- PowerScore Staff
- Posts: 8980
- Joined: Feb 02, 2011
- Thu Dec 30, 2021 11:18 am
#92931
In the conversation below, PowerScore CEO Dave Killoran helps a student, Kirean, make a decision about which law school to attend.
Kirean: "Hey! I’m having a tough time making a decision. I'm interested in becoming an environmental lawyer and am an avid outdoorsman (my two main ones are rock climbing and surfing). Hopefully you all could give me some insight!
University of California San Diego (#86)- TCOA: 77,463 pros- great location with plenty of outdoor activities. Cons- most expensive to attend as well as to live.
Lewis and Clark College (#88)- TCOA: 75,444 pros- incredible environmental law program and beautiful forestry. Cons- still pretty expensive to attend, far from any beach
University of Oregon (#72)- TCOA: 45,702 pros- great environmental program, good location. Cons- no beach
California Western (#147-189)- TCOA: 0 pros- completely free and in great location. Cons- a much lower ranked school, not the best environmental program."
Dave Killoran:"Hey Kirean,
Thanks for the message! Like any decision, to me it’s about narrowing the field then visiting if needed. Here’s a basic comparison: https://www.lawschooltransparency.com/s ... n/sandiego.
Here, I’d knock out Cal Western immediately. Despite being free, the job numbers aren’t great at all. If the next higher-priced options were a lot more, then I’d keep them in, but they aren’t. Next, I’d compare USD vs Lewis & Clark since there are many similarities: cost and employment being the two big ones. That has to be your call there, although I will note that USD is NOT a UC school; there is no UCSD law school. For me, L&C would have a slight edge due to your admitted interest in environmental law.
Last, we have Oregon, which stands alone in the mid-price range here and also has the best ranking by a slight margin. I’m actually quite familiar with UO and Eugene as I have family in the area, and as an outdoorsman, Oregon is likely the best of all your outdoor options tbh. Side note about surfing there, too: The Oregon coast is less than an hour away, and there is river surfing in Eugene!
So, per the analysis I made above, to me it’s Oregon vs L&C. I’d shade toward Oregon with the lower cost, higher ranking, great location, and more widely recognized school name (their sports teams have helped people know the school better), but it’s really about the school that’s best for you. I’d go visit if you haven’t already as the two schools are quite different!
Please let me know if that helps. Thanks!"
Kirean: "First off thank you so much for taking the time to help me put Dave. This gave me a much better insight than I had before (first in my family to take any sort of higher education). Considering the surfing and everything else outdoors I can certainly see myself being in Oregon.
I was wondering if it would be worth it to reach out to these schools for a scholarship reconsideration. Then citing California Western’s full ride as a little leverage even if I’m not considering going there?
Again thank you so much for your time and effort."
Dave Killoran:"Hey Kirean,
Glad that helped! In this case, no, the Cal Western offer won’t move the needle. Western is just too far below the other schools for them to care–they do not see themselves as competing with Cal Western in any fashion, and so at that point whatever you were offered by them is irrelevant. You need schools in a similar band or higher to get reconsideration. And they also know overall COAs in general, so a school like Oregon will know they are cheaper than L&C for you.
Thanks!"
Kirean:"With all this to consider I think I’m going to go with Oregon. It is a much cheaper overall price, better ranked as an overall law school and still top 10 for environmental law. Thanks for all the help!"
Dave Killoran: "Nice choice, congratulations!"
Kirean: "Hey! I’m having a tough time making a decision. I'm interested in becoming an environmental lawyer and am an avid outdoorsman (my two main ones are rock climbing and surfing). Hopefully you all could give me some insight!
University of California San Diego (#86)- TCOA: 77,463 pros- great location with plenty of outdoor activities. Cons- most expensive to attend as well as to live.
Lewis and Clark College (#88)- TCOA: 75,444 pros- incredible environmental law program and beautiful forestry. Cons- still pretty expensive to attend, far from any beach
University of Oregon (#72)- TCOA: 45,702 pros- great environmental program, good location. Cons- no beach
California Western (#147-189)- TCOA: 0 pros- completely free and in great location. Cons- a much lower ranked school, not the best environmental program."
Dave Killoran:"Hey Kirean,
Thanks for the message! Like any decision, to me it’s about narrowing the field then visiting if needed. Here’s a basic comparison: https://www.lawschooltransparency.com/s ... n/sandiego.
Here, I’d knock out Cal Western immediately. Despite being free, the job numbers aren’t great at all. If the next higher-priced options were a lot more, then I’d keep them in, but they aren’t. Next, I’d compare USD vs Lewis & Clark since there are many similarities: cost and employment being the two big ones. That has to be your call there, although I will note that USD is NOT a UC school; there is no UCSD law school. For me, L&C would have a slight edge due to your admitted interest in environmental law.
Last, we have Oregon, which stands alone in the mid-price range here and also has the best ranking by a slight margin. I’m actually quite familiar with UO and Eugene as I have family in the area, and as an outdoorsman, Oregon is likely the best of all your outdoor options tbh. Side note about surfing there, too: The Oregon coast is less than an hour away, and there is river surfing in Eugene!
So, per the analysis I made above, to me it’s Oregon vs L&C. I’d shade toward Oregon with the lower cost, higher ranking, great location, and more widely recognized school name (their sports teams have helped people know the school better), but it’s really about the school that’s best for you. I’d go visit if you haven’t already as the two schools are quite different!
Please let me know if that helps. Thanks!"
Kirean: "First off thank you so much for taking the time to help me put Dave. This gave me a much better insight than I had before (first in my family to take any sort of higher education). Considering the surfing and everything else outdoors I can certainly see myself being in Oregon.
I was wondering if it would be worth it to reach out to these schools for a scholarship reconsideration. Then citing California Western’s full ride as a little leverage even if I’m not considering going there?
Again thank you so much for your time and effort."
Dave Killoran:"Hey Kirean,
Glad that helped! In this case, no, the Cal Western offer won’t move the needle. Western is just too far below the other schools for them to care–they do not see themselves as competing with Cal Western in any fashion, and so at that point whatever you were offered by them is irrelevant. You need schools in a similar band or higher to get reconsideration. And they also know overall COAs in general, so a school like Oregon will know they are cheaper than L&C for you.
Thanks!"
Kirean:"With all this to consider I think I’m going to go with Oregon. It is a much cheaper overall price, better ranked as an overall law school and still top 10 for environmental law. Thanks for all the help!"
Dave Killoran: "Nice choice, congratulations!"