my personal experience tells me that there's no way i can get through the law school if i were 40, not to mention 45.
there are 2 types of law students, first are those who go straight to law school after getting the bachelor degree. they don't have any real world working experience, but they are smart, young, and energetic. if you think school is easy, you are wrong. those smart americans are in law school. plus, they are mostly single, no kids, and can afford to put up with extremely long hours, in school or afterwards.
second are those who worked before and are trying to become a lawyer. their past working experience is their sole advantage. for example, many PHDs in biotech, MDs who don't want to be physicians, and engineers who want to change careers. after graduating, these people usually specializes in an area of law that is related to their old working experience. their chances of success in a law firm largely depend on their ability to adjust to a lawyer's life.
lawyer's life are tough. i suggest you find a lawyer in your local area and just talk to them and see if you can handle it. personally, i might have not gone to law school had i know what's really out there. there are several fundamental misconceptions people have about lawyers.
1. lawyers make big bucks. This is NOT the case. I repeat, NOT the case. the average first year associate's starting salary in my state is $50k. can't you imaging that? you can't even afford the student loan payments with that money. some say that the earning potential of a lawyer is bigger than others. but that earning potential has its cost. most lawyers have to work 10-12 hours a day, with high level of stress. if you convert that pay into hourly, you get less than an engineer. from a investment point of view, consider the earnings you lost when going to school, plus the student loan, that is your cost. and think about for how many years you have to work and how much extra money you have to earn just to make it even, not to mention making a profit. most of the people would tell you that law school is not a good investment. with that in mind, before you go to law school, you really ought to think twice why are you going there. the decision will make a huge impact on your family life as well, as others mentioned already. be prepared.
2. lawyers make big bucks. although some braves souls start their own business right after law school, most lawyers are climbing that partnership ladder. and that ladder is getting steeper and steeper nowadays. most of the lawyers works for either a law firm, a company, or government. therefore, they are just salaried employees, like everyone else. even worse, lawyers earn their money by selling a personal service. from a business point of view, lawyer business is a business that is selling a resource, and it is a limited resource, you only have 24 hours a day. you cannot bill clients more than that. to earn more money, you have to increase your rate, which put pressure on yourself to be more effective, and eventually, there will be a plateau. and that's where your earning peaks. unless the average billing rate goes up in your area, your salary will not increase significantly.
3. lawyers make big bucks. the basic rule of capitalism tell us that your return is largely based on the risk you take. as most lawyers charge an hourly fee, there is no risk, or very limited risk. they get paid no matter what. therefore, most lawyers would never be rich, or at least rich enough for you to feel like you are successful. the only lawyers that is different are those that works on a contingency basis, your normal ambulance chasers, etc. they are the ones that at least have a chance to be successful, of course, the risk of their business is significantly higher.
if i can start over, rather than going to law school, i will start my own business. the risk and effort i take is about the same. the return is significantly greater. i can even hire a lawyer or two when needed. of course, i will try to avoid the kind of business that is selling a personal service. that is not a good business model in the long run.
there are 2 types of law students, first are those who go straight to law school after getting the bachelor degree. they don't have any real world working experience, but they are smart, young, and energetic. if you think school is easy, you are wrong. those smart americans are in law school. plus, they are mostly single, no kids, and can afford to put up with extremely long hours, in school or afterwards.
second are those who worked before and are trying to become a lawyer. their past working experience is their sole advantage. for example, many PHDs in biotech, MDs who don't want to be physicians, and engineers who want to change careers. after graduating, these people usually specializes in an area of law that is related to their old working experience. their chances of success in a law firm largely depend on their ability to adjust to a lawyer's life.
lawyer's life are tough. i suggest you find a lawyer in your local area and just talk to them and see if you can handle it. personally, i might have not gone to law school had i know what's really out there. there are several fundamental misconceptions people have about lawyers.
1. lawyers make big bucks. This is NOT the case. I repeat, NOT the case. the average first year associate's starting salary in my state is $50k. can't you imaging that? you can't even afford the student loan payments with that money. some say that the earning potential of a lawyer is bigger than others. but that earning potential has its cost. most lawyers have to work 10-12 hours a day, with high level of stress. if you convert that pay into hourly, you get less than an engineer. from a investment point of view, consider the earnings you lost when going to school, plus the student loan, that is your cost. and think about for how many years you have to work and how much extra money you have to earn just to make it even, not to mention making a profit. most of the people would tell you that law school is not a good investment. with that in mind, before you go to law school, you really ought to think twice why are you going there. the decision will make a huge impact on your family life as well, as others mentioned already. be prepared.
2. lawyers make big bucks. although some braves souls start their own business right after law school, most lawyers are climbing that partnership ladder. and that ladder is getting steeper and steeper nowadays. most of the lawyers works for either a law firm, a company, or government. therefore, they are just salaried employees, like everyone else. even worse, lawyers earn their money by selling a personal service. from a business point of view, lawyer business is a business that is selling a resource, and it is a limited resource, you only have 24 hours a day. you cannot bill clients more than that. to earn more money, you have to increase your rate, which put pressure on yourself to be more effective, and eventually, there will be a plateau. and that's where your earning peaks. unless the average billing rate goes up in your area, your salary will not increase significantly.
3. lawyers make big bucks. the basic rule of capitalism tell us that your return is largely based on the risk you take. as most lawyers charge an hourly fee, there is no risk, or very limited risk. they get paid no matter what. therefore, most lawyers would never be rich, or at least rich enough for you to feel like you are successful. the only lawyers that is different are those that works on a contingency basis, your normal ambulance chasers, etc. they are the ones that at least have a chance to be successful, of course, the risk of their business is significantly higher.
if i can start over, rather than going to law school, i will start my own business. the risk and effort i take is about the same. the return is significantly greater. i can even hire a lawyer or two when needed. of course, i will try to avoid the kind of business that is selling a personal service. that is not a good business model in the long run.
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