Questions about Golden Gate

[bigs5068]

I really want to go to law school in the bay area and I have a shot at Santa Clara or USF and I should definetly get into Golden Gate, but I have heard a lot of bad things on the internet about it.  I was just curious if anyone knew more about Golden Gate or is a current student there that could tell me more. 

[tranandy]

Golden Gate LS is a truly bad law school.  A little research will tell you all you need to know about the school.  Do not go there under any circumstances.

Santa Clara and USF are decent, but not great, choices if you want to work in the Bay Area.

[tranandy]

http://officialguide.lsac.org/SearchResults/SchoolPage_PDFs/ABA_LawSchoolData/ABA4329.pdf

Current ABA stats show about 1/3 of the class drop out before graduating.  Of the 2/3 who make it through law school, only 73% have jobs 9 months after graduation.  Only 52% of those employed have jobs at law firms.  About 25% have jobs in the vague "business and industry" category, i.e. starbucks -- most likely because they didn't pass the bar (only about 60% of grads pass the bar on the first try).

By my rough calculations, based on the numbers above, about 49% of the incoming class is going to actually graduate and have a job within 9 months of graduation.  The other 51% will either drop out or not have jobs. 

Only about 25% of those who matriculate at GGLS will actually have a job at a law firm within 9 months of their class' graduation (if they graduate).

Also, GGLS was put on probation 3 years ago for having terrible bar pass rates.  It has since raised them enough to be removed from probation.

HTH

[just some guy]

Didn't the dean leave for Texas Wesleyan? That should tell you something.

[vjm]

It is that bad. I knew several people who went there during the abysmal bar pass period. Not only did none of them pass the bar the first TWO times they took it, one ended up taking it many, many times. Maybe all my friends are idiots (they're not) but they all hate it, and only one currently has a legal job.

They do all have crushing debt though.BTW, they all went there because they just HAD to be in San Francisco. All of them say that if they could go back and do it over again, they would relocate to Mars for a better chance upon graduation.

Don't feel bad asking a school anything. Schools that don't suck can give you an honest and proud answer that you can check. Schools that should be shut down will try and avoid the question, or blow sunshine up your ass, or give you numbers that do not correspond to reality. This is a huge financial commitment you thinking of undertaking, one that could really make your life a living hell if you aren't extremely careful.

[sluglaw]

from what i've heard the school itself academically is not that bad.  i knew someone who had a prof at boalt who used to teach at golden gate and said it was about the same.  the problem, of course, is where are you going to get hired after you graduate?  even if it was a very solid school, you have to keep in mind that one of the number one hirings draws is going to be regional law firms wherever you go.  the problem with golden gate is that it is surrounded by top-notch law schools- boalt, hasting, stanford and uc davis are all within 100 miles, not to mention that san francisco law firms are some of the top nation wide meaning that they hire from law schools all over the country.  basically, you have to be in the very top of your class to get any decent prospects to be hired, otherwise firms will take someone who graduated lower from one of the more prestigious law schools in the area.  to make it worse, it is not a very well known school outside of the bay (its not even well known IN the bay) so life is going to be very tough on you post-graduation.  i would recommend looking elsewhere.

as for the person who posted about people having trouble with the bar- i dont think thats a reflection of the quality of the schools teaching but the caliber of people who go there.  its a standardized test and from everything ive heard hardly something taht law schools spend much time preparing students to take.

[Ninja1]

You stop looking at bad law schools this instant. You found FP, treat that as a school of last resort and go up from there.

[Ninja1]

Have you considered Albany? It's a good school and your numbers should get you there.

[Changed Name]

I know about Albany and it seems alright, but I need out of New York. I would love to go to a decent a school in my home state of California.  The only problem with California is that there are really high ranked and really low-ranked schools there.  Southwestern is the only school with a decent reputation that I have a good chance of getting into.  USF and Santa Clara are long shots, but I applied so who knows.  Then California has the low-rated schools like La Verne, Golden Gate, California Western, Thomas Jefferson, and Western State which I have no idea how they are even provisonally approved with a 20 something bar percentage pass rate.  Anyways, time will tell what happens I suppose.

Did you make sure to apply PT?  That would probably help.  I know SCU has a PT program.  Not sure about USF.

I also don't know if US News changed its ranking methodology to include part-time numbers.  If so, that would hurt your chances.

[rhesusman]

I remember that when I was applying to law school, Golden Gate sent me a pile of promotional materials - far and away more than anyone else.  One of the brochures had an explanation of their trial advocacy program, which involved having people dress up as Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf (complete with a picture of a guy wearing a hideous wolf mask at the witness stand) and having students act out a trial based on that situation.  And this was in their promotional materials, which I thought were intended to make you take the school seriously.

There has to be a better school that could get you a job in the San Francisco area.  Even bad law schools are expensive; going to one can make you worse off than not having gone at all.