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Started By
Message
re: Law School Advice
Posted on 1/22/14 at 4:57 pm to tigershornets
Posted on 1/22/14 at 4:57 pm to tigershornets
So what's your plan after school?
Work 80 hours a week at a big firm hoping to make 'partner' only to be told that you are not partner material 7 years later?
Spend $30,000-$120,000 a month on TV ads and hope you get enough cases to pay for the next month?
Get that $30,000 government job?
Please, tell us the insight on how you are going to make it.
Work 80 hours a week at a big firm hoping to make 'partner' only to be told that you are not partner material 7 years later?
Spend $30,000-$120,000 a month on TV ads and hope you get enough cases to pay for the next month?
Get that $30,000 government job?
Please, tell us the insight on how you are going to make it.
0
Posted on 1/22/14 at 4:58 pm to TheOcean
Agreed. Sometimes the most important day re: class rank is the day you schedule your classes in the last two years. At my time at LSU, we were in struggle between the old school professors (who graded very low) and the new school professors (who graded high). Get the wrong one and your rank suffered.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 4:58 pm to TheOcean
quote:
This. And remember grades are by and large a gigantic crap shoot depending on your section and professors. You can't bank on finishing top 15-20%.
Yep. Had a professor all but admit that the difference between an A- and a B-, for instance, could hinge on whether your exam was one or the first or last ones graded.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 4:59 pm to tigershornets
First: Don't go.
Second: If you do go, and you know for a fact that being a lawyer is what you really want to do, go to the best law school you can get into in the region you want to live in.
Third: If you do go, but you're unsure if you want to be a lawyer, go to the best law school you can get into while spending the least amount of money in the region you want to live in.
Fourth: Keep in mind that law school rank is of the utmost importance unless you go to a T14 school (e.g. Columbia, Yale, Harvard, etc.). Therefore, it behooves you to go to a school where you are comfortable and where you believe you can excel and beat the competition.
If I were you, I'd go to U of H. The Houston legal market, while flooded, is still among the best in the nation. U of H is highly respected in Texas and particularly in Houston. You won't go in to crazy debt going to school there (only living expenses) and if you do well, you can end up at a good firm making $160k right out the gate. Trust me when I say that making $160k right out the gate with little to no debt is about the most fantastic feeling on the planet.
If you want to live in Dallas, SMU may be the better choice than U of H, particularly with a scholarship that large. I'm assuming you'll still come out of there about $80k to $90k in debt, though, which should give you some pause.
I would not go to Tulane unless you got in free. That's just me. Certainly not if SMU is cheaper. Tulane has a bit more reach into other markets than some of the schools in the South, but my understanding is that SMU is the same way. If you want to stay in Louisiana, the best school is still probably LSU. Go there, kill it, walk away with no debt and make $95k to $100k immediately at one of the big firms in Louisiana.
Always keep in mind these three things:
(1) cost (debt sucks),
(2) location (where you end up working geographically will largely be dictated where, geographically, you went to school), and
(3) your ability to crush the competition (being in the top 10 at U of H will probably be better than being in the top 10 percent at SMU).
Second: If you do go, and you know for a fact that being a lawyer is what you really want to do, go to the best law school you can get into in the region you want to live in.
Third: If you do go, but you're unsure if you want to be a lawyer, go to the best law school you can get into while spending the least amount of money in the region you want to live in.
Fourth: Keep in mind that law school rank is of the utmost importance unless you go to a T14 school (e.g. Columbia, Yale, Harvard, etc.). Therefore, it behooves you to go to a school where you are comfortable and where you believe you can excel and beat the competition.
If I were you, I'd go to U of H. The Houston legal market, while flooded, is still among the best in the nation. U of H is highly respected in Texas and particularly in Houston. You won't go in to crazy debt going to school there (only living expenses) and if you do well, you can end up at a good firm making $160k right out the gate. Trust me when I say that making $160k right out the gate with little to no debt is about the most fantastic feeling on the planet.
If you want to live in Dallas, SMU may be the better choice than U of H, particularly with a scholarship that large. I'm assuming you'll still come out of there about $80k to $90k in debt, though, which should give you some pause.
I would not go to Tulane unless you got in free. That's just me. Certainly not if SMU is cheaper. Tulane has a bit more reach into other markets than some of the schools in the South, but my understanding is that SMU is the same way. If you want to stay in Louisiana, the best school is still probably LSU. Go there, kill it, walk away with no debt and make $95k to $100k immediately at one of the big firms in Louisiana.
Always keep in mind these three things:
(1) cost (debt sucks),
(2) location (where you end up working geographically will largely be dictated where, geographically, you went to school), and
(3) your ability to crush the competition (being in the top 10 at U of H will probably be better than being in the top 10 percent at SMU).
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:00 pm to tigershornets
The first consideration should be the amount of debt you will incur going to law school. Go to the school that will make it as cheap as possible for you. Graduate with debt of: $0-10K - doing great, 10K-25K - not too bad, over 50K - not worth it
Next you should consider where you want to work. If you want to stay in Louisiana, go to LSU (or Tulane, if free). If you want to go to Texas, go to LSU or TX school. Don't go into debt to go to Crayola law.
TL;DR - Don't go into significant debt for law school
Next you should consider where you want to work. If you want to stay in Louisiana, go to LSU (or Tulane, if free). If you want to go to Texas, go to LSU or TX school. Don't go into debt to go to Crayola law.
TL;DR - Don't go into significant debt for law school
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:01 pm to LoveThatMoney
Agree with LoveThatMoney
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:01 pm to LazloHollyfeld
quote:
TL;DR - Don't go into significant debt for law school
Should be rule #1. I know someone that will probably have close to 300k in debt and can't find a job. Talk about a nightmare.
Students really don't realize how much 6figs+ in debt is.
This post was edited on 1/22/14 at 5:02 pm
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:02 pm to SabiDojo
quote:
Not a future where the practice of law will be what they hoped for, not a future where their lives will have balance and joy, and not a future where their relationships will bring fulfillment and their stresses will seem manageable. They just can't see it. Unable or unwilling to extract themselves from the psychological, financial and personal mire they never would have expected years of hard work and discipline to bring them, many lawyers then find themselves sinking into a funk, a bottle or a grave.
You want this?
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:02 pm to TheOcean
quote:Blessing in disguise.
can't find a job.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:03 pm to WDE24
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:03 pm to TheOcean
quote:
Should be rule #1. I know someone that will probably have close to 300k in debt and can't find a job. Talk about a nightmare.
Call a loan shark named Jimmy the Monk and prepare to shove 6 kilos of boogar sugar up your anus.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:04 pm to LoveThatMoney
Thanks for the advice. It's just good to look at things from different angles.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:04 pm to Traffic Circle
quote:Everyone believes that happens to the other guy. I can't imagine many lawyers in private practice haven't or won't suffer from depression at some point that is directly related to their job.
You want this?
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:05 pm to arseinclarse
Seeking help on the Poliboard?
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:05 pm to tigershornets
quote:
Thanks for the advice. It's just good to look at things from different angles.
But you are still going, right?
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:05 pm to Traffic Circle
quote:
But you are still going, right?
They never listen.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:06 pm to WDE24
quote:
Everyone believes that happens to the other guy. I can't imagine many lawyers in private practice haven't or won't suffer from depression at some point that is directly related to their job.
What's disturbing is many of the suicides were committed by successful attorneys.
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:06 pm to jrhettb
quote:
Agree with LoveThatMoney
Yup.
This post was edited on 1/22/14 at 5:07 pm
Posted on 1/22/14 at 5:07 pm to BrentED
quote:
BrentED
You a JD?
This post was edited on 1/22/14 at 5:07 pm
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