Should I go to Law School??I Seriously need advice! Forum

[okay734]

Do NOT go to Seton Hall. At least, not before you read the following:

--LinkRemoved--

If I were you I would:

1. study your a*s off and retake the LSAT, or

2. consider another career.

[OG Loc]

I am 22 years old and I graduated from Yeshiva University in May 2009. I took the year off and I am working as an administrative assistant, which I hate. I have been trying to find other jobs that have better growth potential, but have not had much luck. I applied to Law School with a 3.59 and a 157 LSAT Score.

I got into Hofstra, Saint John's, Seton Hall, Drexel, and Rutgers Camden part time program.
I am waitlisted at Brooklyn, Rutgers Newark, Villanova, and Temple.
I put a deposit down at Seton Hall and Rutgers Camden (for their part time evening program).

Will either of this schools get me anywhere? Does it effect career opportunities if i start in a part time evening program with the intention to switch into a full time program?

I am not sure if going to Law School is the right fit for me and now that I got the my acceptance results back I am not sure if going to a lower ranked Law school it worth it. I do not want a top firm job, I am female, married and eventually want to start a family. I do however want to get paid decently if i am going to spend the time and effort going to Law School.

I never liked English class or writing, but i do enjoy reading. I hate doing research papers. Does this indicate that Law is not a good fit for me?

Any and all advice would be appreciated.

This is the biggest problem you will encounter. There is a lot of writing in law school. However, if you love to read you are a step ahead out of the box. Furthermore, legal writing is different than any form of writing. If you are willing to learn and adapt, you will be able to work on your legal writing and be on an even playing field as everyone else.

If you do not want to work at a BigLaw firm, why would you take on the debt of a top private school? If your goal is a medium firm, in-house, etc. go to an affordable school like Rutgers-Camden. If you run up a lot of debt for law school it can be difficult to get out from under it unless you go to a BigLaw firm. If you get decent grades, get on journal, etc. BigLaw is definitely a possibility at Rutgers-Camden, if you change your mind. I know quite a few rising 3Ls who have summer jobs at BigLaw firms. These students will be extended job offers unless they screw up.

By the way, it is not extremely hard to get on journal from Rutgers Camden. There are three journals: The main journal, Law and Religion Journal and Law and Public Policy Journal. The requirement to try out is a GPA of 3.0+. Our average GPA is like a 3.2+ or something. Rutgers-Camden does not release average GPA, class rank, etc. so I am basing this off of grade distribution averages I have seen (which is a LOT). Everyone I know who tried out for journals got on one. Plus, everyone I know who wanted to run for editor or something as a 3L got their wish. Being an editor is a lot of work, so there are a lot of people who don't even want it. That makes it more obtainable for those who do.

All I know about this is what I've read on these forums, but it is my understanding that in house corporate lawyers usually start out as biglaw associates. I can say with more confidence that while biglaw is a possibility, it is not a realistic expectation coming from a non T-20 school like Rutgers.

[revolution724]

Law school is hard, a lot of work, and requires writing research papers all the time. If this prospect does not excite you, don't do it.

On the other hand, it's your life. If you ask whether or not you should do something and the vast majority of responders say no, and you feel compelled to do it anyway... fine, but don't say nobody warned you.

[Matthies]

I am 22 years old and I graduated from Yeshiva University in May 2009. I took the year off and I am working as an administrative assistant, which I hate. I have been trying to find other jobs that have better growth potential, but have not had much luck. I applied to Law School with a 3.59 and a 157 LSAT Score.

I got into Hofstra, Saint John's, Seton Hall, Drexel, and Rutgers Camden part time program.
I am waitlisted at Brooklyn, Rutgers Newark, Villanova, and Temple.
I put a deposit down at Seton Hall and Rutgers Camden (for their part time evening program).

Will either of this schools get me anywhere? Does it effect career opportunities if i start in a part time evening program with the intention to switch into a full time program?

I am not sure if going to Law School is the right fit for me and now that I got the my acceptance results back I am not sure if going to a lower ranked Law school it worth it. I do not want a top firm job, I am female, married and eventually want to start a family. I do however want to get paid decently if i am going to spend the time and effort going to Law School.

I never liked English class or writing, but i do enjoy reading. I hate doing research papers. Does this indicate that Law is not a good fit for me?

Any and all advice would be appreciated.

My understanding is that employers do not really care if you went part-time or full-time. There were quite a few part-time students in my 1L class. A very large number of these students successfully transferred into the full-time program their 2L year. Personally, I think the part-time program is a great idea. You get to take fewer classes, so you can concentrate more on the classes you have without overloading yourself. This is a great way to get good grades without killing yourself. If you take summer classes you can transfer into the full-time program and graduate in three years without a problem.

I have to admit after my first experience with you on the board I thought for sure you were the dumbest huge duchaebag I had ever met. Although reading your past several posts today I have changed my mind 100%, you seem to actually know what you're talking about (un like when we first clashed) and your advice is spot on. I agree with everything you said in this thread, but would add going part-time also gives you the chance to clerk for a law firm during the day (FT or PT) and gain experience and defer the costs of school. That part, given ITE and cost of law school should not be discounted.