Drake c/o 2015 applicants Forum

[almostchinese]

hey guys, I just got into Drake but I am not too sure about the employment outlook. I would assume it is similar to Marquette, but my scholarship at Drake is pretty good, and I am not expecting a ton of cash from Marquette since they are not known for their big scholarships. The difference in the cost of living between Marquette and Drake is pretty huge. Would Drake with a 50% scholarship be a better deal than some schools like Penn St or Richmond at sticker?

[Opie]

hey guys, I just got into Drake but I am not too sure about the employment outlook. I would assume it is similar to Marquette, but my scholarship at Drake is pretty good, and I am not expecting a ton of cash from Marquette since they are not known for their big scholarships. The difference in the cost of living between Marquette and Drake is pretty huge. Would Drake with a 50% scholarship be a better deal than some schools like Penn St or Richmond at sticker?

Drake has good placement in Des Moines and okay placement throughout central Iowa. If you don't have any ties to Iowa, you may want to look harder at other schools. That said, I don't think I would go to the schools you have listed at sticker. How many times have you taken the LSAT?

[almostchinese]

i took it once but I am not waiting another year. I really cant teach English abroad one more year. I am 33, I have a family and I just want to get started on law school. I dont have any ties to Iowa, grew up in WI. Ill probably end up at marquette, barring a miracle from U of WI, I just liked the school and the city. It just seems enticing because the cost of living is so much less and the area near the school seems much more child friendly than downtown Milwaukee.

[Opie]

i took it once but I am not waiting another year. I really cant teach English abroad one more year. I am 33, I have a family and I just want to get started on law school. I dont have any ties to Iowa, grew up in WI. Ill probably end up at marquette, barring a miracle from U of WI, I just liked the school and the city. It just seems enticing because the cost of living is so much less and the area near the school seems much more child friendly than downtown Milwaukee.

It's a great place, but I would recommend perusing some of the doom and gloom threads on this board. It's a good possibility that you'll end up unemployed and in heavy debt. I'm 30 myself, so I understand your concerns with time, but when you're 33, a year isn't going to change things. You'll be way better off retaking and getting more money or into a better school. You already have a decent LSAT score. With a year of study you could possibly break 170 and get a full ride at Marquette or get in to WI.

[Bradlo722]

i took it once but I am not waiting another year. I really cant teach English abroad one more year. I am 33, I have a family and I just want to get started on law school. I dont have any ties to Iowa, grew up in WI. Ill probably end up at marquette, barring a miracle from U of WI, I just liked the school and the city. It just seems enticing because the cost of living is so much less and the area near the school seems much more child friendly than downtown Milwaukee.

I know exactly how you feel. I got almost a 50% ride to Drake as well, and 3.0 gpa to keep it throughout the three years. $51,000 over three years is hard to pass up. I still have yet to visit Drake but have not heard anything but awesomeness about the city and Drake itself. However, as Opie points out: their placement is only within Iowa. I don't have any ties to Iowa but my g/f is from a farming family and agricultural law is something that has always been interesting to me. My problem is Drake doesn't translate well when coming back into IL. I'm not sure if I want to be 5 hours away from my family for the rest of my life. But as I said above, 50% scholly is hard to pass up....

[Opie]

i took it once but I am not waiting another year. I really cant teach English abroad one more year. I am 33, I have a family and I just want to get started on law school. I dont have any ties to Iowa, grew up in WI. Ill probably end up at marquette, barring a miracle from U of WI, I just liked the school and the city. It just seems enticing because the cost of living is so much less and the area near the school seems much more child friendly than downtown Milwaukee.

I know exactly how you feel. I got almost a 50% ride to Drake as well, and 3.0 gpa to keep it throughout the three years. $51,000 over three years is hard to pass up. I still have yet to visit Drake but have not heard anything but awesomeness about the city and Drake itself. However, as Opie points out: their placement is only within Iowa. I don't have any ties to Iowa but my g/f is from a farming family and agricultural law is something that has always been interesting to me. My problem is Drake doesn't translate well when coming back into IL. I'm not sure if I want to be 5 hours away from my family for the rest of my life. But as I said above, 50% scholly is hard to pass up....

What part of Ag law interests you? I think most people have a misconception of what Ag law is. If you really want to do Ag law though Drake would be a good place for it. I'm not sure what the market is for that type of lawyer though.

[Bradlo722]

Working with farmers and land owners on contracts dealing with things from the land to transportation to anything else. In addition, land use planning and real estate deals dealing with agriculture lands and such. The thing is I can learn this kind of stuff at any law school but the ag certificate would look good I feel anywhere within the midwest.

[Opie]

Working with farmers and land owners on contracts dealing with things from the land to transportation to anything else. In addition, land use planning and real estate deals dealing with agriculture lands and such. The thing is I can learn this kind of stuff at any law school but the ag certificate would look good I feel anywhere within the midwest.

Are you planning on opening your own practice? Most of the ag lawyers I have spoken to don't do this kind of work. That's the kind of stuff a sole practicioner does. Most ag lawyers in this area work with commercial farms and other ag companies to increase the amount of water pollution they are allowed to put out.

[Opie]

More info on the IP symposium. Anyone want to go to this with me? I'll feel stupid there all alone. Especially since I'm a business major.

http://www.law.drake.edu/academics/ip/?pageID=ipGala

[Bradlo722]

Working with farmers and land owners on contracts dealing with things from the land to transportation to anything else. In addition, land use planning and real estate deals dealing with agriculture lands and such. The thing is I can learn this kind of stuff at any law school but the ag certificate would look good I feel anywhere within the midwest.

Are you planning on opening your own practice? Most of the ag lawyers I have spoken to don't do this kind of work. That's the kind of stuff a sole practicioner does. Most ag lawyers in this area work with commercial farms and other ag companies to increase the amount of water pollution they are allowed to put out.

Ya someday I'd like to have my own practice but I don't know exactly when that day will be.

[shredderrrrrr]

More info on the IP symposium. Anyone want to go to this with me? I'll feel stupid there all alone. Especially since I'm a business major.

http://www.law.drake.edu/academics/ip/?pageID=ipGala

Thanks for the information! I'm out of town that day, but I don't know if it'd be my cup of tea anyways though. Don't you need a science background to practice IP? Out of curiosity, do you know why this is (assuming you do indeed need one)? Isn't intellectual property concerned with creations of the mind (including artistic products)? I don't see the science connection...

[Opie]

More info on the IP symposium. Anyone want to go to this with me? I'll feel stupid there all alone. Especially since I'm a business major.

http://www.law.drake.edu/academics/ip/?pageID=ipGala

Thanks for the information! I'm out of town that day, but I don't know if it'd be my cup of tea anyways though. Don't you need a science background to practice IP? Out of curiosity, do you know why this is (assuming you do indeed need one)? Isn't intellectual property concerned with creations of the mind (including artistic products)? I don't see the science connection...

If you want to argue before the USPTO, you need a technical background. There is a list of acceptable degree majors and there are non-degree ways to satisfy the tequirement. I believe this has more to do with patents than trademark and copywrite issues.

[Opie]

Got a nice long email about Moot Court and trial advocacy today.

Anyone know if there is any benefit to these certificates I keep seeing schools tout?

[Opie]

Am I the only one left who posts here?

Anyway.. Anyone get a contact from a student today? Got a nice email from one that said Andrew English referred him.

[vpintz]

Am I the only one left who posts here?

Anyway.. Anyone get a contact from a student today? Got a nice email from one that said Andrew English referred him.

I got an email like that last week. I'd say I get around one email per month from Drake :]

[Opie]

Am I the only one left who posts here?

Anyway.. Anyone get a contact from a student today? Got a nice email from one that said Andrew English referred him.

I got an email like that last week. I'd say I get around one email per month from Drake :]

I get a lot of email from the school itself, but other than email from a specific student that Andrew was referring to me because of a specific question I had, I haven't heard from any students until today.

He did point out some places where people are finding work when I asked, and there were at least 8 decent jobs that he knew people had landed. That's a nice sign.

[shredderrrrrr]

Am I the only one left who posts here?

Anyway.. Anyone get a contact from a student today? Got a nice email from one that said Andrew English referred him.

I got an email like that last week. I'd say I get around one email per month from Drake :]

I get a lot of email from the school itself, but other than email from a specific student that Andrew was referring to me because of a specific question I had, I haven't heard from any students until today.

He did point out some places where people are finding work when I asked, and there were at least 8 decent jobs that he knew people had landed. That's a nice sign.

Lol I too often neglect the humble Drake thread. I guess I don't give it much thought because, pending what Iowa decides in regards to my scholarship, I'll likely end up here next year regardless.

[Opie]

It's cool. I think the thread will see more action when March rolls around and the school starts paying more attention to admitted students (summer con law info, etc.).

One cool thing that was mentioned by the student that wrote me is that Iowa students usually don't even apply to Des Moines jobs because Drake has the lock on the market.

He also mentioned friends that have found work at several mid-sized and boutique firms in town. Not too bad!

[shredderrrrrr]

Speaking of DM jobs, do you guys have any clue what the actual work itself is like (in regards to work-life balance)? Whenever I read about law jobs on this site, they say how people are constantly working 75+ hours/week, but then I tend to find that they are referring to the NYC/DC/LA/Chicago biglaw jobs. Is a lawyer working in DM (assuming it's one of the bigger firms in the city) going to be facing similar working conditions? I obviously just want any job I can get after I graduate, but I was wondering if you guys had any idea what type of hours lawyers in the town tended to work and if they could have a life outside of the office. I'd rather make very little if it meant getting to have a healthier lifestlye lol.

[Opie]

Speaking of DM jobs, do you guys have any clue what the actual work itself is like (in regards to work-life balance)? Whenever I read about law jobs on this site, they say how people are constantly working 75+ hours/week, but then I tend to find that they are referring to the NYC/DC/LA/Chicago biglaw jobs. Is a lawyer working in DM (assuming it's one of the bigger firms in the city) going to be facing similar working conditions? I obviously just want any job I can get after I graduate, but I was wondering if you guys had any idea what type of hours lawyers in the town tended to work and if they could have a life outside of the office. I'd rather make very little if it meant getting to have a healthier lifestlye lol.

Nyemaster (the largest firm in the state) has a billable hours requirement of 1850 per year. Most lawyers only bill about 80% of their hours, so that's about 2312.5 hours per year of actually working on client cases. That's about 47 hours a week of actual client work plus whatever time is spent in other office type tasks (assumes 50 weeks a year). I would guess that you should expect about a 50 hour week. Not too bad.

[shredderrrrrr]

Speaking of DM jobs, do you guys have any clue what the actual work itself is like (in regards to work-life balance)? Whenever I read about law jobs on this site, they say how people are constantly working 75+ hours/week, but then I tend to find that they are referring to the NYC/DC/LA/Chicago biglaw jobs. Is a lawyer working in DM (assuming it's one of the bigger firms in the city) going to be facing similar working conditions? I obviously just want any job I can get after I graduate, but I was wondering if you guys had any idea what type of hours lawyers in the town tended to work and if they could have a life outside of the office. I'd rather make very little if it meant getting to have a healthier lifestlye lol.

Nyemaster (the largest firm in the state) has a billable hours requirement of 1850 per year. Most lawyers only bill about 80% of their hours, so that's about 2312.5 hours per year of actually working on client cases. That's about 47 hours a week of actual client work plus whatever time is spent in other office type tasks (assumes 50 weeks a year). I would guess that you should expect about a 50 hour week. Not too bad.

Ok great. I just want to make sure that Des Moines doesn't have the same biglaw culture of the big cities. I have no problem working hard, but I just have no intention of having my work define my life. From what I gather, Des Moines is a nice balance of good-sized firms and reasonable lifestyles. I'd take 50 hrs/week with a 5-digit salary in a smaller town like Des Moines over 70 hrs/week with a 6-digit salary in a big town like Chicago any day.

[Opie]

Speaking of DM jobs, do you guys have any clue what the actual work itself is like (in regards to work-life balance)? Whenever I read about law jobs on this site, they say how people are constantly working 75+ hours/week, but then I tend to find that they are referring to the NYC/DC/LA/Chicago biglaw jobs. Is a lawyer working in DM (assuming it's one of the bigger firms in the city) going to be facing similar working conditions? I obviously just want any job I can get after I graduate, but I was wondering if you guys had any idea what type of hours lawyers in the town tended to work and if they could have a life outside of the office. I'd rather make very little if it meant getting to have a healthier lifestlye lol.

Nyemaster (the largest firm in the state) has a billable hours requirement of 1850 per year. Most lawyers only bill about 80% of their hours, so that's about 2312.5 hours per year of actually working on client cases. That's about 47 hours a week of actual client work plus whatever time is spent in other office type tasks (assumes 50 weeks a year). I would guess that you should expect about a 50 hour week. Not too bad.

Ok great. I just want to make sure that Des Moines doesn't have the same biglaw culture of the big cities. I have no problem working hard, but I just have no intention of having my work define my life. From what I gather, Des Moines is a nice balance of good-sized firms and reasonable lifestyles. I'd take 50 hrs/week with a 5-digit salary in a smaller town like Des Moines over 70 hrs/week with a 6-digit salary in a big town like Chicago any day.

Yeah, and Nyemaster pays $90k to start. It's pretty competitive though. The only person I know of that they hired this year was at the top of her class at Drake and was Roxanne Conlin's law clerk. (Former US Attorney who ran for senate a couple of years ago for those who don't know her)

[shredderrrrrr]

Speaking of DM jobs, do you guys have any clue what the actual work itself is like (in regards to work-life balance)? Whenever I read about law jobs on this site, they say how people are constantly working 75+ hours/week, but then I tend to find that they are referring to the NYC/DC/LA/Chicago biglaw jobs. Is a lawyer working in DM (assuming it's one of the bigger firms in the city) going to be facing similar working conditions? I obviously just want any job I can get after I graduate, but I was wondering if you guys had any idea what type of hours lawyers in the town tended to work and if they could have a life outside of the office. I'd rather make very little if it meant getting to have a healthier lifestlye lol.

Nyemaster (the largest firm in the state) has a billable hours requirement of 1850 per year. Most lawyers only bill about 80% of their hours, so that's about 2312.5 hours per year of actually working on client cases. That's about 47 hours a week of actual client work plus whatever time is spent in other office type tasks (assumes 50 weeks a year). I would guess that you should expect about a 50 hour week. Not too bad.

Ok great. I just want to make sure that Des Moines doesn't have the same biglaw culture of the big cities. I have no problem working hard, but I just have no intention of having my work define my life. From what I gather, Des Moines is a nice balance of good-sized firms and reasonable lifestyles. I'd take 50 hrs/week with a 5-digit salary in a smaller town like Des Moines over 70 hrs/week with a 6-digit salary in a big town like Chicago any day.

Yeah, and Nyemaster pays $90k to start. It's pretty competitive though. The only person I know of that they hired this year was at the top of her class at Drake and was Roxanne Conlin's law clerk. (Former US Attorney who ran for senate a couple of years ago for those who don't know her)

$90k?! Wow. Lol I could imagine it'd be pretty tough. That's why people will be amazed when they hire two new Drake graduates by the names of Mr. Shredderrrrrr and Mr. Opie In all seriousness though, I'd be just as content working at a much smaller firm then that. I suppose I should first figure out what field of law I even want to go into though...

You said you were interested in employment/labor law, right? What would that entail (ideally)?

[Opie]

$90k?! Wow. Lol I could imagine it'd be pretty tough. That's why people will be amazed when they hire two new Drake graduates by the names of Mr. Shredderrrrrr and Mr. Opie In all seriousness though, I'd be just as content working at a much smaller firm then that. I suppose I should first figure out what field of law I even want to go into though...

You said you were interested in employment/labor law, right? What would that entail (ideally)?

Haha.. That would be nice.

You'll have all of 1L and half of 2L to figure out what you want to do. What I would ideally like to do with employment law is represent plaintiffs in wrongful termination and employment discrimination cases. I'd probably end up doing a lot of unemployment hearings as well. That sort of thing. Administrative law really interests me for some reason. Who knows if that will be viable though.

[Opie]

Here's the credentials for Katie Graham, the recent hire I mentioned.
http://www.nyemaster.com/aspx/attorney_ ... spx?id=119