UNB vs. TRU

[Rusty Shackleford]

I accepted a seat at UNB in February, but have since been offered a seat at TRU. 

 

For context:

- I don't have any interest in corporate law or practicing at a large firm. I'd prefer to be in a small- to mid-size firm.

- Still unsure about what area of law I'd like to practice. I'm interested in constitutional law, and potentially criminal law, but beyond this I'm uncertain.

- I'm currently living on Vancouver Island, and all of my family is on the Island. Ideally, I'd like to end up working in Victoria or the lower mainland. 

- I have a background in publishing/editing, so I am interested in taking part in the legal journals at these schools (i.e., UNB Law Journal or the TRU Law Review).

 

Any advice would be much appreciated! Thanks!

[Average_Student]

Don’t know much about UNBs BC placement, but generally speaking, it is better to go to law school in the province you want to practice. The majority of TRU grads place in BC and they will have far better networking opportunities for you compared to UNB if you want to work in BC.

[Counsel]

I reiterate the comment above and would, based on your circumstances, recommend TRU. I would nevertheless urge you to consider the difference in tuition costs -- sometimes people don't and are taken by surprise when they find out the cost of tuition at TRU. 

[LMP]

While TRU is going to be the far more expensive option, I still think it is the way to go. 

If, however, you've got a bit of a safety net and an appetite for risk UNB could be a good choice. You'll have to huslte a bit more to secure things like summer jobs and post-law school employment within BC. But given your stated interests, that is completely doable. 

So if you wanna save around 30k you can roll the dice. But the safe bet and my choice would be TRU.