Tough Decisions : Which Law School?

[Faphane]

I am writing this post in hopes that someone will have some insight they can share.

I have been very lucky in that I have been accepted into some very good law schools and the time has come for me to make some decisions. My top choices of the schools i got into are fordham and Tulane. However my husband is starting med school at Tulane in the fall. I am not sure what is the wise decision in this situation. To make matters more complicated. I got waitlisted at Columbia and I def do not see myself passing up that opportunity.

What would I be giving up or gaining professionally in this battle of tulane vs. fordham?

Any answers?

[botbot]

You lose 10-15% NYC BIGLAW placement picking Tulane over Fordham.

• The medical profession is nothing like the legal profession and you will have more latitude in where you can practice.
• I'm guessing you have a large(ish) scholarship at Tulane.
• You will save on living expenses if you are both in the same city.

Spend the three years with your husband in NOLA.

[Matthies]

Law school is really tuff on relationships. About a 1/3 of my friends have broken up or gotten divorces since we started. Two of the most solid relationships I have seen, both 20 plus years have ended this semester alone, just a few months before its all over and we graduate. It would be even harder on your relationship I would think if you’re both so far away from each other for so long. Go to school at Tulane with your husband, that is what I would do if it was me. Is a few more doors opened at the beginning or your career more important than staying with the person you really love? I don’t know, I have not been lucky enough to find the “one” yet, but if I did, seeing as how I’ve been through so many NOT that ones, I would do whatever it took to keep that one, even if it meant going to Tulane over Columbia. I think if I knew this was the right person for my life, if it all fell apart, in ten years I would regret that more than the name that’s not on my diploma. I dunno, that’s just me.

[themanwithnoname]

Matthies, I don't think you are really getting into the difficulties that are presented by going to Tulane. Like you always say, if you are not going to a school where you are basically guaranteed a biglaw job, it is all about networking. Tulane has a good reputation but it is not one of those schools where you are guaranteed such a job, which means that the OP's prospects will be much better in NoLa than anywhere else, since it is much easier to network where you are during the year than to try to build up a network somewhere else. Medical school is four years, and then you have to do an internship, and a residency. There is no guarantee that OP's husband will be able to find a good residency in NoLa, and might have to move again. This means that when OP is getting out of law school, she won't really know where she should be targetting for jobs - since she might have to move in a year b/c of residency. It will be much easier to go wherever the residency is with the Columbia degree.

[Matthies]

Matthies, I don't think you are really getting into the difficulties that are presented by going to Tulane. Like you always say, if you are not going to a school where you are basically guaranteed a biglaw job, it is all about networking. Tulane has a good reputation but it is not one of those schools where you are guaranteed such a job, which means that the OP's prospects will be much better in NoLa than anywhere else, since it is much easier to network where you are during the year than to try to build up a network somewhere else. Medical school is four years, and then you have to do an internship, and a residency. There is no guarantee that OP's husband will be able to find a good residency in NoLa, and might have to move again. This means that when OP is getting out of law school, she won't really know where she should be targetting for jobs - since she might have to move in a year b/c of residency. It will be much easier to go wherever the residency is with the Columbia degree.

Meh, that's probably true, but that would not be my biggest concern. If I can get a job from my T2 by networking she can get a job doing the same from Tulnae. I would be more worried about keeping my relationship than the name on my diploma, but thats just me.

[themanwithnoname]

I agree OP might not have a problem getting a job right out of law school, but my point is that it might be tough moving from NoLa to wherever the residency is. I don't need to tell you that networking takes time, and it is all but impossible to network your way into a job if you don't know in advance where that job is going to be. One of the assets columbia gives you is flexibility to relocate right out of law school. That does not matter to a lot of people (I know you aren't planing on leaving colorado anytime soon, for instance), but in this case, it seems to me like that flexibility as to location will be very valuable to the relationship going forward.

[Faphane]

You guys have given me a lot to think about.

And i do believe that my networking options are better in NY.

Are those options bad in NO? What realistic salary difference am i looking at?

[Matthies]

You guys have given me a lot to think about.

And i do believe that my networking options are better in NY.

Are those options bad in NO? What realistic salary difference am i looking at?

I think the point MNN is making is that it won’t matter so much where you go to school for networking because the odds are you aren’t going to get a job in the same city you go to law school because, assuming you’ll move with your husband, his residency will not be in the same city you go to school in.

I tend to think in that case he’s right, Columbia if you get off the waitlist will give you more national pull. But given you’re in at fordum and Tulane only so far, it’s a toss up I think, if you end up in CA for your husband’s residency neither one is going to have much more pull than the other. But, and this is ME only here, I would not want to go to LS away from my SO, regardless of if it was Columbia or Yale, I guess I’m confident enough in my own abilities could land a job I wanted out of Tulane, but not confident I could make a long distance relationship work through law school. 

[themanwithnoname]

Addressing the NY market: I don't know what the salary differences are, and it is really tough to compare because your salary will vary depending on what job you get in each market. NYC biglaw means $160,000 starting salary. You are almost guaranteed that from columbia. Top 1/3 is what I usually hear about Fordham for biglaw, but somebody who knows more specifically can correct me. Tulane will be less than that but will put a not-insignficant number of people into biglaw. once you leave the biglaw area, the salaries are going to be a lot higher for NY than equivalent firms in New Orleans, but of course the cost of living difference will be drastically lower in New Orleans. Personally, I think the problem with New Orleans is that long term, the economic prospects of the city as a whole are not great.

I think to decide where to go you need to think about a few things: what does your husband want to do in medicine, and does he know whether that is going to give him a lot of flexibility in terms of where he does his residency. Also, is he going to be shooting for the most competitive hospitals? Also, what kind of a career do you think you want to have? Government work, big firm, small firm, nonprofit? If you want to be a public defender, I would say go to tulane, save as much money as you can, and you will probably have a lot of flexibility (and enjoy the *&^% show that is the Louisiana criminal justice system. If your life's dream is to be an M&A lawyer, you are going to want to strongly think about NY.

[blergh]

My sister just applied for her residency and we're kind of trying to match together to be in the somewhat same geographic region, so I kind of know what you're going through (albeit, this is your HUSBAND and not sister haha)

I think if you attend Tulane, since it does have a name, it could reach NY if you'd like to practice there; however, you'd probably have to work a lot harder to find opportunities that can take you there rather than being conveniently there (if you got into Columbia)

Hope this helps!