Hi everyone,
I’m transferring to DC after an internship that made me fall in love with the city and opportunities I can’t get in my rural Midwest home.
I’m looking to study philosophy and English (a switch from my journalism start) and apply to law school to be a child advocate lawyer. So I’d like to get work experience with non-profits. I’m also in the National Guard, so joining a military community is important to me. I know GW has a good one. I don’t know about American.
Financial aid is also important! But I’m going into debt either way…
Why don’t you apply to both and see where you get the best aid?
From your other posts you are days away from starting your final year, and you are talking about transferring to a new college & new major? Even if you do spring transfer, you have to have 60 credits at GWU, which will add at least 1.5 years to your undergrad. Given that you are changing majors, it could be more, depending on the major requirements. To take debt on for that doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Moreover, neither school is great for FinAid in general, and it’s even worse for transfer students. GWU has a COA of $70k/pa and an average need-based award of $28K.
On top of that you want to go to law school for a career in the lower-paid end of law, so IMO taking on debt to finish undergrad would be a serious mistake. Look at the math:
Amount of debt from undergrad + Amount of debt from law school (average debt: $150,000) = $X/mo in loan payments for Y years.
vs
Amount you expect to make as a child advocate lawyer (range = $50K -$150K, depending on location & experience) / cost of living where you expect to live.
That kind of debt can cripple your finances - and hamstring your choices- for many, many years.
Recommend finishing up your degree at Purdue and look to DC for law school,
I’m not really a senior. With military duties, I’m more of a sophomore/junior. My studies were interrupted for a length of time. And I will get financial aid from the Guard. Enough to keep finances manageable, but the more affordable school is still better.
That helps, but sticking with the core logic: law school is expensive and the specialty you are looking at is not esp lucrative (and even if you change specialities, there is an over supply of law school graduates). Getting extra debt, and taking more time to finish (new major / new uni) doesn’t add up.