T14 Law School vs. Regional

[amh235]

Hello,

I am applying to law school this fall. I ultimately want to end up in Texas to practice law, however I definitely want to attend a T14 (preferably T10) law school.

If I were to go to Northwestern or UPENN would I have trouble getting a job for a Dallas based position at a BigLaw firm? Does BigLaw hire by the office, or when BigLaw Firm A shows up on campus you can tell them what office(s) you're interested in?


Thanks.

[Dave Killoran]

Hi A,

The short and happy answer here is that you would not have any troubles competing in the Dallas/Houston markets. Both Penn and Northwestern have national reputations, and you'd be able to interview favorably against UT grads in those areas (and would stand out a bit since a Penn/NW grad interviewing for Dallas is less common than a UT grad doing the same). Plus, Penn and NW already place in Texas:

Penn State Placement
https://www.lstreports.com/schools/penn/jobs/location/

• Employed 97.6%
  Washington, D.C. 9.6%
  New York 48.8%
  Pennsylvania 12.5%
  Texas 5.8%
  Unknown State 22.8%
  Non-Employed 2.4%

Northwestern State Placement
https://www.lstreports.com/schools/nort ... /location/

• Employed 93.8%
  Illinois 39.3%
  New York 18.1%
  California 15.2%
  Washington, D.C. 4.8%
  Texas 2.6%
  Minnesota 1.9%
  Florida 1.5%
  Massachusetts 1.5%
  Colorado 1.1%
  Georgia 1.1%
  Unknown State 2.4%
  Non-Employed 6.3%

Degrees from either school are portable, and would serve you well in any major market.

Thanks!