<p>We know that it is reaaly hard to get in, but once there what is it really like, Also maybe you Harvard law guys can compare and contrast your experience. THANKS</p>
<p>Well, statistically:</p>
<p>Yale law has a tiny student population, Harvard law is big.
Yale has a very holistic admissions process, Harvard focuses more heavily on numbers.
Yale is in a small city, Harvard is in a metropolis.</p>
<p>While they’re equally prestigious, and you likely get an equally strong education at both, they will have hugely different student experiences, just like in college.</p>
<p>I’m a 1L at HLS right now, and I’ve found the experience pretty rewarding so far. Classmates are, as to be expected, brilliant. And people come from a very broad range of backgrounds, from physics Ph.D’s and former prep school teachers to kids straight out of college and everything in between. That said, people are generally down-to-earth and accessible. Professors can be equal parts intimidating, confusing, and lovable. Despite the cutbacks, the administration does a pretty good job of keeping resources available for student organizations and various events. Not many complaints here.</p>
<p>P.S. This is finals week. Things are insane, but this is a function of law school exams, not HLS in particular. The fact that we’re graded on a low pass, pass, and high pass scale does much to alleviate anxiety, though.</p>
<p>Please note that it would be rare for someone to actually have attended both HLS and YLS in order to compare them accurately for you. What kind of information are you looking for about these two law schools?</p>
<p>I posted a message answering the same question a while back. Do a search.</p>
<p>Does any one have experience at NYU LAW or COLUMBIA LAW?</p>
<p>hm… I thought yale law is the solid #1 in the nation</p>
<p>I’m tempted to say Harvard is slightly superior to Yale at BigLaw placement, but I’m not sure that can be well supported. I do know that several big firms did not show up at Yale this year, but that was more because they’re not in high demand from Yalies, rather than the other way around. Presumably, for firms that do visit (and you can bet the most prestigious ones do), there are more than enough BigLaw spots for Yalies who want one.</p>
<p>^ Yeah, a higher percentage of Harvard students go into BigLaw than Yale students, but that’s self-selected. Everybody knows that if you want to go into academia or gun for a SCOTUS clerkship, Yale’s where it’s at. But if you go to Yale and say to yourself, “yo, I think I want to work at Wachtell/Cravath/Skadden/etc.” then you’re gonna have just as good of a shot as a Harvard grad, I would assume.</p>
<p>Personally, I think this clearly indicates that Yale > Harvard.</p>
<p>Yale > Harvard in academia/clerkship opportunities, and Yale = Harvard in BigLaw opportunities, therefore Yale > Harvard overall…?</p>
<p>YLS > HLS for law</p>
<p>HLS > YLS for lay prestige and business opportunities (i-banking, better jd/mba, etc)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Atrocious Skadden ■■■■■■■■.</p>
<p>^ unrelated to this thread, but dude…not sure if you’re aware of this or not, but the Vault rankings for 2010 are literally:</p>
<ol>
<li>Wachtell</li>
<li>Cravath</li>
<li>Skadden</li>
</ol>
<p>LMAO</p>
<p>Yale law completely dominates every other law school in the world at, well, everything. Harvard comes close, but not really. Yale law grads are at least 75% more likely than Harvard grads to get jobs as law professors ([Where</a> Current Law Faculty Went to Law School](<a href=“http://www.leiterrankings.com/jobs/2009job_teaching.shtml]Where”>Where Current Law Faculty Went to Law School)) and probably more like twice as likely ([Top</a> Producers of New Law Teachers, 2003-2007](<a href=“http://www.leiterrankings.com/jobs/2008job_teaching.shtml]Top”>Top Producers of New Law Teachers, 2003-2007)). Yale students are twice as likely as Harvard students to get Supreme Court clerkships ([Brian</a> Leiter Supreme Court Clerkship Placement, 2000 Thourgh 2008 Terms](<a href=“http://www.leiterrankings.com/jobs/2000_08_scotus_clerks.shtml]Brian”>Brian Leiter Supreme Court Clerkship Placement, 2000 Thourgh 2008 Terms)). 44% of Yale professors are members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences - the number one academic association for lawyers - versus 24% at Harvard ([Brian</a> Leiter Faculty Quality Based on AAAS Membership, 2008](<a href=“http://www.leiterrankings.com/faculty/2008aaasmembership.shtml]Brian”>Brian Leiter Faculty Quality Based on AAAS Membership, 2008)). It’s nearly impossible to find any metric on which Yale doesn’t blow every single other law school out of the water. As above, Harvard does do somewhat better than Yale in placing grads at elite firms, but Columbia and Chicago both do better than Harvard, and the difference is largely self-selected, Yale students who want those jobs still do better than the Harvard ones ([Top</a> 15 Law Schools From Which Elite U.S. Law Firms Hire New Lawyers](<a href=“http://www.leiterrankings.com/jobs/2008job_biglaw.shtml]Top”>Top 15 Law Schools From Which Elite U.S. Law Firms Hire New Lawyers)).</p>
<p>To say that Harvard is equally prestigious is also just total BS. Yale tops the rankings year in and year out for a reason; they’re the best around and everyone knows it. I’ve literally never heard of anyone who got into both and went to Harvard (I’m sure it has happened, but I’ve never seen it), and I know of only one person who was accepted to Yale but not Harvard.</p>
<p>Dude, why are we arguing over these two? They are undoubtedly the top 2 in the country and in that sense IT DOES NOT MATTER which is “better.” Biglaw doesn’t care since they are all top-tier, my gosh.</p>
<p>Argue over stuff like UCI law and Chapman law, lol.</p>
<p>We’re not debating Harvard College v. Yale College.</p>
<p>Politically correct B.S. about “fit” doesn’t quite apply to law school admissions.</p>
<p>I think this thread should be dismissed for mootness.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>TITCR. Thread went downhill when the vault rankings were posted.</p>
<p>The bottom line is probably this: if you go to either, you’re going to have lots of amazing opportunities. If you do poorly career-wise after graduating Harvard Law, it’s not because you should have gone to Yale, or vice versa. </p>
<p>Say you’re 40, 15 years out of law school. Will it really matter whether you went to Harvard or Yale? …Probably not. You’re a smart, experienced lawyer either way.</p>
<p>my impression of Yale v. Harvard is:
Yale is more geared towards academia. Yale students go and become professors.
Harvard is more geared towards industry. Harvard students go and practice in big law.</p>
<p>other than that, Yale is a lot harder to get in, mostly because of its tiny class size.</p>
<p>I would have to say that Yale and Harvard are equally prestigious. Unless you are in the know, you wouldn’t know that Yale consistently rank above Harvard.</p>
<p>Has anyone gotten into YALE or HARVARD LAW this cycle? What do you think were the most important factors in your positive decision? THANKS</p>