Top Law Schools

I am glad I found this website because I really need advice from guys like you.
I have always had an interest in law. I hate math. I hate science. I've failed multiple classes of math and science. I am a senior in the prestigious Stuyvesant High School in New York City. I love analyzing, writing, and reading; especially topics pertaining to law. I confirmed this after taking a criminal law class where I excelled in and enjoyed moot courts as well as being engaged in the discussions.

However, I am constantly being discouraged from getting into law because it is risky. My family is poor. I have no connections. I have heard of horror stories of law school graduates not being able to find jobs and being 200,000 in debt.

Please give me hope. What kind of college should I apply to? What should I major in? Political science?

Maybe I will try to work as a paralegal after college and then after I save up the money after a few years, I will enroll in law school?

Can you guys tell me what your life is like? I have only heard bad things about this path.

All comments are greatly appreciated.

ask yourself the same question 3 years into undergrad. as for which college to go to and what to major in, it doesnt matter much at all. only GPA in undergrad matters. you can do pre-law in undergrad, but that matters for shit if your GPA is bad.

edit- i will say this. if your unsure at all, don't go for poli sci in undergrad. jobs arent there. if i could do it again id have gotten an undergrad degree in petrol engineering cause thats were the jobs are now. instead my dumbass has a b.a. with majors in poli sci and ir. I am currently delivering donuts unitl I get into a decent law school

From an actuarial perspective, assuming no especially compelling alternative career options or inside connections, the basic decision-making framework is this:

• • Paying sticker price to attend one of the tiny set of schools that consistently places the large majority of its class in market-rate paying jobs may be rationally justifiable, if you have academic numbers that would put you at or above the median of the incoming class.
  
  • Ditto if you can attend one of the lower T14 with a substantial scholarship.
  
  • Ditto if you can attend one of the handful of schools with exceptionally strong regional placement on a full, or near full, scholarship with no stipulations.
  
  • Otherwise, do not attend.

ABOVE ALL: Do not fall into the trap of attending some toilet of a law school because "it's the best one [you] could get into, and [you] plan to work really hard!" The universe of career options is not divided into "unemployment" and "law school" (particularly given that the former so often follows the latter). Assuming that you will beat your own numbers and outperform your incoming class rank is also totally irrational absent special circumstances.

Regarding your choice of colleges... law schools are broadly indifferent to which college you attend (it has no direct effect on their US news rankings), and which major you pick. So the smart move is to pick a major that you can excel in, and which also some independent career value. Ideally, it should also be somewhat coherent with your general legal interests.

Working as a paralegal can be useful if it allows you to get a better sense of what sort of law you might like to practice by observing working attorneys. Keep in mind that like your major, your choice of post-college work will send a message about your true interests and competencies. If you decide that you want to do transactional work, but every single internship you have on your resume references something like "Friends of The Homeless Insane" or "The Gay Panda Re-Wilding Initiative," eyebrows are going to get raised.

Good luck. However things turn out, believe me, you'll need it.