Is Cooley Law School That Bad?

[barryb]

Okay im a canadian student who really didn't have really good grades so im going to  be applying for law school in the u.s because in Canada the law schools are just too competitive. My gpa is 2.9 and my LSAT is a 156. Can you guys tell me what law schools i might have a chance at? Furthermore people told me that Cooley University is lenient for entrance but it has a bad reputation.

[MorningStar]

It's all cost benefit.  It is very likely that, especially as a non-citizen, the cost to attend Cooley - 3 years and $70,000+ -  will exceed the benefits.  Obviously if you can overcome the odds, all power to you.  I'm sure bigs can point out more than a couple that have.

[cooleylawstudent]

Largest Lawschool in the nation, largest library and better than most T-1s just view the Rateings section on their page to see for yourself.     

Okay im a canadian student who really didn't have really good grades so im going to  be applying for law school in the u.s because in Canada the law schools are just too competitive. My gpa is 2.9 and my LSAT is a 156. Can you guys tell me what law schools i might have a chance at? Furthermore people told me that Cooley University is lenient for entrance but it has a bad reputation.

[cooleylawstudent]

Guy, I'd be offended if I wasn't so flattered.

Don't listen to the jackass comments, I worked under two guys that went to Cooley who were doing quite will for themselves. Obviously, you need to do a reality check and know that if you go to Cooley nobody is going to roll the red carpet out for you, but the truth is nobody rolls out the carpet for anybody except maybe for Harvard or Yale. The reality is law school what you make of it.  If you go to Cooley or Harvard you will learn the same law. The UCC, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, or elements of negligence don't change no matter where you learn them.    

[SASS]

Don't listen to the jackass comments, I worked under two guys that went to Cooley who were doing quite will for themselves. Obviously, you need to do a reality check and know that if you go to Cooley nobody is going to roll the red carpet out for you, but the truth is nobody rolls out the carpet for anybody except maybe for Harvard or Yale. The reality is law school is what you make of it.  If you go to Cooley or Harvard you will learn the same law. The UCC, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, or elements of negligence don't change no matter where you learn them.    

Yes, there is Harvard and Yale and then there are the rest of the schools.  Cooley = NYU Law, they all learn the same stuff anyway.  This is absurd.  Law school is not simply what you make of it.  Your options are extremely limited not going to a good law school.  T1 is safe and some regional schools well respected in their regions  Thinking you can attend just any t4 and be ok is a risk.  I know because I went to a T4 and transferred to a t20 school.  The difference is remarkable in every aspect of your education.  People making flowery statements about how "law school is what you make of it" are speaking generally and are inaccurate. Don't waste your money on a school that is a joke.

[SASS]

You can't kind of disproved your whole point, because you went to a tier 4 and apparently made the most of it there and transferred to a really good school. 

I am unsure what you mean by this sentence, I think there is a typo, however I think you mean I contradict myself?  I disagree.  What I am saying is that the only schools worth attending are the T1 schools and some of the various regional schools that are respected.  Please don't think I would ever recommend to someone to plan on the transfer route.  True, I did make the most out of my t4 experience but that was the only good thing about the school: it was a stepping stone.  However, I am very lucky.  Most of my classmates (the rest of the lower 95%) are stuck there or failed out.  It is very risky to plan on transferring, I would never suggest someone enter a school with that in mind.  Further, if a schools biggest contribution to its students is that if you do well you can transfer, it has serious problems.

[SASS]

You can't kind of disproved your whole point, because you went to a tier 4 and apparently made the most of it there and transferred to a really good school.  

Obviously, Cooley is not Harvard nobody is arguing that. They are not all the same, but any ABA school teaches you the same thing. The classes are the same the textbooks are the same. I know, because I have friends at Stanford and Hastings and we are all taking the same classes learning the same things. Well my friend have more opportunities open to him when he graduates from Stanford. Obviously,he will is he guaranteed to have a great law career no. He is really smart and that is why he got into Stanford in the first place, but just going to Stanford is no guarantee of anything. What you do in the real world matters. Even in law school for example, does it matter what undergrad you went to? No it doesn't you don't right on your final I went to UCLA so I deserve an A. Perfect example is in my study group at school there are 5 of us. One guy went to Notre Dame, two went to Berkeley, I went to Chico State, and the other guy went to some 7th Adventist school in Tennessee.

Me and the guy from Teneesee were on the Dean's list and not the guys that went to those really good undergrads. Obviously, your school helps, but your performance is what matters.  Look to the NCAA tournament even, Butler is the f'ing finals. They beat all the elite programs and Kansas can sit around telling themselves they were ranked #1, but it really doesn't matter because they didn't perform.

I like the NCAA comparison but it is not accurate.  The difference is Butler was given the opportunity it compete in the first place.  Also, Butler had a good program, good players, good students that gave it its opportunity.  Cooley doesn't have all the pieces to make it good.  If you go to a school that is not reputable, some doors are closed to you.  That is just the way it is.  I don't think this is fair, it is true though. 

True, you learn the same things from the same books.  However, your profs are not as good (my experience tells me so) and your in class conversation is remarkably different (also something I know from experience).  Students at lower ranked schools get a different eduction because of all the little things that make the schools different.   

There are FEW people who will be succeed despite a Cooley education.  It is not the norm.  Saying the law is what you make of it is an empty statement, holding little value.

[3ebfan511]

cooley just ranked like 146 on the new superlawyers 2010 list, meaning they had more "superlawyers" then about 40 or 50 other schools, even though they are about the least selective, meaning the ones who go and dont flunk out must be getting at least a decent education there and are at least capable lawyers obviously.   I am from philly/NJ where all the schools are like top notch and too hard for me to get into, except widener which is the only 4th tier in the area, so all the decent students who couldnt get into temple, nova, penn, rutgers (all like top 50 schools etc.) can possibly go to widener, and they just ranked 110 on that same list.  pretty good for a 4th tier.   I agree that 4th tiers are fine for certain people and situations as long as you do the work. 

[cooleylawstudent]

Cooley rules period! 

[daniellat]

There are FEW people who will be succeed despite a Cooley education.  It is not the norm.  Saying the law is what you make of it is an empty statement, holding little value.

Could you elaborate on what you mean by "succeed"?  My goal is not to become a partner at a big law firm or a US Attorney...it's simply to become a lawyer and practice law.  I have to keep working full time, so Cooley's location near my job appeals to me, its schedule of 7 days a week classes year round, part time, appeals to me, and also the fact that they gave me a full ride appeals to me.  But are you saying that with a Cooley degree, it's not even possible to earn a living as a regular lawyer (i.e. no one would want to hire me to even write a will or draft a document)?  Thank you for your input.