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Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 3:57 pm
by Anonymous User
I know this has been discussed much here, but having others weigh in always helps
I just finished my first semester at a law school ranked somewhere between #50-100 by the most popular law school rankings guide. I have a third of my tuition paid for by the state, via a program ran by my state for educationally disadvantaged, first generation higher education-ers, minorities, etc.. I came straight to LS from undergrad.
I have received only one grade, which was very high, but I don't expect the rest to be the same (probably anywhere from Cs-Bs). I came to law school, mistakenly, on a whim, like many law students do. I wasn't quite sure what to do after undergrad. I really only had a desire to work in corporate or international law, nothing else has ever appealed to me. But over winter break, I was able to shadow a few lawyers in the fields I want to enter. Needless to say, I can't see myself locked in a tiny room, windowless, scouring endless paperwork for the rest of my life. The potential pay is another factor that lured me into law school, which I now know was unwise; not many reach these high paying jobs. I feel i also chose law school because of its "prestige", and I think I did it more for others than myself.
I live at home with my family, and combining this with the fact that I have a third of tuition paid for, should I drop out or stick it out because it won't cost me much? I would still be around $45-50k in the hole, which is better than $150k. To add to this, I have a summer internship lined up at an international firm in Japan. This would be my dream internship, but I know it's a research position, and I really just want to travel.
I know I must follow my gut. I feel I was lured by false promises of what lawyers do and how much they really earn.
I guess I'm not sure what to do from here. I really don't find law very interesting. I do have a strong interest in business and international work (my ideal job would be living abroad or traveling for a large company). But I have a "weak" liberal arts undergraduate major, albeit from a highly regarded school. I do speak Japanese, Spanish, and am learning Mandarin, which hopefully could make me more marketable.
I'm fairly certain getting a global MBA or MBA abroad would be right up my alley, too bad I'm just learning about this now. Comments are highly appreciated
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 11:49 pm
by DildaMan
Why not do a JD/MBA while you figure out which profession you prefer?
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 12:33 am
by Hattori Hanzo
DildaMan wrote:Why not do a JD/MBA while you figure out which profession you prefer?
Because a JD/MBA from a T2 school is going to be an even greater mistake.
OP: if you have the internship offer in Japan, stick it out until the end of the year and give it a try. By the end of summer you will know whether you like the job and whether you have an offer. If the whole thing is going to cost you $45K, one semester should be around $7,500. I'd say it's worth the money if you already have the internship secured.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 1:36 am
by Agent
I recommend that you quit law school.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 1:55 am
by MormonChristian
Anonymous User wrote: I feel i also chose law school because of its "prestige", and I think I did it more for others than myself.
I live at home with my family, and combining this with the fact that I have a third of tuition paid for, should I drop out or stick it out because it won't cost me much? I would still be around $45-50k in the hole, which is better than $150k. To add to this, I have a summer internship lined up at an international firm in Japan. This would be my dream internship, but I know it's a research position, and I really just want to travel.
I know I must follow my gut. I feel I was lured by false promises of what lawyers do and how much they really earn.
I guess I'm not sure what to do from here. I really don't find law very interesting. I do have a strong interest in business and international work (my ideal job would be living abroad or traveling for a large company). But I have a "weak" liberal arts undergraduate major, albeit from a highly regarded school. I do speak Japanese, Spanish, and am learning Mandarin, which hopefully could make me more marketable.
I'm fairly certain getting a global MBA or MBA abroad would be right up my alley, too bad I'm just learning about this now. Comments are highly appreciated
I think you should talk to a few people from different backgrounds. You don't want to make the same mistake twice, or multiple times.
I don't feel like I have enough information about you to offer productive advice.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 2:21 am
by Aqualibrium
Facts:
OP got one grade, which was good, but hasn't received the rest if his/her grades.
OP will escape law school with only about 45k in debt.
OP speaks Japanese and actually has a summer internship lined up with a firm there.
My questions:
How can anyone seriously advise this person to drop out with only one GOOD grade in, a low overall debt load, and a summer job lined?
OP, are you stupid or just self destructive?
Sit the heck down and shut the heck up until you get the rest of your grades. If they are good, finish the Spring semester, take the internship and then decided from there if this is what you want. Dropping out now would be absolutely foolish in light of the circumstances you've relayed.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 2:37 am
by Anonymous User
Aqualibrium wrote:Facts:
OP got one grade, which was good, but hasn't received the rest if his/her grades.
OP will escape law school with only about 45k in debt.
OP speaks Japanese and actually has a summer internship lined up with a firm there.
My questions:
How can anyone seriously advise this person to drop out with only one GOOD grade in, a low overall debt load, and a summer job lined?
OP, are you stupid or just self destructive?
Sit the heck down and shut the heck up until you get the rest of your grades. If they are good, finish the Spring semester, take the internship and then decided from there if this is what you want. Dropping out now would be absolutely foolish in light of the circumstances you've relayed.
Anonymous User wrote:I have received only one grade, which was very high, but I don't expect the rest to be the same (probably anywhere from Cs-Bs). I came to law school, mistakenly, on a whim, like many law students do. I wasn't quite sure what to do after undergrad. I really only had a desire to work in corporate or international law, nothing else has ever appealed to me. But over winter break, I was able to shadow a few lawyers in the fields I want to enter. Needless to say, I can't see myself locked in a tiny room, windowless, scouring endless paperwork for the rest of my life. The potential pay is another factor that lured me into law school, which I now know was unwise; not many reach these high paying jobs. I feel i also chose law school because of its "prestige", and I think I did it more for others than myself.
I live at home with my family, and combining this with the fact that I have a third of tuition paid for, should I drop out or stick it out because it won't cost me much? I would still be around $45-50k in the hole, which is better than $150k. To add to this, I have a summer internship lined up at an international firm in Japan. This would be my dream internship, but I know it's a research position, and I really just want to travel.
I know I must follow my gut. I feel I was lured by false promises of what lawyers do and how much they really earn.
I guess I'm not sure what to do from here. I really don't find law very interesting. I do have a strong interest in business and international work (my ideal job would be living abroad or traveling for a large company). But I have a "weak" liberal arts undergraduate major, albeit from a highly regarded school. I do speak Japanese, Spanish, and am learning Mandarin, which hopefully could make me more marketable.
I'm fairly certain getting a global MBA or MBA abroad would be right up my alley, too bad I'm just learning about this now. Comments are highly appreciated
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:10 am
by Anonymous User
Thanks for the comments.
I should add that this Japanese firm does not hire fresh JD's despite the summer internship program. So getting a first job via this internship is unlikely.
Grades so far: A, B-, C, waiting on more.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:22 am
by dingbat
Do you have any other options?
Do you have any real interests?
A crapton of jobs involve sitting in an office most days. If you don't think you can handle that, you should look into becoming an electrician or a plumber. Those jobs make good money and the employment prospects are better than for law grads.
Otherwise, suck it up, buttercup. Get your law degree. If you don't want law, you can go into other (related) fields, though you'd need to start laying the groundwork early (e.g. Working part-time while in school)
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:37 am
by DIH49
I read this as: "I don't want to be a lawyer, should I go to law school?" Seems to me the answer is no.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 10:21 am
by cinephile
dingbat wrote:Do you have any other options?
Do you have any real interests?
A crapton of jobs involve sitting in an office most days. If you don't think you can handle that, you should look into becoming an electrician or a plumber. Those jobs make good money and the employment prospects are better than for law grads.
Otherwise, suck it up, buttercup. Get your law degree. If you don't want law, you can go into other (related) fields, though you'd need to start laying the groundwork early (e.g. Working part-time while in school)
No. You only have one life and there is absolutely no reason to make yourself miserable.
Everyone has options, even if you don't realize it now. But if you hate office work, what about a helping profession like occupational therapy or teaching? Particularly as you're interested in foreign travel, take some time to teach English overseas and clear your head. Law school isn't going anywhere. And with your grades, it's better to call it quits now.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 10:37 am
by dixiecupdrinking
How old are you? If you're K-JD, I would seriously, seriously consider taking a leave of absence or otherwise working out a way that you could return after a couple of years with your credits intact. TLS is pretty corporate drone heavy; this whole "suck it up" attitude you're getting is emblematic of that. I'd go live a few years of your life without the weight of the debt on you—even if it's just $45k—and without feeling like now that you've got the JD you have to use it or lose it. (Though it is true, in my experience, that working most jobs will just kind of suck a lot of the time unless you are in the 1% that gets to work for yourself doing exactly what you love to do and can make ends meet doing it; still, why not learn for yourself.)
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 10:42 am
by 2014
It's stupid to talk about this before you get all of your grades.
Yeah it sounds like law is an awful fit for you, but if you ended up doing well in every class, some non-sweat shop jobs might open up that could interest you.
Come back when you find out how you did in your other classes.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 11:48 am
by Anonymous User
Grades: a, b-, c, c-, c-
:/
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 12:05 pm
by rad lulz
DildaMan wrote:Why not do a JD/MBA while you figure out which profession you prefer?
MBAs without WE are worthless
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 12:09 pm
by 2014
Anonymous User wrote:Grades: a, b-, c, c-, c-
:/
Drop out and don't look back.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 12:09 pm
by Ludo!
I would have told you to drop out no matter what your grades are since you messed up and went to law school before actually finding out what a lawyer does. But now that you've got those grades this choice just got a lot easier
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 12:13 pm
by Icculus
2014 wrote:Anonymous User wrote:Grades: a, b-, c, c-, c-
:/
Drop out and don't look back.
rad lulz wrote:DildaMan wrote:Why not do a JD/MBA while you figure out which profession you prefer?
MBAs without WE are worthless
Both credited.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:11 pm
by rad lulz
2014 wrote:Anonymous User wrote:Grades: a, b-, c, c-, c-
:/
Drop out and don't look back.
.
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:39 pm
by Myself
.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:41 pm
by rad lulz
ajax adonis wrote:Can you get the rest of your grades and then decide to drop out without forking over anymore tuition? If so, I would wait for grades.
Anonymous User wrote:Grades: a, b-, c, c-, c-
:/
.
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:56 pm
by Myself
.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 2:09 pm
by Blessedassurance
Anonymous User wrote:Grades so far: A, B-, C, waiting on more.
drop out.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2013 2:38 pm
by zomginternets
T2 + bottom quarter grades + don't want to be a lawyer = drop out. There is no longer any reason not to.
Re: Drop out despite scholarship?
Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2013 5:35 pm
by fish52
zomginternets wrote:T2 + bottom quarter grades + don't want to be a lawyer = drop out. There is no longer any reason not to.