| Topic Name: |
non-top 10 law schools |
| Message Name: |
school choices |
| Date Posted: |
05/13/2000 |
| In Reply To: |
I was recently admitted to OSU as well, but I'm VERY confused. I 've also been accepted to Northeastern and Catholic. B/c I am from the Boston area, everyone tells me to go to NU becuase it has better local contacts and b/c of the co-op program. My problem with NU, is the thought of playing 4th fiddle to other locals like Harvard, BC, and BU.
As for Catholic the facilities are nice (in the brochure - never been there yet) and the DC location is a plus.
Still, I'm leaning towards OSU. The schools higher tier 1 rankings have really attracted me, but people think I'm crazy. They tell me to go to the local school b/c OSU will not have much pull in Boston or outside Ohio. My view is that, though OSU might not have a big presence on the East Coast, the school's tier 1 ranking I think will allow the degree to travel more than a Northeastern or Catholic degree. What do you think?
If you happen to know how OSU does when it comes to recruiting time that would be great as well. Do you know if "BIGLAW" or any national firms receruit there?
BTW - what made you choose UC over OSU?
Combined with their top 25 b-school, the little I know about OSU has looked pretty good to me so far. The only thing that scares me is OSUs MASSIVE size! (I went to a 1600 student ugrad school and this place looks like it has no end to it in pictures at least!)
What do you think?
Thanks in advance for any insight you might be able to provide me! |
| Message: |
In general, I think that school rank is an important factor, but only one important factor, in school choice. If your one source of all happiness is living in Boston, for example, then you might well study better there than OSU. I think an argument can be made for finding the locale with the least social life and a cost of living conducive to the least stress, as it is likely that top grades from any of the three schools will put you in a better position than secondary grades from the best of the three schools. As ninety percent of the class is not in the top ten percent of the class, though, school quality can make quite a difference in terms of how low down the list the large, and in particular the top midsize firms, go in recruiting.
I practice in California. I can only speak for myself, a small firm lawyer in the LA area. If we got three resumes which were identical but for school identity, we would think all three schools are acceptable, but OSU would far and away be the standout choice in our minds. Whether the difference in perception is justified or not, OSU is perceived as a top tier school.
But that doesn't really end the inquiry.
Although I cannot imagine that even in traditional Boston an OSU degree would not be a big help, there is an argument for doing your school where you intend to practice. This is because if you are a below-median student grades-wise, you may wish to try to get clerkships during your second and third year to "work your way" into a post-graduation job. This is an argument away from simply taking the highest tier job, in favor of other factors.
In this good economy, law journal and high class rank from any of the three will "travel", but you may travel higher with OSU.
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