Orion (2022-2023)

I have the same aid offers as you, plus full at Cleveland. I applied to a lot of schools in Ohio for financial reasons, but I don't know very much about the schools there. You have Ohio Northern over Akron. I bet you know stuff I don't know. Any insight?

I went to Northern as an undergrad, so I have a good feel for the school, as well as numerous friends and contacts in the area (which is on the other side of the state from me - I live east of Cleveland) While ONU lacks the full bredth of Akron's curriculum - no small thing, as I want to get into IP and International law - the atmosphere at Northern is more to my liking. Small, very personal, and very friendly. As an undergrad, I went to dinner at some of my professors' homes, even a bonfire one night. I've only known a few law students, but they tend to be happy with their choice, often for the same reason. Having spent some time in an engineering graduate program at a large state school, I really came to appreicate ONU. Thier motto "Large enough to challenge, small enough to care" is really very apt. Very collegial and cooperative. The downside to Northern, depending on your point of view, is Ada. It is a small town without much to do, 20 minutes from civilization (only one bar and corn fields in all directions!) That said, if you know where to look on campus, there is always something going on. ONU's theatre program is excellent, and they spend a great deal to bring in headliners to their terrific performing arts center. Plays, music, magicians, comedians, you name it. Big names too. Bill Cosby, Rockapella, etc. The student planning committee also has a considerable budget to provide entertainment. The administration knows the students need someting to do :) Before this begins to sound like an advertisement, I'll just say that I'm very fond of my alma mater.

I could also mention that, while the University of Akron itself is nice, Akron has a reputation for being a fairly 'rough' town. People from Toledo tell me the same about there...so take it with a grain of salt? Also, coming from Seattle, renting or buying in Ada would seem very cheap. Cleveland State. Well, I know a few people who graduated from their law program and liked the school. I'm just not fond of downtown Cleveland. Case Western - which I did apply to - is on university circle, which is a pretty nice area with lots of businesses and museums.

Thanks Orion. This is really helpful information. I can't get away to visit Ohio until early May. I rather like the idea of a small, supportive school environment. Also, Ada offers the least debt, as they alone have offered scholarship money to my husband (10,000). Everyone is telling me to go to to the highest-ranked school to which I am admitted, but I am not sure that those ranking correlate very well to my own priorities. I would be a little sad though to miss out on some of the great programs at Ohio State or Case West. Well, maybe we'll see each other at one of these schools next year! Thanks for the reviews, Orion.

Hi again Orion. We're visiting ONU in a couple weeks. (My husband and I are both going to LS next year). We've put seat deposits there & at a couple of other schools. It sounds really good to me, but I need to see the school in person. Do you know where ONU law grads tend to work? I noticed that not so many stay in state. I just wondered whether many of those who stay in Ohio settle in Columbus, Cincinnati, etc. Of course, I should really ask career services, but I wondered if maybe you knew... Thanks again for all the info, I've included my email address (which is also my name). Maybe I'll be seeing you in August.