Florida Coastal School of Law...should I go? (Jacksonville, University: buying, community college)

[tdavy]

This is a for profit school with very low standards. Basically a money making machine. All decisions are made with a keen eye on profits. There is no culture, no history, no sports team, no student center and no big pool of generous alumni. Two of my friends went there, so I have followed their stories carefully. One transferred out and the other ultimately went into retail sales.

[SJC2010]

Well I decided to attend, and I like it so far, almost done with my 1l year. The professors, well atleast mine, are great. They are always willing to help with any questions I have and do their best to help you understand the material. The majority of my friends like it here and do not plan to transfer.

The previous poster stated, "There is no culture, no history, no sports team, no student center and no big pool of generous alumni." There are no NCAA sports team, however the school does sponsor intramurals and they do have a softball team that competes in charity tournaments against other law school. They are up at University of Virginia law school this weekend competing in a tournament. They are pretty good too, either the men's or the coeed team won it last year.

There is a culture and history, maybe not as pronounced as other schools, but that can be attributed to the fact that compared to most other law schools FCSL is a fairly new school. The culture there is very open towards minorities and promotion of equality. We have a nationally ranked moot court team and a young and improving mock trial team.

Yes, the company that owns the school is for profit, but that does not make it a bad school. There are several law schools in the country that are for profit. I disagree that they have low standards, the curve is one of the toughest in the country and they teach you the exact same thing that anyother law school teaches. They are constantly above the state average in bar passage rates.

Although there is no student center, there are numerous organizations and theyconstantly through events to bring the student body together.

The majority of the people I know that are transfering out are doing so, not because of the school, but because they do not like Jacksonville. Many of them are from the New England area and are wanting to go closer to home.

I know this is a long comment, but I take exception to people who are not actually students of the school commenting and trashing the school. Unless you actually attended, or an experienced attorney or someone fluent in the legal profession that has legitimate knowledge about the school, I really don't see how you could know all the school has to offer. I know fcsl_08 disagrees with me and doesn't like the school; however, my experience has been a good one so far and enjoy it.

[FCSL_08]

Everything you said is true; the quality of education is great, the school itself is really nice, and faculty, staff and deans are very friendly and helpful.

However, what you as a 1L are so blithely unaware of is the fact that the school has an abominable reputation, especially in Jacksonville, for churning out grads like an assembly line; this has completely sullied the school's reputation, and almost any employer that has heard of the school will cast grads or current students in a light that presumes incompetence, whether the school actually produces inferior lawyers or not.

You will, unfortunately, most certainly come to understand this very sad reality when you begin your job search. Enjoy your 1L-induced blissful ignorance while you can, but I recommend transferring if you realize your mistake in time.

And by the way, although Coastal makes a big deal about that softball tourney, no one else in the entire world cares. They also do not care about Moot Court rankings. US News ranking is all that matters.

[mississippimagnolia]

I was told I could have a tour of the campus but could not use the Westlaw or Lexis data base unless I was a attorney or student, of course I called to get a second opnion it was the same I understand the school but it would seem that the people in charge were very offended by my self-learning of the law and I assumed they thought I wanted to run an unlicensed pratice of law from their campus

.

You realize that Lexis is killer expensive, right? The school is probably not allowed to let you play around on the data base. I have a B.S. in Legal Studies. When I was in school, we had access to Lexis, however, we weren't allowed to use the site for anything other than coursework and research relating to our degree.

In law offices that can pay for Lexis, access is generally controlled. Every search costs money. Attorneys and paralegals are encouraged to use government sites, findlaw, google, etc.... before using Lexis.

[SJC2010]

Originally Posted by FCSL_08

And by the way, although Coastal makes a big deal about that softball tourney, no one else in the entire world cares. They also do not care about Moot Court rankings. US News ranking is all that matters.

The only reason I mentioned the softball and moot court team was because the poster that I was responding to was saying there is no culture or sports team at Flo-Co.

As for the job market, maybe I am in a different situation then most people in that I close family friends that are lawyers and have told me that I will most likely have a job with them when I get my JD as long as I maintain a certain class rank. I know this is no guarantee of a job, but that maybe why I have not focused on the after law school aspect of the law school as much.

For those interested in that point of view, you would definitely have the better insights into that. I do know that my LP teacher concurs with the opinion that the Florida legal market is overly saturated with lawyers seeking employment, especially in the Miami and Jacksonville area.

[FCSL_08]

My point exactly. A 1L whose family is promising a job upon graduation is not the best person to ask for advice on whether or not to attend Coastal, because the vast majority of students at Coastal are NOT in that situation.

Unfortunately, I can seriously tell you and anyone else reading this post that the legal job market in Jacksonville (and most of Florida, for that matter) is basically completely closed without a family member connection. That is no exaggeration. It. Is. Closed.

I know of several Coastal alums who have been out of school for two or more years working as teachers (think middle school, not college or law), part-time temps, party/event planners, and even a car salesman in the Jacksonville area.

The degree is definitely not worth anywhere close to the $150k that most kids are paying for it, and people graduating from Coastal will have a VERY difficult time in the job market in Jacksonville or elsewhere. It is very sad, but it is true.

And just to be clear, even if "the economy turns around" (like everyone seems to think it will do any day now - lol), people without experience and big gaps in their resume with little or no legal experience will be beat out for jobs by new grads with better credentials.

[dubois2011]

All they care about is MONEY which is natural since it is for profit.

The school keeps adding more and more students from the bottom of the academic dogpile. Do you seriously expect that you find a job to pay back your loans after a school like this one? Think again. I know ten people who have tried. Don't be fooled by these clowns.

[dubois2011]

This is not much more than a low grade community college with a clever corporate scam. I know about 5 people who were fooled by those people and could kick themselves now. It is a for profit scam and a very poorly run at that. Do yourself a favor. Stay away from these people. They will gouge you and smile. They will self destruct soon enough.

[taxguy1]

I have been a tax attorney for over 30 years. Yes, it is true that Florida Coastal has great facilities and I think very decent professors. However, all that is irrelevant.

As others have noted, the job market is horrible and probably the worst I have ever seen. No one is going to take Florida Coastal grads over UF, FSU, Miami and maybe Stetson unless they are within the top 2-5 people in the school. Even then, it will be very hard to get a good job.

My son was admitted to Florida Coastal and is considering going there because he didn't do well enough on the LSAT to get in anywhere else. However, my son has a guaranteed job being a CPA and a CFP.

If you don't have connections, don't go to Florida Coastal. You will regret it.

Also, don't discount the fact that Florida Coastal is a for profit school. They can't accrue a big endowment because their profits are taxed. They won't get a lot of donations either because of this. They don't get special mailing rates available to non-profits. They will, however, probably focus on the bottom line and try to give the education at the lowest possible cost in order to maximize their profits. For-profit schools have a MUCH higher default rate on loans. There is a reason. Again, if you don't have any choice and you have guaranteed connections, Florida Coastal might be fine. For anyone else, I would stay as far away from them as possible.

[JoJoCal19]

I have a question on law schools that maybe some folks can give me their opinion on. I'm currently attending UF for my BS in Business Administration. I've always been interested in law however I've run into a problem. I work full-time and have no choice but to, because I support my wife and daughter in a single income household. I recently found that any school registered with the ABA cannot allow students who work more than 20 hours I think it is. That will automatically disqualify me. My wifes uncle is a long time partner at one of the most prominent corporate law firms in the US and if I were to get my JD and license I would be set (before you mention it I've always been interested in becoming a lawyer).

My problem is from what I can see, none of the tier 1 law schools (at least in FL) have part time or evening courses or would allow for someone like myself to attend. Are there any schools out there that would work for me?