Do you aspire to become a law professor? Forum

OperaAttorney · Post by **OperaAttorney** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 2:53 pm

Legal academia is a tough nut to crack, ain't it?? Even Martha Nussbaum, one of the fiercest legal philosophers, got dinged from YLS. She currently teaches law and philosophy at UChi.

themillsman22 · Post by **themillsman22** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 5:44 pm

Legal academia is a tough nut to crack, ain't it?? Even Martha Nussbaum, one of the fiercest legal philosophers, got dinged from YLS. She currently teaches law and philosophy at UChi.

Indeed it is. However, teaching at UChi isn't too shabby itself.

OperaAttorney · Post by **OperaAttorney** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 11:04 pm

themillsman22 wrote:
Legal academia is a tough nut to crack, ain't it?? Even Martha Nussbaum, one of the fiercest legal philosophers, got dinged from YLS. She currently teaches law and philosophy at UChi.
Indeed it is. However, teaching at UChi isn't too shabby itself.

Nussbaum has done quite well for herself, and for what it's worth, I can't imagine New Haven offering a better QOL than Chicago.

06072010 · Post by **06072010** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 11:14 pm

New Haven offering a better QOL than Chicago

Is New Haven that bad? I went a few years ago and it seemed alright - everybody says it's a pit though.

themillsman22 · Post by **themillsman22** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 1:10 am

I'd imagine a lot would depend on the type of lifestyle you like. Some people might not like big city life, so New Haven would probably be better.

zeezoo · Post by **zeezoo** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 9:11 pm

OP is a dumbo

themillsman22 · Post by **themillsman22** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 1:02 am

lol @ zeezoo

OperaAttorney · Post by **OperaAttorney** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:57 am

PKSebben wrote:
New Haven offering a better QOL than Chicago
Is New Haven that bad? I went a few years ago and it seemed alright - everybody says it's a pit though.

The only thing New Haven has going for itself, in my opinion, is Yale--there simply isn't much else there! On the other hand, Chicago, NY, and LA and would still be awesome cities w/o their big-name law schools. As another poster noted, it boils down to personal preference. Even though law school is only a 3-year commitment, location is key for me. I guess I'm not a diehard YALIE wannabe....

william wallace · Post by **william wallace** » Sat Mar 20, 2010 3:12 pm

Do you really have to go to a top school in the top half of the T14 to be a law professor? I don't know where to find how much they make, but how much do professors at a T3 school make? Do they usually have J.D.s from Harvard etc.? Or are we just talking about if one desired to be a professor at a top school?

Either way, it doesn't seem they make much money. It's a better lifestyle. I think if one wants to go this route, maybe a PhD in something other than law is all you may need.

r6_philly · Post by **r6_philly** » Sat Mar 20, 2010 8:51 pm

william wallace wrote: Either way, it doesn't seem they make much money. It's a better lifestyle. I think if one wants to go this route, maybe a PhD in something other than law is all you may need.

A decent paying tenure-tracked position in other fields are more competitive and requires more education commitments. Getting a PhD also doesn't grant you a practical, professional skill should being an academic doesn't work out. I think for people who like teaching, legal academia is just another option. Being a professor in other fields also depends heavily on getting funding for research which I presume isn't as much of an obligation for legal scholars, that sounds like a plus.

A'nold · Post by **A'nold** » Sat Mar 20, 2010 9:06 pm

Wasn't that Nussbaum (sp?) chick the one that wrote that article in the Crim Law book about mitigating 1st degree murder charges to manslaughter? If so, I liked her reasoning.

Anyway..........While a lot of what op says might have been misguided, I think at least one thing he says has a lot of truth in it. It always bugs me when 0L's talk about their "love for the law." How do they even know they have a love for the law and what does that mean? You have a love of rules? You have a love of Law and Order? It should mean that they love analytical thinking and weird fact patters that you have to piece together and fit into statutes or precedent, etc. but they really don't know before they get to law school and probably not until much later down the road if they will love the law or being a lawyer or law professor.

It just seems like people think of it as a way to have prestige while working less hours, at least before they really experience law school.

englawyer · Post by **englawyer** » Sat Mar 20, 2010 9:18 pm

starting law professor salary matches the 1st year associate salary of the neighboring region. thus, in major cities, the salary starts ~ 150k usually, much higher than other tracks in academia. so overall, it is a win situation unless you aspire to make millions or you hate legal scholarship

quasimodo · Post by **quasimodo** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:36 pm

makes me wonder how amy chua ended up at YLS

Br3v · Post by **Br3v** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:43 pm

4 yr old thread

Edit:counting

Doorkeeper · Post by **Doorkeeper** » Fri Mar 23, 2012 9:58 am

quasimodo wrote:makes me wonder how amy chua ended up at YLS

She was the spousal hire for Jed Rubenfeld, if my dates are correct.

Sapientia · Post by **Sapientia** » Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:12 pm

themillsman22 wrote:Yea, I'm not really sure I even follow the logic of the OP. If you get into HYSC (and to a lesser extent CNP), aiming to become a legal professor is a great career goal. Even if you never become a professor, as Trojan notes, you're still a grad from one of those schools and have great career prospects in general. It's certainly not "debtor's prison." It's not law professor or bust. If you're talented enough, or lucky enough, and become a professor, then you get the associated lifestyle. I don't see a major downside.

Which was the first C that you grouped with HYS? Columbia or Chicago? I'm considering transferring next year and would like to know. TYIA.

Oh, wow. Didn't realize this was a 4 year old thread. STill, if anyone wants to answer, feel free.

soj · Post by **soj** » Fri Mar 23, 2012 11:45 pm

Sapientia wrote:
themillsman22 wrote:Yea, I'm not really sure I even follow the logic of the OP. If you get into HYSC (and to a lesser extent CNP), aiming to become a legal professor is a great career goal. Even if you never become a professor, as Trojan notes, you're still a grad from one of those schools and have great career prospects in general. It's certainly not "debtor's prison." It's not law professor or bust. If you're talented enough, or lucky enough, and become a professor, then you get the associated lifestyle. I don't see a major downside.
Which was the first C that you grouped with HYS? Columbia or Chicago? I'm considering transferring next year and would like to know. TYIA.

Oh, wow. Didn't realize this was a 4 year old thread. STill, if anyone wants to answer, feel free.

Probably Chicago, but I think Chicago's advantage over Columbia and NYU for academia is overstated on TLS.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1#p4188514

Doorkeeper · Post by **Doorkeeper** » Sat Mar 24, 2012 12:35 am

soj wrote:
Sapientia wrote:
themillsman22 wrote:Yea, I'm not really sure I even follow the logic of the OP. If you get into HYSC (and to a lesser extent CNP), aiming to become a legal professor is a great career goal. Even if you never become a professor, as Trojan notes, you're still a grad from one of those schools and have great career prospects in general. It's certainly not "debtor's prison." It's not law professor or bust. If you're talented enough, or lucky enough, and become a professor, then you get the associated lifestyle. I don't see a major downside.
Which was the first C that you grouped with HYS? Columbia or Chicago? I'm considering transferring next year and would like to know. TYIA.

Oh, wow. Didn't realize this was a 4 year old thread. STill, if anyone wants to answer, feel free.
Probably Chicago, but I think Chicago's advantage over Columbia and NYU for academia is overstated on TLS.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 1#p4188514

Although I think that post is very enlightening, a confounding factor in that post that needs to be addressed are JD vs. JD/PhD hires. A JD from Michigan who also has a PhD from Michigan Philosophy is completely differently positioned than just a Michigan JD. I know the data isn't available, but if information could actually be split into JD-only hires and JD/PhD hires, it would be much more informative for those curious about which JD to get.

jarofsoup · Post by **jarofsoup** » Sat Mar 24, 2012 12:58 am

I think you should look at Brian Leiter from the U of Chicago. Good interview on this site and has a good webpage.

It seems like newer professors are advised to have a JD+ a PHD or JSD. Which means a lot more school and a lot more debt.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/brian-le ... rview.html

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