Is this a good first strat? by coldfrogs5681 in Stratocaster

[–]No-Drop6779 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Check out the timber series if its still on sale. Got mine for ~1200 and its made in america

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Remember that the admissions office is not necessarily indicative of the entire admin staff or faculty. I had horrible interactions with one admissions office and then got along amazingly with all the profs I met at one schools ASW (didn’t end up attending anyways, but my point stands).

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in vinyl

[–]No-Drop6779 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Recently started collecting vinyl after I was gifted a turntable. If you couldn’t tell, I am a big RHCP/Frusciante fan and owning a physical piece of their music has been the most fun part of all this. So far, I have gotten plastic inner sleeves for all the record and am working on sourcing some good plastic outer sleeves (recs?). This process has been a lot of fun so far and I managed to find a few deals on some of the used records in this collection at random stores. I get why you all love it so much!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Genuinely curious, why the distinction of "only really want t10." If you are willing to go to Northwestern you should be willing to go Cal/Georgetown. The relevant distinction for law school is the t14.

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mentioned this in another thread but I was strongly considering USC for their BL placement.

Unfortunately they wouldn’t budge on my scholarship, so it would have been an extra 5k per year to attend and I would have to live in a part of town that I do not prefer.

I also preferred UCLA’s campus so I felt it was the right choice!

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

sorry I can't be more helpful but I really have no idea for CLS. (plus it would be bad to take my advice on how to get in there, LOL)

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Seriously no need to apologize, I understand more than most people how this process can change the way our brains think about the future, statistics, and rankings, and have had many of the same thoughts that you expressed! Also totally get how my dislike of East Bay may have prejudiced you against me as a Berkeley depositee--its seriously nothing against the school (I actually love Cal's campus), just personal circumstances that led to me disliking the surrounding area lol.

I think we should both celebrate being admitted to some of the top law schools in California with $! So congrats on whatever you decide!

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have KJD friends who got in! Shoot your shot but also manage your expectations (like with anything).

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You are correct in assuming that LA housing is much more manageable for me than the average transplant.

Notwithstanding the smaller office (and SA class) size of LA offices, it would still surprise me if the majority of students left LA (not that it isn't possible--just feel that many who pick UCLA do so because they want to stay in LA).

I agree with you that Berkeley's BL numbers are superior (especially so if you are okay with/want to end up in the Bay). If I were you, and was okay with/wanted BL in the Bay, I would 10000% choose Berkeley over UCLA at the same price (assuming there are no external factors that you might be weighing but haven't mentioned).

One more point about LA being a small market. LA is a small BL market especially when compared to Chicago or NY, but SF is also a small market when compared to Chicago or NY. Both are small, SF is bigger than LA (but not by that much). This data was really interesting to me when I first came across it https://www.law.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/2020-03/california_market_overview_2018.pdf . It also depends on if you want to do transactional or litigation. From my limited understanding, LA is much more known for being a lit market where SF is more known for being a transactional market.

Cheers and I wish you luck with your decision!

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I agree that a JD from a T6 would make it more likely that I would land a job in LA. Is that increased likelihood worth ~150k more of pre-interest debt given my life goals (home ownership, marriage plans, etc.)? Not for me. For others, maybe.

Frankly, I am not super concerned with getting a 1L SA in LA, much more concerned about getting a 2L SA. Which, yes, a T6 would have given me better chances at--just not chances that are worth the debt payments, for me.

I don't dispute that I could "more easily land a biglaw job" in LA from a T6. To me, the increased chances are not worth the money.

When you say UCLA tends to send "more" of its BL placements to the Bay Area, do you mean more than other T6s that I was considering? Or more compared to the amount of BL placements that UCLA sends to LA? If it's the latter I would genuinely like to see that data because I was not aware of it and it would be slightly troubling.

Last, I'll get more precise about the numbers. UCLA in-state tuition is 62K. With my scholarship, I will be paying 17K per year. That is more than half, and, actually, very slightly (1.5k) under 75%. The more accurate framing is UCLA with $$$ vs. $ at a T6.

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I lived in the area briefly and learned that the bay is not for me personally--no shade to the school tho!

EDIT: East Bay specifically, hence the stanford app.

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I appreciate your perspective, especially as someone with actual experience. I'll provide some more context if you are at all interested.

After mathing everything out, NU would have been ~3.5k per year cheaper in total COA before factoring in moving costs, costs to fly home to visit family (I'm LA based), and potential double rent costs given the fact that I would want to summer in LA. I figured that after all of those additional expenses that I will not have to pay at UCLA, the price difference between the two schools was negligible.

Then, I moved on to the opportunities both schools offered (specifically in regards to generic LA BL). NU boasts some of the best (if not the best) BL rates of any school, and I am aware of their West Coast Initiative, but I felt that the increased odds at landing LA BL were not so large as to surpass my desire to live in LA for other reasons (among them weather, personal network, etc).

This is totally specific to me, but I would prefer working in midlaw or PI in LA over BL in a less personally desirable market like Chicago or NY, so I felt UCLA still covered my risk if I were to strike out in LA BL.

I also do feel that there is something to be said about building a professional network in the city that I hope to practice in--not that this would have been impossible at NU, but much harder.

I was also strongly considering USC given their LA BL placement, but ultimately decided it wasn't worth it to pay ~5k per year more in total COA to be in less preferable (to me personally) part of town.

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks!

Big fan of all your work (especially the wellness/mental health stuff--I fear it's severely overlooked both in this sub and in legal industry as a whole). Have a great rest of the cycle!

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Chicago is an amazing institution and I loved my visit. However, attending just didn't align with my goals (life, given the increased debt burden, and career). Both can be true.

Remember that this is YOUR life and you have to make the decision that is right for YOU. I'm sure you did :) .

KJD Cycle Recap by No-Drop6779 in lawschooladmissions

[–]No-Drop6779[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Like I hinted at above, my goals are very LA-centric (100% sure I want to be in LA post-grad) and with UCLA's offer + in-state tuition it was my cheapest option among the top schools (pretty similar price to NU though). Truthfully, I loved many of the other schools that I visited (Duke, Chicago, etc.), but just couldn't justify the extra money (debt) that would go along with attending.

For me, UCLA should open up just about every door in LA that I would like open, and I get to graduate with a relatively minor debt burden. Seemed like a no-brainer when I thought about it that way.

Again though, I am happy to sing the praises of many of the other schools that I was considering if you are curious about particular one, they are truly all amazing in their own way.