Transfer from Part-Time to Full-Time Program Forum

[Oblivion_08]

Hey guys, need some help. I am a future student at Southwestern Law and I will be apart of the part-time program. I am going to be 22 years old next year and I'm looking for advice based on my age and position.

Should I stay in the part time program while working at a law office or clerking for the commissioner I am currently clerking for, or should I do that for the first year and transfer to the full-time the next year.

Also, the most important question I have is how do I go about transferring from the part time program at SW to the full time?

[vanwinkle]

This isn't usually what "transferring" is regarded as. Different schools handle PT-to-FT moves differently. The short answer is, ask at your school if it'll be at all possible. Call them up anonymously if you have to, don't tell them who's calling, just say, "I was interested in applying part-time and wanted to know if..."

[Oblivion_08]

Thanks, anyone else have experience or an opinion on this?

[BUbobby24]

Transferring from the PT program to the FT program at the same school, is really only a matter of credits. Almost all schools say that they use the same criteria for admission for PT students as they do for FT students. As long as you have been admitted into the school, its probably only a matter of filling out paper work.

However, since you were originally admitted into the PT program, you will probably have to wait until after your first year to make the switch.

[nouseforaname123]

You need to be careful with transferring from PT to FT. Look into all the consequences of doing this.

At my school, moving from PT to FT screws any PT in the Top 25%.

In particular, you need to look at what your status will be for OCI and Law Review if you make the switch.

[Oblivion_08]

Considering my age(22 by the time school starts) should I just stay put at PT? What are advantages of PT?

[nouseforaname123]

The biggest advantage is that you can work during the day. You can work in legal type jobs and gain valuable WE or you can work in other fields and lower the amount of loans you need.

The biggest disadvantage is that it is a really high risk, high reward proposition. Work FT and kill it in LS and employers will be very interested in you. If you find out that you can't handle both challenges you'll screw up your first semester grades which will be tough (but not impossible) to recover from.

You don't need to decide right now whether you will transfer into the FT program (note: most schools just call it "accelerating graduation"). You'll be in a much better position to decide this issue after your first year of school. In fact, you don't have the information necessary to decide right now. Like I said earlier, at my school, if you are around top 25% after your first year in the PT program you are almost compelled into sticking with the PT schedule If you are below top 25% you are better off accelerating graduation (and keeping your COA lower).

[Norwood]

Transferring from PT to FT at my school only requires that you're in good standing. I doubt Southwestern will be any different.

Try out PT school and FT work for a semester and see how it goes. For some people this is a grueling task especially if you have a heavy commute. I am still amazed at how some people juggle 40 hours a week of work and 10-12 units worth of studying. It's especially challenging because you'll be competing with about half of the class who DON'T work at all and have the luxury of studying all day. Many FT workers in my PT section are there for the degree only and don't really care about their rank.

[kopper]

the posts above from norwood and nufn123 are golden. i think especially considering your age to gain relevant work experience will be beneficial and earning a solid income may help to keep your debt load down. But the benefit can be offset if working full time has too much negative impact on your performance/grades and ability to fully leverage the law school experience (clinics, law review, internships, etc...).

Also, consider this, you are giving up 3-4 credits per semester and picking up a 40-hour a week serious commitment. I think it is great if you can do it but will take a much greater effort on your part. Also, as mentioned, don't be surprised when 50-75% of your "part-time" class doesn't work or have a serious job.

[Oblivion_08]

Thanks guys I really appreciate it. I doubt I'll be working my first semester anyway(the whole school's faculty is advising against it when I asked them) so I should be fine.

[NJLawGirl520]

I was accepted to the Rutgers Law PT prgoram and I sent them an email a few weeks after my acceptance asking to switch to full-time before I start and they actually told me it was better to start fulltime if thats what I eventually wanted. They changed my status right away.