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Gettingstarted1928

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1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:17 pm

I have NOT made a decision, but I've officially put the idea of dropping out at the end of the semester on the table. The legal market gets worse every year with the surplus of attorneys, and if you couple that with the amount of money law school costs (tuition AND lost wages), I'm starting to lean more and more towards cutting my losses before I go all in. Right now there's only been minor damage that can easily be recovered from, but that won't be the case the longer I stay. I went back and forth with law school over the summer, and I reluctantly pulled the trigger.

So there's my thinking. Any other 1Ls share my sentiment?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by typ3 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:24 pm

Typical first semester cold feet. Wait until you get your grades. Is it worth jumping ship if you're top 5,10,20% ? If you're at TTT then yes. T-14 no.

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Gettingstarted1928

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:28 pm

typ3 wrote:Typical first semester cold feet. Wait until you get your grades. Is it worth jumping ship if you're top 5,10,20% ? If you're at TTT then yes. T-14 no.

Yes, I am waiting until the end of the semester to make a choice. However, the only thing I wanted to do is work at the DA's office, and they are not that concerned with grades to begin with. No matter where you turn, your situation seems to be bad. We're screwed on the biglaw end (which I think would suck anyway) and on the government end with all the hiring freezes.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:42 pm

I guess I'm the only one who feels this way. LOL.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by truevines » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:48 pm

Gettingstarted1928 wrote: Yes, I am waiting until the end of the semester . . . .
Depending on your school, you probably won't get your grades or class ranks back until February next year. At that time, you probably can't get a full tuition refund.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Pato_09 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:54 pm

It all depends which school you attend. And the DA's office do care about grades and school.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by 174 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 9:56 pm

2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by yntzoid » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:00 pm

I'm dropping out. Had a K midterm today, wanted to see how that goes before I leave. What range of school are you at and what are your plans for after you leave? I'm planning on working a bit doing whatever to just get some cash then go back to school for something else.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by yntzoid » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:02 pm

174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by ChiCity22 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:03 pm

Decent chance I'm gone after this year. 100% gone if I lose my scholly.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by typ3 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:05 pm

yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?
Or you go work at a small firm or as a sole practitioner. Those aren't bad options if, 1.) you're highly motivated, 2.) don't mind taking on the risk, 3.) don't mind the lack of prestige.. that is unless you become a well known litigator getting 7 figures in fees.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by 174 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:07 pm

yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?
1. Realized I don't want to be a lawyer during 1L. Thought I could tolerate it for $160K and got good enough grades for it to be a possibility, so I stayed.
2. Even if I did want to be a lawyer, I don't know if I could stomach another $45K of debt for a "fighting chance" at gainful employment.

I'm quite relieved to put this all behind me and start fresh.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by shoeshine » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:09 pm

Gettingstarted1928 wrote:I have NOT made a decision, but I've officially put the idea of dropping out at the end of the semester on the table. The legal market gets worse every year with the surplus of attorneys, and if you couple that with the amount of money law school costs (tuition AND lost wages), I'm starting to lean more and more towards cutting my losses before I go all in. Right now there's only been minor damage that can easily be recovered from, but that won't be the case the longer I stay. I went back and forth with law school over the summer, and I reluctantly pulled the trigger.

So there's my thinking. Any other 1Ls share my sentiment?
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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by yntzoid » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:15 pm

174 wrote:
yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?
1. Realized I don't want to be a lawyer during 1L. Thought I could tolerate it for $160K and got good enough grades for it to be a possibility, so I stayed.
2. Even if I did want to be a lawyer, I don't know if I could stomach another $45K of debt for a "fighting chance" at gainful employment.

I'm quite relieved to put this all behind me and start fresh.
Good point. Another $45K is a lot more money.

Sad really that it is mid-October and already a drop out thread for 1Ls. Pre ITE I fell for the dream of graduating and making 160K. Thought if I 'worked hard' I could do it. Now I'm here, I hate the material, and hate research.

EDIT: Luckily not paying a ton of $$. Thought I could hash it out after I realized the places I got into made biglaw completely unavailable. Maybe DA work, or private practice on my own or a crappy small firm. In any case, I realized I just do not want to be a lawyer.

Gotta admit, it is an unsettling feeling.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by shoeshine » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:19 pm

yntzoid wrote:I'm dropping out. Had a K midterm today, wanted to see how that goes before I leave. What range of school are you at and what are your plans for after you leave? I'm planning on working a bit doing whatever to just get some cash then go back to school for something else.
Did you bomb your midterm? What range of school are you at?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by 174 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:20 pm

yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:
yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?
1. Realized I don't want to be a lawyer during 1L. Thought I could tolerate it for $160K and got good enough grades for it to be a possibility, so I stayed.
2. Even if I did want to be a lawyer, I don't know if I could stomach another $45K of debt for a "fighting chance" at gainful employment.

I'm quite relieved to put this all behind me and start fresh.
Good point. Another $45K is a lot more money.

Sad really that it is mid-October and already a drop out thread for 1Ls. Pre ITE I fell for the dream of graduating and making 160K. Thought if I 'worked hard' I could do it. Now I'm here, I hate the material, and hate research.

EDIT: Luckily not paying a ton of $$. Thought I could hash it out after I realized the places I got into made biglaw completely unavailable. Maybe DA work, or private practice on my own or a crappy small firm. In any case, I realized I just do not want to be a lawyer.

Gotta admit, it is an unsettling feeling.
What are your other options?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by yntzoid » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:22 pm

shoeshine wrote:
yntzoid wrote:I'm dropping out. Had a K midterm today, wanted to see how that goes before I leave. What range of school are you at and what are your plans for after you leave? I'm planning on working a bit doing whatever to just get some cash then go back to school for something else.
Did you bomb your midterm? What range of school are you at?
Thought it went alright, actually. Left thinking I hit all the major issues and gave myself significant time to make sure my answers were clear, organized and not just a information dump. I'm sure my positive feeling about it will be brought down a few notches when we get the grades back.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:54 pm

truevines wrote:
Gettingstarted1928 wrote: Yes, I am waiting until the end of the semester . . . .
Depending on your school, you probably won't get your grades or class ranks back until February next year. At that time, you probably can't get a full tuition refund.
Wow, that is news to me. I assumed we would get them back sometime in mid January right before the semester begins.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:57 pm

Pato_09 wrote:It all depends which school you attend. And the DA's office do care about grades and school.

I never said they don't care, but from what I've seen they it's not nearly as important as it is for biglaw, and you certainly don't have to be in the top 10% or even the top third. They seem to care more about clinics, externships/internships, mock trial, motivation, etc. Where you live it might be a different story, though. I know high profile offices like Manhattan are as hard to get a biglaw. I am/was open to working even in a rural community if need be.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:00 pm

yntzoid wrote:I'm dropping out. Had a K midterm today, wanted to see how that goes before I leave. What range of school are you at and what are your plans for after you leave? I'm planning on working a bit doing whatever to just get some cash then go back to school for something else.

If I do leave, I will probably get on with my family's business. It's not extremely lucrative, but it does pay decent.

Also, if I do leave, I'm done with school. End of story. What were you planning on going back to school for?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:02 pm

typ3 wrote:
yntzoid wrote:
174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Sorry to hear that man. Do you really want to be a lawyer? I've followed these boards for a long time and it seems like if you aren't biglaw or bust you still have a fighting chance to get SOMETHING, no?
Or you go work at a small firm or as a sole practitioner. Those aren't bad options if, 1.) you're highly motivated, 2.) don't mind taking on the risk, 3.) don't mind the lack of prestige.. that is unless you become a well known litigator getting 7 figures in fees.
I think most small firms are not worth it, I definitely don't want to start up once of those run-down small crap offices you drive past all the time.

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Gettingstarted1928

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:03 pm

ChiCity22 wrote:Decent chance I'm gone after this year. 100% gone if I lose my scholly.

What are your plans if you do leave?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by Gettingstarted1928 » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:06 pm

shoeshine wrote:
Gettingstarted1928 wrote:I have NOT made a decision, but I've officially put the idea of dropping out at the end of the semester on the table. The legal market gets worse every year with the surplus of attorneys, and if you couple that with the amount of money law school costs (tuition AND lost wages), I'm starting to lean more and more towards cutting my losses before I go all in. Right now there's only been minor damage that can easily be recovered from, but that won't be the case the longer I stay. I went back and forth with law school over the summer, and I reluctantly pulled the trigger.

So there's my thinking. Any other 1Ls share my sentiment?
School rank?
Southern T2....I know your initial response is "of course, you should drop out." However, as i stated before, I don't want a firm job, and the DA offices in my town hire almost entirely from my school and another similarly ranked school.

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by SarahKerrigan » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:08 pm

174 wrote:2L here. Struck out at OCI, dropping out to pursue a second bachelors degree. Wish I had done it when I first thought about it after 1L first semester.
Just curious, what are you getting your second bachelors in?

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Re: 1Ls having 2nd thoughts about law school? Discuss here.

Post by MTal » Mon Oct 10, 2011 11:09 pm

Posted from another thread

MTal's guide to success in life.

1. Don't accrue 150k in non-dischargeable debt to go to law school for the small chance of being an attorney. Even if you realize the chance, your starting salary will most likely be somewhere in the 35-50k range with few if any benefits.
2. Get a job. Really almost ANY job will do.
3. Work hard at your job. Work as hard as if it was your own business. Show enthusiasm for what you do and get along with co-workers and superiors.
4. Get promoted to management. This will take anywhere from 3-5 years, depending on where you are. At this point, you will be making anywhere from 60-80k.
5. Keep working management job and enjoy middle class life, OR, save up enough funds to start your own business. Either way, life will be good.




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1. Don't accrue 150k in non-dischargeable debt to go to law school for the small chance of being an attorney. Even if you realize the chance, your starting salary will most likely be somewhere in the 35-50k range with few if any benefits.
2. Get a job. Really almost ANY job will do.
3. Work hard at your job. Work as hard as if it was your own business. Show enthusiasm for what you do and get along with co-workers and superiors.
4. Get promoted to management. This will take anywhere from 3-5 years, depending on where you are. At this point, you will be making anywhere from 60-80k.
5. Keep working management job and enjoy middle class life, OR, save up enough funds to start your own business. Either way, life will be good.


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