Duke (20k) vs USC (45k)

[Which one would you choose?]

Which one would you choose?

Duke (20k)

 29 (61.7%)

USC (45k)

 18 (38.3%)

Total Members Voted: 41

[James Neutron]

I don't know what exactly I want to do, and I will likely want to end up in either Southern California, Northern California, or New York.  The 20,000 and 45,000 are totals for 3 years.

[calgirl]

I had this exact same decision to make (except Im almost positive I want to end up back in Northern California). I chose Duke, if only for the reason that I was afraid I would be stuck in LA if I went to USC.  I hear they have great alumni networking, but it is pretty much limited to SoCal.  In talking to attorneys, it seems that Duke has a more national reputation and many encouraged me to go to Duke.  I think it will just open more doors in the long run.

[jd2008]

I had this exact same decision to make (except Im almost positive I want to end up back in Northern California). I chose Duke, if only for the reason that I was afraid I would be stuck in LA if I went to USC.  I hear they have great alumni networking, but it is pretty much limited to SoCal.  In talking to attorneys, it seems that Duke has a more national reputation and many encouraged me to go to Duke.  I think it will just open more doors in the long run.

Agreement.  Duke is better than USC. 

[thefaceman]

easy decision, sc.

[king]

I don't know what exactly I want to do, and I will likely want to end up in either Southern California, Northern California, or New York.  The 20,000 and 45,000 are totals for 3 years.

Go to Duke, one of the best universities in the country.  

[needhelp]

I don't know what exactly I want to do, and I will likely want to end up in either Southern California, Northern California, or New York.  The 20,000 and 45,000 are totals for 3 years.

Go to Duke, one of the best universities in the country.  

absolutely.  Go to Duke all the way. 

[michaelduke]

I don't know what exactly I want to do, and I will likely want to end up in either Southern California, Northern California, or New York.  The 20,000 and 45,000 are totals for 3 years.

Go to Duke. 

[nodorf]

I'd say that if you want to stay in Cali, then you should save the money & go to one of the nation's best regional schools: USC

[Amanda H.]

Duke is overrated, with the weakest faculty and student body in the top 14. 

On the other hand, it's still more national than USC. 

I'd therefore go with Duke unless you're sure you want SoCal. In that case, I'd go with USC.

[adviseme]

I don't know what exactly I want to do, and I will likely want to end up in either Southern California, Northern California, or New York.  The 20,000 and 45,000 are totals for 3 years.

Hello James Neutron,

I also had a school decision involving Duke.  To help me decide if I should attend Duke on a scholarship or go to Chicago on a gigantic loan, I spoke with two New York City law partners who know my parents--one at Thatcher & Simpson and the other at Skadden.  Both of them call Duke Law one of the best law schools in the land.  They both say the Leiter idea of Duke as "overrated" school is "simply ridiculous."  They basically said that Harvard, Yale and Stanford are in a category of their own.  And the rest of the top schools could be lumped together (Chicago, NYU, Columbia, Duke, Michigan, NU, Penn, UVA, Cornell, Georgetown and Berkeley).  An effort to say that one if superior than the other is "dumb."

So I strongly suggest you ignore the claim that Duke is anything other than a great law school.