Harvard: reputation, networking, more course options, proximity to NYC, more used to LLMs.

Stanford: very exclusive, contact with faculty, Californian law firms, proximity to sillicon valley, amazing weather.

No, I have not been accepted to both schools but I would like to know your thoughts. All the best, Paul

Hey Paul,
Funny you should mention it, since I guess many of us would really like to face such dilema in the near future. They're both superior learning institutions, and thus, I would give more weight on the courses/program depending on your focus area. If for example, you would like to focus in IP or Tech Law, Stanford takes the cake. However, if it's corporations or general business law, then I'm clueless as to which is considered best, since Stanford's program is quite incipient. As for reputation, I don't know in other countries, but Harvard is unbeaten. Regarding the city, weather, class size and international networking experience, I don't think that anyone can provide an objective answer, since it will all depend on your own preferences and life-style or maybe even your couple's preferences and out of school budget (if married or accompanied by someone).

I would really love to have that problem. I'm sure we are all eager to know other opinions.

haha u almost make me surprised.

For me, I prefer small class and close relationship.

Interesting question. About 6 months ago I got in touch with two guys who went to both (Harvard LLM and Stanford JSM or LLM). You might think it's weird but they had scholarships so it was a sweet deal for them. Believe it or not they said Stanford program was of higher quality and they also did a lot of networking in the Silicon Valley. In terms of reputation, maybe Harvard is still a bit ahead outside the US (for instance, in Eastern Europe people are more familiar with Harvard than Stanford). Altogether, tough choice (but I would like to be in that situation...).

i wish i will have to find the solution of such a dilemma by the end of this month :))

admission from both...nice dream but i must wake up..im late to work :)

Harvard definitely. I mean Standford is a great place do not get me wrong but Harvard's rep is uparralleled whether in the US or outside. Career prosprects are phenomenal with the alumni network in place and the respect grads get. Whether you want to go corporate or you are thinking about politics or being an in house counsel there's no choice. I quote US News loosely: "For students from Harvard or Yale gpa's may not even matter" in terms of getting hired. Another curious stat: 10% of US senators hold an HLS degree. Admittedly the quality of your experience will be below that of Stanford. You will not have the weather, the as friendly student atmosphere or the access to profs that you will at Standford...but thats just 3 yrs and we're talking about your whole career here. Harvard's the place to go. Now if you want to stay West Coast-and you're SURE about that-Stanford would be preferable...if you want the world at your feet: Harvard.

Both are great law schools.

Harvard surely has a bigger name for the time being in Europe and a better alumni network. However, people I know who attended Harvard or both Harvard and Stanford tend to regret the size of Harvard, which is far too big according to them (but allows a better alumni network).

If you like IP, Stanford is the place to be, without mentioning the weather and the campus beauty (I am in Stanford and chose it over Yale and Harvard for IP in particular and the area). The size also mattered to me since I'm in favour of the adage "small is beautiful".

Last, but maybe not least, lots of people now tend to think that Stanford takes the lead over Harvard and see the law school (which was only ranked 7 some years ago) as the law school of the 21st century (you can find some articles on the net about it, which are worth what they are...).

Needless to say, Yale and Stanford are far more difficult to get in than Harvard (around 30 admissions for Yale and Stanford and 150 for Harvard each year).

Anyway, it's a win win choice if you get admitted to the one, the other, or both.

Think this becomes the real situation that some guys are facing now, any thoughts?

Where are you from Vacherin ?

Best wishes,

Luigi

Hey guys, this is exactly the situation I'm facing now. I've been admitted to both programs (SLS-LLM/Tech vs. HLS LLM/Gen.). I would like to focus my studies in IP/Tech Law, in which Stanford is tops. However, Harvard is Harvard. Stanford supposedly does not grant financial aid nor scholarships, while Harvard is known for doing so, quite often. I haven't heard Harvard's response regarding my financial aid application, but would like to start asking on this subject just in case. Would you choose Stanford over Harvard if Harvard gave you a partial tuition waiver? Is anybody else in the same situation?

Stanford rules in IP (over Harvard), and most law firms know that, so you can't be wrong by choosing Stanford especially if you want to specialize in IP.

Stanford 100%. Of course HLS is a top choice, but SLS for IP is really a no-brainer.