Opinions please: Indiana U-Bloomington (Full Ride) Vs. Wash U (10k per year)

[Snuffleupagus]

Here's my situation:
 
 -Approx. debt upon graduation:
    Wash U: 135k
    Indiana: 40k
 
 -I can justify the additional debt if the education it provides will
 allow for increased job prospect quality and increased earning
 potential in the long run.
   
 -I would prefer working at either a mid-sized or a large firm.
 
 -I am currently interested in Corporate Law.
 
 -I can't foresee any future desire to engage in government or public
 interest work.
 
 -I may be interested in Academia towards the end of my career.
 
 -I am not committed to any particular geographic location post
 graduation.
 *I do not believe, however, that carrying a big debt to a city
 with a high cost of living is a good idea.  If I do carry such a debt
 I would be looking at smaller secondary markets in the short term. I
 would be interested in transferring into a large market once I have
 substantially reduced any debt.

                                   Thank You!

[brightline]

1. Neither school would be good for Academia. To teach law as a tenured prof, you'd need to go to one of the very top schools like Chicago or HYS, get on law review, then clerk for a federal court. Without that, your chances of teaching are not good. Therefore, I don't think wanting to eventually teach should be part of this decision at all.

2.WashU is a good school, but if you wind up in the bottom half of the class job prospects may not be that great AND you will have a heavy debt load to carry. There is no way to predict where you will end up ranking/grade wise in your class.

Does the Indiana scholarship come with strings attached?

If the terms are generous or unconditional, you might be better off taking the following course of action:

1. Go to Indiana

2. If you do well after first year, think about transferring to a top 15 or top 10 or top 5 school.

3. If you do average or poorly first year, well, at least you won't have a lot of debt.

[Snuffleupagus]

Thank you for the input brightline. 

Yes, the Indiana scholarship does come with a string attached: I must maintain at least a 3.0 GPA.

I am curious about a couple things:

- How does transferring into another school after the first year affect your chances of being a part of Law Review?  I assume your only option for consideration would be to take part in the write-in competition (if there is one).  Is this a correct assumption? 

- Also, does one significantly reduce one's opportunities for fruitful 2L and 3L job opportunities by transferring into another school at the end of first year?

[brightline]

LR for transfers is primarily through write-on.

Re: employment opportunities, they are almost always better at a higher ranked school. However, if you have average/poor grades your jobs opps are likely to be very similar at Indiana or WashU.

At a top 5 school, for example you could be in the bottom half and still do fine as far as big firm job opps go.

What is the curve at Indiana? Should you lose the scholarship, could you get in-state tuition?

Do you have any other options?

[Marcus2009]

Do not go to a school with the intention of transferring to another school, you will be in for a huge disappointment. 

Since you are open to work in mid or large size firm anywhre in the country, I would suggest taking the money and go with IU-B.  WashU is a better school, no doubt, but it ain't G'town or NYU. 

[brightline]

I agree. Transferring should not be a plan, but merely a reward in case you do well at your school first year. I'm sorry if I implied otherwise. If teaching later on is really a priority, you should reapply next year with a higher LSAT score. There is no guarantee you'll transfer. However, you may be able to teach as an adjunct prof down the line. Many adjuncts come from less prestigious schools, although they usually work and teach part time.

It looks like a 3.0 is right around the median at IU-B Law. That means you'd need to be in the top 1/2 to keep the scholarship. It may be worth it to pursue residency requirements in case you come up short on grades.

From another message board:

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/rss.php?t=5502

I also agree that the difference between the two schools is not too big, assuming you are an average student.

A word of warning: some schools "stack" scholarship students...packing them in disproportionately into one or two sections. This means more scholarships get taken away than if the scholarship students were distributed evenly across all sections. The only way to find out if IU-B does this is by talking to students who go there.

Good luck on your decision.

Do not go to a school with the intention of transferring to another school, you will be in for a huge disappointment. 

Since you are open to work in mid or large size firm anywhre in the country, I would suggest taking the money and go with IU-B.  WashU is a better school, no doubt, but it ain't G'town or NYU. 

[StevePirates]

I had a similar decision between University of San Diego, and California Western.

I took the money at the lower ranked school.  In my situation, I don't intend to leave San Diego, so the ranking difference didn't matter so much as local reputation.

I'd say take the money and run.  If you want a shot at academia later in life, get good grades, and go for an LL.M, and maybe even an SJD at a prestigious school later.  That's my plan anyhow.  I figure with a full ride at Cal Western, I can get an LL.M from USD the year after, and have two degrees for a third of the price people are paying for one.

Something to consider.

Please keep in mind though that I want to stay local and work at the DA, so what works for me might be the exact opposite of what works for you!

good luck!

[intramuralbaskebtallstar]

Both great schools.  I would take the $$ and head to the Hoosier state...Goodluck next year, and congratulations on gaining admission to two excellent law schools.

[Sepatown]

Thank you for the input brightline. 

Yes, the Indiana scholarship does come with a string attached: I must maintain at least a 3.0 GPA.

I am curious about a couple things:

- How does transferring into another school after the first year affect your chances of being a part of Law Review?  I assume your only option for consideration would be to take part in the write-in competition (if there is one).  Is this a correct assumption? 

- Also, does one significantly reduce one's opportunities for fruitful 2L and 3L job opportunities by transferring into another school at the end of first year?

How long does it take you to write your posts? You seem anal as *&^%. "Does on significantly reduce one's opportunities for fruitful blah blah stick up my ass?" Dude, just write. 0L Noob. you've got on everyone's nerves thus far.

[Snuffleupagus]

Wow…Gosh…What can I say?  This is my first flame and well I’m just…I mean, I feel so honored.

There are so many people to thank. Ummmm….I guess I’ll start with Indiana U and Wash U for placing me in such a worthwhile quandary.  I’d also like to thank brightline, Marcus2009, StevePirates, and intramuralbaskbtallstar.  Without their posts I’m certain this thread would have never grown long enough to be considered flame-worthy.

Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to thank sepatown.  sepatown, buddy, you stepped right up to the plate and hit it right out of the park.  You’re awesome!

         Thank You!