Hi all, i have been admitted to Duke and I have just received the UPS package from NYU some minutes ago...can someone give some advice?

hi name-cousin ;)

go through the other posts and you'll find a lot about these schools (for ex. Duke and Virginia and all 3 acceptence letter posts from rey, IP-llm, etc.).
in short:
Duke: they really care about students, nice athomsphere, open door policy, nice campus, good business school, good weather and nice nature (an alumni told me he wore shorts until december...), familiar (people know each other), fantastic IP programm... but: you need a car if you want to go somewhere (mountains or beach some hours drive), not a real city life, small airport (you have often to fly via Atlanta...).
NYU: better ranking, you are in one of the greatest cities in the world but: living is much more expensive, brain factory (400 cash cows-llm and they take more and more every year)... but I admit: there are also advantages in a big class (cf. post size of a LL.M. class).
it's a question of taste...
cheers

Thanks Luke, actually i have been admitted to NYU corporation law LLM and I am still thinking.. it's a hard decision to make :(

Hi Luke,

I think there is a big difference between being in a top 5 school rather than in the Nº 13. Specially if you want to find a good job in NY.

NYU: better ranking, you are in one of the greatest cities in the world but: living is much more expensive, brain factory (400 cash cows-llm and they take more and more every year)... but I admit: there are also advantages in a big class (cf. post size of a LL.M. class).
it's a question of taste...

Hi Luke,

Would you talk a little bit about the advantages of a big class? What exactly are the advantages?

Hi,

I faced the same situation as Luke 82 did. My focus is corporate law and I would like to take some security and insurance law too. However, I may choose Duke over NYU coz I wish to stay with my husband. But I am wondering whether I will miss something if I do so. NYU has a better ranking and location for sure, but I am not sure whether the ranking means anything means anything other than ranking itself. Can anyone give me some advice?

Duke is an excellent Law School. Remember that rankings are meant for JD's especially, not for LLM. Most people here consider that, as long as you're in one of the top ten, there is actually not that much difference. It's just a question of ego...

The answer may however be different if you want to work in the US afterwards; in this case, NYU is a much better choice I guess.

If this is not the case, I would go to Duke considering the fact that you have a husband...you would have both an excellent Law School in a nice environment and your husband. This should matter more to you than three ranks up or down on a piece of paper which doesn't mean so much in the end...no ?

hi allwen and bitsou,

i have been thinking over this for a couple of days now but still unable to decide

is there anyone here familar with the quality and reputation of NYU LLM in corporation law? and just one more question...is it possible for me to live at Duke without a car as i do not drive....

advantages of big classes? well, maybe

- you have more alumni friends afterwards, more collegues who will say: "oh, I was also there, so you must be cool!" ;)

- you have more international parties (friends of mine say that it is quiet hard to get in touch with US-students as they are always studiing and not interested in meeting people from other countries. So if you have lots of int. llm's you meet more of them and you can choose your friends from a bigger variety;

- mmmh, I can not find better arguments... and prefere small classes of course...

There are some apts nearby Duke law schools accroding to the my conversation with its student. You can walk to the classroom if you stay there. However, he mentioned if you carry heavy law textbooks, you may wish you have a car to gey by.

hi allwen and bitsou,

i have been thinking over this for a couple of days now but still unable to decide

is there anyone here familar with the quality and reputation of NYU LLM in corporation law? and just one more question...is it possible for me to live at Duke without a car as i do not drive....

Thanks you all. Just wonder whether the academia of Duke is stronger than that of NYU--one of my friend told me so. If yes, I think I would head for Duke.

No way. The NYU faculty is star-studded and incredible. Increasingly, the NYU faculty looks very difficult to match.

Thanks for your information. But after searching the website of NYU, most famous prof. of NYU will not give lessons in year of 2005-2006. In consideration of the class size, I really found big difference between these two schools. How to choose then?

Hi Mr. and Ms. Undecided:

I got an LL.M. at Duke and I chose Duke over Georgetown and Chicago where I had been admitted, too. I have never had any regrets! Duke's LL.M. program is wonderful. They really pay attention to the right ratio between J.D.s and LL.M.s - and that is definitely not the case at NYU. At NYU, 300 to 400 LL.M.s are admitted every year. They have classes exclusively for LL.M.s (like "Contracts for LL.M.s"), whereas at Duke, J.D.s and LL.M.s are in class together. It's easy to guess at which school you'll meet more Americans, improve your English and have more interesting class discussions. The only LL.M. program worth choosing at NYU is the program in International Taxation. If you didn't apply there, don't go to NYU. By the way: Ranking is for J.D. programs, and all important law firms from my country came to Duke for recruiting events. In the current U.S. News ranking, Duke is tied with Cornell and Berkeley, so I don't believe you'll have any disadvantage if you choose Duke over NYU. About the car: It is more convenient to drive in Durham, but housing near campus is available, and when you stay in school late, you can call a bus which will pick you up and take you home for free!
I wish you a great LL.M. year, no matter which school you choose!

hey guys,
i am still waiting for an acceptance, i hope, from duke. should i wait no more? does anyone know if there is a waiting list there?

Hi, Kiki,

Thanks a lot for your comments!

You said:" all important law firms from my country came to Duke for recruiting events"

Could I know which country you are from? And what events Duke will hold for its LL.M. students? How about the placement this year? The last, how many LL.M. has successfully transferred to JD this year?

Thanks in advance!

Hi guys. Seems like a fun conversation to join. I have been admitted to Duke and Gtown (and a bunch of other universities), waitlisted by Columbia and UCBerkeley. Am waiting for NYU's responce, as they told me that the letter is in mail. Still have a hard time debating on Gtown v. Duke, and will probably choose Gtown as DC gives more opportunities to interract with whatever is going on outside the classroom. Anyone any ideas on that? Experiences you've had?

Hi allwen99,

I'll be glad to help you if I can. As to my nationality: I am German. Unfortunately, I do not know how many LL.M.s transferred to the J.D. program, but I do remember that in my year (2001), three LL.M.s stayed another year to get their S.J.D. (I think there were scholarships available). About the events for LL.M.s: almost all law school events are for all interested students, i.e. J.D.s and LL.M.s. There are many speakers, not only at the law school, but also at the Fuqua School of Business and other university institutions. There is also career counseling. In your legal writing class, you will discuss how to write a CV and how to apply for a job with a US firm.
I hope this information is of value to you.

Best, Kiki

The reason NYU has so many LLM students is that they have several different LLM PROGRAMS.

Public Service Law, Tax, International Tax, Corporation Law, International Legal Studies, Labor & Employment Law, Trade Regulation, and the regular general LLM for foreign students. So they have many specialized programs, which means more students than other schools -- NOT that LLM students are "cash cows." The LLM for foreign students program may be larger than some, I don't know the numbers.

But you can't tell someone who got in to the LLM in Corporations Law that he should go somewhere else simply because other schools have smaller LLM classes. Other schools just don't have the breadth of programs NYU does.

For corporation law, I would most definitely choose NYU. Where else can you learn the ins and outs of corporation law than the financial center of the universe -- New York! I don't have anything against Duke but it's located in a small college town, and there aren't the same networking and internship opportunities that NYU offers.

Before giving advice to people about which schools to choose, everyone should carefully consider the exact LLM program that is being discussed.

Hi all. I have no experience of NYU Law School but I have just completed a Duke LLM. I will make the obvious comment that Durham is certainly not the most interesting or attractive city in the US. You will definitely need a car to get around, and you won't find the nightlife too exhausting. On the other hand, there is plenty of nice accomodation, nearby Chapel Hill is quite charming to visit and has some good bars, and North Carolina provides a wonderful range of outdoorsy/sporting opportunities. You may appreciate this more than the museums and bright lights of New York - a matter of personal preference. As for the law school itself, I have had a wonderful educational experience. The JDs are a highly intelligent and motivated group of students and enjoy interacting with the LLMs. The staff are approachable and, of course, appropriately learned. The university is quite affluent, the grounds are green and lush and - this is very important! - the weather here is great most of the year, so you can attend classes in your shorts much of the time. Email me directly if you want to chat further pnaismith@ozemail.com.au