Dilemma: Closeby T4 or 100-Mile Away T1?

[Texas]

Wow! You guys are great! I have been reading posts here since last summer, when I started studying for the LSAT, but had never posted before yesterday. If anybody wants advice about studying for the LSAT, I'll be glad to help. I studied hard and did very well.

[Connelly]

Texas, have you been accepted to both schools?  I would imagine it uncommon to be accepted to UT and then to not get significant scholarship money at St. Mary's.  As mentioned above, St. Mary's for free would likely be the only way many (perhaps all) would choose that school in your case. 

[Texas]

Yes, I have been accepted by both schools. I have been offered $15,000/year by UT and a full tuition scholarship by St. Mary's. Tuition at UT is around $20,000 right now but likely will go up. I do not know if my scholarship would go up or not.

[Connelly]

UT without a doubt, then. Congratulations on having an excellent choice to make, though!

[juliemccoy]

UT all the way!!! Yes your family will miss you and you will have to spend some time in Austin away from them. But this is a temporary discomfort. You and your family will gain so much in long-term benefits by your attending UT over St. Mary's. UT will open more doors to you, period. Even in San Antonio, UT will open more doors than St. Mary's. Good luck to you. Go with your gut, visit the schools, talk to lawyers and students at both schools. Talk to your family.

But go to UT! Go to UT because it is the best choice for your education and offers the most flexibility in terms of your future career prospects. Go to UT because it is the best choice for your family's future!

Good luck! Hook 'em Horns!

[vjm]

Congratulations on UT! I think the "vulgar response" elsewhere was due the incredulity most folks react with to your conflict. UT is the answer, but without children, careers and families many trads just don't get that other factors may have more play than ranking/ employment stats.

What a great role model you are providing for your kids! Making a choice that has a highly deferred reward, and doing all the hard stuff you have to to stick with that choice, while still valuing you family = good life lesson.

[just some guy]

I'm a UT 2L.  While applying, I researched St. Mary's as a doomsday option if I should've happened not to get into UT (for personal reasons, I wasn't going to leave Austin).

The commute would be a grind, no doubt, but IMO, both the educational experience and the opportunities you'll have at UT are simply incomparable to those available from St. Mary's.  It's just not a fair comparison, especially for a net tuition cost of less than $10k/year. 

I don't know exactly how insular the San Antonio bar is, but I'd feel comfortable betting St. Mary's isn't even your second best option among Texas schools for breaking into that market.

Surprisingly it is. When I was down there about 90% of the local bar came from UT and StM combined. Even the other Texas schools had almost no representaion.

[Rigel Rising]

Really, who would want to live in SA with Austin nearby?

[Rigel Rising]

Really, who would want to live in SA with Austin nearby?

[Texas]

Well, I actually live out in the countryside, not in San Antonio.

Thanks to everyone's advice, I have not sent in a deposit to St. Mary's, even though it was supposedly due April 1. I am waiting for UT Austin's need-based financial aid offer (in a few days, I hope). Their deposit deadline is April 15.