More sad stories from our friends at JD underground Forum

[Mr Hart]

Why does this keep getting bumped? I mean, I guess reading that site for a few minutes will make us feel better about ourselves, but beyond that, it's pretty worthless...

[The Agitator]

Darth Topher is a serial bumper.

[rmyoun06]

I mean, I guess reading that site for a few minutes will make us feel better about ourselves, but beyond that, it's pretty worthless...

Better about ourselves? It just makes me scared for the future.

[Mr Hart]

I mean, I guess reading that site for a few minutes will make us feel better about ourselves, but beyond that, it's pretty worthless...

Better about ourselves? It just makes me scared for the future.

Why's that? Are you attending Hofstra or Seton Hall and taking out over $120,000 in loans? Cause I think a majority of JDU posters did. And yea, that would be a scary prospect for any of us!

[cancelled20080707]

Just because you go to a top law school doesn't mean you don't have to work to get a job. It sounds like she is waiting for something to fall into her lap.

There could be a lot of reasons as to why she doesn't have a job yet.... 1 - not looking hard enough, 2 - sucky personality 3 - poor hygiene, etc.

[LSAT_Cat]

Just because you go to a top law school doesn't mean you don't have to work to get a job. It sounds like she is waiting for something to fall into her lap.

There could be a lot of reasons as to why she doesn't have a job yet.... 1 - not looking hard enough, 2 - sucky personality 3 - poor hygiene, etc.

My thoughts exactly. There could be several reasons why she hasn't found a job yet.

[rmyoun06]

Why's that? Are you attending Hofstra or Seton Hall and taking out over $120,000 in loans? Cause I think a majority of JDU posters did. And yea, that would be a scary prospect for any of us!

No, but I don't quite believe the school employee people when they swear that anyone can get a job coming out of their institution. That's what I was told about getting an undergrad degree, too.

I mean, I'm going to go. Don't get me wrong. I'm just nervous.

[Mr Hart]

Why's that? Are you attending Hofstra or Seton Hall and taking out over $120,000 in loans? Cause I think a majority of JDU posters did. And yea, that would be a scary prospect for any of us!

No, but I don't quite believe the school employee people when they swear that anyone can get a job coming out of their institution. That's what I was told about getting an undergrad degree, too.

I mean, I'm going to go. Don't get me wrong. I'm just nervous.

Oh yeah, well I'm definitely with you on that one. A little nerves are a good motivation though. Plus, you're already ahead of the game if you realize that the career services people aren't gonna find you a job; now you can get started before everyone else with networking and hustling on your own.

[Dschinghis Khan]

2 - sucky personality

You're saying this like it's her fault.

[rmyoun06]

now you can get started before everyone else with networking and hustling on your own.

Ain't that the bitch of the thing.

[Diana341]

It's a sad reality but it differs not from most UnderGrad programs. People in humanities and liberal arts rarely use their degrees after University (unless...of course they go onto Grad school). This is why one should enroll in an Undergrad that will land them a job on its own merit.

That is one should take a degree (an undergrad) with practical application such as Engineering, mathematics, science, etc. If shit hits the fan you always have something to fall back on. If you take Political science, Art History, English or anything of the like and you fail in your legal aspirations you're unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked.

This is blatantly untrue. Almost all of my friends were liberal arts majors, and none of them had problems getting jobs in a wide range of fields. They work for Google, Goldman Sachs, ABC, the Nation, the NY Times, Obama for America, Simon & Schuster, the Guggenheim, the MET; in advertising, marketing, PR, journalism, finance, education...

Now, I can't speak for people who went to lesser-known universities, but my friends who were Liberal Arts majors (in fields like: Foreign Literature/Languages, English, Comp Lit, Journalism, History, Art History and Poli Sci) at Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Cornell and Bowdoin are definitely not "unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked" from their Liberal Arts degree.

And besides, your major matters for the first minute of a job interview. After that, it means nothing.

[chris0805]

I know many liberal arts majors who attended lesser ranked schools, and they're all doing fine. I also think that many people major in a liberal arts field because they don't just want a job. They want to try and figure the world, find their place in it, and make a meaningful contribution. On such a track, individuals are aware that after college, they will be looking at 2-8 years more of school.

It's disappointing to me when people see their education merely as credential that can be traded in for a paycheck. Then again, I guess that's what law school is for a lot of people (or at least what they hope it is).

[Darth Topher]

As a liberal arts major (English) I feel that some of my fellow have dreams/aspirations, however I think a few truly are "lost" and do not try in school. I wonder about these students.

[Mr Hart]

Interesting post on there today.......


"idslave's following words constitute one of the all time great and succinct breakdown of the so-called "profession" of the law for most:

"You will be cutting and pasting for sixty hours a week. Being a lawyer is not "cool" not "glamarous" not "prestigious." It is a lot of work to be a blood-sucking eel on the underbelly of society. You will prosper off the misery of others. And you will do it in the company of people who were not smart enough to go into something useful and not attractive enough to get what they want from some other means. You'll be doing this for forty years, while others better humankind or get rich."

idslave: you should get some sort of toiletzer prize for that passage. It should be the preamble of the toileteer's bible.

Lemmings: Heed idslave's words for there is nothing but iron in them.

God bless the self delusional lemming fools who fail to do so."

[Darth Topher]

It is a lot of work to be a blood-sucking eel on the underbelly of society.

Wow...

[IAFarmGirl]

It's a sad reality but it differs not from most UnderGrad programs. People in humanities and liberal arts rarely use their degrees after University (unless...of course they go onto Grad school). This is why one should enroll in an Undergrad that will land them a job on its own merit.

That is one should take a degree (an undergrad) with practical application such as Engineering, mathematics, science, etc. If shit hits the fan you always have something to fall back on. If you take Political science, Art History, English or anything of the like and you fail in your legal aspirations you're unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked.

This is blatantly untrue. Almost all of my friends were liberal arts majors, and none of them had problems getting jobs in a wide range of fields. They work for Google, Goldman Sachs, ABC, the Nation, the NY Times, Obama for America, Simon & Schuster, the Guggenheim, the MET; in advertising, marketing, PR, journalism, finance, education...

Now, I can't speak for people who went to lesser-known universities, but my friends who were Liberal Arts majors (in fields like: Foreign Literature/Languages, English, Comp Lit, Journalism, History, Art History and Poli Sci) at Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Cornell and Bowdoin are definitely not "unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked" from their Liberal Arts degree.

And besides, your major matters for the first minute of a job interview. After that, it means nothing.

The problem with liberal arts degrees, I suspect, is that people have silly notions about what sort of job they'll be doing with it-- that is, that their first job will in some way relate to their major. When they discover, with their Art History BA, that no one is offering them a curator position, they get upset.

[prettypithy]

It's a sad reality but it differs not from most UnderGrad programs. People in humanities and liberal arts rarely use their degrees after University (unless...of course they go onto Grad school). This is why one should enroll in an Undergrad that will land them a job on its own merit.

That is one should take a degree (an undergrad) with practical application such as Engineering, mathematics, science, etc. If shit hits the fan you always have something to fall back on. If you take Political science, Art History, English or anything of the like and you fail in your legal aspirations you're unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked.

This is blatantly untrue. Almost all of my friends were liberal arts majors, and none of them had problems getting jobs in a wide range of fields. They work for Google, Goldman Sachs, ABC, the Nation, the NY Times, Obama for America, Simon & Schuster, the Guggenheim, the MET; in advertising, marketing, PR, journalism, finance, education...

Now, I can't speak for people who went to lesser-known universities, but my friends who were Liberal Arts majors (in fields like: Foreign Literature/Languages, English, Comp Lit, Journalism, History, Art History and Poli Sci) at Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Cornell and Bowdoin are definitely not "unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked" from their Liberal Arts degree.

And besides, your major matters for the first minute of a job interview. After that, it means nothing.

The problem with liberal arts degrees, I suspect, is that people have silly notions about what sort of job they'll be doing with it-- that is, that their first job will in some way relate to their major. When they discover, with their Art History BA, that no one is offering them a curator position, they get upset.

I took my B.A in Art History straight to the galleries. Depending on where you live, there are plenty of jobs for art history majors. But yes, people may need to relocate/adjust their expectations.

[IAFarmGirl]

It's a sad reality but it differs not from most UnderGrad programs. People in humanities and liberal arts rarely use their degrees after University (unless...of course they go onto Grad school). This is why one should enroll in an Undergrad that will land them a job on its own merit.

That is one should take a degree (an undergrad) with practical application such as Engineering, mathematics, science, etc. If shit hits the fan you always have something to fall back on. If you take Political science, Art History, English or anything of the like and you fail in your legal aspirations you're unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked.

This is blatantly untrue. Almost all of my friends were liberal arts majors, and none of them had problems getting jobs in a wide range of fields. They work for Google, Goldman Sachs, ABC, the Nation, the NY Times, Obama for America, Simon & Schuster, the Guggenheim, the MET; in advertising, marketing, PR, journalism, finance, education...

Now, I can't speak for people who went to lesser-known universities, but my friends who were Liberal Arts majors (in fields like: Foreign Literature/Languages, English, Comp Lit, Journalism, History, Art History and Poli Sci) at Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Cornell and Bowdoin are definitely not "unequivocally, irreducibly and utterly fucked" from their Liberal Arts degree.

And besides, your major matters for the first minute of a job interview. After that, it means nothing.

The problem with liberal arts degrees, I suspect, is that people have silly notions about what sort of job they'll be doing with it-- that is, that their first job will in some way relate to their major. When they discover, with their Art History BA, that no one is offering them a curator position, they get upset.

I took my B.A in Art History straight to the galleries. Depending on where you live, there are plenty of jobs for art history majors. But yes, people may need to relocate/adjust their expectations.

Just an example. Personally, my BA degree isn't worth shit other than personal enrichment. I mean, the fact that I had a degree was important to the jobs I've held, but my major? Not so much.

[taube2]

Hey peoples! I'm new to the forum and after looking through various posts, this one has caught my eye the most. Damn, what a heartbreaking and sad story! Sounds like ALL hope is lost. Hopefully this person will pass the bar exam and eventually get a job with decent pay. But even after reading this makes me realize that law school is my next goal despite of being aware of high tuition, heavy courseload and constant competitiveness among students/future lawyers.

[DSD]

These posts are somewhat worthless, IMO. Bottom line is that no one is guaranteed a job or a high paying position just by virtue of attending law school. If you go to a poorly ranked / respected school you have have more of a problem getting a good job. If you rank low in your class, you may have more of a problem. If you go into massive debt and go to a school that is not well thought of AND you don't do particularly well, you may have a problem. Is this rocket science? I have little experience yet and even I can figure out that much.

Don't feed into the scare tactics. Be aware of what issues can arise but think positively. The law market is like any other - competitive. If you work hard and do well you will have more opportunities. If you have good people skills and networking ability, you will have even more opportunity. I am totally excited about starting this fall and despite the fact that I know their are no guarantees, I have every intention of doing well and landing a good position. All the above factors aside, I have to believe that a lot of this is dependent on your own attitude and outlook. Do the work, put in the time, don't take success for granted, and you will be fine. That's my two cents, coming from someone who already worked my way up the career ladder in one field from the very bottom to the very top.

[Ridgeway]

Perhaps all the bitterness that some have eilicited will create a positive in the future- fewer people going to law school. There are a glut of lawyers and a dearth of jobs.
Maybe if people stoped riddling themseleves w/absurd debt new grads would be happier.

I know I'd be absolutly miserable taking out huge loans- in fact I'd drop out rather than face huge debt and poor job prospects.

[kevsocko]

that girl is a pathetic whiner. if she was serious about getting a job she would be throwing up every other meal for a week or two to lose 15 pounds...

[Darth Topher]

BUMP

[RATRATRAT]

burp

[AR75]

Okay, so after the first portion of the first page, I've decided to skip ahead, so maybe I missed the sage advice that may have been listed in the middle somewhere (and it bears repeating):

Network---get the f--k out there and meet people. Even in my non-highly-ranked school, plenty of non-highly-ranked students got damned good jobs because they met the right people. And it wasn't by accident.
If you see yourself making discouraging, negative comments like that in the future, the problem is likely not in your academic ability--it's more likely in your personality.

I know plenty of LS students who have average grades and good, responsible personalities who have instilled enough confidence in an employer to land a pretty good gig.

Conversely, there are plenty of students with higher grades who couldn't hold a socially comfortable conversation with anyone.

Don't forget that although grades are tremendously important, there is also a very important social aspect to gaining a job. Your resume will get you an interview, but your interview will solidify that job.

In sum: If you're a tool or think you may be a tool, do mock interviews and find out early on from your professional development or career services department if you have an uphill social battle. They will certainly help you because your job placement affects the school.

Cheers,

Ken