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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This is OP and this is exactly my question. ^ let's say my DS gets into UVA Law at $65+K tuition and also GMU or W&M at a much lower in state rate, what is the best move?[/quote]

The best school they can get into and let the forgiveness plans sort out the debt. My “do gooder” friends are paying a tiny student loan payment a month and are about to have it all forgiven now that we are almost 10 years out. [/quote]

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If he does not have interest in BigLaw or clerkships I would argue that GMU would be the way to go.  It is well respected in the DC area and it is significantly less debt.  If he wants to do environmental law I would suggest he find a job in an area he is interested in in the DC area, live in VA for the in state tuition and go to GMU part time.  Also, if it turns out that he is a legal superstar and wants all those things, he can transfer to UVA his second year.  I transferred from a lessor school (much lessor than either GMU or W&M) to a T14.  I was a superstar at my lessor school and only received one grade below an A at my T14 law school, graduating with honors there.  [/quote]

I think you’re wildly underestimating how snobby “good guy” enviro law employers are. You really have to have it all: great grades, great school, great work experience. [/quote]

Agreed. I'm in public interest environmental law and my field is snobby AF. I can't tell you how many of my colleagues across national and regional organizations are T14 graduates (although Lewis & Clark shows pretty well). The big groups -- Earthjustice, NRDC, EDF, similar -- value name-brand law schools, public interest work experience, and federal clerkships. Even when you're applying 20+ years out of law school, many of these groups will still require transcripts. (Sierra Club has now taken a different path -- you have to redact your undergrad and law school names from your resume -- but they've gone so far in the other direction that they allow only a resume, no cover letter even, in the name of eliminating bias (which I find highly problematic but that's another topic)). When I was around 5 years out, I interviewed at a national-level environmental NGO and the two hiring managers, who'd gone to Harvard and had to have been 15-20 years out themselves, wanted to compare/contrast with my experience at YLS.

I also agree with a PP who points out that there are no good guy environmental lawyers in private practice, although the people who do compliance would probably disagree with me about their value. Government work (either federal or state) is a mixed bag -- some white hat, some black hat, often gray hat -- because government agencies are in the business of making compromises. Public interest work is the most satisfying if you truly want to be white hat, but you will likely never make more than a BigLaw first-year associate.[/quote]

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