...so you decided to go to law school?
Having now made it through the hellish ordeal that is 1L (seriously, it's like hazing for attorneys. Everyone went through it, and if you make it out alive you are worthy), I've had a few friends from undergrad and high school approach me about making the move into the legal field. Most of these friends have jobs, if not careers (we graduated undergrad 3 years ago), and most of them are just feeling kind of...stuck.
I get it. I do.
But that is quite possibly the (second) WORST reason to go to law school.
Making BOATLOADS of money is the worst reason, because unless you're in the top 10% at a T14 school, odds are you're not coming out with a job paying $160k off the bat. Nationwide, only 55% of the graduates in the Class of 2011 had full-time legal employment 9 months after graduation. And only 5,500 out of the roughly 44,000 grads entering the legal job market were able to find employment with firms of 50+ attorneys. Out of the Class of 2010 grads who landed private sector jobs, 62.6% were in small firms (less that 50 attorneys -- and a majority of that number went into firms with between 2 and 10 lawyers), 16.2% went into firms with between 50 and 500 lawyers, and 21.2% went to the biglaw (501+) firms. You think you're coming out of law school and going to immediately be rolling in the dough? Think again.
But I digress.
I finally had a friend the other day, who has NEVER expressed any interest in school, or the law, or being a lawyer, tell me, "You know, I'm thinking about law school. I don't know what else I want to do, so I might as well try it." And although I smiled politely and gave him some sage advice (study hard for the LSAT, retake it at least once if you don't hit at least a 161 on your first try, and check out TLS), inside I was thinking, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"
Going to law school because you can't figure out what else to do means that you're going to have an EVEN harder time with 1L, because your heart won't be in it. When other people are bogged down but enjoying the analytical reading, you will slowly be losing your mind trying to determine what sort of message Satan whispered in your ear to make you decide to subject yourself to this. And you, in all likelihood, will be so unhappy you'll consider leaving, but you'll already be so far in debt that it won't be worth it and you'll find yourself stuck in a career you're not sure you even want.
Now, I know this might seem like strange advice coming from me. You all know I'm not really a pessimist by nature. But I have seen too many of my friends and classmates come to this realization to NOT say something.
Please, if you are just stuck in your job/career/field and you don't know what to do and think law school *might* not be that bad of an idea, make sure it's something you'll actually enjoy. It's not like Law & Order, or Suits, or Franklin & Bash. You're not going to be making $160k as soon as you graduate. It's harder work than most fields, and the rewards can be intermittent.
What I did, and what I thank God every day for, was take a year to work in a law firm, and make sure that the practice of law was something I could see myself working in for the foreseeable future. If you're considering leaving your job to go to law school, leave your job for a job in a firm or within a legal department at a company or something. You'll get to see the practice first hand, and make sure it's something you can stomach doing every day for the rest of your life. Not everyone can. And if you're one of those people who thought it was going to be a lot more glamorous than it actually is and decide you hate it, well then at least you're not out a year of your like and $50k.
Please, for your sake, make sure you're not just doing it because you feel like you're in a rut. If you are in a rut, there are way more easy and pleasant rut-breakers than law school.
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