Ivan, you are right contacts were important (as they always are) but please consider that my goal was just to stay in the USA a couple of years and then come back to Europe (london or Italy again).
I am not saying that you are wrong, but simply that I think we are all (me and you in particolar) missing something here.
My point is that to be really different you should make an LLM in China (living in Shangai now represents exactly what was living in N Y in 1907 or in Rome in 107 d.c.!!!!!). That would really make you different from the others and a go to guy for law firms that will fight for you.
In NY there are simply too many students who want the same thing that you are looking for. This managing partner told me once that during the job fair at a certian stage he couldn't remember the face of all the students he had seen in front of him!
LLMS now are of course important and in general a good thing to have in your CV but at the end it all depends at what you are looking for as a job.
Do you want to be hired in a company or in an international organization? well the LLM is certainly a good thing for you.
Do you want to become partner in a european law firm and do you think that an LLM would give you the possibility to meet new clients? Sorry I don't think an LLM will speed up this process. Contacts in NY are not so easy to get, becuase NY is simply the place to be for all people in the world.
That's why I think considering L.A.(and not Berkeley) can be a factor for contacts (even if I am afraid it's becoming more and more a japanese market). Maybe you can find clients that need someone able to understand Italian (in my case of course) and that simply are looking into californian market becuase NY is just too full....may sounds strange i understand it, but believe there is life in the west cost!
Re the alumni and network, well let me say that at least in Italy this is really something that does not work. I know a lot of Upenn and NYU former LLMs who go out to enjoy (and this is always good), but sure they did not use this network to find jobs, or similar things....
and finally, let me say it... the real open markets are those in Asia, like India or China....man believe me I went there for a transaction and I could not believe it...they are bulding entire blocks of houses in just one week! That's the place to make business at 100%!!!!
but at the end reality is that LLM is also a great experience of life, and honestly speaking, I can't wait to have again a life like a student!
I hope the above proves to be useful, in any case good luck to all of you!
Well, I agree with some of your arguments: I agree that an LLM is not going to make you a partner at your firm. I agree that NY is "overlawyered". And I agree that you could use your expertise of the Californian market to your advantage in the future, since you could be the main reference to the professionals you get to know there. Indeed, California is a great market, and although you may feel it is far from Europe (when it comes to Europe, NY is still the place to be), you have a big connection with the Asian market. And I agree with you when you say that China or India are the hottest countries nowadays. But I have not figured out from what you say is how you will bridge the gap between where you come from and where you want to go. As josepidal said, there are a lot of Indian-American and Chinese-American JDs who master hindi or mandarin here in the US, and these guys (and the Indian and Chinese LLMs) are the ones who will get the jobs related to India or China in NY, LA or SF. It is not my intention to question your motivations, but I wonder how you plan to achieve your second goal (i.e. be where the business is) by pursuing an LLM in US law in the United States. Your 1st goal (make contacts in a cool market where there will be less Italians) is clear to me.
<blockquote>Ivan, you are right contacts were important (as they always are) but please consider that my goal was just to stay in the USA a couple of years and then come back to Europe (london or Italy again).
I am not saying that you are wrong, but simply that I think we are all (me and you in particolar) missing something here.
My point is that to be really different you should make an LLM in China (living in Shangai now represents exactly what was living in N Y in 1907 or in Rome in 107 d.c.!!!!!). That would really make you different from the others and a go to guy for law firms that will fight for you.
In NY there are simply too many students who want the same thing that you are looking for. This managing partner told me once that during the job fair at a certian stage he couldn't remember the face of all the students he had seen in front of him!
LLMS now are of course important and in general a good thing to have in your CV but at the end it all depends at what you are looking for as a job.
Do you want to be hired in a company or in an international organization? well the LLM is certainly a good thing for you.
Do you want to become partner in a european law firm and do you think that an LLM would give you the possibility to meet new clients? Sorry I don't think an LLM will speed up this process. Contacts in NY are not so easy to get, becuase NY is simply the place to be for all people in the world.
That's why I think considering L.A.(and not Berkeley) can be a factor for contacts (even if I am afraid it's becoming more and more a japanese market). Maybe you can find clients that need someone able to understand Italian (in my case of course) and that simply are looking into californian market becuase NY is just too full....may sounds strange i understand it, but believe there is life in the west cost!
Re the alumni and network, well let me say that at least in Italy this is really something that does not work. I know a lot of Upenn and NYU former LLMs who go out to enjoy (and this is always good), but sure they did not use this network to find jobs, or similar things....
and finally, let me say it... the real open markets are those in Asia, like India or China....man believe me I went there for a transaction and I could not believe it...they are bulding entire blocks of houses in just one week! That's the place to make business at 100%!!!!
but at the end reality is that LLM is also a great experience of life, and honestly speaking, I can't wait to have again a life like a student!
I hope the above proves to be useful, in any case good luck to all of you!
</blockquote>
Well, I agree with some of your arguments: I agree that an LLM is not going to make you a partner at your firm. I agree that NY is "overlawyered". And I agree that you could use your expertise of the Californian market to your advantage in the future, since you could be the main reference to the professionals you get to know there. Indeed, California is a great market, and although you may feel it is far from Europe (when it comes to Europe, NY is still the place to be), you have a big connection with the Asian market. And I agree with you when you say that China or India are the hottest countries nowadays. But I have not figured out from what you say is how you will bridge the gap between where you come from and where you want to go. As josepidal said, there are a lot of Indian-American and Chinese-American JDs who master hindi or mandarin here in the US, and these guys (and the Indian and Chinese LLMs) are the ones who will get the jobs related to India or China in NY, LA or SF. It is not my intention to question your motivations, but I wonder how you plan to achieve your second goal (i.e. be where the business is) by pursuing an LLM in US law in the United States. Your 1st goal (make contacts in a cool market where there will be less Italians) is clear to me.
