clemson09 wrote:I grew up in Atlanta so I figured I would give my 2 ¢ ... Pretty much has been said already but
Emory- Obviously higher ranked school, great if you want to practice up north; not the best for the south
GSU- Great if you want to work in Atlanta. Good relationships with local big law and better if you want to work in the public sector.
I might argue that GSU has just as good, if not better, jobs prospects in the Atlanta area when compared to Emory. However, if you go outside a 100 mile radius of Atlanta, Emory wins hands down...
What?
Emory is a terrible fit for the North... unless you're already from the Northeast and have tangible connections back home. Emory doesn't magically compete with Fordham or George Washington in NYC and DC respectively.
Emory is not the best for the South? Sure, when you compare it to UVA, Duke or Vandy, Emory is at a disadvantage. However, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find a law firm in the South that doesn't think Emory is an excellent school. I'm also having trouble grasping how Emory's reputation can carry it up North, but not throughout the Southeast.
You are spot on about GSU being a good fit if you want to work in Atlanta or in the metro area. If you have pre-existing connections to the smaller markets in Georgia (Augusta, Columbus, Macon, Savannah), then a GSU degree can serve you well there.
GSU has good connections with local big law and with the folks making hiring decisions in the public sector, but those connections aren't better than the connections that UGA and Emory have with those same entities.
A previous poster made a good point about some Emory students self-selecting away. While that accounts for some of the students, the fact remains that if, an Emory student wanted, he or she could beat out a GSU student of equal rank for any job in Atlanta.