I just got back from NYC visiting Brooklyn, Cardozo, and NYLS. When I left on my trip, I had only been admitted to NYLS and wasn't all that excited about it, but right after visiting with Brooklyn I got home and found my acceptance email waiting for me. Which was nice.
I was very impressed with both Brooklyn and Cardozo. BLS's facilities are fantastic--the area is wonderful, Manhattan is really accessible, the housing options are terrific, and the building they use itself has a great feel--I got a nice sense of community while I was there. The classrooms, cafeteria, library, etc. are all top notch.
Cardozo's actual facilities are a little less impressive, but I enjoyed the class I sat in on far more than at Brooklyn. At both schools I attended a Property class--conveniently, both classes dealt with the same topic and cases. As I only sat in on one class at both places, I cannot attest as to whether the difference I encountered is attributable to just a random difference in sections or individual professors--but the class at Cardozo was far and away superior. The professor was excellent--very clear, excellent command of the material and ability to share it, knew everybody's name without looking at a seating chart, and wonderful to listen to. The class was eager to participate--no sense of dread in being called on. They were all very cooperative too--people were eager to work together in answering questions, building on one another's responses, not laughing if anyone was way off the mark.
Brooklyn however, the professor didn't seem to know what she was talking about without consulting her notes. Tripped up a lot and had to go back and correct herself. Students were not eager to participate--in fact, it was totally silent. Most students were reading blogs, checking their email, playing solitaire, etc. I had trouble paying attention as the teacher droned on and on with practically no interaction with the students in class.
I'm still quite interested in Brooklyn--especially as they've accepted me and I haven't heard a decision yet from Cardozo. I just got home and found all my acceptance materials waiting for me--BLS gave me $17,500, which is hard to turn down. All in all I was impressed with both of them, but I may need to go back and learn more before I really make up my mind.
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