hi,
I am admitted to both the Georgetown and the NYU Tax LL.M.
NYU is ranked number 1, Georgetown number 2.
My preference was thus obviously NYU, but I have been offered a scholarship (50%tuition) by Georgetown.
Any thoughts on whether it is worth it to still go to NYU considering that I can get a 50% free ride at Georgetown?
Thanks,
Sam

I went to the open house day at GT and was very impressed by the school and the faculty. If I was in your position I would probably be going there.

Wow, that is a difficult decision!

Putting rankings and costs aside for a moment, perhaps it will help to consider other factors, such as:

(1) whether you rather spend the school year in DC or NYC;
(2) whether you rather work afterwards in DC or NYC;
(3) are you interested in one of the Georgetown certificates (ERISA; State and Local Tax)?;
(4) the perks that come with such a scholarship at Georgetown, including mentoring, extra opportunities for networking, preference by prospective employers;
and/or anything else which would make you prefer one school over the other if the costs/rankings were equal.

BTW, I was admitted to both programs. I ended up accepting NYU and declining Georgetown before I submitted my scholarship essay to Georgetown. BUT by that point in time, I'd already evaluated a number of factors, including rankings, and realized that NYU was the better choice for me.

In making my decision, I accorded great weight to the fact that NYU is # 1, but I also took into account the following:

(1) I'd already lived/worked in DC and wouldn't mind the experience of living in NYC for several months.
(2) It appeared it may be easier to obtain student housing at NYU or at least near-by housing.
(3) It appeared more day-time classes are offered at NYU than at Georgetown.

--All small factors but together they helped me realize I'd rather go to NYU.

It also helped that when I looked through the brochures I received in the mail with my admission packets, I realized that although I felt interested and excited by Georgetown's brochure, I felt an extra thrill while looking through NYU's brochure. The minute I realized that, I just "knew" what the right decision was for me.

Thanks for your reply!
did you already do the NYU tax LL.M or will you commence in Fall 2011?
I haven t made my final decision yet but I am heading towards Georgetown.
In addition to the obvious financial reason, I think that the scholarship at Georgetown will give me the opportunity to distinguish myself more than in NYU where I would be an anonymous number.

I start Fall 2011. I agree re the scholarship at Georgetown will help distinguish you. It IS an honor and it can go on your resume the minute you begin the program. Plus, you will receive more individualized attention, lunches/seminars, and other networking opportunities.

I'm in a somewhat similar position with UF versus GULC and NYU.

When I was admitted they informed me that I qualified for the academic common market and in-state tuition. The price difference between NYU and GULC is huge and made UF gain a lot of ground. To be honest, they were sort of an after thought during the application process.

I've been really concerned about bypassing a "name brand" school like NYU or GULC and of course everybody has an opinion and a lot of people say, "If you get into NYU you have to go there."

At the end of the day though, I really don't want to go to school at NYU. I think I'd be happier elsewhere and therefore perform better.

It sounds like you have a gut feeling which is interfering with your attempt to make this decision based on cold facts.

Perhaps try spending an entire day with the assumption that your mind is made up and you ARE going to UF and then compare how you felt versus when you were trying to convince yourself that you shouldn't bypass a name brand like NYU or GULC.

If you felt more at peace, then you may want to go with the gut feeling b/c your happiness WILL affect your performance.

Plus, I looked at your profile and I think with the UVA JD and an UF tax LLM you will be in high demand with Florida firms (a JD from UF with good grades or other honors is VERY well respected here and the UF tax program is highly regarded) and with firms in the Southern states.

But if you found yourself still listing all the reasons why you should go to NYU or GULC, then you may want to re-think about going to UF. Years from now, you do not want to look back and wish you had gone to NYU!

I have sent my deposit to GULC and then once I got into UF started to reconsider my decision all together and NYU came back into play. My concern was being locked solely into the Florida market, and I'm not sure that I want to do that. I'm supposed to talk with UF tomorrow generally about the placement of its graduates.

My cousin and I made a pro/con list the other night and my con for NYU was "I don't want to go there."

I don't think a UF LLM will lock you into a Florida market at all. Would NYU look better if you were going after Big Law? Yah - but that doesn't seem to be your aspiration. I live in a market dominated by small law firms and there are people with LLM's with thriving businesses from Denver, UF, NYU, UW.

Not wanting to go there is a HUGE con!

And I think it is note worthy that when you thought your decision was between NYU and GULC, you chose GULC.

By the way, I do not think you will be locked solely into the Florida market. I think the entire South will be your market.

I also think it won't make much of a difference after a few years of work. First, don't underestimate the power of the UVA JD (or partners who are UVA JD alums). Second, the economy will be that much better. Third, you will be even more marketable with a few years of experience. Fourth, many big NY/DC firms have offices in Atlanta, Miami, and other southern cities. If you go to one of those and then eventually decide to move North, you have a good built-in reference.

Also, you can really distinguish yourself at UF. And the fact that it is a small class might help with the job efforts.

THAT SAID, if you have NO desire to EVER work south of DC, then you may want to re-think UF.

My top choices for work are Charlotte, the rest of NC, Atlanta, DC. I think I could also work in Florida, but my biggest goal is to get to Charlotte.

Talk with UF career services, but I would say UF or GT for Charlotte or the rest of NC.

UF, GT, or NYU (but maybe not so much NYU) for Atlanta.

NYU or GT for DC.

UF, NYU, or GT for Miami or other parts of Florida. Florida is partial to UF, but Miami/South Florida is also partial to New York City in general.

I think ectax gave you some great advice. Although I believe NYU is the best school (i have to say that since I am enrolling there) overall, I dont think it will make much of a difference if you go to GULC or UF from an employment perspective. Remember, the people who are in a position to hire you as a tax attorney know that both programs are very highly ranked. Additionally, both schools give you the opportunity to basically work wherever you want, except NYC. If you go to GULC you can work basically anywhere in the country EXCEPT FL. If you go to FL, you can essentially work anywhere except DC. When it is all said and done, that is the truth. All you need to decide is:

1.) whether you think there is any chance you will want to retire in FL? AND

2.) whether the POSSIBILITY of working in DC is worth an additional 60k+ after living expenses.

Personally, I can think of a lot of better things to do with 60k than give it to GULC for an education that is ranked behind a 15k education (UF). Although making a decision based solely on ranking is ignorant, unfortunately many employers solely consider a school's rank when deciding where to go and hire. With that being said, keep in mind, Florida was ranked #2 long before GULC ever was. From an outsider's perspective, this is easy--go to FL

I am in the same boat in this decision-making process except I have not heard from NYU, but have been accepted to FL and GULC.

Tuition and cost of living is very favorable for FL. Plus living on campus and avoiding a long commute is attractive, not to mention the weather.

But GULC has incredible course offerings from practicing adjunct faculty. I have had my own practice for almost 15 years and know what I want to know. I really like the choice of courses there. I think a lot of us lose sight of the real value of the degree which is the substantive knowledge gained from the courses and how you can integrate them into your practice- rather than just putting something on a resume.

The faculty is tremendous at all three schools. My personal desire is to return to KY afterwards, so I am not sure if employers will shun away, say , a UF grad in favor of an NYU grad as I don't think there will be many LLMs competing against each other in Ky.

But I would still like to be accepted to NYU so that the choice is mine to make.

I already turned down the GULC offer. However, I think depending on when you are accepted, the date for making the deposit changes. When are they asking for your final decisions?

Daddy- Being in a position where you are probably not taking student loans, do you consider the additional expense compared to the extra classes at GULC? Again, I dont have a dog in this fight, but I personally like the fact that both NYU and FL have more full time faculty, rather than simply adjuncts. Dont get me wrong, having adjuncts teach courses is definitely helpful, but I think it is important to couple those classes taught by adjuncts with classes taught by full time professors. From what I have seen, GULC has few full time faculty. Whereas UF has plenty of adjuncts--the program just isnt run by them.

Fall 2010 classes at UF :

http://www.law.ufl.edu/tax/courses/fall10.shtml

Fall 2011 classes at GULC:

http://www.law.georgetown.edu/curriculum/tab_schedules.cfm?Status=Schedule&Type=Cluster&Program=LLM&Year=39&Term=2011C

It is a factor. But the professors at UF are fantastic. I will likely borrow full student budget either way. This is win/win decision for me either way. I won't know how to work NYU in the mix if its offered.

The flip side to that coin is that part of me was concerned with taking classes that put me into a too much of a niche when it came time to look for employment.

At UF I feel like you could get a solid all around education in tax.

Deacon - a couple of things on the general vs. niche issue. At GULC's open house the director of their program made some good points on that issue. First, he said it was very helpful to know what niche area you are interested in in order to direct your class selection. However, he said one way to go is to take more of your general courses first semester and then focus more in the second semester.

He did make the point, however, that he felt employers care much more about what classes you take and to specialize as much as possible. However, I'm sure all schools have faculty advisors that could help you with your course selections. I know the director at GULC said he would assist anyone who wanted to email or call him regarding what courses they should select.

samvan and deaconcav06, I think you two were up in the air. Just wondering what you ended up deciding to do?

I decided to go to GULC
reason: I don t think NYU is worth an additional 24K and I believe that I ll get more opportunities and connections thanks to the scholarship at GULC