HBCU Law School

[Exquisite5]

I understand what you are saying and it is a popular view. It is why the only non-top 15 school I would go to is Howard and I am a person who had a scholarship to the University of Houston Law Center, the number one health law school in the nation (I had an interest in health law at the time).

Howard is not the same as other non-top 15 schools. Point blank, when employers want Black attorneys, they come to Howard. Period. Wachtel, Kravath, Paul Weiss, they all recruit here...HARD. Period. They see the value in diversity (14% of all CEOs of Fortune 500 companie are AfAm as opposed to 4% ten years ago and they want AfAm attorneys) and come to Howard to get it. Yes, they want people in the top 10%, but I feel that no matter where you go you should work your butt off to get there...I did and its definitely do-able. Law school is three years, I think all law students should got into those three years with a guerilla mindset, suck it up and do what it takes. I mean its only three years and in all honestly, its really on the first year that matters. Speaking from experiene, if you rock your first year- no matter where you go- you will get a summer associate position as 1L and as long as you don't screw up during your summer, you've pretty much got a job when you graduate. Work hard to be in the top of your class- its definitely doable, choosing to relyg on your school's name, imho, opinion is the lazy way out.

Again, I stress Howard is different. Firms recruit here that recruit at NO OTHER third tier schools, but hey- that's why I was smart and came here (and why I put it with the administration and parking ).

[Phasad1913]

Originally posted by SKEEphistAKAte
Phasad: I definitely agree with what you are saying. I di dnot mean to imply that if you go to a top tiered school that you are guaranteed a job at a top firm making big money. I just think that your chances are better if you do because MORE larger firms recruit there than anywhere else. I go to a tier 2 school and we have large firms recruit all of the time, but I know that we don't have as many large firms as say, a Harvard or a Yale, or any top 15 school for that matter.
The chances are better, by sheer mathematics, if you go to a higher tiered school.
And I definitely did not mean to say that top tiered schools are better. I love my school. My professors are cool, my classmates are cool, it is laidback, not one bit cutthroat..but I know that I may not have that experience at a school ranked higher on USNEWS. But would I trade in my seat at FSU for a seat at Duke or Harvard- hell yeah. I would be a fool if I didn't.
It just gets me when people say that USNEWS Rankings dont count. That is an outright lie. They do count. That doesn't mean you can't get a high paying job elsewhere. But in does count, and in my opinion it counts a whole lot- especially as far as your first job is concerned.

Ok, cool! Can't really argue with these points, I agree.

Good luck with your first year!! I'm off to study crim law

[Legal Diva]

I don't know how to post a quote, but Exquisite said:

<<Howard is not the same as other non-top 15 schools. Point blank, when employers want Black attorneys, they come to Howard. Period. Wachtel, Kravath, Paul Weiss, they all recruit here...HARD. Period.>>

AMEN!!! HUSL has hundreds of employers on during OCI and all year round. Doing what? Looking for brown folks! When I was there some of the white students were upset b/c they felt that they weren't getting their "fair share" of interviews. Oh, well, brown folks deal with it every day.

In my class and the class behind me HUSL had people going to each of the top 15 law firms as well as the DOJ Honors Pgm and what was at that time "NAPIL" Fellows. That's in addition to the majority of the "general population" (non-top 20%) that had jobs at gov't agencies, smaller firms and the PD.

The combination of being a Black law school, being in DC, and having a great academic program, make Howard different--in a good way!

I'm not saying that rankings aren't important, but sometimes there are more important factors--both personal and professional.

[IvySpice]

Howard is not the same as other non-top 15 schools. Point blank, when employers want Black attorneys, they come to Howard. Period. Wachtel, Kravath, Paul Weiss, they all recruit here...HARD.

I'm a biglaw lawyer and a law school admissions consultant, and this is 100% right. Howard gets attention that no other HBCU law school gets and that no other school outside the top 15 gets. USNews still matters, and there's a great deal more grade pressure placed on Howard students vs. say UVA students who are aiming for the same jobs, but the way major firms treat Howard place it in a unique category.

[SKEEphistAKAte]

I've heard the things you all are saying about Howard before. I can definitely see how that would be the case. And I agree with whoever said Howard is the only school below Tier 2 that I would even remotely consider.

[Eclipse]

Originally posted by Legal Diva
I don't know how to post a quote, but Exquisite said:

The quote button is on the bottom right of each post, next to the edit button. You can quote the entire thing or delete anything that you don't want to address/emphasize.

Now, since I don't have first hand knowledge of the law school mentioned, nor did I actually go to law school--HBCU or otherwise--and since I have no desire to go to law school, I'll get out of this thread!

[NuQueen04]

Originally posted by SKEEphistAKAte
NuQueen: I considered the location of the school, it's US News ranking (this was most important to me), cost of attendance, their reputation regionally and nationally (which goes back to USNews rankings), and I also searched the net for any information on the schools I was interested in. A good site is Law School Discussion .
You can email me if you have other questions. I'm a 1L so I am not far removed from what you are experiencing.

Thanks, I really appreciate the info. I will probably have some questions for you over the weekend. I am going to a Law Fair tomorrow. I am pretty excited.

[Legal Diva]

Mini hi-jack

Originally posted by Eclipse
The quote button is on the bottom right of each post, next to the edit button. You can quote the entire thing or delete anything that you don't want to address/emphasize.

Now, since I don't have first hand knowledge of the law school mentioned, nor did I actually go to law school--HBCU or otherwise--and since I have no desire to go to law school, I'll get out of this thread!

THANKS ECLIPSE!!!

[missjeff]

I know this is way off the subject of what the tread is about, but I'm in the process of applying to law school........Southern University to be exact, and I'm having a hard time writing my personal statement. I was wondering if their are any law school students are lawyers that would mind reading me statement and give me some tips........letting me know if I'm on the right track or or not.

[SKEEphistAKAte]

Missjeff: you can email it to me. Make sure it is no more than 2 pages.

[RedefinedDiva]

How is everyone making out in their respective law schools? Has anyone had a change in opinion or have new comments?

I will be attending Southern in the Fall and I am excited about what awaits me. However, I am still up in arms about the ranking and whatnot. In this area, Southern has a GREAT reputation, but I am just concerned about the future. Southern has a good program and I know that I won't have any trouble finding a job here once I graduate, but I am just trying to look at the big picture.

I know that I don't want to make any hasty decisions until I actually immerse myself in the work and meet other students and graduates. However, I am tossing around the fact that I may want to eventually transfer. I originally wanted to attend Howard, but it was (financially) out of the question. Loyola and Tulane are also options, but I sort of wanted that HBCU experience. I am not second guessing my decision to attend SULC, but with searching other sites and reading this thread, it seems as though if you don't go to a top 15 or Howard in particular, you are doomed. I would love to work for a big law firm. I would love a 6 figure salary (I'll even take a HIGH 5 figure). Eventually I would like to open my own firm.

What else, if anything, have you learned about law school, post-graduate job prospects, etc. now that more time has passed?

[Exquisite5]

I will be a 3L in the fall (YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY!)

With that said, I have enjoyed my Howard experience. I'm not gonna lie the administration makes me want to throw stones and some its personnel and things happen WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY to slow, but I love the students, I love the legacy, I love the spirit about the place and I love the opportunities HUSL provides.

I do not at all regret my decision. I am summer associate in arguably the best (def top 3) DC firms. Other summers in my class are from Harvard, Yale, Georgetown, Penn and I in no way feel unable to compete with them or unprepared. In fact, attys have commented on my writing, and well Howard is known for its legal writing program. I think I made the right decision and for me that included turning down Georgetown, AU and UHouston (#1 in health law which at the time I was interested in).

Regarding your consideration of transferring, I can only say that only you can make that decision. I don't know what kind of recruiting goes on at SULC, but I do know that tier matters and my firm and none of those I interviewed with but rejected go to Southern. HUSL is generally the choice recruiting place among HBCU law schools. Also, going to a regional school in general will diminish your chances of being recruited on campus by a large law firm, they generally stick to the national law schools or top 15 state schools (Penn, UT, UC systems, etc...).

So, if a Louisiana firm is what you want I say stick with SULC, but if you want a Cleary, Skadden, Wilmer, Paul Weis, Cravath, A&P type law firm you might want to consider another school or at least transferring.

However, let me point out while you may not have those firms coming on campus to interview you which is the blessing of attending a national law school you still can send out your resume and transcript full of outstanding grades (they will be necessary to do this) and maybe they will call you for an interview. This is very difficult because most firms have the schools they recruit from and that's it.

I don't want to discourage you, but I want to be honest. You seem to want a big firm job and I want to help you out. Feel free to PM me.

[unspokenone25]

Originally posted by Exquisite5
I will be a 3L in the fall (YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY!)

With that said, I have enjoyed my Howard experience. I'm not gonna lie the administration makes me want to throw stones and some its personnel and things happen WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY to slow, but I love the students, I love the legacy, I love the spirit about the place and I love the opportunities HUSL provides.

I do not at all regret my decision. I am summer associate in arguably the best (def top 3) DC firms. Other summers in my class are from Harvard, Yale, Georgetown, Penn and I in no way feel unable to compete with them or unprepared. In fact, attys have commented on my writing, and well Howard is known for its legal writing program. I think I made the right decision and for me that included turning down Georgetown, AU and UHouston (#1 in health law which at the time I was interested in).

Regarding your consideration of transferring, I can only say that only you can make that decision. I don't know what kind of recruiting goes on at SULC, but I do know that tier matters and my firm and none of those I interviewed with but rejected go to Southern. HUSL is generally the choice recruiting place among HBCU law schools. Also, going to a regional school in general will diminish your chances of being recruited on campus by a large law firm, they generally stick to the national law schools or top 15 state schools (Penn, UT, UC systems, etc...).

So, if a Louisiana firm is what you want I say stick with SULC, but if you want a Cleary, Skadden, Wilmer, Paul Weis, Cravath, A&P type law firm you might want to consider another school or at least transferring.

However, let me point out while you may not have those firms coming on campus to interview you which is the blessing of attending a national law school you still can send out your resume and transcript full of outstanding grades (they will be necessary to do this) and maybe they will call you for an interview. This is very difficult because most firms have the schools they recruit from and that's it.

I don't want to discourage you, but I want to be honest. You seem to want a big firm job and I want to help you out. Feel free to PM me.

I attend one of the law schools that Exquisite 5 was accepted to and chose not to attend. I was accepted into HU and chose not attend. I am also going into my last year of law school. Right now, I am clerking at a firm that takes nothing less than the top 20% of the class. At this firm, the starting salary is in the high 5 figures and you have the opportunity of making partner in 5 years as an associate.

I agree that when firms are looking to hire blacks they go to HU rather than going to some of the other HBCU law schools. However, if they want blacks that go to the white schools, they will go there too. I will also say that going to a white school, there are still some firms that interview at my school and did not interview at HU. It really just depends as Exquisite indicated. All of the big Texas firms interview at my law school so if you are interested in practicing in TX, that is something that you might want to consider.

I think there are benefits and drawbacks to going a black law school and a white law school. Regardless of where you go, you will have to prove to those that are around you (mainly your white counterparts), that you are just as brilliant and talented as they are and can work twice as hard.

If you choose to transfer to a white law school, pick a law school that has an active BLSA chapter. My school does and that helped a lot in going through the rigors of law school. Also, look at the schools that you are interested in attending and look at their bar passage rates.

PM me if you have any questions and I will try to answer them as best I can.

[Pearls4Life]

Sorors,
I am thinking on law school or paralegal certification. I took the LSAT and it kicked my butt...Da&%! I need to re-take it. Anyhoo in October I will. Now my question. Is law school anything like that dang test? My degree is in business is that a disadvantage? Also last question. I am a single parent and want to take my son with me, do any of you see non-traditional students doing well in Law school...(30+ in age) I am determined but I am scared to death of this test. I read a lot but that test....Lawd help a sistah out!

[unspokenone25]

I am not a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. but I can answer your question.

Law school is NOTHING like the LSAT test. Your degree might actually help you if you plan on being a transactional attorney and in some classes such as Contracts, Securities Regulations, Federal Income Tax. Law schools except all majors and I don't think that one prepares one more than the other (except for maybe English b/c you do a lot of writing).

I have seen plenty of women bring their children to class, up to school while they are studying, etc. My law school offers a part-time section to those individuals that work full-time and/or have families. Most of the people that are in this section are between the ages of 30-55. I don't see how they do it but they do and a lot of them are very successful in their classes and studies. It just takes a lot of juggling but I know that you can do it if this is something that you truly want to pursue. One of my sectionmates has a 8 year old son, went through a divorce, and lost her brother to cancer all in our first year of law school. She is still hanging in there and working in our school's Immigration Clinic (she is one of my inspirations).

About the LSAT, most people take the classes. I didn't (too much money). I studied on my own w/ old LSAT tests and a Kaplan book (that had tests and a CD that I could access from home).