Help me: American (pt) or Villanova

[tomas23t]

American PT or $$$ at Villanova?  Does anyone know if American PT students are ranked against full-time students?

[NY423C]

I'd say Villanova, but then again, I'm biased because I'm probably going there.   

[tomas23t]

Haha, thanks! Villanova is a great school, I really liked the atmosphere when I visited, and I think their academics are top notch.  The main reason I'm debating this is American's international law program is much better.  This is a field I’m quite interested in.  Best of Luck, maybe I'll see you at Villanova!

[GatorLCA]

Villanova, but thats because I'm on American's waitlist.

[BetaZN89]

The big questions:

1.) Would you prefer to receive the scholarship money and receive your JD in 3 years while having the convenience of being near Philadelphia?

2.) Would you prefer to go part-time without the money for 4 years (albeit, you can switch to full-time), while working part-time in Washington.

Here's some information based upon the experience of friends of mine in Law School here in DC. I would give careful consideration to your long-term career goals including if you desire "getting your foot in the door" early.

A close friend of mine attends American Law part-time while his girlfriend attends full-time. Both do well academically, but already in his second year he has a job lined up after graduating through where he's working at now. His girlfriend, though finishing a year early, does not have that luxury. The same goes for another set of friends at GW Law. The part-time friend, in the middle of his class, has worked for Daimler-Chrysler, The Livingston Group, and Goldman & Sachs in just the past two years. The other, full-time and in the top 20% of his class, is heading back to Philadelphia to work in his father's friend's firm. He found a lot of difficulty getting a great job in town for the summer without practical firm experience.

With these experiences in mind, had I received an acceptance letter to American part-time I would likely have accepted. Currently I plan on attending Villanova Law Full-Time. I realize the decision, especially with the scholarship offer, is a difficult one to consider. Follow your gut instinct as both are excellent schools.

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American PT or $$$ at Villanova? Does anyone know if American PT students are ranked against full-time students?

regarding your second question . . . I believe most schools will rank their PT students after all the 1L req'd courses are complete and they will be ranked with the corresponding 1L class.  I am not 100% sure how this works, though, because it seems like PTers might finish their 1L withoug a ranking.  If anyone else can shed some light on this it would be very helpful.   

[thelawfool]

american because i'm still waiting to hear from villanova.  congrats either way.