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I spent most of my undergrad career expecting to go get my PhD in psychology, but a few months ago I decided I wanted to pursue law. Now that I'm approaching my senior year in college and have my first LSAT exam on June 7th, I'm getting nervous. I'll admit it, I'm scared. I worry that I won't be an effective lawyer, I worry that I won't enjoy what I'm doing. I don't know what to expect or if I'll make a difference in someone's life. I'm usually not the kind to reach out for help, especially on a forum, but I just need some guidance here. I know law will be interesting and I consider myself a pretty smart person (3.67 UGPA, 168 practice LSAT), but at the same time, I could use a hand here. I can't imagine that everyone is 100% on practicing law when they go, so are these doubts normal?

Thank you for your help

ZachOda wrote:I spent most of my undergrad career expecting to go get my PhD in psychology, but a few months ago I decided I wanted to pursue law. Now that I'm approaching my senior year in college and have my first LSAT exam on June 7th, I'm getting nervous. I'll admit it, I'm scared. I worry that I won't be an effective lawyer, I worry that I won't enjoy what I'm doing. I don't know what to expect or if I'll make a difference in someone's life. I'm usually not the kind to reach out for help, especially on a forum, but I just need some guidance here. I know law will be interesting and I consider myself a pretty smart person (3.67 UGPA, 168 practice LSAT), but at the same time, I could use a hand here. I can't imagine that everyone is 100% on practicing law when they go, so are these doubts normal?

Thank you for your help

Why do you want to pursue law and what are you expecting you will ACTUALLY do in your practice?

Well I would like to practice in the DA's office to start with, and then after a while possibly move onto family or civil prosecution. I just feel that law would be interesting and engaging, and that hopefully, I can improve lives or at least make sure justice is served

See how you do on your LSAT. If you're not satisfied that it's good enough to get into the schools you are targeting, finish your PhD and get some type of job and work for a bit (either in the legal field or just some type of office job or even in your targeted PhD field if you can get one) and see how you feel after that. However, in general, being nervous about making a "life change" is normal.

Criminal and civil law are quite different and require different types of legal reasoning and skills, but that's not to say people never jump from one area to the other. Moreover, I'll say that you should worry about what you wish to do only after you're already in Law school and have been exposed to the different branches of law. Prior to getting admitted, you should focus on the "why" of your decision. Is it because you wish to make money, because you would like to contribute to the community, because you're fascinated by the law and its workings, because you really admire the legal profession and would truly like to be a lawyer yourself, or a mix of those? Just what motivates you to study law?

I think many law students begin law school with similar questions running through their heads. Taking a year or two after you graduate is also something to consider.

Many people decide to take a year or two off before starting. Talk to lawyers doing things you could see yourself doing and consider finding a way to work with them for a year or two. Good luck on the LSAT, it sounds like you'll do quite well.

Thank you all for your advice. I want to study law for a lot of reasons. Some are probably better than others. I am definitely interested in protecting the law and those who have been hurt. I think it would be a challenge intellectually, and hopefully an exciting environment for the most part. Of course, the money would be a major plus, especially since I have a parent who has been out of work for about 8 months now and I want to help them in any way I can. I will probably end up attending right after graduation, and if it doesn't feel right, I will have to consider other opportunities.

What exactly is civil prosecution? Do you want to go into something like personal injury?

Thats more or less what I meant, I don't know if there is a better term for it, there probably is