I am a current NYU Domestic Tax LLM and I am willing to answer any questions about this program, but I have no information about any other LLM programs, even at NYU.

First, thanks for taking questions. I have a question: how is the current job market for NYU Tax LLM students? (e.g., OCI)

That is kind of hard to answer at this point. Only a few firms have interviewed on campus this fall, so it seems that the bulk of interviews will take place through TIP (Tax Interview Program), since firms want to see LLM grades before interviewing.

Tax12 - Thanks for taking questions. You've been here so you know what we're going through. Do you know when NYU makes its admission decisions? They seem to be on a rolling basis, but not many are reporting acceptances yet.

Also, any idea whether the E-LLM in Tax is as highly regarded as the LLM in Tax?

Thanks!

What do you think of my chances? I haven't applied yet, so will obviously be very late in the application cycle....

JD from T20 law school (class of 2008, top 1/3 of class)
3.5 years of T&E experience at a large firm
1 year in planned giving (development) at university

Strong letters of recommendation from professor and partner at old firm. Took fed income tax (B+), corporate/partnership tax (A) and estate planning (B-) in law school. [Yes, I got a terrible grade in estate planning and ended up as an estate planning attorney.]

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I am a current NYU Domestic Tax LLM and I am willing to answer any questions about this program, but I have no information about any other LLM programs, even at NYU.

Last year, it seems that the bulk of the acceptances were in March/April (but I do know of a few people who were accepted a bit earlier (late Feb/early March). I would guess that the E-LLm is not as highly regarded because it is new, so older partners won't understand that you are taking the exact same classes as the full-time students. That being said, if you have a good job I cannot imagine leaving it to get an LLm when you could easily do the E-LLM

Tax12 - Thanks for taking questions. You've been here so you know what we're going through. Do you know when NYU makes its admission decisions? They seem to be on a rolling basis, but not many are reporting acceptances yet.

Also, any idea whether the E-LLM in Tax is as highly regarded as the LLM in Tax?

Thanks!

I think you have a pretty strong chance at being accepted at NYU, and would definitely be admitted at G'town/Florida. Why are you considering the LLM, are you looking to change to corporate work or does the $10 million exclusion scare you away from T&E work?

What do you think of my chances? I haven't applied yet, so will obviously be very late in the application cycle....

JD from T20 law school (class of 2008, top 1/3 of class)
3.5 years of T&E experience at a large firm
1 year in planned giving (development) at university

Strong letters of recommendation from professor and partner at old firm. Took fed income tax (B+), corporate/partnership tax (A) and estate planning (B-) in law school. [Yes, I got a terrible grade in estate planning and ended up as an estate planning attorney.]

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Sorry, I don't know anything about the scholarship process

I am a current NYU Domestic Tax LLM and I am willing to answer any questions about this program, but I have no information about any other LLM programs, even at NYU.

Thanks for taking some questions. Would you happen to know or remember when scholarship decisions will be made? I received an acceptance letter a while ago, but have been waiting on potential scholarships from NYU or G-town, so I am just eager to make my final decision.

Thank you for answering questions.

What do you think my chances are with the following stats:

1) solid coursework in tax and business (fed income tax, corporate, partnership, tax policy, employee benefits, m&a, securities, UCC9, bankruptcy, t&e, tax of estate planning, tax of corp. planning)
2) B average gpa (3.1)
3) hispanic female
4) top 50 school in the NE
5) IRS internship
6) speak several languages
7) have a masters in int'l business

Thank you for your feedback- you can be totally honest.

It is too hard to say without knowing your law school/rank, but assuming they are decent you should have a great shot

Thank you for answering questions.

What do you think my chances are with the following stats:

1) solid coursework in tax and business (fed income tax, corporate, partnership, tax policy, employee benefits, m&a, securities, UCC9, bankruptcy, t&e, tax of estate planning, tax of corp. planning)
2) B average gpa (3.1)
3) hispanic female
4) top 50 school in the NE
5) IRS internship
6) speak several languages
7) have a masters in int'l business

Thank you for your feedback- you can be totally honest.

tax12, thank you for taking the question.
1. what do you think my chance are at nyu/gtown:
a. Tier 2 law school -lower tier though, the school's ranking went down substantially after I enrolled.
b. GPA: 3.688/ there is no indication of ranking in my official transcript, but probably in the top 10-15% according to the school.
c. A for most of the business related class (M&A, Int;l bus transactions, etc) ( but B on business planning, and B for fed income tax---Ouch I know)
d. summer externship (not summer associate though) for International law firm
e. Business tax in progress now and this is my final semester.
-------please be honest and harsh :P.

2. more importantly, how is the employment outlook for the NYU tax llms' I understand most of the student went through the TIP, do you think your nyu tax llm enhance your chance to land a decent firm job?

Again, I am really appreciated the answer.

1. Honestly, I think you have a decent chance at being accepted to G'town, assuming you get your application in quickly. For both Gtown and NYU, it will look pretty bad that you only have a grade in 1 tax class (and that grade is a B). Your class rank seems okay, and there are multiple people here from Tier 2/3 law schools, so that alone is not a disqualifier. It is going to be tough at NYU, but definitely worth a shot.

2. It is hard to say about the employment outlooks, because we have not gone through TIP yet. For BigLaw jobs, you don't really have a chance unless you were already close to their applicant pool (top school, top grades, a Kennedy). However, the Big 4 accounting firms are interviewing both on campus and through TIP (specialty groups), and if you would not be happy working at this type of tax job I would definitely advise rethinking whether an LLM is worth it.

Did you get an offer from the law firm you worked for? I don't really know what a summer externship at a law firm is.

tax12, thank you for taking the question.
1. what do you think my chance are at nyu/gtown:
a. Tier 2 law school -lower tier though, the school's ranking went down substantially after I enrolled.
b. GPA: 3.688/ there is no indication of ranking in my official transcript, but probably in the top 10-15% according to the school.
c. A for most of the business related class (M&A, Int;l bus transactions, etc) ( but B on business planning, and B for fed income tax---Ouch I know)
d. summer externship (not summer associate though) for International law firm
e. Business tax in progress now and this is my final semester.
-------please be honest and harsh :P.

2. more importantly, how is the employment outlook for the NYU tax llms' I understand most of the student went through the TIP, do you think your nyu tax llm enhance your chance to land a decent firm job?

Again, I am really appreciated the answer.

Thank you for the answer.
1. Regarding my tax class grade, actually your comment is reinforce my inital instinct, this is a negative (and a big one) for me.
2. my app went complete in both school around early Jan, and Gtown deferred me to the regular admission and NYU asked my fall grade. ( since my fall grade is near 4.0, I was about send those grade in regardless their request)

3. Do you think send in an additional letter of rec from my current tax class will enhance my chance for either school?
4. I do not mind working for the big 4 accounting firm so I guess this is not an issue for me. (of course, their pay is a little less than the big law, from what i been told)

5. Summer externship: is working for the firm and gain academic credit from it. It is a US firm in their Beijing office. Generally, this would not generate an offer. ( i never heard anyone got it)

Again, thank you for the advice.

Tax12,

I'm looking for advice on course selection. How did you decide what classes to take? Do you think it is a benefit to specializing with one of the certificates (Corporate Tax, Estate Planning, or International Tax)? One reason I ask is that people from "lessor" schools are told it is very important to specialize.

Do you think looking for a position at a small mid-size firm is a reasonable goal for someone that graduated from a non-T14 school, after a NYU tax llm? I see 54.9% of NYU's class of 2011 tax llm took positions in law firms.

Thanks for your contributions.

There are two schools of thought on this, and they are pretty obvious. I followed the first, which is to try to achieve a broad base of tax knowledge by taking things like Corporate, International, Partnership, and Property transactions. The other school of thought is to really specialize in one area, particularly SALT or International. I do not think that we have certificates, but I will check into it (I know G'town does have them).
That being said, with your interest in small/mid-size firms, I would avise taking the more broad-based approach. In my opinion, you have to take Corporate 1 and 2 and Partnership, no matter what. What area are you interested in targeting?

As for the small/midsize firms, it is definitely a possibility. Some of these hire on campus, but more likely they will post on Symplicity or you can contact them directly with a resume blast.

Tax12,

I'm looking for advice on course selection. How did you decide what classes to take? Do you think it is a benefit to specializing with one of the certificates (Corporate Tax, Estate Planning, or International Tax)? One reason I ask is that people from "lessor" schools are told it is very important to specialize.

Do you think looking for a position at a small mid-size firm is a reasonable goal for someone that graduated from a non-T14 school, after a NYU tax llm? I see 54.9% of NYU's class of 2011 tax llm took positions in law firms.

Thanks for your contributions.

FYI: about half of the slots at TIP this year are for Big 4 jobs. This is why I emphasize that you should be willing to look at a Big 4 job or reconsider whether the LLM is for you. Obviously, this still means that half of the slots are for law firm jobs, but I would not take the chance of ruling out half of the interviews

First, thanks for taking this question. Second, I am just a 2L with no tax or accounting background. I go to a T2 in New York City and do not have the best grades (I am above 3.0). As of this semester, I'll have one corporate class and two tax classes (corporate and basic tax) and a tax internship (judicial). I was wondering your thoughts on taking tax classes over the summer at NYU. Maybe it will get their attention or demonstrate an interest towards the school, or is it more a shot in the dark? I'm pretty sure Tax is the way I want to go. Or is there anything you would suggest a 2L do in order to maxmize their chances of getting accepted? Again, thanks for your help.

Unfortunately, I don't know anyone who took summer tax classes, so I am not much help. The good news is that you are in the corporate tax capital of the world and corporate deals are starting to rebound. The best thing you can do for your tax career is to find work at a tax firm in the summer or during the school year. I understand that it will be tough to do this with your grades, but you shoudl understand that it is not going to get any easier. Getting a job should be your number one priority, and if you can accomplish that you should load up on tax classes next year (especially corporate 1 and 2 and partnership) and the LLM will always be there as an option.
If there is no way for you to find a job and you are dead set on an LLM, loading up on tax classes will still be the way to go. I am not sure what your rank is, but it sounds like it will be tough to get into NYU, so you really need to focus on taking tax classes and getting strong grades in them.

First, thanks for taking this question. Second, I am just a 2L with no tax or accounting background. I go to a T2 in New York City and do not have the best grades (I am above 3.0). As of this semester, I'll have one corporate class and two tax classes (corporate and basic tax) and a tax internship (judicial). I was wondering your thoughts on taking tax classes over the summer at NYU. Maybe it will get their attention or demonstrate an interest towards the school, or is it more a shot in the dark? I'm pretty sure Tax is the way I want to go. Or is there anything you would suggest a 2L do in order to maxmize their chances of getting accepted? Again, thanks for your help.

Tax 12, thank you for taking questions. I have two of my own.

1) The NYU website suggests that "specializations" or tracks are available within the domestic tax llm program. If you choose a specialization and take the classes associated with the specialization, does that designation appear on your transcript?

2) Have TIP interviews results been sent out? What can you tell us about the types of students who received a significant amount of call backs? Higher grades? Market connections? Prior experience?

Thank you.