Where did you go to law school?
12345arff (Jul 28 - 1:22 pm)
What law school did you go to (Let's not be too specific T-3, T-7, T-10, T-14, T-20, T-40 or TTT and how long ago did you graduate?
What as your undergrad major, and if you didn't go to law school realistically what would you be doing right now - retail, sales, marketing, advertising, working with mom and dad?
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What law school did you go to (Let's not be too specific T-3, T-7, T-10, T-14, T-20, T-40 or TTT and how long ago did you graduate?
What as your undergrad major, and if you didn't go to law school realistically what would you be doing right now - retail, sales, marketing, advertising, working with mom and dad?
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foreverdestitute (Jul 28 - 7:14 pm)
TTT law school in the Midwest. BA in History. I would have gone for the PhD in History but I thought it would be easier to land a law job than a tenure track position at a university. Also thought the money would be better in law. Wrong on both parts. The worst part is that I really enjoyed history. I'd probably be happier and making more money teaching at a community college.
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TTT law school in the Midwest. BA in History. I would have gone for the PhD in History but I thought it would be easier to land a law job than a tenure track position at a university. Also thought the money would be better in law. Wrong on both parts. The worst part is that I really enjoyed history. I'd probably be happier and making more money teaching at a community college.
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causanortis (Jul 28 - 1:32 pm)
T-20 law school in the midwest..
It's really hard to say what I "would have done" had it not been for law school, because I picked my undergrad (Business Management) with the foresight that I would attend law school afterward. It made sense to pursue a really easy degree, where I could easily get good grades, and afterwards have the best chance at getting accepted to the best possible law school.
However if law school had not existed at all, I guess I would have pursued what I am doing now which is education. I love being a teacher and look forward to the fall, till then I am chilling on my summer break, collecting checks and playing games. Then again, I might have pursued a Computer Information Systems degree, I worked in the IT field for awhile, made some serious bank and might have relished the chance to make even more.
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T-20 law school in the midwest..
It's really hard to say what I "would have done" had it not been for law school, because I picked my undergrad (Business Management) with the foresight that I would attend law school afterward. It made sense to pursue a really easy degree, where I could easily get good grades, and afterwards have the best chance at getting accepted to the best possible law school.
However if law school had not existed at all, I guess I would have pursued what I am doing now which is education. I love being a teacher and look forward to the fall, till then I am chilling on my summer break, collecting checks and playing games. Then again, I might have pursued a Computer Information Systems degree, I worked in the IT field for awhile, made some serious bank and might have relished the chance to make even more.
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blackletter (Jul 28 - 1:36 pm)
I attended a TTTT in southern California from 2002 to 2005. I graduated in the bottom 5% of my class, but I did earn the CALI award in Administrative Law. I now work as an attorney advisor for a federal government agency and currently make $64,000 per year as a GS-11. Next year I will advance to a GS-12.
My undergraduate major was in Psychology, with an emphasis in biological psychology. I graduated summa cum laude.
Had I not gone to law school, I would have either pursued a Ph.d in Psychology or been an editor for an academic publication/professional publication. I love to write, which is why I pursued law school.
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I attended a TTTT in southern California from 2002 to 2005. I graduated in the bottom 5% of my class, but I did earn the CALI award in Administrative Law. I now work as an attorney advisor for a federal government agency and currently make $64,000 per year as a GS-11. Next year I will advance to a GS-12.
My undergraduate major was in Psychology, with an emphasis in biological psychology. I graduated summa cum laude.
Had I not gone to law school, I would have either pursued a Ph.d in Psychology or been an editor for an academic publication/professional publication. I love to write, which is why I pursued law school.
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TTTJD (Jul 28 - 1:50 pm)
Second tier school in the NYC area.
Undergrad: Electrical Engineering.
If not for law school, probably working as a patent examiner, or maybe as a low level engineer for one of the big defense firms (lockheed, boeing, raytheon, etc.) Most of my engineering friends from college are already looking for the exits.
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Second tier school in the NYC area.
Undergrad: Electrical Engineering.
If not for law school, probably working as a patent examiner, or maybe as a low level engineer for one of the big defense firms (lockheed, boeing, raytheon, etc.) Most of my engineering friends from college are already looking for the exits.
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TTTJD (Jul 29 - 10:05 am)
Definitely not. I love how everyone here thinks that a science or engineering degree is some sort of panacea. You are constantly in competition with asian and indian immigrants who will work 90 hours a week for 30 grand because they'll get deported if they get fired.
If you are an American citizen and have the chops for it, your best bet is working for the government or for one of the defense contractors. However, engineers are notoriously pushed out after 5-10 years in favor of cheaper labor with more up-to-date knowledge.
In my graduating class of 50-ish EE's, the vast, vast majority of american-born students went to law school or business school. There are no stable engineering jobs for americans. Two of my close friends are finishing up their PhD's, we'll see how that turns out for them.
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Definitely not. I love how everyone here thinks that a science or engineering degree is some sort of panacea. You are constantly in competition with asian and indian immigrants who will work 90 hours a week for 30 grand because they'll get deported if they get fired.
If you are an American citizen and have the chops for it, your best bet is working for the government or for one of the defense contractors. However, engineers are notoriously pushed out after 5-10 years in favor of cheaper labor with more up-to-date knowledge.
In my graduating class of 50-ish EE's, the vast, vast majority of american-born students went to law school or business school. There are no stable engineering jobs for americans. Two of my close friends are finishing up their PhD's, we'll see how that turns out for them.
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sololit (Jul 29 - 11:27 am)
I completely agree. I went Big Ten ug and law, with a hard biosciences degree (i.e. not "biology") and was looking at either competing with Japanese grads who work insanely hard at bench level research or going to law school. The competition is off the hook, and maybe even more brutal in the research sciences than it is in engineering.
What sealed the deal was sitting down with my adviser, who ran a large and very well funded biotech lab, and him telling me how he got where he was. The sacrifices he made were enormous, as were the odds against success, and he was literally at the top, so I could never expect to be as successful as he was. If you don't love the research more than anything, then you shouldn't do it.
I was lucky in that I could communicate fairly well - especially compared to my peers - so I went to ls planning on being a patent lawyer. Learning later on that prosecuting patents is soulkilling and mindless work, I went pure civil litigation and never looked back.
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I completely agree. I went Big Ten ug and law, with a hard biosciences degree (i.e. not "biology") and was looking at either competing with Japanese grads who work insanely hard at bench level research or going to law school. The competition is off the hook, and maybe even more brutal in the research sciences than it is in engineering.
What sealed the deal was sitting down with my adviser, who ran a large and very well funded biotech lab, and him telling me how he got where he was. The sacrifices he made were enormous, as were the odds against success, and he was literally at the top, so I could never expect to be as successful as he was. If you don't love the research more than anything, then you shouldn't do it.
I was lucky in that I could communicate fairly well - especially compared to my peers - so I went to ls planning on being a patent lawyer. Learning later on that prosecuting patents is soulkilling and mindless work, I went pure civil litigation and never looked back.
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CleverLoginName (Jul 28 - 1:56 pm)
Lower-level Tier 1 on the West Coast, transferred after my first year from a TTTT in the same city.
Graduated in 2009.
Undergrad: political science (the worthless liberal arts degree was a way bigger mistake than law school)
If not law school, I have no clue what I'd be doing. I got a paralegal certificate in college, so I'd probably be working in a law office as a paralegal/legal secretary, making way more money than I'm making now.
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Lower-level Tier 1 on the West Coast, transferred after my first year from a TTTT in the same city.
Graduated in 2009.
Undergrad: political science (the worthless liberal arts degree was a way bigger mistake than law school)
If not law school, I have no clue what I'd be doing. I got a paralegal certificate in college, so I'd probably be working in a law office as a paralegal/legal secretary, making way more money than I'm making now.
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headofshit (Jul 28 - 1:56 pm)
T-20 school in the Midwest. Graduated in 2007 with unspectacular grades. Undergrad BAs in Linguistics and Journalism (toilet paper).
If I hadn't gone to law school, I'd probably have a PhD in Linguistics or something language-related, either working in academia or teaching English abroad.
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T-20 school in the Midwest. Graduated in 2007 with unspectacular grades. Undergrad BAs in Linguistics and Journalism (toilet paper).
If I hadn't gone to law school, I'd probably have a PhD in Linguistics or something language-related, either working in academia or teaching English abroad.
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AssociateX (Jul 28 - 2:10 pm)
Graduated a bit before 9/11 (so yeah, almost 10 yrs ago, dang I am old) from Brooklyn Law in NYC. Bottom of my class (can't remember exact rank but it was in the low 2.0 range). Worked lots of part time internships so I skipped a TON of classes in 2L/3L (and it cost me the bar exam which I failed but passed later on).
Undergrad degree from a top public university in Legal Philosophy/Political Science and a foreign language (double major). Also did a minor. Spent a semester studying abroad in Europe (good times!). Missed Cum Laude designation for the BA by a hair.
If not law school, I'd have gone into a Masters in Teaching for a foreign language or Linguistics (maybe even teaching Latin).
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Graduated a bit before 9/11 (so yeah, almost 10 yrs ago, dang I am old) from Brooklyn Law in NYC. Bottom of my class (can't remember exact rank but it was in the low 2.0 range). Worked lots of part time internships so I skipped a TON of classes in 2L/3L (and it cost me the bar exam which I failed but passed later on).
Undergrad degree from a top public university in Legal Philosophy/Political Science and a foreign language (double major). Also did a minor. Spent a semester studying abroad in Europe (good times!). Missed Cum Laude designation for the BA by a hair.
If not law school, I'd have gone into a Masters in Teaching for a foreign language or Linguistics (maybe even teaching Latin).
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lefthandscribble (Jul 28 - 2:23 pm)
I went to an overpriced private undergrad school- then on to a tier 2 LS. (is BLS tier 2 or 3?). Graduated a year or two ago, bottom of my class, but managed passed the bar on the first time but still no job.
If i hadn't gone to law school, I either would have gone onto a Phd in a foreign language literature, or comparative literature perhaps, and been a professor (which would have been worse than law school job prospects wise.) My other option i guess would have been to get one of those sweet paralegal gigs that big firms handed out to nyu kids back in the day- though obvs those have all evaporated along with our hopes and aspirations of ever finding employment in the legal sector.
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I went to an overpriced private undergrad school- then on to a tier 2 LS. (is BLS tier 2 or 3?). Graduated a year or two ago, bottom of my class, but managed passed the bar on the first time but still no job.
If i hadn't gone to law school, I either would have gone onto a Phd in a foreign language literature, or comparative literature perhaps, and been a professor (which would have been worse than law school job prospects wise.) My other option i guess would have been to get one of those sweet paralegal gigs that big firms handed out to nyu kids back in the day- though obvs those have all evaporated along with our hopes and aspirations of ever finding employment in the legal sector.
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TiredofStrugglin (Jul 28 - 2:49 pm)
went to a good undergrad... worked for several years as a white collar grunt, then went to a tier 2 LS several years ago.
majored in poli sci and philosophy. if i hadn't gone to law school, i'd feel free to pursue the options i wish i had the financial freedom to pursue right now: get a second bachelors in Chemistry, Physics or Engineering along with a Masters in Education (or just the MsEd, if i could actually get a job teaching secondary education history or social studies). or a Masters in Urban Planning... or maybe a Masters in Industrial Design.
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went to a good undergrad... worked for several years as a white collar grunt, then went to a tier 2 LS several years ago.
majored in poli sci and philosophy. if i hadn't gone to law school, i'd feel free to pursue the options i wish i had the financial freedom to pursue right now: get a second bachelors in Chemistry, Physics or Engineering along with a Masters in Education (or just the MsEd, if i could actually get a job teaching secondary education history or social studies). or a Masters in Urban Planning... or maybe a Masters in Industrial Design.
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utgr (Jul 28 - 3:12 pm)
Graduated NYU 1991
Worked for am airline after graduation.
BLS 1996
My parents are dentists and wanted me to do that. Cant put my hands in other people's mouths and hated pre-dental. NYU made all premeds have to take an 8am Biology class on Mon/Wed morning. I lived at home in Queens and had to wake up at 630 am every Monday. Needless to say I missed half the classes and got a C in predent bio. There went that!
Undegrad Econ degree. Middle of LS class. Passed bar no problem first time.
Work in legal field but am not practicing! Doing well but you should be doing well at 40!
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Graduated NYU 1991
Worked for am airline after graduation.
BLS 1996
My parents are dentists and wanted me to do that. Cant put my hands in other people's mouths and hated pre-dental. NYU made all premeds have to take an 8am Biology class on Mon/Wed morning. I lived at home in Queens and had to wake up at 630 am every Monday. Needless to say I missed half the classes and got a C in predent bio. There went that!
Undegrad Econ degree. Middle of LS class. Passed bar no problem first time.
Work in legal field but am not practicing! Doing well but you should be doing well at 40!
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12345arff (Jul 28 - 3:29 pm)
What's the old saying? That 40 is the prime earning time for males.
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What's the old saying? That 40 is the prime earning time for males.
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4th_registration (Jul 28 - 3:58 pm)
TTT school at a state university. I almost dropped the whole plan at the last minute to go into accounting, but the train was rolling, momentum all behind the law school plan. Excelsior!
I was a history major, but it would have been easy and cheap enough to go for a second bachelor's in accounting instead of the stupid JD. I was working my way through with no loans and the work kept coming.
And at the time we had a CPA review course here that had a 90% pass rate like BAR/BRI but that outfit is gone and lots more people fail now. Either that or the students are more stupid.
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TTT school at a state university. I almost dropped the whole plan at the last minute to go into accounting, but the train was rolling, momentum all behind the law school plan. Excelsior!
I was a history major, but it would have been easy and cheap enough to go for a second bachelor's in accounting instead of the stupid JD. I was working my way through with no loans and the work kept coming.
And at the time we had a CPA review course here that had a 90% pass rate like BAR/BRI but that outfit is gone and lots more people fail now. Either that or the students are more stupid.
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Cantabrigian (Jul 28 - 4:42 pm)
TTT/TTTT, got a law job but laid off after one year. Searching for 7 months now.
Undergraduate English major from pricey NE liberal arts college.
I'd be a middle school English teacher if I hadn't gone to law school. Might try for that in ten years if I can pay down enough of my $112,000 debt.
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TTT/TTTT, got a law job but laid off after one year. Searching for 7 months now.
Undergraduate English major from pricey NE liberal arts college.
I'd be a middle school English teacher if I hadn't gone to law school. Might try for that in ten years if I can pay down enough of my $112,000 debt.
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12345arff (Jul 28 - 4:56 pm)
You do realize there are programs that will allow you to teach in exchange for wiping out your debt?
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You do realize there are programs that will allow you to teach in exchange for wiping out your debt?
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Cantabrigian (Jul 29 - 3:25 pm)
No, I don't. But I'd be interested if you could pass along a link. Thanks.
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No, I don't. But I'd be interested if you could pass along a link. Thanks.
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Bittersweet (Jul 28 - 4:52 pm)
Undergrad: BS's in Business & Science (but not one that patent bar takes). Worked full time during college in retail, then mgmt. Graduated with no debt.
Worked abroad, then went back to white collar gig before law school.
Law school: An overpriced school in a flyover state. The school bounces between tiers 3 & 4. Graduated with almost 90K in debt in the late 90s. Lousy rep, but really underrated.
Defered, un- & underemployeed after law school for two+ years before finding regular work in doc review.
If 40 is the prime earning time then I'm royally fucked. 12 years later I still owe over 70K for law school.
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Undergrad: BS's in Business & Science (but not one that patent bar takes). Worked full time during college in retail, then mgmt. Graduated with no debt.
Worked abroad, then went back to white collar gig before law school.
Law school: An overpriced school in a flyover state. The school bounces between tiers 3 & 4. Graduated with almost 90K in debt in the late 90s. Lousy rep, but really underrated.
Defered, un- & underemployeed after law school for two+ years before finding regular work in doc review.
If 40 is the prime earning time then I'm royally fucked. 12 years later I still owe over 70K for law school.
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beeyay (Jul 28 - 5:08 pm)
Law school= T2 on the West Coast (full scholarship), top 10%
Undergrad= liberal arts major, state university on the West Coast (full scholarship, graduated with honors)
Now = Big pimpin', making about $200k, 0 student loan debt, but not enough time for models and bottles, as I work like a coolie most of the time
If I had not gone to law school, I could have just stayed at my federal job, where I was making close to $50k before I quit to go to law school. That job was boring as fuck, though. Otherwise, college professor was a likely choice. I always wanted to be a lawyer, for reasons that are unclear to me, even now. I considered med school, too, but would have needed to make that choice when starting undergrad. I sometimes regret not having done so, but what the fuck.
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Law school= T2 on the West Coast (full scholarship), top 10%
Undergrad= liberal arts major, state university on the West Coast (full scholarship, graduated with honors)
Now = Big pimpin', making about $200k, 0 student loan debt, but not enough time for models and bottles, as I work like a coolie most of the time
If I had not gone to law school, I could have just stayed at my federal job, where I was making close to $50k before I quit to go to law school. That job was boring as fuck, though. Otherwise, college professor was a likely choice. I always wanted to be a lawyer, for reasons that are unclear to me, even now. I considered med school, too, but would have needed to make that choice when starting undergrad. I sometimes regret not having done so, but what the fuck.
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schopenhauerx99 (Jul 28 - 5:15 pm)
Scholarship to private Florida toilet (not barry or nova). Went to a Florida toilet for my undergrad because it was near where I live. Finished in dec of '07 and just passed the bar last year. Working sporadically and regret not becoming a teacher, as, if I had jumped into teaching in '04 (when I finished ug) I would have had my master's by now and probably making more money than I currently do, with job security.
I kick myself constantly for not going into grad school for history as it was a glide through for me.
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Scholarship to private Florida toilet (not barry or nova). Went to a Florida toilet for my undergrad because it was near where I live. Finished in dec of '07 and just passed the bar last year. Working sporadically and regret not becoming a teacher, as, if I had jumped into teaching in '04 (when I finished ug) I would have had my master's by now and probably making more money than I currently do, with job security.
I kick myself constantly for not going into grad school for history as it was a glide through for me.
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Bucwild (Jul 28 - 5:42 pm)
To the posters who went to a "Top 20 midwest" did it happen to be WUSTL?
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To the posters who went to a "Top 20 midwest" did it happen to be WUSTL?
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malphabet (Jul 28 - 5:44 pm)
Undergrad - BA in Computer Science and English at a not-so-bad school in Boston that's not actually in Boston that was pretty bad in Computer Science.
JD - A school in Newark, NJ that isn't state run.
MBA - A top 10 school.
Prior to law school I was a bit of an online marketing expert, but the money there wasn't making me happy. I probably would have ridden that into all this social network crap. I almost definitely would have gotten my MBA, probably a year sooner, but I have no guess what caliber school. I'm not convinced it would have been a better one.
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Undergrad - BA in Computer Science and English at a not-so-bad school in Boston that's not actually in Boston that was pretty bad in Computer Science.
JD - A school in Newark, NJ that isn't state run.
MBA - A top 10 school.
Prior to law school I was a bit of an online marketing expert, but the money there wasn't making me happy. I probably would have ridden that into all this social network crap. I almost definitely would have gotten my MBA, probably a year sooner, but I have no guess what caliber school. I'm not convinced it would have been a better one.
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causanortis (Jul 28 - 6:14 pm)
Bucwild (Jul 28 - 5:42 pm)
To the posters who went to a "Top 20 midwest" did it happen to be WUSTL?
__________________
Not anywhere close to my midwest school.. and is WUSTL really consdered as part of the midwest? I would describe them as Pacific or Northwest.
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Bucwild (Jul 28 - 5:42 pm)
To the posters who went to a "Top 20 midwest" did it happen to be WUSTL?
__________________
Not anywhere close to my midwest school.. and is WUSTL really consdered as part of the midwest? I would describe them as Pacific or Northwest.
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sazerac (Jul 28 - 6:36 pm)
T2 law school after liberal arts degree.
I have no idea what I would be doing if not law. I liked social work but didn't feel like being a poor for the rest of my life. I probably would be doing translation and interpretation of some sort since that is one of the few careers I could have pursued and still gone home to be with my family.
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T2 law school after liberal arts degree.
I have no idea what I would be doing if not law. I liked social work but didn't feel like being a poor for the rest of my life. I probably would be doing translation and interpretation of some sort since that is one of the few careers I could have pursued and still gone home to be with my family.
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Bucwild (Jul 28 - 7:29 pm)
causanortis (Jul 28 - 6:14 pm)
WUSTL is in St. Louis, Missouri. If that's not midwest I don't know what is. I'm just curious b/c I'll be starting there in 3 weeks. I know, I know, lemming blah blah. :/
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causanortis (Jul 28 - 6:14 pm)
WUSTL is in St. Louis, Missouri. If that's not midwest I don't know what is. I'm just curious b/c I'll be starting there in 3 weeks. I know, I know, lemming blah blah. :/
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Bucwild (Jul 28 - 7:31 pm)
and causanortis, i was curious b/c last time i checked the rankings the only top 20 schools in the "midwest" were WUSTL, and the T-14ers (chicago, nwestern, michigan). so if you weren't at wustl in midwest, were u at the one of the top dogs?
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and causanortis, i was curious b/c last time i checked the rankings the only top 20 schools in the "midwest" were WUSTL, and the T-14ers (chicago, nwestern, michigan). so if you weren't at wustl in midwest, were u at the one of the top dogs?
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causanortis (Jul 28 - 7:39 pm)
My bad, WUSTL stands for Washington University in St. Louis.. For some reason I was thinking Washington University in Seattle or something along those lines...
I don't really want to supply a lot more information, due to the fact that I was only one of maybe 5 Hispanics in my graduating class, and half of us were women.. It would certainly narrow me down to one or two individuals.
Not that it matters much, I have ZERO desire of ever going back to the legal profession.
Don't be too impressed I had a lot soft factors in my favor: URM, Gulf War Vet, first college graduate in my family, Summa Cum Laude... All I had to do was show up to take lsat test and bleed all over it.
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My bad, WUSTL stands for Washington University in St. Louis.. For some reason I was thinking Washington University in Seattle or something along those lines...
I don't really want to supply a lot more information, due to the fact that I was only one of maybe 5 Hispanics in my graduating class, and half of us were women.. It would certainly narrow me down to one or two individuals.
Not that it matters much, I have ZERO desire of ever going back to the legal profession.
Don't be too impressed I had a lot soft factors in my favor: URM, Gulf War Vet, first college graduate in my family, Summa Cum Laude... All I had to do was show up to take lsat test and bleed all over it.
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LexCorde (Jul 28 - 8:03 pm)
Excellent law school. Excellent college. Excellent job opps. Wanna chat?
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Excellent law school. Excellent college. Excellent job opps. Wanna chat?
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texlaw (Jul 28 - 8:12 pm)
Lower level many-T's law school, city college undergrad in sociology. Graduated from l.s. over 10 years ago. I enjoyed practicing, but not as a solo, which is what I did the last year or so of practice.
Had I not gone to law school ... impossible to say. Probably Ph.D. in psychology, and I might be in the same boat now given how tough that field also is. I might have gone into criminal justice--for example, working as a state/federal probation or parole officer. I might have liked that. Especially if I were doing it for the feds and making good money with lots of job security.
I teach high school now and I like it ok. I also would have liked to become a college professor, but can't imagine how I would have funded that much education and wonder if I ever would have found a job.
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Lower level many-T's law school, city college undergrad in sociology. Graduated from l.s. over 10 years ago. I enjoyed practicing, but not as a solo, which is what I did the last year or so of practice.
Had I not gone to law school ... impossible to say. Probably Ph.D. in psychology, and I might be in the same boat now given how tough that field also is. I might have gone into criminal justice--for example, working as a state/federal probation or parole officer. I might have liked that. Especially if I were doing it for the feds and making good money with lots of job security.
I teach high school now and I like it ok. I also would have liked to become a college professor, but can't imagine how I would have funded that much education and wonder if I ever would have found a job.
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Bucwild (Jul 28 - 8:21 pm)
interesting. 1 more question causanortis- why is everyone so scared of being "outed"? I've been a longtime lurker of this site and TLS, and everyone just seems scared to death of being revealed? Why? It's not like you're doing anything bad. And I think telling me you're a Hispanic no longer in the legal profession from a top midwest school probably enabled me more to find out who you are rather than just saying "I went to X school". "wink"
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interesting. 1 more question causanortis- why is everyone so scared of being "outed"? I've been a longtime lurker of this site and TLS, and everyone just seems scared to death of being revealed? Why? It's not like you're doing anything bad. And I think telling me you're a Hispanic no longer in the legal profession from a top midwest school probably enabled me more to find out who you are rather than just saying "I went to X school". "wink"
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causanortis (Jul 29 - 12:11 am)
People just don't want to maintain their anonymity here but everywhere on the internet. Why disclose who you are when it's not really pertinent to the conversation? Also I'm a teacher, I wish not to potentially discourage my own students from pursuing law if that's really what they want to do... Finally, I purposely applied to highly ranked schools in the midwest I knew to have a fewer URM's; I knew this would increase my chances at getting accepted to the best possible school. The reasons I went to law school had absolutely nothing to do with the actually practicing law, but the elusive dream of prestige. I've disclosed this before but teaching is always what I really wanted to do.
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People just don't want to maintain their anonymity here but everywhere on the internet. Why disclose who you are when it's not really pertinent to the conversation? Also I'm a teacher, I wish not to potentially discourage my own students from pursuing law if that's really what they want to do... Finally, I purposely applied to highly ranked schools in the midwest I knew to have a fewer URM's; I knew this would increase my chances at getting accepted to the best possible school. The reasons I went to law school had absolutely nothing to do with the actually practicing law, but the elusive dream of prestige. I've disclosed this before but teaching is always what I really wanted to do.
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hungryjoe28 (Jul 28 - 8:59 pm)
Graduated top 10% from a highly reputable public university with a liberal arts major. Attended T2 law school in large East Coast city, graduated at/somewhat below median. If not for law school, would probably be a white collar cog in corporate America, which is what I did for sometime between college and law school - who knows, maybe would have made it to mid-management by now. I consider myself lucky only in so far as I have no college or law school debt. Parents were able to afford my public university tuition, which was quite reasonable back then. Savings, cashed in securities (go go late 90s), scholarships and some help from GI Bill helped me fund law school. If I had the debt some people claim to have on these boards, would be despondent and probably kill self.
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Graduated top 10% from a highly reputable public university with a liberal arts major. Attended T2 law school in large East Coast city, graduated at/somewhat below median. If not for law school, would probably be a white collar cog in corporate America, which is what I did for sometime between college and law school - who knows, maybe would have made it to mid-management by now. I consider myself lucky only in so far as I have no college or law school debt. Parents were able to afford my public university tuition, which was quite reasonable back then. Savings, cashed in securities (go go late 90s), scholarships and some help from GI Bill helped me fund law school. If I had the debt some people claim to have on these boards, would be despondent and probably kill self.
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Frida2 (Jul 28 - 9:33 pm)
Undergrad -- good public school on West Coast and good grades. I graduated in 1997 with a bio degree and worked in labs for 5 years. I was making $50K/year when I gave it up in 2003. No student loan debt. I worked throughout undergrad and also got help from family.
Law school -- TTTT on West Coast with a full scholarship graduated top 5% in 2005. I have only done part time contract work as an attorney but I like my work. I am disappointed with the value of my degree but I like what I am doing. My long term goal is government or non profit staff position. I was unable to look for work outside of the very desirable city I live in when I graduated because of husband and house and we decided to start a family (I now have two little kids). I think if I had been able to move anywhere for a job I might have ended up a successful attorney, but I am more concerned about success in "life" than success as an attorney. If I had not gone to law school I would probably still be working in biotech or stay at home mom. I thought I would be able to do patent law and I passed the patent bar but I do not have a PhD and you need one to do patent law in bio. I have no student loan debt due the scholarship and support of husband.
I do not believe in going into debt for higher education. I know that is not the majority view in this country, but that is my opinion.
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Undergrad -- good public school on West Coast and good grades. I graduated in 1997 with a bio degree and worked in labs for 5 years. I was making $50K/year when I gave it up in 2003. No student loan debt. I worked throughout undergrad and also got help from family.
Law school -- TTTT on West Coast with a full scholarship graduated top 5% in 2005. I have only done part time contract work as an attorney but I like my work. I am disappointed with the value of my degree but I like what I am doing. My long term goal is government or non profit staff position. I was unable to look for work outside of the very desirable city I live in when I graduated because of husband and house and we decided to start a family (I now have two little kids). I think if I had been able to move anywhere for a job I might have ended up a successful attorney, but I am more concerned about success in "life" than success as an attorney. If I had not gone to law school I would probably still be working in biotech or stay at home mom. I thought I would be able to do patent law and I passed the patent bar but I do not have a PhD and you need one to do patent law in bio. I have no student loan debt due the scholarship and support of husband.
I do not believe in going into debt for higher education. I know that is not the majority view in this country, but that is my opinion.
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Dinan (Jul 28 - 10:37 pm)
Bottom T1, near bottom of the class. Work for the government. 9-5, 95k/year, 19k debt left.
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Bottom T1, near bottom of the class. Work for the government. 9-5, 95k/year, 19k debt left.
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MalletOfMalice (Jul 28 - 10:45 pm)
Wow, some of you people here have impressive jobs despite finishing "bottom."
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Wow, some of you people here have impressive jobs despite finishing "bottom."
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Dinan (Jul 28 - 11:00 pm)
They didn't require a transcript. Lots of variety here. Guy down the hall went to Harvard Law. Another guy to a TTT.
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They didn't require a transcript. Lots of variety here. Guy down the hall went to Harvard Law. Another guy to a TTT.
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brooklynhollaback (Jul 28 - 10:57 pm)
College: Big Ten state flagship university in flyover territory. Graduated magna cum laude with a worthless, generic liberal arts degree.
Law School: Private T2 in the Northeast (although it's fallen to T3 before). No honors, no coif, middle of the pack 3.0 GPA.
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College: Big Ten state flagship university in flyover territory. Graduated magna cum laude with a worthless, generic liberal arts degree.
Law School: Private T2 in the Northeast (although it's fallen to T3 before). No honors, no coif, middle of the pack 3.0 GPA.
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unfrozenlawyer (Jul 28 - 11:19 pm)
College: ivy
Law school: t4
Would be doing: epidemiological research
Will be doing: I plan to be a novelist by the time I'm 40
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College: ivy
Law school: t4
Would be doing: epidemiological research
Will be doing: I plan to be a novelist by the time I'm 40
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AJRESQ (Jul 28 - 11:44 pm)
college: prestigious private college, non-ivy, regional with national recognition -- philosophy (the philosophy firms weren't hiring when I graduated, though...)
law: regional public TT; transfer from a TTTT (top 5% at TTTT)
would be doing human resources like I did pre law school... dreaming being a lawyer. ;) (I know me, I would have left for law school. It was inevitable. Great job, though... 9-5, no stress, close to a lot of great spots for lunch.)
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college: prestigious private college, non-ivy, regional with national recognition -- philosophy (the philosophy firms weren't hiring when I graduated, though...)
law: regional public TT; transfer from a TTTT (top 5% at TTTT)
would be doing human resources like I did pre law school... dreaming being a lawyer. ;) (I know me, I would have left for law school. It was inevitable. Great job, though... 9-5, no stress, close to a lot of great spots for lunch.)
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Bucwild (Jul 29 - 12:19 am)
causanotis- i understand. thanks for chatting w/ me. i just was curious where u went to school b/c Wash U and Uni of Chicago were my top choices for law school. In the end I decided to go WUSTL so i was curious if you could tell me about ur employment prospects legalwise u had, if you had graduated from chicago. i understand if u dont want to disclose that
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causanotis- i understand. thanks for chatting w/ me. i just was curious where u went to school b/c Wash U and Uni of Chicago were my top choices for law school. In the end I decided to go WUSTL so i was curious if you could tell me about ur employment prospects legalwise u had, if you had graduated from chicago. i understand if u dont want to disclose that
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causanortis (Jul 29 - 12:27 am)
Suffice it to say my wife had connections with a mid-sized firm that specializes in indigent, misdemeanor defense work. I knew before I went to law school, I would have a solid gig lined up. I really didn't bother during OCI because I knew I wouldn't want any offers in the midwest; I was set on going home. The one thing I can tell you is that many of my classmates did get offers in the Chicago area, but many more decided to stay local and work in BFE flyover country. A few are also solo's, which is really to do if there are but a few lawyers in your local area and you have a niche, in addition to your local connections.
During my 1L and 2L years I worked at another small firm specializing in wills, trusts, and estates..
My wife is a vice-president of a local regional office located in southwest Texas.. If I wanted to, she could probably still hook me up with a gig as an associate. What can I say, I married up... One of the truly few smart things I have done in my life.
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Suffice it to say my wife had connections with a mid-sized firm that specializes in indigent, misdemeanor defense work. I knew before I went to law school, I would have a solid gig lined up. I really didn't bother during OCI because I knew I wouldn't want any offers in the midwest; I was set on going home. The one thing I can tell you is that many of my classmates did get offers in the Chicago area, but many more decided to stay local and work in BFE flyover country. A few are also solo's, which is really to do if there are but a few lawyers in your local area and you have a niche, in addition to your local connections.
During my 1L and 2L years I worked at another small firm specializing in wills, trusts, and estates..
My wife is a vice-president of a local regional office located in southwest Texas.. If I wanted to, she could probably still hook me up with a gig as an associate. What can I say, I married up... One of the truly few smart things I have done in my life.
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cowgod (Jul 29 - 3:49 am)
UG: nearest free state school (War Eagle!)
Law: U of Alabama ("Top 40"/TTT)
Would be doing: not a fucking clue, since I assumed from about the age of 8 that I would be a lawyer and never thought twice about it. Probably some kind of shitty banking stuff since I finished with a business degree in 2003. I likely would have an MBA now, too.
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UG: nearest free state school (War Eagle!)
Law: U of Alabama ("Top 40"/TTT)
Would be doing: not a fucking clue, since I assumed from about the age of 8 that I would be a lawyer and never thought twice about it. Probably some kind of shitty banking stuff since I finished with a business degree in 2003. I likely would have an MBA now, too.
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MnAttny (Jul 29 - 10:08 am)
UG: University of Minnesota Classical History/Political Science double major with a minor in econ.
Law: University of Miami (#7 out of 411)
Would Be Doing: Pot Dealer
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UG: University of Minnesota Classical History/Political Science double major with a minor in econ.
Law: University of Miami (#7 out of 411)
Would Be Doing: Pot Dealer
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MnAttny (Jul 29 - 12:26 pm)
To maintain some slight anonymity, I graduated sometime between '05-'07.
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To maintain some slight anonymity, I graduated sometime between '05-'07.
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therewillbeblood (Jul 29 - 12:29 pm)
Ha, me too. I probably subsidized your scholarship. Actually, I still am according to Sallie Mae...
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Ha, me too. I probably subsidized your scholarship. Actually, I still am according to Sallie Mae...
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MnAttny (Jul 29 - 12:34 pm)
Thank you for your generous assistance. Thanks to you, I got to spend my money productively, at the Sunset Tavern. Although whenever Prof. Widen was there (e.g. any weekday/weekend after 4 p.m.),he tended to buy the drinks.
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Thank you for your generous assistance. Thanks to you, I got to spend my money productively, at the Sunset Tavern. Although whenever Prof. Widen was there (e.g. any weekday/weekend after 4 p.m.),he tended to buy the drinks.
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therewillbeblood (Jul 29 - 1:01 pm)
Don't mention it. Please.
Yes, I did see him a lot at Sunset, though I didn't really know him, but my drinking companions usually did.
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Don't mention it. Please.
Yes, I did see him a lot at Sunset, though I didn't really know him, but my drinking companions usually did.
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brooklynhollaback (Jul 29 - 11:43 am)
With such a high class rank, you should have transferred back to Minnesota. High-ranked school for in-state public school tuition.
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With such a high class rank, you should have transferred back to Minnesota. High-ranked school for in-state public school tuition.
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MnAttny (Jul 29 - 12:23 pm)
I had a full ride and my wife was stationed at Homestead Air Reserve Base. Her transfer there is why I went to Miami in the first place.
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I had a full ride and my wife was stationed at Homestead Air Reserve Base. Her transfer there is why I went to Miami in the first place.
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borntoinspire (Jul 29 - 12:41 pm)
Top 25UG, useless degree; Top 40LS, slightly below median, rising 3L. Plan to take bar and if I can't find a job shortly after I plan to pursue one of my few passions in life (tech-related). I probably should've skipped LS altogether
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Top 25UG, useless degree; Top 40LS, slightly below median, rising 3L. Plan to take bar and if I can't find a job shortly after I plan to pursue one of my few passions in life (tech-related). I probably should've skipped LS altogether
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kansas (Jul 29 - 1:13 pm)
UG - Small state college, went for free, magna, useless liberal arts degree.
LS - Washburn, I think it's Tier 4 but never have checked, went for free, law review (hated it), class rank 21% (dammit, had I known how important this was I would have worked less and studied more). Out 9 years. A number of years ago I foolishly obtained an expensive and worthless LL.M. in tax from another low-ranked program.
Would be doing: Outside sales. Before LS I thought it was soul-killing, now I know it was a pretty good gig and pretty solidly lucrative too.
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UG - Small state college, went for free, magna, useless liberal arts degree.
LS - Washburn, I think it's Tier 4 but never have checked, went for free, law review (hated it), class rank 21% (dammit, had I known how important this was I would have worked less and studied more). Out 9 years. A number of years ago I foolishly obtained an expensive and worthless LL.M. in tax from another low-ranked program.
Would be doing: Outside sales. Before LS I thought it was soul-killing, now I know it was a pretty good gig and pretty solidly lucrative too.
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baraban (Jul 29 - 3:22 pm)
UG: top 3 engineering
LS - top 20, PT.
Worked for a few years as an engineer, then had a change of mind and got a job at a firm, while going to school at night. Graduated almost w/o debt (firm paid most of the tuition), now working as a Nth year associate.
Perhaps going into finance would make me more $$$, but I really am not into finance/economics/etc, so I probably would hate it. Not that I love practicing patent law much, but it's reasonable for now.
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UG: top 3 engineering
LS - top 20, PT.
Worked for a few years as an engineer, then had a change of mind and got a job at a firm, while going to school at night. Graduated almost w/o debt (firm paid most of the tuition), now working as a Nth year associate.
Perhaps going into finance would make me more $$$, but I really am not into finance/economics/etc, so I probably would hate it. Not that I love practicing patent law much, but it's reasonable for now.
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calatty (Jul 30 - 12:07 am)
Went to a California State University. Graduated in 1984 with a Bachelor's degree in Social Sciences, cum laude. Went in the military for a few years followed by law school at UT Austin. Graduated from law school in 1990 and moved to California. My first attorney job was with a midsized Southern California ID firm at $52,500 per year, plus bonuses, followed by several years as an in-house claims litigation attorney. Am now a government attorney. If I had not attended law school I would be a police officer. In fact, after five years of law practice, I became a police officer for four years. After four years as a police officer, I returned to law practice.
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Post a message in this threadWent to a California State University. Graduated in 1984 with a Bachelor's degree in Social Sciences, cum laude. Went in the military for a few years followed by law school at UT Austin. Graduated from law school in 1990 and moved to California. My first attorney job was with a midsized Southern California ID firm at $52,500 per year, plus bonuses, followed by several years as an in-house claims litigation attorney. Am now a government attorney. If I had not attended law school I would be a police officer. In fact, after five years of law practice, I became a police officer for four years. After four years as a police officer, I returned to law practice.
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