Working Before Law School Forum

727813 · Post by **727813** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:02 pm

If you were able to (legally) obtain employment for a year, resulting in ~ $200k, would you put off LS for a year?

Factors:
-Age: Older than most (under 30)
-Saving potential: at least $80k after taxes
-Location: No complaints
-Position: OCI Attention Grabber

Please, no comments about why a person would give up that employment to attend LS in the 1st place.

Dr. Review · Post by **Dr. Review** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:04 pm

Roughneck?

Birdnals · Post by **Birdnals** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:05 pm

727813 wrote:If you were able to (legally) obtain employment for a year, resulting in ~ $200k, would you put off LS for a year?

Factors:
-Age: Older than most (under 30)
-Saving potential: at least $80k after taxes
-Location: No complaints
-Position: OCI Attention Grabber

Please, no comments about why a person would give up that employment to attend LS in the 1st place.

1 whole year? That’s like, 1/70th of a lifetime! No thank you, law schools might all have an admissions freeze in a year.

TheProsecutor · Post by **TheProsecutor** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:45 pm

727813 wrote:If you were able to (legally) obtain employment for a year, resulting in ~ $200k, would you put off LS for a year?

Factors:
-Age: Older than most (under 30)
-Saving potential: at least $80k after taxes
-Location: No complaints
-Position: OCI Attention Grabber

Please, no comments about why a person would give up that employment to attend LS in the 1st place.

Depends - at schools like HYS where there are no academic scholarships, but just need-based aid, working for that year will probably not be in your long term financial interests. You'll likely have to put that entire 80k towards paying for law school. If you're going to a school that is cheap or you can get significant scholarship money, then you should probably wait and collect the salary.

Age is a negligible factor. Most of your classmates will be younger, but under 30 is still ripe for law school.
Savings is crucial: you better save at least this much if you want to go to HYS. I think they might even still look at your parents income too
Location: cool
Position: How do you know it is a OCI attention grabber? In any event this shouldn't be a factor in your decision.

At the end of the day it is a year of your life. Would you enjoy doing the work at the job? If yes, then go. If no, then go to lawschool.

dixon02 · Post by **dixon02** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:51 pm

I think passing on the job to attend one of HYS is defensible. Outside of those three, I wouldn't even give it a second thought.

socraticmethodman · Post by **socraticmethodman** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 1:52 pm

Why is this in the URM forum?

Ozymandias · Post by **Ozymandias** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 2:36 pm

How is this a question?

Nova · Post by **Nova** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 3:19 pm

I would definitely take a year off to make 200k

Ratchet Jackson · Post by **Ratchet Jackson** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 10:06 am

No brainer. Check to see if you can defer for a year and even if you can't, stack the chips. LS will always be there but the paper might not be.

727813 · Post by **727813** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:17 pm

socraticmethodman wrote:Why is this in the URM forum?

It may not be the best place, but I'm a URM.....

727813 · Post by **727813** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:23 pm

TheProsecutor wrote:
Depends - at schools like HYS where there are no academic scholarships, but just need-based aid, working for that year will probably not be in your long term financial interests. You'll likely have to put that entire 80k towards paying for law school. If you're going to a school that is cheap or you can get significant scholarship money, then you should probably wait and collect the salary.

Age is a negligible factor. Most of your classmates will be younger, but under 30 is still ripe for law school.
Savings is crucial: you better save at least this much if you want to go to HYS. I think they might even still look at your parents income too
Location: cool
Position: How do you know it is a OCI attention grabber? In any event this shouldn't be a factor in your decision.

At the end of the day it is a year of your life. Would you enjoy doing the work at the job? If yes, then go. If no, then go to lawschool.

Thanks for the input.
I understand the need-based aid and I'm pretty sure that I won't receive any, outside of loans. My income + parental income is just too much. My hope is that this job would offset some of the loans I will have to take out to go to law school. My only reason for taking the position would be to save. As far as an OCI attention grabber, I ran the position past a few established attorneys in the field that I hope to practice in, and they were thoroughly impressed. I know that it may not be universal, but clearly it's not a random paralegal job.

727813 · Post by **727813** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:24 pm

RJ127 wrote:No brainer. Check to see if you can defer for a year and even if you can't, stack the chips. LS will always be there but the paper might not be.

Thanks.

727813 · Post by **727813** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:24 pm

Nova wrote:I would definitely take a year off to make 200k

Thanks. More and more, I am starting to think so too.

727813 · Post by **727813** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 2:25 pm

dixon02 wrote:I think passing on the job to attend one of HYS is defensible. Outside of those three, I wouldn't even give it a second thought.

I agree. If by some mirable, I were accepted into HYS, I would go hands-down. Loans and all.

Ratchet Jackson · Post by **Ratchet Jackson** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 3:27 pm

727813 wrote:
dixon02 wrote:I think passing on the job to attend one of HYS is defensible. Outside of those three, I wouldn't even give it a second thought.
I agree. If by some mirable, I were accepted into HYS, I would go hands-down. Loans and all.

If accepted, try to defer. Not sure what the HLS policy on this it, but definitely try to have your cake and eat it too.

facile princeps · Post by **facile princeps** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 5:34 pm

$200K is way too much money to pass on. I would take that job in a heartbeat. Defer, bro. Defer.

spleenworship · Post by **spleenworship** » Wed Jul 18, 2012 6:10 pm

facile princeps wrote:$200K is way too much money to pass on. I would take that job in a heartbeat. Defer, bro. Defer.

Honey_Badger · Post by **Honey_Badger** » Sun Jul 22, 2012 7:59 pm

facile princeps wrote:$200K is way too much money to pass on. I would take that job in a heartbeat. Defer, bro. Defer.

+1
(or +200,000....)

UltraNonTraditional · Post by **UltraNonTraditional** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 12:18 pm

I know this doesn't contribute to the thread discussion but I just can't help myself. What the heck kinda job are you qualified for that pays $200k with presumably only a bachelor's degree? I don't expect an answer but I had to ask... geesh. $200k??

Birdnals · Post by **Birdnals** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 12:25 pm

UltraNonTraditional wrote:I know this doesn't contribute to the thread discussion but I just can't help myself. What the heck kinda job are you qualified for that pays $200k with presumably only a bachelor's degree? I don't expect an answer but I had to ask... geesh. $200k??

Bedsole wrote:Roughneck?

spleenworship · Post by **spleenworship** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 12:58 pm

Birdnals wrote:
UltraNonTraditional wrote:I know this doesn't contribute to the thread discussion but I just can't help myself. What the heck kinda job are you qualified for that pays $200k with presumably only a bachelor's degree? I don't expect an answer but I had to ask... geesh. $200k??

Bedsole wrote:Roughneck?

Or overseas "contractor" (read "mercenary")?

Dr. Review · Post by **Dr. Review** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 1:22 pm

spleenworship wrote:
Or overseas "contractor" (read "mercenary")?

Is Blackwater hiring?

spleenworship · Post by **spleenworship** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:35 pm

Bedsole wrote:
spleenworship wrote:
Or overseas "contractor" (read "mercenary")?
Is Blackwater hiring?

They are called ACADAMI now, and yes, yes they are:

http://careers.academi.com/index.php?m= ... talID=7401

There are a bunch of these there, if you are interested.

And there are a large number of these companies that still hire. Friend of mine spent a year in Afghanistan a few years ago, paid off his house.

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