William Mitchell College of Law (Minneapolis: loans, lawyers, job market)

[twairlines]

Hi all,
I fell in love with the Twin Cities in the recent years in which I have traveled to the Midwest. I'm strongly considering making the move from PA to MN and have a simple question. I am 22 and will be attending law school this upcoming Fall and I was accepted to William Mitchell with full tuition being paid for. Also, they have a program where the top few selected incoming students are paired with professors to help do research. One Harvard and one Yale professor are in charge of this initiative and select students who are part of this go to different social events with these esteemed alumni and have the chance to network. My dilemma is that I have been accepted to the Univ. of Minnesota on about half tuition. U of M is also a top 25 ranked law school in the nation, and is known very well nationally. My plans after graduating law school would be to live in the Twin Cities and work there. I've done a lot research on WM and seemed very impressed, yet I would like local opinions as the college is private and not much is known about it here on the East Coast. Thanks for any help, such as friends and family who attended either institution, or the general consensus of how WM is viewed in the TC area.

[uptown_urbanist]

I'm not a lawyer, so take this opinion for what it is -- the view of someone outside the field and therefore not someone in the position to be hiring any attorneys. That said, my impression is that while William Mitchell is small, it does have a good reputation. MANY very successful Minnesota people have received degrees from there, so you'd be in very good company (and presumably have very good local alumni networking benefits). I'd go with the full ride. (especially given last weekend's New York Times article on law school debt and job potential, and since you are planning on remaining in MN after graduation)

[sendij1]

congrats. You can't go wrong with WM in MN, you'll love it.

[cammci]

Husband went and graduated from WM, he said if he'd have to do it all over again and practice law, he'd go to he U of M. He was in a similar situation, was offered 1/2 to go to Hamlin and full to WM and he chose WM. He thinks U of M is a better law school and it looks better in the long run (as the competition to get into the U of M is much greater). That's his 2 cents.

[DirtMagurt]

William Mitchell has an excellent reputation regionally (at the very least) and has one of the strongest arbitration and mediation programs in the country.

I would not hesitate to attend WM law school. jmo.

[southernsmoke]

Tough call. One thing I would say for sure though--don't go to William Mitchell unless you are absolutely sure you want to stay in Minnesota. I'd talk to students at both and ask how OCI is going (my strong recommendation would be a handful of 2Ls and 3Ls from each school).

[LawoftheLand]

As a WM alum, I can say that it provides a solid education. The U of M degree has more prestige and the larger law firms would prefer that in a new graduate. But IMHO once you have been out of law school for 5+ years, you will be judged by your professional reputation and experience much more than by the origin of your sheepskin.

Uptown_urbanist is right to mention the debt that tends to come with obtaining a law degee. Most of the debt is due to loans for living expenses for 3 years. If that's a concern for you, WM is more flexible since it offers day and night classes. That allows many to get a part-time day job with a law firm. It wil bring in some cash and give you valuable hands-on experience.

Best wishes whatever you decide.

[sendij1]

just a question on this subject-

how common is it to have full ride to law school (or even half ride)? From this thread, it appears 2 folks have such a good fortune. I was not aware you can have a free ride to law school. What does it take? lsat scores, gpa, ...? I am interested in pursuing this, albeit I may not look in mn. Thanks for the help.

[twairlines]

Thank you to everyone who responded. Some really good insight. Sendij1, in regards to your question it is rare to get a full ride depending on where you apply. I have over a 4.0 GPA (they calculate + and - when applying to law school) which is above 99th percentile. In addition they weigh the LSAT score a little higher since it is their opportunity to grade all students on one scale. I scored above the 95th percentile on this. According to US News rankings WM is in the 90's which is an accomplishment since it's a private college of law only and ranking is based on other schools voting for your own school. Now UMN is in top 25 and my numbers are high for them as well thus, the scholarship. Keep in mind many students go to both schools without any scholarships for their numbers just get them in. Some students get maybe 15k a year when it costs 40k a year and think they got one heck of a deal. What I'm saying is with my numbers I was able to get into a top 15 ranked school, yet I received only 5k a year. I'm not about to accrue that much debt at a school that has a huge national reach, yet relatively low ability to place me in Minneapolis (where I want to end up). Also, I got full rides from 2 other top 30 schools just slightly below UMN, but this shows how competitive the numbers game becomes just by moving up 6 or 7 schools. Those 2 school are in the Midwest but from my knowledge WM is given more attention in the Minneapolis market as it has a large network of alumni already in place. It is hard to receive a lot of money, however if numbers are in your favor then you can choose 2 paths: 1. go to best school your numbers get you into, or 2. know where you want to practice law and apply to schools(maybe not ranked nearly as high as what your numbers would allow you to get into) that are in that region or are nearby, thus potentially earning some scholarship money if these schools would love to add your numbers that you bring. Sendij1, if you have any other questions let me know.

[MPLS_Dude]

Here is the perspective of a practicing attorney. WM is a fine law school, but you should be aware that the job market for lawyers is in the toilet. The Twin Cities are no exception. I know a few people who graduated from WM this year (two at the top of their class), and neither have managed to secure employment. The vast majority of graduates at both WM and UMN will not graduate with a job.

See a recent NY Times article on the topic.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/business/09law.htm?_r=1 (broken link)

Since you are still young, you should strongly consider working for a few years before entering law school, and at the very least interning / working at a law firm and gaining exposure to the practice of law before investing so much money in a degree with a very questionable ROI.

Best of luck.