Do engineer majors have it easier? Forum

[GetItPatented]

I was hoping to get some feedback from any engineer majors who have applied to any law schools. Did you feel your major was in your favor or worked against you?

If you are an engineer in law school how would you compare the work load to that of engineering classes?

[volfan6415]

When applying to Law school I felt that my major (Civil Engineering) worked in my favor. While the amount of "bump" so to speak will vary from school to school it definately helps when tring to differentitate oneself from the crowd. Most law schools will also definately consider the fact that you were an engineering major and will adjust your GPA accordingly, however the degree to which each school does this will vary.

As for the workload in law school I felt like in many ways I was more prepared than many of my classmates, however there were definately certain areas in which i felt underprepared. The workload in law school is very similar to the workload I experienced in undergrad, therefore it was not as much of a shock to me to have 3-4 hours of homework per class per day. I also feel like my engineering background also helped in that it prepares you for the endless hours of studying something that you don't really understand. It taught me how to "grind" through untill I found that "ah-ha" moment when everything clicked. It also prepares you to think and not memorize, I definately felt like I was better prepared to learn how to understand and grasp the material better than my liberal arts classmates.

That being said there are some shortcoming, writing....while I quickly was able to grasp the concept of legal writing as it is very technical and in many ways more similar to techical documents and papers than it is to any writing that an english major would have done. The difficulty I experieneced was in the overall style and phraseing, I just couldn't quite seem to phrase things exactly the way that my LRW prof wanted me to.

This writing difficulty also bleeds over to exams, which will be the only sourse of grades for your substantive classes. While I felt like I understood and grasped the material better than most of my classmates, I consistantly felt that I underperformed on the exams because I was not able to express myself in the best manner. As I have continued in Law School I have found that I have been able to close this gap as I have had more practice and experience writing it does not seem as difficult to me know as it did during my 1L year. Just know that you wil be behind the 8 ball so to speak and it is something that you are going to have to make up for.

[Bumi]

3-4 hours of homework per class per day.

Um. What?

5 classes

x

3-4 hours of homework / class / day

=

15-20 hours of homework per day

If you were doing 15 to 20 hours of homework every single day, you have my respect.

[czelede]

3-4 hours of homework per class per day.

Um. What?

5 classes

x

3-4 hours of homework / class / day

=

15-20 hours of homework per day

If you were doing 15 to 20 hours of homework every single day, you have my respect.

Perhaps "per class per day" meant "per every class held that day". I don't know. But I had on average 2-3 classes per day, depending on the semester, and during the height of things definitely spent a good 6-12 studying/doing homework each day.

[dood]

...

[volfan6415]

3-4 hours of homework per class per day.

Um. What?

5 classes

x

3-4 hours of homework / class / day

=

15-20 hours of homework per day

If you were doing 15 to 20 hours of homework every single day, you have my respect.

Perhaps "per class per day" meant "per every class held that day". I don't know. But I had on average 2-3 classes per day, depending on the semester, and during the height of things definitely spent a good 6-12 studying/doing homework each day.

Yes per class per day meant classes held that day....i typically had 6-12 hours per day once the semester got going and this pretty much stayed the same throughout the semester......closer to the high end around test times

[WSpar]

Honestly, you might get a little bump for being an engineer, especially at a lower ranked school (beyond top 20 I'd say), but if you are applying to a higher ranked tier 1 school it probably doesn't help as much as it should. Every law school is trying to play a numbers game, and if you have a gpa in the low 3s, then that's the number the school has to report. Even if you have a highish lsat, schools will be hesitant to accept someone hovering near a 3.0.

I just started two and a half weeks ago, but so far I'd say the workload isn't too bad compared to being an electrical engineer in undergrad. I do agree with what the poster had to say about writing though. It isn't exactly a strength of mine, and it definitely has me worried about exam time. On the other hand, I'd say I was much better prepared for the first couple weeks of school than my classmates, but only time will tell how everything pans out.

[CyLaw]

I also feel like my engineering background also helped in that it prepares you for the endless hours of studying something that you don't really understand. It taught me how to "grind" through untill I found that "ah-ha" moment when everything clicked.

This.