort Worth and Houston. Austin would probably be the best (for someone in their 20s/30s) but Dallas has everything anyone could want if they want to live in the south: great restaurants, great weather, great sports teams, great big-name companies, and an affluent population (for the south ) Fort worth is the armpit of Dallas... There's a reason it's DFW and not FWD.

The only thing you get if you go to SA or Houston is fat. Bet the mortgage on that one.

LOL! I've been around this fine state, and there are a few things that I have learned (these are true 90% of the time):
1. People in Houston are fat.
2. People in SA are fat.
3. People in Dallas are fat.
4. The restraunts in Austin suck.
5. Houston is the only city in which it is socially acceptable to publicly boo the Cowboys.
6. Houstonites and Dallasites always argue about which city is better.
7. Austinites think the rest of the state is insane (with the exception of Fort Worth, which afterall does house the Kimble art museum.

[emhellmer]

Oh, and yes, the bars in Dallas do suck.

OP, everyone seems to think that STCL is the best option. However, I'd be concerned about the kind of debt you might have since they haven't offered you any money. Most successful STCL lawyers had to work their way up, as I'm sure is the case with lawyers from the other schools that are offering you a scholarship. Personally, there is no way I would go into that kind of debt for such long shots at immediate wealth, especially when I had much better offers elsewhere. But that's just me.

[texas man]

Throwing Texas Tech into the mix, where do you think it mixes in? I'm from Austin and currently live in San Antonio and I'm increasingly interested in St. Mary's. As far as San Antonio and Austin area are concerned, is St. Mary's the best choice (assuming you aren't accepted into UT or Baylor?

I'm currently in my first year at Texas Tech. Despite what you might hear on this site, it is a great law school, and I really like Lubbock. I'm also from Austin, and I'm eager to get back to Lubbock for the second semester—where there is no traffic, nice weather, and great restaurants (not as many Austin though).

As far as your question, look carefully at the total cost for three years at all of the schools you are considering (including any scholarship money you are receiving). Unless cost isn't an issue for you, this should be an important component in your determination.

Also, it might be helpful to look at statistics for attorneys in Texas: http://www.texasbar.com/AM/Template.cfm ... mic_Trends—look at 2009-2010 Demographic Trends By County. Percentage-wise, most of Texas Tech grads work in DFW, Lubbock, and Austin.

If you have any questions about Texas Tech, feel free to pm me.

[romothesavior]

Dallas? Retake and get into at least SMU with money or don't go.

What the fuck is all this? I don't even know where to begin with what is wrong with the advice in this thread.
The only, only, only option that even merits any form of consideration in the current economic climate is South Texas. It does OK in Houston. Not great. OK.

Some combination of this advice.

Seriously, retake though before even considering going to any of these schools.

[DamnLSAT]

Throwing Texas Tech into the mix, where do you think it mixes in? I'm from Austin and currently live in San Antonio and I'm increasingly interested in St. Mary's. As far as San Antonio and Austin area are concerned, is St. Mary's the best choice (assuming you aren't accepted into UT or Baylor?

I'm currently in my first year at Texas Tech. Despite what you might hear on this site, it is a great law school, and I really like Lubbock. I'm also from Austin, and I'm eager to get back to Lubbock for the second semester—where there is no traffic, nice weather, and great restaurants (not as many Austin though).

As far as your question, look carefully at the total cost for three years at all of the schools you are considering (including any scholarship money you are receiving). Unless cost isn't an issue for you, this should be an important component in your determination.

Also, it might be helpful to look at statistics for attorneys in Texas: http://www.texasbar.com/AM/Template.cfm ... mic_Trends—look at 2009-2010 Demographic Trends By County. Percentage-wise, most of Texas Tech grads work in DFW, Lubbock, and Austin.

If you have any questions about Texas Tech, feel free to pm me.

+1 to the link

[DreamShake]

And yet you went to A&M, where I would rather go to school in Afghanistan than go to school in that place. Horrible, horrible town.

+1

+111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

[maduro]

I have seen posts about some people being admitted and receiving scholly money with their admittance, does anyone know if the scholly money is primarily lsat based? or has most folks already completed their fafsa and that's how schools are handing out monies?