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Top 20 US School vs. U of T?

ChiChi55ChiChi55 Alum Member
in General 177 karma

I recently got accepted to the University of Minnesota and was pretty set on this being the school I was going to attend. Until today, I found out I got accepted to the University of Toronto.

I now have a tough decision to make and was looking for any pointers? Which school would be a better choice for career outcomes and opportunities? I should mention I am from Minnesota and an alum from there as well. I’ve just heard amazing things about Toronto and it’s reputation.

Comments

  • cooljon525-1-1cooljon525-1-1 Alum Member
    917 karma

    Depends where you want to practice. If its in the U.S, I don't see why you would want to go to law school in Canada?

  • ChiChi55ChiChi55 Alum Member
    177 karma

    @cooljon525 said:
    Depends where you want to practice. If its in the U.S, I don't see why you would want to go to law school in Canada?

    I would love to live in Canada! I’m open to living there and the US which just causes more of a personal dilemma.

  • Go where you believe you will practice.

  • rivierabluerivierablue Alum Member
    80 karma

    UofT is like perfect for "Canadian" Big Law. What are your career aspirations?

  • taschasptaschasp Alum Member Sage
    796 karma

    Congrats on the U of T acceptance! They just called me today too.

    One thing to consider is that its easier to practice in the US with a degree from U of T than it would be to practice in Canada with a degree from U of Minnesota. For the latter, you'd need to take the NCA, Bar, and article for a year. I'm assuming if you went to Minnesota you'd stay in the U.S. so maybe the real question for you is which country you want to be in...which is a big question for sure, and probably one that none of us can really answer!

  • ChiChi55ChiChi55 Alum Member
    177 karma

    Thank you all!! I guess it really is a personal question that I’ll have to weigh the pros and cons. I am interested in big law but I am also open to exploring more options as well. Exploring career wise they both seem to have good outcomes so I guess it just comes down to the smaller logistics. Going to be a hard decision but thank you!

  • BamboosproutBamboosprout Alum Member
    1694 karma

    Unless you're pretty tied to Minnesota, UofT is internationally equivalent to T10, and is the Harvard of Canada (best for big law, and huge network), so I would recommend UofT. Congrats on your acceptances!

  • 1000001910000019 Alum Member
    3279 karma

    @Bamboosprout said:
    UofT is internationally equivalent to T10

    Legal system in the USA and Canada are vastly different. No such thing as being internationally equivalent.

  • Lolo1996Lolo1996 Member
    498 karma

    Go where you want to practice! Why are you suddenly changing? Like what made you consider Toronto? If its the cost, don’t do it. Go study where you have always wanted! Debt is temporary, the law school experience is forever.

    I also believe going from canada to the US is very difficult because the legal systems have quite large differences.

    Honestly, as a Canadian I really cant see why you would want to come here. It can drop to -40, healthcare is garbage (try waiting 1yr+ for appointments etc), more opportunities and variety in the US, taxed to death here etc. So i do not see the appeal tbh haha.

    In all honesty, the most important thing is your network. Which ever university you attend, make sure you build a strong network, order business cards, make a linkedin. This will give you all your career opportunities you need!

    Good luck :)

  • ChiChi55ChiChi55 Alum Member
    177 karma

    @Bamboosprout @10000019 i have also heard that it’s known internationally as a good school! But have also heard that it’s hard to compare lol so much different information which makes it harder to compare. And I was born and raised in Minnesota so I do have ties but nothing I wouldn’t be worried about leaving! Lol

  • ChiChi55ChiChi55 Alum Member
    177 karma

    @Lolo1996 said:
    Go where you want to practice! Why are you suddenly changing? Like what made you consider Toronto? If its the cost, don’t do it. Go study where you have always wanted! Debt is temporary, the law school experience is forever.

    I also believe going from canada to the US is very difficult because the legal systems have quite large differences.

    Honestly, as a Canadian I really cant see why you would want to come here. It can drop to -40, healthcare is garbage (try waiting 1yr+ for appointments etc), more opportunities and variety in the US, taxed to death here etc. So i do not see the appeal tbh haha.

    In all honesty, the most important thing is your network. Which ever university you attend, make sure you build a strong network, order business cards, make a linkedin. This will give you all your career opportunities you need!

    Good luck :)

    I haven’t been suddenly changing, Toronto has always been a top choice for me I just didn’t think I’d be accepted! I guess it’s more of a personal dilemma of where I want to live and build a future at this point.

    And I’m from Minnesota so it’s freezing here too and Toronto sometimes is even warmer so I’m not afraid of that (-20 here right now). And the taxes in Minnesota are some of the highest in the country so also not that. And I’ve heard great and terrible things about the healthcare but cost is so high for it here in the US and I’ll be off my parents insurance while In school so that’s something to consider.
    I would reconsider for more opportunities in the US though which is something I’m considering!

    Thanks for the suggestion on network though! Making business cards sounds like a great idea. I definitely have some thinking to do!

  • BamboosproutBamboosprout Alum Member
    edited January 2020 1694 karma

    @10000019 said:

    @Bamboosprout said:
    UofT is internationally equivalent to T10

    Legal system in the USA and Canada are vastly different. No such thing as being internationally equivalent.

    You're right. I'm oversimplifying. Since @ChiChi55 is asking about UofT, has applied, and got accepted, I made the assumption that he or she is considering working internationally, so I wanted to provide an opinion that had practical applications. There is no perfect, direct comparison between US and Canadians schools, but having worked in 6 countries, including both the US and Canada, I can with some idea say that UofT and T10 are pretty equivalent in terms of value for a graduate. What I am considering include network, reputation, education, and employment opportunities. If you want to work in a particular state, then it is strongly advised that you go to a top school close to or within that state. To reiterate though, my main point is that unless the original post has family, or is tied to Minnesota in some other way, UofT is my recommended choice.

    Since @ChiChi55 is tied to Minnesota, then everything is up in the air. This is a bit late now, but I recommend calling UofT and asking them to refer some alumni or current students to you so that you can make a more informed decision. From reading your comments, it doesn't seem like you had any particular reason for applying to UofT, and only applied to cask a wider net. If that is the only reason, I would not recommend UofT, because UofT is a lot more rigorous, scholastically, than many schools and is very competitive (source are friends who were comparing their experiences at UofT, York University, Georgetown, and Fordham).

    Hope this helps, cheers

  • taschasptaschasp Alum Member Sage
    796 karma

    @ChiChi55 said:
    Thank you all!! I guess it really is a personal question that I’ll have to weigh the pros and cons. I am interested in big law but I am also open to exploring more options as well. Exploring career wise they both seem to have good outcomes so I guess it just comes down to the smaller logistics. Going to be a hard decision but thank you!

    Curious to know if you came to a decision!

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