Guys, I am considering offers from UChicago and Columbia Law School for 2010-2011 LLM programm as an international student. Any comments or ideas? Columbia though told me no financial assistance and UChicago promised to provide some, though not clear how much yet. Thanks everyone for sharing ideas!

Both are great schools. CLS is slightly ranked better. I think that you need to consider that NYC is a very expensive place to live. So, not only the scholarship should be taken into account but also the expenses. If you don't have a lot of money to spend, I'd suggest you'd be better off in Chicago.

Thanks a lot for your message. Yep, money is always an issue. And what about employment perspectives after UChicago? I mean do employers and especially international law firms favor UChicago as well, since Columbia is very well known at the legal global market. Thank you again for sharing your views.

Hmm, I can't tell for your global perspectives. At least in Europe Chicago has a great reputation and in particular the LL.M. program is considered to be great. In Switzerland your chances would be equal for both unis, but in the US or in the rest of the world, the Ivy League glance could lead to a favor for CLS.

If you could afford tuition and life in CLS and NYC, go there. I mean, if you can afford, do not consider financial issue so much. Instead, look which one is better in your field of interest. Go to the best school. Overall CLS sounds better.

Hmm, I'm not sure about that. I mean that there is no uni that has more novel price winners than Chicago and in the field of law and economics I doubt that you will find any better. I think the burden to chose between the two of them will not result in a loss!

By saying field of interest I meant specialization in law, Taxation, Trade law or what ever. I believe that two schools are great and I believe if person chose one instead of another he/she will not loose. However, it seems to me that Columbia University has better recognition in the world than Chicago.

So if you could afford why not to go to CLS?

By saying field of interest I meant specialization in law, Taxation, Trade law or what ever. I believe that two schools are great and I believe if person chose one instead of another he/she will not loose. However, it seems to me that Columbia University has better recognition in the world than Chicago.

So if you could afford why not to go to CLS?

If he/she is considering the prospect of landing a job after an LLM, then neither Chicago or Columbia would be helpful in this economy.

If he/she is considering the prospect of landing a job after an LLM, then neither Chicago or Columbia would be helpful in this economy.

For whatever its worth the US News... 2009 law school rankings have Columbia #4 and Chicago #6 tied with UC Berkeley. I've attended grad school at both. I can assure you that their is no difference between #4 & #6. Moreover, Columbia as an Ivy League school has no more prestige than Chicago. Maybe 20 years ago, but not today. More to consider. US News...2010 ranking of best national universities has Columbia and Chicago tied at #8. The US News 2009 ranking of graduate business schools Chicago #5 beats Columbia #9. You can't go wrong. Both have nice and interesting campuses and both cities are world class.

Well, thank you all very much for your comments! For some reason Columbia sounds like a more attractive place for studying capital markets, securities and M&A, since this is what I am currently practicing. Yes, indeed NYC is a very expensive place to be and will have to think twice before joining Columbia. Employment opportunities, actually, outside US, and, in particular, in Europe are not that bad, I mean, you still can join some decent law firm, though compensation is not as high as it used to be prior the crisis.

If you have the opportunity to visit both cities please do. As I said you simply can't make a wrong choice regarding what school you choice. It is purely subjective.

The choice of cities is also a subjective choice but even more so. Both are very cosmopolitan. I've lived in Southern California, San Francisco, NYC, Chicago et al. Of all those places I think Chicago is the best city in the US and San Francisco next. As I said that is an entirely subjective opinion. I may prefer Chicago because I grew up in the Midwest.

UofC is not in Downtown Chicago but in a city neighborhood very close to Downtown. The campus is self contained and forms a community of it's own. The surrounding neighborhood has a high crime rate but it is becoming gentrified and crime is going down. This neighborhood has no more crime than Morningside Heights where Columbia is located.

Downtown Chicago is known for it's architecture. It is very cultured and cosmopolitan. Because it is smaller than NYC it is easy to get around. Night life is great. Chicago is where the US comodities market is located. Dozens of hedge funds are headquartered in Chicago. With technology as it is financial businesses don't have to be located on Wall Street like they used to be.

Now Columbia. It is the archtypical urban university. I don't know of any urban university in US with a nicer Campus although NYU is awesome too. The campus buildings are a combination of traditional collegiate as well as modern architecture. Once on campus it is easy to get around. Depending on where you live getting to campus can require patience. The neighborhood surrounding the campus, Morningside Heights, has a crime rate, but like the neighborhood where UofC is located, it is becoming gentrified. Additionally, Columbia is buying up large tracts of property for an ambitious expansion project. Like UofC, Columbia is a place for serious scholarship and the campus is condusive to scholarly pursuits.

New Yorkers will tell you the sun rises and sets in their city. It is important to point out that when the "world" refers to NYC they are referring to Manhattan Island which is really one of five boroughs that comprise the City of New York. New York is one of the great cosmopolitan locations in the world but the verity of that statement is for all practical purposes confined to Manhattan. NYC. Is very expensive but if you chose Columbia it would be a worthy investment.

One final statement. The UofC has for at least the send half of the 20th Century been considered the equivalent of the Ivy League in reputation. Much like MIT or Stanford are as prestigious as any Ivy League institution.

This turned out to be a much longer discourse than I intended. I'm sitting in court waiting for my case to be called for a motion hearing. Still waiting. I hope this is helpful to you and anyone else who might have the same questions. Remember I only intend this to be my personal opinion regarding choice of location and attributes of the respective colleges. My statements regarding the relative quality and prestige of the schools should stand-up to objective scrutiny. I apologize for any typographical errors or misspelled words. I'm typing this on my iPhone.

If you have the opportunity to visit both cities please do. As I said you simply can't make a wrong choice regarding what school you choice. It is purely subjective.

The choice of cities is also a subjective choice but even more so. Both are very cosmopolitan. I've lived in Southern California, San Francisco, NYC, Chicago et al. Of all those places I think Chicago is the best city in the US and San Francisco next. As I said that is an entirely subjective opinion. I may prefer Chicago because I grew up in the Midwest.

UofC is not in Downtown Chicago but in a city neighborhood very close to Downtown. The campus is self contained and forms a community of it's own. The surrounding neighborhood has a high crime rate but it is becoming gentrified and crime is going down. This neighborhood has no more crime than Morningside Heights where Columbia is located.

Downtown Chicago is known for it's architecture. It is very cultured and cosmopolitan. Because it is smaller than NYC it is easy to get around. Night life is great. Chicago is where the US comodities market is located. Dozens of hedge funds are headquartered in Chicago. With technology as it is financial businesses don't have to be located on Wall Street like they used to be.

Now Columbia. It is the archtypical urban university. I don't know of any urban university in US with a nicer Campus although NYU is awesome too. The campus buildings are a combination of traditional collegiate as well as modern architecture. Once on campus it is easy to get around. Depending on where you live getting to campus can require patience. The neighborhood surrounding the campus, Morningside Heights, has a crime rate, but like the neighborhood where UofC is located, it is becoming gentrified. Additionally, Columbia is buying up large tracts of property for an ambitious expansion project. Like UofC, Columbia is a place for serious scholarship and the campus is condusive to scholarly pursuits.

New Yorkers will tell you the sun rises and sets in their city. It is important to point out that when the "world" refers to NYC they are referring to Manhattan Island which is really one of five boroughs that comprise the City of New York. New York is one of the great cosmopolitan locations in the world but the verity of that statement is for all practical purposes confined to Manhattan. NYC. Is very expensive but if you chose Columbia it would be a worthy investment.

One final statement. The UofC has for at least the send half of the 20th Century been considered the equivalent of the Ivy League in reputation. Much like MIT or Stanford are as prestigious as any Ivy League institution.

This turned out to be a much longer discourse than I intended. I'm sitting in court waiting for my case to be called for a motion hearing. Still waiting. I hope this is helpful to you and anyone else who might have the same questions. Remember I only intend this to be my personal opinion regarding choice of location and attributes of the respective colleges. My statements regarding the relative quality and prestige of the schools should stand-up to objective scrutiny. I apologize for any typographical errors or misspelled words. I'm typing this on my iPhone.

If you have the opportunity to visit both cities please do. As I said you simply can't make a wrong choice regarding what school you choice. It is purely subjective.

The choice of cities is also a subjective choice but even more so. Both are very cosmopolitan. I've lived in Southern California, San Francisco, NYC, Chicago et al. Of all those places I think Chicago is the best city in the US and San Francisco next. As I said that is an entirely subjective opinion. I may prefer Chicago because I grew up in the Midwest.

UofC is not in Downtown Chicago but in a city neighborhood very close to Downtown. The campus is self contained and forms a community of it's own. The surrounding neighborhood has a high crime rate but it is becoming gentrified and crime is going down. This neighborhood has no more crime than Morningside Heights where Columbia is located.

Downtown Chicago is known for it's architecture. It is very cultured and cosmopolitan. Because it is smaller than NYC it is easy to get around. Night life is great. Chicago is where the US comodities market is located. Dozens of hedge funds are headquartered in Chicago. With technology as it is financial businesses don't have to be located on Wall Street like they used to be.

Now Columbia. It is the archtypical urban university. I don't know of any urban university in US with a nicer Campus although NYU is awesome too. The campus buildings are a combination of traditional collegiate as well as modern architecture. Once on campus it is easy to get around. Depending on where you live getting to campus can require patience. The neighborhood surrounding the campus, Morningside Heights, has a crime rate, but like the neighborhood where UofC is located, it is becoming gentrified. Additionally, Columbia is buying up large tracts of property for an ambitious expansion project. Like UofC, Columbia is a place for serious scholarship and the campus is condusive to scholarly pursuits.

New Yorkers will tell you the sun rises and sets in their city. It is important to point out that when the "world" refers to NYC they are referring to Manhattan Island which is really one of five boroughs that comprise the City of New York. New York is one of the great cosmopolitan locations in the world but the verity of that statement is for all practical purposes confined to Manhattan. NYC. Is very expensive but if you chose Columbia it would be a worthy investment.

One final statement. The UofC has for at least the send half of the 20th Century been considered the equivalent of the Ivy League in reputation. Much like MIT or Stanford are as prestigious as any Ivy League institution.

This turned out to be a much longer discourse than I intended. I'm sitting in court waiting for my case to be called for a motion hearing. Still waiting. I hope this is helpful to you and anyone else who might have the same questions. Remember I only intend this to be my personal opinion regarding choice of location and attributes of the respective colleges. My statements regarding the relative quality and prestige of the schools should stand-up to objective scrutiny. I apologize for any typographical errors or misspelled words. I'm typing this on my iPhone.

Hi. I find myself in the same dilemna. Columbia (with no aid) versus Chicago (with USD 10k aid). I like the sound of Chicago; but in terms of prestige and brand value, Columbia seems to be somewhat ahead.
I think it'll take some guts to say no to Columbia - is anyone considering it? Saying no to Columbia, for say, Chicago or Berkeley or any other place (barring Harvard/Yale/Stanford)?

I might say no to Columbia in favour of Cambridge, if I don't get financial aid from the former.

Wow, I think, this was a really interesting discussion going on last year!

Maybe some of you have your own views on this.
I would be pleased to hear them! :)

Chicago and Columbia are both really on top making the choice really a tough one.