Why You Should Go To Law School Forum

[solotee]

What I am worried about, and what I think most other people are worried about, is the tough job market after law school. There is some reason to have a less-than-optimistic outlook about finding good jobs after law school.

The job market will be tough regardless of your decision to attend LS or not. Your JD will last a lifetime and the economic downturn, in all likelihood, will not. If your intent is to wait until the economy gets better until you take on debt to further your education, then so be it, but the opportunity costs associated with delay coupled with the possibility that you may never go could outweigh your short-term struggle to repay your debt.

Yes $100k is a lot of money, but so is any major purchase in life and I choose to believe that an investment in myself will yield the greatest ROI. I have no qualms delaying the purchase of a home or a high-end auto in order to finance my legal career. $1,000/month (repayment of debt), IS NOT that much money if the rest of your finances are in order when you exit LS.

I think the main issue is not the expense of law school so much as it is the disparity between unrealistic expectations versus reality. Yes, it will be a struggle to secure a six-figure income practicing law, but what in the hell is easy nowadays?

Those that come to TLS to bash your plan of attending LS would probably be living in their parents basement regardless of their chosen occupation. Trust me, these people did not wake up one morning with the intention to crusade for our collective financial future by signing up for a TLS acct and posting gloomy stats and BS rants. You would be hard-pressed to find ANY career that is easily attainable or where those at the top did not make some type of significant sacrifice to control their destiny.

If you really want to practice law and have the enthusiasm and motivation to succeed, go for it! However, it is important that you realize that law (like 99% of everything else worth a shit) will be hard work.

Good Luck to all!!

TITCR

[CE2JD]

Every practicing attorney I know HATES their job and IMPLORED me not to go to law school.

Coincidence?

[OperaSoprano]

Every practicing attorney I know HATES their job and IMPLORED me not to go to law school.

Coincidence?

CE2JD, are you sorry you went?

[Apple Tree]

Every practicing attorney I talked to like what they do and strongly encourage me to go to law school...

[hayman]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

[CE2JD]

Every practicing attorney I know HATES their job and IMPLORED me not to go to law school.

Coincidence?

CE2JD, are you sorry you went?

Yes.

[CE2JD]

Every practicing attorney I talked to like what they do and strongly encourage me to go to law school...

You're either lying or your sample of practicing attorneys is totally unrepresentative of what most attorneys think about their jobs.

http://www.vallexfund.com/download/Bein ... Member.pdf

[adamlippes]

The problem is that many people think law=biglaw, and the problem is that biglaw just isn't gratifying for most people.

I did public interest last summer and I loved it. I got to wear my jeans and chucks to work, interact with clients, have my work product used in substantive areas of various cases, and felt like I made a significant impact on the community associated with my organization.

[Apple Tree]

Every practicing attorney I talked to like what they do and strongly encourage me to go to law school...

You're either lying or your sample of practicing attorneys is totally unrepresentative of what most attorneys think about their jobs.

http://www.vallexfund.com/download/Bein ... Member.pdf

Hehe i'm not lying. The lawyers I talked to work at smaller firms (I worked for one of them) so yeah they are not representative of what biglaw life is going to be. They actually live like normal human beings and go home to eat dinner with kids and spend weekends with families. But then again, nobody put a gun to those people who choose the biglaw life (not that all of them are unhappy). They choose that career themselves for certain reason (money/prestige/paying back loan) and ITE, you get some and lose some. The question is how much the opportunity cost really is. If they are all so unhappy, why are they still in that position? So it seems to me that they think what they gained is worth what they lost. Life is too short to live your life that unhappy for that long.

[Apple Tree]

Every practicing attorney I talked to like what they do and strongly encourage me to go to law school...

You're either lying or your sample of practicing attorneys is totally unrepresentative of what most attorneys think about their jobs.

http://www.vallexfund.com/download/Bein ... Member.pdf

It seems like an interesting book/article(?) though. I'll have to read it sometime.

[OperaSoprano]

Every practicing attorney I know HATES their job and IMPLORED me not to go to law school.

Coincidence?

CE2JD, are you sorry you went?

Yes.

I feel that way for a split second sometimes, but only when I'm thinking about grades. The substance of what we're learning, and the people involved, all these things are wonderful, but the pressure just hit me, and I'm still adjusting. I'm happy with my decision, but terrified of what lies ahead, and seriously worried that I won't be able to manage the stress. I love my classmates, and I wish I could experience this education without being forced into head to head competition with them over ranking. I know it's the nature of the beast, and utterly pointless even to vent about it, but I do wonder how many other people feel the same.

[vanwinkle]

I encourage all of you to not go to law school so there are more jobs left for me.

[prezidentv8]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

[OperaSoprano]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

The grass is always greener in someone else's graduate program.

[DannyJames]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

yeah, i would NEVER want to go to med school. not my cup of tea

[prezidentv8]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

yeah, i would NEVER want to go to med school. not my cup of tea

Seriously. I don't know about all the others, but cutting through bodies, etc. =/= my idea of awesome

[adamlippes]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

The grass is always greener in someone else's graduate program.

I doubt many law students share that view about business school...

[prezidentv8]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

The grass is always greener in someone else's graduate program.

I doubt many law students share that view about business school...

See...biz school and law school both sound great to me. As do econ, polisci, history, archaology, public policy, environmental whatever, etc. etc. etc. and a bunch of others...Med school specifically never sounded that great to me though.

Maybe I'm just crazy.

[Bronte]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Has this thread become so asinine that the naysayers are now just spewing random, incoherent tripe?

[hayman]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

The grass is always greener in someone else's graduate program.

I doubt many law students share that view about business school...

[prezidentv8]

everyone bitches about job security and omfg i need t14 and biglaw to pay back my loans..
well doctors could get their degree from puerto rico and do six figures. so im sorry that ama does everything better than the aba

Yeah, but I don't want to be a doctor so med school would do me no good.

[prezidentv8]

I should also toss out there that I find it hard to believe that many of the posters on this board couldn't get into some medical school if they felt like it.

[hayman]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Has this thread become so asinine that the naysayers are now just spewing random, incoherent tripe?

obviously im joking...somewhat. but the reasons for pursuing a professional school include a well paying job and security..which medicine does a better job of. your response only shows insecurity. don't worry you'll be fine

[OperaSoprano]

people go to law school because med school is not a viable option for them

Must we continually jerk off the doctors on here??

The grass is always greener in someone else's graduate program.

I doubt many law students share that view about business school...

An old roommate of mine is at Wharton now. She says it's like a cocktail circuit, and no one is stressed out. I know that's not true even of HYS law students.

Freaking out over class standing sucks a lot, and I never come on TLS to complain. I should probably just go to brunch and eat something massively unhealthy. I think it's more inner demons than job security, at least in my case.

[hayman]

everyone bitches about job security and omfg i need t14 and biglaw to pay back my loans..
well doctors could get their degree from puerto rico and do six figures. so im sorry that ama does everything better than the aba

Yeah, but I don't want to be a doctor so med school would do me no good.

well then in your case law would be the best bet