SMU Law v. UofH Law (Houston, Dallas: insurance, lawyer, home)

[Visitor2007]

Originally Posted by jimboburnsy

I wouldn't say "hands down" exactly. Both are really 2nd tier law schools, which is funny because the only 1st tier in this state seems to be UT. The top 10% at either school will wind up at prestigious firms vs. the top 25% at UT.

I think it's a wash between the two, but if you are in my shoes the advantage goes to UH because the tuition is so much more affordable.

I agree. If one has to pay full tuition going to a Texas law school, and a Texas resident, it would be in the following order:

1) UT
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2) UH
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3) SMU (or Texas Tech if you don't like to take too much risk)

4) Baylor (or Texas Tech if yo don't like to take too much risk)

5) Texas Tech
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6) South Texas
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7) St. Mary
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8) Texas Wesleyan
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9) Texas Southern


Anything below UT and UH in-state tuition is risky. You're facing the possibility of 6 figures in debts, 3 years spent, and no job. Don't even think about having a JD will give you advantage over a bachelor degree holder in competing for a job that require a bachelor degree only, because virtually every time, the employer will choose the bachelor degree holder over a law degree holder.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by Visitor2007

I agree. If one has to pay full tuition going to a Texas law school, and a Texas resident, it would be in the following order:

1) UT
2) UH
3) SMU (or Texas Tech if you don't like to take too much risk)
4) Baylor (or Texas Tech if yo don't like to take too much risk)
5) Texas Tech
6) South Texas
7) St. Mary
8) Texas Wesleyan
9) Texas Southern

Anything below UT and UH in-state tuition is risky. You're facing the possibility of 6 figures in debts, 3 years spent, and no job. Don't even think about having a JD will give you advantage over a bachelor degree holder in competing for a job that require a bachelor degree only, because virtually every time, the employer will choose the bachelor degree holder over a law degree holder.

I might change the order slightly in the lower echelon, but not much. At any rate, about the worst thing you can do is be one of these "I don't really know why I'm here" students at Wesleyan or South Texas who have put themselves into $120K worth of "non-bankruptible" debt and finished in the bottom-half of the class. Those guys can't even get landman work anymore...

[Visitor2007]

Originally Posted by jimboburnsy

I might change the order slightly in the lower echelon, but not much. At any rate, about the worst thing you can do is be one of these "I don't really know why I'm here" students at Wesleyan or South Texas who have put themselves into $120K worth of "non-bankruptible" debt and finished in the bottom-half of the class. Those guys can't even get landman work anymore...

I am interested in knowing how you would change the order in the lower echelon.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by Visitor2007

I am interested in knowing how you would change the order in the lower echelon.

It really depends on which D.A. you want to work for, but I might put St. Mary's ahead of South Texas or at least denote a tie.

[loves2read]

if you want to live/work in SA then St Mary's is probably not a bad choice

South TX used to be a working man's school because most classes were at night--my husband went there when we were first married and he was just a few years out of college--we could not afford for him to stop working and go to school full time (we were not the kind of people even then who would go into debt for college)...he had to drop out because he was in the National Guard and had to make two weeks of summer camp--could not take a law school course and miss two weeks of summer session...don't know about nowbut agree that is is probably school of last resort--don't know how they can continue to allow TX Southern to have a law school when the success rate is so low for bar takers...
there has to be a better way
I know there are black law schools that can put out a quality grad...

[Visitor2007]

Originally Posted by jimboburnsy

It really depends on which D.A. you want to work for, but I might put St. Mary's ahead of South Texas or at least denote a tie.

Why focus specifically on working for D.A.? How many law grads actually end up working for D.A. as opposed to working for law firms, whether small or large?

[Visitor2007]

Originally Posted by loves2read

if you want to live/work in SA then St Mary's is probably not a bad choice

South TX used to be a working man's school because most classes were at night--my husband went there when we were first married and he was just a few years out of college--we could not afford for him to stop working and go to school full time (we were not the kind of people even then who would go into debt for college)...he had to drop out because he was in the National Guard and had to make two weeks of summer camp--could not take a law school course and miss two weeks of summer session...don't know about nowbut agree that is is probably school of last resort--don't know how they can continue to allow TX Southern to have a law school when the success rate is so low for bar takers...
there has to be a better way
I know there are black law schools that can put out a quality grad...

What does your H do now? Any regrets for not finishing law school?

You think the law passage rate is low for TX Southern? You should see the percentage of first year enterring class at that school that actually end up graduating, passing the bar, and get a decent job?

[Visitor2007]

Originally Posted by loves2read

if you want to live/work in SA then St Mary's is probably not a bad choice
...

The only problem is that UH and South Texas grads are only 2 to 3 hours away, not to mention UT grads are about one hour away. Plus, SA does not have a big legal market at all.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by Visitor2007

Why focus specifically on working for D.A.? How many law grads actually end up working for D.A. as opposed to working for law firms, whether small or large?

I must admit that I have a limited resource of St. Mary's grads that I actually know, but out of those four two are working for the Bexar D.A., one is a landman and the third works for a company in Houston that protests property taxes.

I know a lot of South Texas grads. The preponderance is(are?) employed by Harris county, one works for the Galveston D.A., one is an assistant general counsel for an oil company by way of nepotism and I know three young lawyers that have opened up private practice.

I realize that this is very anecdotal evidence, but, in my estimation, the sampling is random and representative enough to justify some conclusions.

One of those conclusions being that at some point in their student career most South Texas or St. Mary's students are going to realize that the $150K+ jobs at prestigious law firms are out of reach and they are going to have to decide whether they would prefer to whack bad guys with a D.A. or slug it out in corporate or private practice. At least whacking bad guys is a steady paycheck.

[Visitor2007]

What does D.A. stand for?