FSU law or SMU

Comments

• 1 Like

  VerdantZephyr Member ⭐

  March 2021 2054 karma

  That's interesting, I saw another post about these same two schools the other day. I think the we need to know more about your goals to answer this. Are you going big law? Public defender? New York? Miami? We'll need context to properly advise you.
• 2 Likes

  VerdantZephyr Member ⭐

  March 2021 edited March 2021 2054 karma

  If you don't care where or what you practice I think they're ranked so similarly that you take the money. But given that they're both in the fifties they're regional schools rather than national ones so where you want to practice and live after should be a strong consideration.
• ExNewYorker Alum Member

  March 2021 117 karma

  I like getting feedback from other people ... I love getting a second opinion

  Definitely into big law ... but debt is a serious consideration too ...

  As for FSU I would definitely rather work in Tampa ... Tallahassee is nice but not the best place for a legal market

  Still negotiating from SMU for more money ... by the end of the month I should hear back .... at most they would probably raise to around 25 k ( making it out to around 35 k after scholarship)
• 1 Like

  legallybree Alum Member

  March 2021 39 karma

  Hi I definitely would consider a lot in regards to the legal markets in the area. Although Tallahassee is not the best Tampa, Orlando, Miami and other major cities in Florida would definitely value a FSU degree versus other Florida schools such as Barry University. Do you plan on practicing in Tampa, FL?
• ExNewYorker Alum Member

  March 2021 117 karma

  If I were to go to FSU probably yes ... only because I’d be getting paid more in Tampa

  But what’s irking me about FSU is the pay coming out ... I don’t know if it’s because it’s in Tallahassee .... but the pay seems pretty low even with mid sized firms
• 1 Like

  kkole444 Alum Member ⭐

  March 2021 1687 karma

  One thing to consider about the pay for people coming out of FSU and Florida schools in general (I went there for undergrad and grad school) is that Florida does not have a state income tax so many of the wages reflect that, you do not need to pay employees as much to have the same or more purchasing power as someone that is in a high tax state and when you take that across the state, the median wages could easily 6% less(in the first 5ish years) than the surrounding states. If you stay outside of the large cities the cost of living is really low. Also I believe there are 12 ABA law schools in Florida so there are a plethora of lawyers which would push wages down.
• 1 Like

  VerdantZephyr Member ⭐

  March 2021 2054 karma

  Look at their big law numbers. In case you don't have a US News subscription I'll dig them up for you.
• 1 Like

  VerdantZephyr Member ⭐

  March 2021 2054 karma

  So at FSU the median salaries were 60, 70, and 80k but only 1/3rd of graduates reported salaries. That makes a meaningful conclusion hard to guess. 47.4% of grads were employed by firms. 6.1% of grads were in firms of 250-500 and 4.9% in the largest 500+ employee firms. 81.5% were in state and 88.4% in the South Atlantic region with no other region accounting for more than 2.3% of grads. That tells me that if you want to practice outside the southeast, and to a lesser extent even outside Florida you shouldn't go to FSU, but that it's a great school in Florida.
• 1 Like

  VerdantZephyr Member ⭐

  March 2021 2054 karma

  SMU salary medians 72, 90, 180k with 86% reporting. Those are much, much better numbers. I honestly wasn't expecting such strong numbers from them.

  68.9% employed by firms.
  250-500 person firms 8.5%
  500+ 23.5%. Those are fantastic big law numbers
  91.9% are in-state, even more dramatic than FSU, but Texas has a huge legal market. They also have more grads in the South Atlantic region excluding Florida then FSU does. 3.2% to 2.9% which tells me that it might still be a stronger degree in DC, VA, NC, and GA than FSU's.

  If you really want to go Big Law and don't have a strong preference between TX and FL I'm going to revise my opinion and say try and negotiate that SMU financial aid but, unless FSU really ups their offer, take the scholarship at SMU. Your salary numbers will make up the difference over time, and maybe right away. Certainly the 75th median starting salaries are well more than the 50k a year difference. Even the median and 25th are 20k a year and 12k a year different respectively if the worst case happens and you can't go Big Law.
• ExNewYorker Alum Member

  March 2021 117 karma

  Yea that’s what been on my mind .... if I get more money from SMU I’ll probably go with them ... I’ll be one poor attorney if I make anything less than 70,000 a year