Among recent graduate of Harvard Law School (HLS) I am something of a rarity because I am not afraid to openly say that I loved my three years at HLS, that they were worth every dime of the $120k I borrowed to go there, and that given the choice, I would do it all again. It is very fashionable at HLS to complain -- about large class sizes, a high student/faculty ratio, a perceived inattention to student activism and a non-corporate career track, and a lack of a overarching spirit of community. These are all problems that HLS will need to address if it wants to regain its number one ranking, at least in the eyes of its students and alumni, but in the meantime, it is still one of the best two or three law schools in the country for a number of reasons.

1. Opportunity. Whether you finish at the top of the class, in the middle, or near the bottom, you are virtually guaranteed a good job when you graduate from Harvard Law School. Although many students and faculty at HLS take this fact for granted, the experience of my friends at lower-ranked top thirty law schools indicates that this kind of opportunity is a rarity in today’s legal market. Students who maintain a B+ average at HLS (effectively the top 40% of the class) generally have their choice of employers in the choicest cities -- New York, Washington D.C., San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago. For those who choose to go home to a smaller city, as I did, the opportunity presented by an HLS law degree is virtually unparalleled.

2. Professors. Most law schools have very good professors. Harvard has truly great scholars and professors. Sure, it is difficult to craft a schedule that includes Charles Fried, Laurence Tribe, Alan Dershowitz, and the other big names. I actually got through three years without having any of the marquee professors. But all of my professors were on the cutting edge of their area of expertise, extremely well known in their fields, and, for the most part, dedicated to teaching. There are a few professors who are hold-overs from the Paper Chase days and still think it isn’t necessary to develop relationships with students, but I had good personal relationships with the vast majority of my professors, even in lecture courses with 140 students.

3. Classmates. I went to a public high school and a large state undergraduate institution. I made great friends there and value those experiences, but the people I met at HLS are in a completely different category. All of my classmates were very bright -- a few were without a doubt brilliant. I am confident that many of my classmates will go on to become the leaders of corporations, government, and non-profit institutions in the decades to come. Unlike college, where professors had to pull teeth to get class participation, the challenging, ambitious and competitive students at HLS clamor to engage debate. Although it can get annoying to hear from the same “gunners” time after time, it is really refreshing to be a part of a class where the majority of students have done all the reading and are actively engaged in their education. Judging from the experiences of some of my friends at other law schools, that doesn’t happen everywhere.

4. Activities. While most law schools over two or three law reviews, HLS has fourteen. This not only gives students a great opportunity to master blue-booking and research skills (helpful for the judicial clerkship application process), it also gives them the chance to get engaged in a particular subject matter like international law, human rights, public policy and the law, etc. The clinical education program at HLS is also first-rate and allows students to try their hand in the civil and criminal arenas while working with low-income clients and prisoners. A million other groups exist and appeal to all interests from juggling to drama to my personal favorite, the newspaper.

There are downsides to the HLS experience. First, the cost. Tuition last year was $25,000 and Cambridge, Massachusetts isn’t the cheapest place to live. My husband and I paid $1100 a month to live in a cement block apartment without air conditioning owned by Harvard (i.e. it was slightly less than market rate). Student aid is rare, even for those whose parents have modest incomes, and it is very difficult to establish yourself as an independent for purposes of student aid. Second, the faculty/student ratio is not very good. This leads to big classes and makes it difficult for students, especially shy ones, to create relationships with professors. Third, many students complain that HLS is simply railroading students into high-income, low-conscience careers in corporate law. This criticism has some validity. The Low Income Protection Plan (LIPP) helps some students steer into public interest law, but the program has some major problems which are currently being worked on. There are also many mentors among the faculty and alumni for those wishing to pursue public interest careers. Finally, to get your name known at HLS and find individualized attention from the staff and faculty, you have to work at it. For many of my classmates who are products of private high schools and elite colleges, that was a difficult task. For those of us used to navigating the bureaucracy at large public universities, it was no big deal.

Anyone looking at law schools and interested in HLS is welcome to e-mail me (tanya_marsh@yahoo.com) with specific questions.




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