Great School vs. Good School with $ vs. Okay school with $$$

A lot of people look at deciding which law school to go to as strictly a ranking game; they go to the best school they get into without taking any account of the scholarship offers they've received (or not received). Others play it as a numbers game, taking the best financial offer they get and to hell with the rankings and job prospects.

I'm not independently wealthy, and my parents aren't willing to front me $180k for law school and living expenses, so that first option is out for me. Also, I don't think that I'd care to get through three years of hell (aka law school) and then go back to a job that I could have gotten after I graduated with my BA. Why bother, right?

So I'm one of the (many) people that has to look at all sorts of options when trying to determine where I should go for the next three years of my education. I feel like there are so many factors to take into consideration, too! I have to think about where I want to live, because it's very likely that I'll end up practicing in the region that my school is located, since I'm not going to be attending a T14. I need to think about the COL in that area. I need to look at employment statistics, because I'd like to be able to pay off the staggering amount of debt I'm probably going to be taking on.

It's enough to make a girl's head spin!

And so, that brings me to looking at the choices of going to a GREAT school with little-to-no money, a good school with a fair scholarship, or an okay (TTT) school with a super scholarship. In my case I've pretty much ruled out the GREAT school/no money scenario. It just doesn't make sense for me. So I come down to a good school with fair money (SMU, Santa Clara, possibly McGeorge) to an okay school with good money (Whittier, U. Ark at Little Rock).

There a positives for each. Leaving Little Rock I would have verrrry little debt (as I received a full ride plus a stipend), but I would be in Little Rock. I can't imagine that the U. Ark - Little Rock degree would travel ANYWHERE outside of Arkansas, and I honestly don't think I can take that thick of an accent for the rest of my life.

Santa Clara has been a school I've wanted to go for FOREVER. It's pretty, it's in a good location, they have a great local reputation, etc. But it's EXPENSIVE, and they've only offered me $15,500 in scholarship money for the year, with a pretty serious stipulation (I have to stay in the top 20%). Not to mention that the cost of living in pretty high in the bay area, and SCU is competing against Berkeley, Stanford, and UC Hastings all in the market, so summer employment up there might be hard to come by.

McGeorge is a good school, less expensive than SCU, but I would pretty much be stuck in Central California or Sacramento with a JD from McGeorge. Nothing wrong with that, but something I might want to consider if I ever think about relocating.

SMU is the most expensive of the schools that I'm considering, but with the COL in Dallas compared to California, the total COA (cost of attendance) will be right around the same as it would cost in Santa Clara. SMU also gave me about $6,000 more than Santa Clara did, and the stipulation says I just have to remain in good standing, so it would probably be less expensive in the long run. Plus Dallas is a pretty decent sized legal market, and SMU is the only law school in Dallas. It's also the highest ranked school I was accepted (without being held or waitlisted) to. But do I want to spend that much time in Dallas? I don't have any ties at all to Dallas, and it's pretty far away from my family and friends.

And I'm just giving you a taste of all of the options that I have. I really should have limited my applications a little more -- I'm not that decisive of a person!

At least I know that when I do finally make a decision (I'm anticipating that it will be the week after I return from Dallas) my friends are taking me out for a night of partying. I think I'll deserve it by then!!