- Forum

[tomato123]

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[Yazzzay]

I don't think anyone can tell you what to do/advise you in any way because you are considering extremely different careers, with next to nothing in common.

Congrats on Harvard, but I think you need to look more into law school before you just go because you are 'curious' about the opportunities that would come out of it. If you are really into pursuing one of these two paths, perhaps taking off another year or two and shadowing a doctor/working as a paralegal or anything would be beneficial.

I don't know anyone who was divided over two options like this. Take time and think about it. A lot.

[rad lulz]

First choose whether you want to be a lawyer or doctor

[crazycanuck]

Going to HLS was something I considered for the same reasons when I was considering going to law school. I ended up not going at all. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be a lawyer but I thought the idea of Harvard was pretty cool and was interested in what opportunities it would bring up. I was never interested in living in the US, only in Canada.

1) HLS won't really open any doors in canada, only close them. Getting hired at a law firm from HLS is a huge pain in the ass for firms and they will likely consider a U of T, osgoode, UBC grad etc. over a HLS grad.
2) salaries in canada aren't nearly as high to support the debt.
3) how will you finance this? I remember I would have had to get private loans which is a deal breaker. Private loans will destroy you. Federal loans limit wasn't high enough to finance it.
4) I have a fair amount of experience in the real world now, and I'm really not convinced of the value of a law degree if you don't want to practice law. I think the whole "it opens door" thing is total bullshit. It's great if you want to be a lawyer. So you need to decide whether you actually want to be a lawyer.

If you're not sure you want to be either a doctor or lawyer, I would strongly suggest you take time to think about it. Not going to HLS was the best decision I ever made. If you're smart enough to get into HLS you're going to be smart enough to make a good career in a field you enjoy. So figure out if you would actually like to be a lawyer or a doctor, or neither.

[drawstring]

First choose whether you want to be a lawyer or doctor

[Clyde Frog]

Did you apply anywhere other than Harvard?

[ph14]

HLS

[tomato123]

Did you apply anywhere other than Harvard?

Hi,

Yes I applied to all of HYSCCN + Penn + Cornell. I received around 90K-110K from most schools, no full rides. Rejected at Y, waiting for S. Because I am international my ability to borrow private loan is limited (another thing I overlooked when I just started applying...) and essentially Harvard makes the most sense out of them all thanks to their H's institutional loan.

I'm quite surprised that it's such a close call, favouring H at the moment. I thought medicine's stability might sway a lot of people's opinion especially seeing the general resentment towards Big Law lifestyle.... Is there a reason why H is favourable?

[ph14]

Did you apply anywhere other than Harvard?

Hi,

Yes I applied to all of HYSCCN + Penn + Cornell. I received around 90K-110K from most schools, no full rides. Rejected at Y, waiting for S. Because I am international my ability to borrow private loan is limited (another thing I overlooked when I just started applying...) and essentially Harvard makes the most sense out of them all thanks to their H's institutional loan.

I'm quite surprised that it's such a close call, favouring H at the moment. I thought medicine's stability might sway a lot of people's opinion especially seeing the general resentment towards Big Law lifestyle.... Is there a reason why H is favourable?

Well, for one, you're posting on Top-Law-Schools.com.

[tomato123]

Did you apply anywhere other than Harvard?

Hi,

Yes I applied to all of HYSCCN + Penn + Cornell. I received around 90K-110K from most schools, no full rides. Rejected at Y, waiting for S. Because I am international my ability to borrow private loan is limited (another thing I overlooked when I just started applying...) and essentially Harvard makes the most sense out of them all thanks to their H's institutional loan.

I'm quite surprised that it's such a close call, favouring H at the moment. I thought medicine's stability might sway a lot of people's opinion especially seeing the general resentment towards Big Law lifestyle.... Is there a reason why H is favourable?

Well, for one, you're posting on Top-Law-Schools.com.

Haha, true true.

[ph14]

Did you apply anywhere other than Harvard?

Hi,

Yes I applied to all of HYSCCN + Penn + Cornell. I received around 90K-110K from most schools, no full rides. Rejected at Y, waiting for S. Because I am international my ability to borrow private loan is limited (another thing I overlooked when I just started applying...) and essentially Harvard makes the most sense out of them all thanks to their H's institutional loan.

I'm quite surprised that it's such a close call, favouring H at the moment. I thought medicine's stability might sway a lot of people's opinion especially seeing the general resentment towards Big Law lifestyle.... Is there a reason why H is favourable?

Well, for one, you're posting on Top-Law-Schools.com.

Haha, true true.

But, in seriousness, HLS is a great law school. I'm not too familiar with the medical scene, especially in Canada, but I also see articles like: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2 ... ssion.html come up.

In the end, this is really about whether you want to be a lawyer or a doctor, and only you can make that decision.

[jbagelboy]

First choose whether you want to be a lawyer or doctor

[tomato123]

bump!

[manu6926]

...

[Danger Zone]

Do you have any idea what you might want to do... at all? Even within law, you say you might like academia, or public interest work, or being a corporate lawyer. I think you need to do a lot more research before you make this decision.

[tomato123]

Do you have any idea what you might want to do... at all? Even within law, you say you might like academia, or public interest work, or being a corporate lawyer. I think you need to do a lot more research before you make this decision.

Big law litigation sounds like a more practical outcome that I am most likely to enjoy given my option.... This is based on limited research that I can do as a 0L given that I don't think I will know 100% exactly what the practice will be like until I get there. But I suspect the work will entail both boring and exciting bits, with lots of stress. My concern however is that after "Big Law," which has an average lifespan of 3 years or so, the career trajectory looks unclear, at best.

eta: also the lack of economic insulation makes law a riskier choice, and i'm not sure how "protected" HLS would be.

[ManoftheHour]

First choose whether you want to be a lawyer or doctor

[ManoftheHour]

Does anyone know what Canadian medicine is like? I've heard US medicine sucks balls....just like Biglaw. People in it start off with passion and end up specializing in something they don't give a shit about because of their mountain of debt.

[esther0123]

Are people favoring med for sheer stability?

[ManoftheHour]

Are people favoring med for sheer stability?

No, I think some peeps that are currently committed at CCN want to get off the WL.

[Ricky-Bobby]

Are people favoring med for sheer stability?

No, I think some peeps that are currently committed at CCN want to get off the WL.

I miss manu now.

[FSK]

HLS, because residency is worse than biglaw but you get paid 1/2 of less.

[esther0123]

Hahahaha oh that's evil.

OP should do what your gut tells you. Both great options with greater career stability than an average fool can ever dream of.