Law School or what? Forum

[Tampa]

I am currently a junior who will be graduating from USF next December. I will have around a 3.5 gpa and will start studying next month for the summer LSAT. If I do not get a 165 or higher, I will retake again in October so I can go in-state for as little money as possible. My question is if I do not get a high LSAT score and thus will not attend a in-state or out of state school for little money, what other options are out there for a Political Science major and psychology minor?

I know from lurking this forum, if you cannot get into at least (with least being subjective to argument) a T1, you should not be going to law school. If this reality is present for myself and I am sure others have the same question, what other possibilities are out there? I am not trying to have posters create my future profession for me, I just would like insight from as many as possible that say T1 or bust...

Thanks for the advice, I have learned a lot from this forum.

[tuckerp]

First off, you should have asked your orientation leader the answer to these questions 3 years ago... I'm not judging, just stating that it is much better to ask "what jobs will this major get me" as opposed to "OK I have this degree, what can I do with it?"

That said, you now have a degree that you don't know what to do with... it seems you've got your head on right and know that a law degree isn't worth what most people pay for it... in fact, many law graduates in Florida are doing jobs that you could have and you'd be much happier without their debt. Do you like/hate/have an opinion on Tallahassee? Lobbying is something that hires young people all the time and is a great intro/stepping stone job since you'll be rubbing fannies with people at the Capitol all the time. You could also look into jobs that consider public policy... I'm thinking local agencies/utilities companies/city hall/local govt. Insurance is huge in Florida and involves quite a bit of regulation/political considerations so maybe you want to look into being an underwriter... they also hire a lot of young people from all majors. Better yet... since you're in Tampa, you should look into getting a job at the new cooley law school... they may have an opening in their tuition collections department

Just remember, your first job isn't going to necessarily be one you want to keep for a long time... even if you're coming out of law school a lot of people I know started looking for a new job almost immediately after they started their first job after the bar exam. The key is to do something that will allow you to really learn something (since we all know that little of practical application is learned in a classroom). Then you can take what you learned and impress people in your next interview.

Best of luck, I hope you get what makes you happy... a 3.5/165 will likely allow you to come out of UF or FSU law with $50k debt which would allow you to take any job because your debt will be manageable but at the same time if you started working at a local govt. office this year then you may be making $55k in 3 years and not have any debt plus you would have made over $100k instead of spending 3 more years in school. You have plenty of employment options, you just need to be prepared to look towards job #2 more than job #1.

[basilseal]

Also remember that next year is an election year. If you're willing to work for a few months without pay and for grueling hours (and, of course, your candidate wins) in a local/state/congressional election, you will often be offered a full-time position with the candidate. I had a number of friends do this last year, and they've either been promoted or accepted to T10 law schools...

Just an option, albeit a risky one.

[Tampa]

Thank you for the above replies. I understand that the field of Public Administration could be a route in cohesion with the subsequent fields of local and state positions. I just wanted to give myself and possibly others a thread to see what options are available if they are as naive as I.

Another question is this..

What does TLS consider strong ties to the legal field? I see the term in numerous posts and I just want to clarify what "strong" ties are. Is strong knowing a friend of the family who is an attorney in a firm, or is strong actually a family member in a firm or company who has considerable pull?

Thanks again and if anyone else can offer insight to my initial question or the above I would greatly appreciate it.

[Grizz]

Generally refers to ties, legal or otherwise, to a geographic location.

[Tampa]

Thank you. I have two more questions.

How much does being a pacific islander help me with admissions?

If you had considerable family ties within law would you try to go to the best ranked school and have increased debt or go to the area where the ties are and attend a regional school with the possibly of increased scholarships and less debt?

[Grizz]

Thank you. I have two more questions.

How much does being a pacific islander help me with admissions?

If you had considerable family ties within law would you try to go to the best ranked school and have increased debt or go to the area where the ties are and attend a regional school with the possibly of increased scholarships and less debt?

None.

Can those family ties guarantee you a job? If yes, local school, less debt. If no, impossible to say categorically.

[WSJ_Law]

Generally refers to ties, legal or otherwise, to a geographic location.

Just make up ties bro

HTH

[bye_low_sell_hi]

Law School or what?

Go with what and don't look back.

[kahechsof]

First off, you should have asked your orientation leader the answer to these questions 3 years ago... I'm not judging, just stating that it is much better to ask "what jobs will this major get me" as opposed to "OK I have this degree, what can I do with it?"

Agreed.
Thus, I am surprised by the reaction I get when I suggest people should take the LSAT in freshman year so they know if Law school is a viable plan. See eg. http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3#p4887512

[Tampa]

Thanks to all who posted. Hopefully I score in the mid 160's or better so I do not have to worry about this.

[cinephile]

what other options are out there for a Political Science major and psychology minor?

Not to get off topic, but it really depends on your skill set, what work experience/internships you've had, etc. I was a psychology major and took 2 years of stats for this major and had several research assistantships and summer internships where I used my stats experience. After graduation I worked for awhile for a company doing statistical analysis on variance in sales data depending on whatever promotion was going on at that time. A friend of mine is still there and has been promoted several times.

Really, you can target any type of position, just show that you have the necessary skills.

[Kolya]

Sounds to me like your best bet is to change your major to something employable. You're only a junior so you have three semesters left; if you go for a fifth year (not uncommon these days) you have five. Should be able to do it.

You shouldn't go to law school just because you arent sure what else to do; if worst comes to worst the difference between unemployment and going to law school is usually just 100k+ debt. FYI 3.5/165 is unlikely to get you anywhere worth attending; you'd need to rock the LSAT if you were to consider law school.

http://www.lawschooltransparency.com/20 ... tatistics/

^ that shows the odds of getting a decent job at a given school. As you can see, it is very much a dice roll at all but the best institutions (and even there you are exposed to considerable risk).

An undergrad degree leading to a boring middle-of-the-road job is a much better path than law school for the vast majority of today's applicants. This sounds harsh but you have my sympathies as a fellow 0L.