Part time law Forum

[END]

I plan on applying to law school next year, but due to personal matters I can only attend part time. What is the workload like if I take 11 credits per semester

[haus]

As a part-time student, I would have to say that it can be difficult to describe. For the most part, the work load at school is notable, but in and of itself it is not that bad. Where things get complicated is how it interacts with the other things that you have going on in your life. Working a full-time job, being on call, having a nasty commute, family obligations, and life in general can raise conflicting obligations and it can be difficult to find a way to make everything co-exist peacefully.

[NihilistLaw]

Workload equates to 11/15ths of a normal semester, if calculations are correct.
Or, somewhere between 'ugh' and 'bah.'

[totesTheGoat]

As a part-time student, I would have to say that it can be difficult to describe. For the most part, the work load at school is notable, but in and of itself it is not that bad. Where things get complicated is how it interacts with the other things that you have going on in your life. Working a full-time job, being on call, having a nasty commute, family obligations, and life in general can raise conflicting obligations and it can be difficult to find a way to make everything co-exist peacefully.

This. If you're just doing 11 credit hours, you'll have time for hobbies and the gym and netflix binges. If you're doing 11 credit hours while working a real job and supporting a family, you'll have time for... well... just about nothing.

Generally, you can expect that your 11 credit hours will take up the class time in the evenings plus just short of one day of your weekend. Usually, 8 hours on Saturday or Sunday is all it takes to keep up in class.

[rwhyAn]

It can be done, and plenty of people do it, but it's not fun. I'm a part-timer, and I work 40 hours per week too. I still have a little bit of leisure time, but not much. I haven't seen my friends in a couple of months now, and I may see family once a month. I don't have children or a very demanding job, which certainly makes things easier. But basically my schedule is this Monday through Thursday:

7am: out the door
8-4: work
4:15-5:45: library
6-8:30: class
9:30: home
10-11:30: reading.

I'm very lucky in the fact that I work only two blocks away from my school, which gives me almost 1.5-2 hours each day to read and review. I would say I commit about 6-8 hours to reading on the weekends on average. There are people in my section with children, and I don't know how they do it, but they must have plenty of support. It can get overwhelming at times, so really need to want this because it's a huge investment of time and money.

[TLSModBot]

I plan on applying to law school next year, but due to personal matters I can only attend part time. What is the workload like if I take 11 credits per semester

What do you want to do with a law degree? If it's Biglaw, then the best part-time program is GULC which at full sticker (and good luck getting financial aid as a pt student) is just not worth the risk of not getting hired.

[totesTheGoat]

It can be done, and plenty of people do it, but it's not fun. I'm a part-timer, and I work 40 hours per week too. I still have a little bit of leisure time, but not much. I haven't seen my friends in a couple of months now, and I may see family once a month. I don't have children or a very demanding job, which certainly makes things easier. But basically my schedule is this Monday through Thursday:

7am: out the door
8-4: work
4:15-5:45: library
6-8:30: class
9:30: home
10-11:30: reading.

I'm very lucky in the fact that I work only two blocks away from my school, which gives me almost 1.5-2 hours each day to read and review. I would say I commit about 6-8 hours to reading on the weekends on average. There are people in my section with children, and I don't know how they do it, but they must have plenty of support. It can get overwhelming at times, so really need to want this because it's a huge investment of time and money.

I'll include my similar, but slightly different working schedule. I'm taking a few day classes this semester, so this doesn't apply for those days. My work hours are also flexible and capped at 40, so I don't have any pressure to be in the office for 8 hours a day. Obviously, my paycheck goes all over the place if I don't work consistent hours, so I try to keep it around 37 or 38 when I'm doing 11 cr hours at school.

8am: out the door (sometimes it's 8:30 or 9am, depending on how late the previous night was, but 8am is my normal day)
8:15-9:15: commute from home to work
9:15-5:15: work (if I get to work early, I'll take a 15 or 30 min lunch... if not, I'll work through lunch)
5:15-5:45: commute from work to school
5:30 or 5:45: arrive at school for my 6pm class
6-9:30: class
9:30-10:00: commute from school to home
10:00-10:45: dinner and a TV show (sometimes it's dinner and work or dinner and chores, depending on what's on fire that particular night)
10:45 - whenever I start falling asleep: additional tasks from work and/or school. Sometimes that means going to bed at 11. Sometimes that means going to bed at 2:30.

[3LGreg]

The previous posters nailed it. Law school is a time consuming thing.

Is 11 credits 3 classes? As for the workload associated with 11 credits; I think it depends on where you go.

You can certainly slow down a bit and there is a little less tension if you take fewer classes. There is no question about that.

I've been in law school for 4 years as a part time student because I've been working 40 + hours a week. Only recently have I been able to take time off from work to study for a few weeks before finals. That helps. But I'm still busier than a one armed fire juggler.

I love law school but I also love other stuff too, such as not reading law books and worrying about final exams.

Good luck. (Now back to tax...)