Calling all lawyers

wow, that was a long time ago....   can't remember much, but i do know that doing as many practice tests as I could get my hands on helped a lot

Thirded! I've actually only been a licensed attorney for a few weeks, so the LSAT is still relatively fresh in my mind. Right now, I'm preparing for the Bar Exam (didn't want to stay in the state I'm licensed in) and looking for jobs. Point is, I'm not sure law school is the way to do it anymore. I'm in a boat load of debt, ($130k+) and the job prospects are awful because of the number of attorneys being created every year by law schools. I actually saw a job posted the other day for a junior attorney making $10,000/year. Ouch. So seriously, think about this very closely. Look at where you're at in your life, your background and education. Are you still in college? If so, I highly recommend taking a couple years off and working in law firms as a clerk or paralegal to see if you would actually enjoy it. I have a LOT more to say about it since I'm so recently out, and I don't want to hijack, so seriously, if you have any questions, just PM me. As for the LSAT, just don't blow it off. It's hard, and not intuitive. Keep in mind also that, even if you take classes to help, your score won't increase by that much from your initial practice test. Mine went up about 10-12 points over the course of my Kaplan class during practice exams, just to have me wind up at +8 for the actual exam. I only say that because everybody asks if it's possible to go up like 50 points like Elle Woods did in Legally Blonde, and it's not! OK, now that I'm rambling to avoid writing a practice MEE, just PM me if you have any specific questions.

Study.

My first thought was don't do it. If you feel that's what you really want to do then take a class/course and do the practice tests as often as you can. When I took mine we had a class room of students and we went over test after test after test. I probably put in more hours on that class than the rest of my semester classes combined. I did jump a lot of points from my practice scores but I think it had to do more with my improved guessing strategy. Seriously - good luck.

Tripled err, Fourthed

The job market for freshly minted lawyers is BRUTAL.  There is a multi-year backlog of attorneys looking for jobs and every year law schools churn out more graduates.

I graduated law school in 2000.  But if I was about to start law school now, I would run in the opposite direction.

(and that doesn't even get into the amount of debt you are going to incur to be unemployed)

Edited by condorman 2012-06-22 12:55 PM

If you intend to incur any debt to get that JD, think twice.  It is a great education but a lousy investment (these days).  I'm out 18 years and the job market is pitiful.  I see so many young lawyers working as paralegals these days that it is scary.  On the other hand, if you really want to be a lawyer, then go for it.  The thing with the LSAT is that you are either one of those people who is good at taking that test or not.  Prep classes are good to get you familiar with the structure of the exam, but I found that they did little to improve my scores.  Also keep in mind that success or failure on the LSATs is not a good judge of success at law school.  Everyone can tell you about the people who aced the LSAT and couldn't hack it in law school.

If you are choosing to enter the legal profession on a whim or because you don't know what else to do, than yes, listen to the other about whether it is worth it or not. However, if you are drawn to the profession you shouldn't turn down the opportunity because the current job market is bad. Based on where you are now in the process, it would be 4 years before you would be entering the job market which who knows what it will be like then. Plus, the job market is shrinking for the higher paying associate positions with large and mid size firms. There is always a need for those working in public legal positions like prosecutors ... etc. Also, just read a Wall Street Journal article this morning where, like the medical profession, many law schools are now offering incentives for law students to commit to practice in smaller communities where the public's need for legal professions is underserved. Anway, my point is that if you are passionate about being a lawyer, than our profession can use you. There are a LOT of burned out attorneys that come to resent the profession and disuade others from entering it. I was probably one of them a handful of years ago, but a job switch made me realize it was just the past job and not the profession itself I was tired of. Again, good luck.