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bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 8:41 pm
by sdlaw
Did pretty bad first semester, got a 2.7. Worked my ass off second semester got a C-, D+, C, and C+. Now have a 2.58 at a T2 in cali. Poli sci major before with no prospects outside of law, decent connections in law. Should I bail out and get a masters in biz or finance or stay and do divorces for the rest of my life? If I stay will I make any money ever or would I be better off bailing out and going into biz or finance to make my money?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:07 pm
by bartleby
how much are you paying for law school
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:12 pm
by de5igual
and what type of connections? ones where you're guaranteed a job so long as you graduate and pass the bar?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:25 pm
by sdlaw
bartleby wrote:how much are you paying for law school
Sticker at private...aka 200k. Good connections, high profile private mediator in area, parent is judge outside of area, good contacts with a couple attny's who are in house. Definitely no guaranteed job though.
Outside of law...nothing but a poli sci undergrad degree and telemarketing for a year(only thing worse was prob 1l year, but that's a toss up). I dont hate law, I also definitely don't love law. I could do it and be fine, but I'd be perfectly happy leaving if there was some other option.
Debating going back to school and getting a masters in accounting, maybe an mba or....
Oh other factor...I'm probably getting married soon and my wife to be will be making a decent salary by the time I graduate, enough to pay all our bills so 100 % of my income could go to law loans
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:26 pm
by MTal
Drop out now. No conditions.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:28 pm
by bartleby
you really gotta drop out. don't do this to your future wife/family. definitely go back to school though and get a meaningful degree.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:30 pm
by Jack Smirks
Did you totally just slack off or are you really that bad at taking LS exams?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:33 pm
by RCRARollin
I am from USD Law as well and these are my thoughts:
You are going to need above a B+ average taking 13 graded units each semester just to get above median. And that is assuming median for your graduation class is lower than that required for this past May's graduates.
My question is did you go in and look over each of your exams with the professor after your first semester? You definitely should have and if not you should go in and see what you did this past semester. If it isn't something you can fix, there is no point in continuing.
Did you get anything above a C+ first semester? If not, I think you will seriously have trouble getting above a B+ which means you will most likely graduate significantly below median. The legal market is TOUGH right now and although there are students with 3.0's that are getting jobs, there are also students who graduated without honors who are still jobless. With your GPA, getting to a 3.0 may be near impossible and it may be best to cut your losses.
The only way I say that you should stay is if you are an URM with a scholarship because diversity scholarships do not have stipulations at USD usually. Anything else and you probably lost your scholarship. It is not work $100k+ more to graduate below median.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:34 pm
by bartleby
also, u'd be doing something you don't really care for for two years while taking the debt. doing nothing would be better because at least u aren't in the negative.
if u don't want to go back to school and get a degree, pursuing some unproductive passion would be better. build decks, write a screenplay, but giving up on LS is a solid play
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:54 pm
by keg411
Talk to your family ASAP and see how much their connections can help. They sound pretty solid to me, but if your family won't guarantee they can help land you interviews/jobs, then drop out and find something else to do.
Still $200k is a LOT. How people even think to take out that type of debt at a non-T14 is....
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:08 pm
by bceagles182
Why is nobody pointing out the obvious... that OP is obviously not very good at analyzing the law and probably shouldn't be a lawyer? Sure, his connection may get him a job, but he's likely going to suck at it.
Drop out. You don't seem that interested in being a lawyer, you're taking on debt, and you aren't good at it.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:14 pm
by shoeshine
After reading the entire thread I am going to have to go with drop out as well. Sorry OP, but it does not seem worth it to stay in without a guaranteed job. The debt will be crippling unless you get out now.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:15 pm
by YourCaptain
MTal wrote:Drop out now. No conditions.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:19 pm
by Seminole_305
Did you prep at all? Or did you just follow what the professors said?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:21 pm
by bgdddymtty
sdlaw wrote:Debating going back to school and getting a masters in accounting, maybe an mba or....
The master's in accounting is a reasonable choice, although it's possible you'll run into precisely the issues that are troubling you about law school (lower-ranked school, low grades, lack of enthusiasm, lack of job prospects).
As for the MBA, you need substantial (read: more than one year, and not telemarketing) work experience to get into any MBA program worth getting into. Even if you find one that lets you in, it'll be next to impossible to get an MBA-worthy job coming out of school. I can't stress enough how different the b-school model is from the law school one.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:22 pm
by shoeshine
Seminole_305 wrote:Did you prep at all? Or did you just follow what the professors said?
How is this relevant?
Edit: Oh are you trying to find a reason for his failure so you can decrease your own anxiety about law school?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:25 pm
by 3ThrowAway99
bceagles182 wrote:Why is nobody pointing out the obvious... that OP is obviously not very good at analyzing the law and probably shouldn't be a lawyer? Sure, his connection may get him a job, but he's likely going to suck at it.
Drop out. You don't seem that interested in being a lawyer, you're taking on debt, and you aren't good at it.
I think you're assuming that law school grades directly indicate how good someone will be at practicing in a specific area of law, which I don't necessarily agree with. But there probably is a strong correlation, and at the very least the grades probably aren't a good sign for OP's ability to be a "good lawyer" (aside from the fact that the grades will likely hinder his or her ability to get a legal job at all).
That said, I think you should drop out OP, unless you have what is more or less a guaranteed job after graduation. But even then, the bar resembles law school exams as far as I can tell, and CA has the hardest bar. So, in your case, I think the credited response is to drop out, although I don't usually recommend this to people.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:26 pm
by Seminole_305
shoeshine wrote:Seminole_305 wrote:Did you prep at all? Or did you just follow what the professors said?
How is this relevant?
Edit: Oh are you trying to find a reason for his failure so you can decrease your own anxiety about law school?
Yeah. Not trying to be a dick or nothing.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:28 pm
by Grizz
shoeshine wrote:Seminole_305 wrote:Did you prep at all? Or did you just follow what the professors said?
How is this relevant?
Edit: Oh are you trying to find a reason for his failure so you can decrease your own anxiety about law school?
Also doing what the professor wants (and often they say what they want) actually can get you solid grades.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:30 pm
by keg411
rad law wrote:shoeshine wrote:Seminole_305 wrote:Did you prep at all? Or did you just follow what the professors said?
How is this relevant?
Edit: Oh are you trying to find a reason for his failure so you can decrease your own anxiety about law school?
Also doing what the professor wants (and often they say what they want) actually can get you solid grades.
THIS. Got solid A's in every class where I was able to figure out my prof and what he/she wanted. Got my worst grade in the class I couldn't figure out my prof at all.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 11:51 pm
by zeth006
MTal wrote:Drop out now. No conditions.
Why is an accountant who dropped out of law school over a year ago still posting here?
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2011 11:54 pm
by DoubleChecks
YourCaptain wrote:MTal wrote:Drop out now. No conditions.
lol oh MTal, how 1 yr can take you from someone that everyone ignored to someone people now quote as TCR.
all joking aside, in this case...OP...200k? short of your family connections == definite law job after grad, i really dont see a reason to stay with your GPA and backward trend.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2011 12:00 am
by GMVarun
DoubleChecks wrote:lol oh MTal, how 1 yr can take you from someone that everyone ignored to someone people now quote as TCR.
Even a broken clock is right twice a day.
To the OP: Sorry to say this, but you should drop out. Honestly, you probably should have dropped after first semester. I know even though it is easy for me to say this, it is always tough decision to stop doing you are so invested in doing. Good luck.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2011 12:47 am
by 09042014
zeth006 wrote:MTal wrote:Drop out now. No conditions.
Why is an accountant who dropped out of law school over a year ago still posting here?
Why are you giving him shit. A dude who dropped out of T2 for poor grades has direct experience with this issue. He is correct.
Re: bombed second semester---stay in or drop out
Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2011 10:35 am
by YourCaptain
zeth006 wrote:MTal wrote:Drop out now. No conditions.
Why is an accountant who dropped out of law school over a year ago still posting here?
Why are you disregarding the fact that his advice is without a doubt the correct choice here?