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I am worried about doing horrible in law school, finishing below median after 1L and looking at horrific job prospects. What do you all think about taking the GRE and applying to your plan B option ( doing something with cognitive development problems and mental health issues) during your 1L year as a back up plan. I am interested in being an advocate for the mentally disabled, with a focus on the elderly, family law, and being an advocate for the disabled in general. Attorneys that I have talked to have said that my educational background ( master degree in special education, spent 3 years working with emotionally disabled/ troubled adolescents) will be an asset for my legal career, but looking at a mortgage level of debt and no job prospects for bottom of the barrel graduates is something that i am not willing to do.

My question is as follows: Is it a good idea to work on your plan B before knowing the results of plan A? Am I being overly pessassmistic, and need to stop trying to decide how I will respond to/ and plan for different outcomes? I know I posted something earlier that is similiar to this, but I am trying to decide if I should start working on this option or wait until December to start.

I have always wanted to be a lawyer, and have given law school a long and serious thought process. If I could afford to go to law school out of pocket,I would do so in a hurry, but since I have to take out some loans ( I have a huge scholarship offer that I would take that will carry through 1L- making attending the first year and seeing how it goes financially as I only would have to pay for cost of living worth it), My major concern is finding myself piled high in debt after losing the scholarship and being forced to pay sticker for 2l and 3L and having not a lot of options to pay it off ina reasonable manner. Thanks for your help and for taking the time to read this nice long post. I hope you all have a great night and a better week!

I would first question the wisdom of asking a forum of mostly recent college grads/law school students for advice about a very personal life choice. Disclaimer aside, this is what I think.

If you spend the time to apply to grad school during 1L, you will hamper your ability to get good grades, and I don't mean that only because you will lose studying time. You will be in the mindset of getting out of law school, creating a self-fulfilling prophesy. The subconscious is powerful.

The other thing is, why the need to apply to grad school so early? If you wait till the end of 1L, the most you "lose" in between is a year.

MrSparkle wrote:I would first question the wisdom of asking a forum of mostly recent college grads/law school students for advice about a very personal life choice. Disclaimer aside, this is what I think.

If you spend the time to apply to grad school during 1L, you will hamper your ability to get good grades, and I don't mean that only because you will lose studying time. You will be in the mindset of getting out of law school, creating a self-fulfilling prophesy. The subconscious is powerful.

The other thing is, why the need to apply to grad school so early? If you wait till the end of 1L, the most you "lose" in between is a year.

Basically +1 to this whole thing.

Northwood, I think you are being SOOOOO safe and cautious that it might hurt. If you begin LS, then give 1L your all. If for some reason you "fail"/"get horrible grades" launch into Plan B/C and fulfilll your dreams that way.

Why not try to do a joint degree of some sort wherever you go to law school?

I'm looking into that now. Im trying to see what the cost/benefits/marketability of doing this would be, and how it can be done. Ive sent out some feeler emails, and will be visiting some schools soon, so ill be able to get all of this information, digest it, do some soul searching, and come up with a plan before the deposit deadlines are due! Thanks for the help though!!!!