Hi!

I am sorry for bothering you with this kind of question but this week I really would like to pay the right school and to start organizing everything. But (and maybe it is stupid) I still being confuse.

At present time I have Cornell, Fordham and Cardozo (No answer from Berkeley now). I think that the better choice would be Cornell because it is the Ivy League, the LLM has a strong reputation and the campus seems beautiful. But, on the other hand, I really would love to live (even few months) in NY one day and my boyfriend could try to find a job there. So, even if I know that Cornell has a strong reputation, there still to be a little anxiety about the choice.

Could someone who knows a little Cornell and the situation in the United States giving me an opinion? Is the atmosphere at Cornell good? Do you think that Cornell has a good repuation for the LLM in NY (I know for France but not in the United States)? Do you think that it is feasible to get an internship in a law firm in NY after a LLM at Cornell (if I have th NY Bar but not already the French Bar as I would like to pass an equivalence in France later)? Is it easy to travel a little from Cornell to NY or different places to make this year both valuable in terms of work and experiences?

I know that it seems capricious but maybe I am hesitating because I have just heard few things about the atmosphere at Cornell compared with the multiple examples for NY.

Thank you very much and good luck for all!

Hey! Cornell is simply the best choice you have (in terms of study, reputation ..).
but again you should ask yourself what do you want from a LLM. if you are looking for an internship in NY, Cornell diploma will help you of course but keep in mind it is always hard to find something now in the US and maybe a connection will be the only way to get this. Cornell is a boring place and not so close from central NY. so if you are looking for a living experience in the US, Fordham is the place to be. Good luck anw.

Ok. Thank you for being honest. It is the first time that someone tells me that Cornell is boring, do you know well the place?
What a hard choice...

Does anyone have also information?

living in Ythaca really sucks, but Cornell is by far the best option you currently have; if you decide otherwise, I'd rather pick Fordham over Cardozo

i totaly agree with Stagista.. just ask yourself why do i need the LLM most : to have a diploma from a prestigious uni or to live in a nice city and try to make connections. and remember that Fordham is a good school and at Cornell you would still meet very interesting people but see what your priorities are. and if you decided not to go to cornel go to fordham not cardozo as long as you have the option.

Ok, thanks for being honest. I am really lost because two professors told me that Cornell was better. Do you know Ithaca well or did someone tell you that it is really not good? I have read that the campus is really beautiful and that you could visit great places. If I want to take the bar exam, I will have to move in New York to do a prep so maybe it is not too bad to live in Ithaca for 10 months? Have you ever been there (I am asking because I really do not want to do the wrong choice).
Fordham seems good but even if I could meet people there I am not sure that the reputation of Cornell could not be useful to try to find something after the LLM (even if I know that it is really hard).

Hi Mel,

I have been accepted in Cornell as well and I have visited Ithaca for a day. Of course, I cannot say much but It is obviously a very small town and it must be really cold in the winter. But the campus is dreamlike and just outside the campus there is this place where they serve sandwiches and the smoothies that seemed really nice. Probably there is not much else to do in Ithaca, specially in the winter, other than studying, but I guess that the point isn't it?

Mel, I am in the exact same situation, having to choose between Cornell and Fordham.

Have you made up your mind?

any info here would be great!

Hi!

All my professors (who are lawyers at Skadden, Cleary and so on) and 5 students from Columbia told me that there was no hard choice: Cornell. They told me that there is no doubt and that Cornell has a so strong reputation whereas Fordham is just in the center of NY.
I really wanted to study in NY but I prefer to choose Cornell (and a friend of mine told me that Cornell is great too and not so far from NY).

Now I am on the waitlist for Berkeley and I am just waiting the answer to make my final decision (but I really would like to study at Cornell).

Hope it helps!