I find myself in the incredibly blessed position of deciding between these two schools. I never thought I’d find myself here, but as life sometimes does, here I am. I know that there are many threads about this comparison, but there are fewer about comparing law school placement and grade inflation. I’d really appreciate any input I can get on this decision and on my thought process.
I believe I’d be happy at either school (although Yale’s residential colleges are a plus), and my financial aid offers are similar, so I can rule out these factors. I am from the West Coast, though I’m not averse to the cold (at least I hope not lol). I will probably major in political science, and not in a STEM field. Graduate school rankings notwithstanding, my impression is that Yale’s political science department is (marginally) more prestigious than Stanford’s. However, Stanford’s also has many resources, amazing professors, proximity to Hoover, and fewer students, so each student can get more guidance and face time with professors. Stanford is also on the rise as a university, though I suspect that most of its reputation is grounded in the sciences and technology. Do you think these departments are similar in accessibility to internships in politics and law and to research opportunities during the year? Which do you think is better?
Perhaps the biggest unknown I face is the question of which school has more grade inflation. I’ve looked at all the data that is publicly available for both schools, and it is clear that they both have inflation, at least in the humanities/social sciences. I heard that Stanford might be more inflated, but I don’t know whether this is true. Part of Stanford’s inflation seems to be by practice; by looking at Stanford’s Carta website, which contains official grade distributions of most classes, I have found some classes that have most (and in some cases, all) students receiving A-'s, A’s, or A+'s. The other part of Stanford’s inflation seems to come from policy; Stanford’s grading scale includes an A+ grade, which the Law School Admission Council weights at 4.33 points. Yale’s highest grade is a straight A. In most Stanford classes, A+'s are hard to come by and so I cannot reasonably expect to earn one. In certain classes, however, a larger proportion of students earn A+'s. Which school do you think has more inflation, and ultimately, will lend itself to better law placement?
I hope I do not come off as overly careerist; I do hope to learn and grow at college. But since these two colleges (and many others) provide excellent education, I would like to also consider soft factors in my decision. Again, I really appreciate any input you may have, and I thank you for reading this long-winded post.