Top Law Schools

cannonballer wrote: Cannonballer, for some reason, I cannot PM you and I wanted to reply to your advice! And to thank you!!! So insightful and so helpful!

am88282911am88282911 wrote:This thread is so refreshing. I am in my late 30's, have a Masters degree, just started a six-figure job, and gave been thinking of obtaining my law degree but there is nothing more amazing than to come home from work, turn on Netflix, eat dinner, and sleep by 10pm! But there is this part of me that finds satisfaction in human rights; the legality process of finding justice for those who are in need. I have found great satisfaction in reading depositions, autopsy reports, and I can't tell you the amount of times that I have viewed the OJ story (starring Cuba Gooding Jr.) and all for the legality aspect. I recently went to CUNY School of Law's (in Queens, NY) open house and loved the school. I am just worried about a few things- maybe you all can help me;
1. My age
2. Already in student loan debt from my masters
3. I love my sleep!
4. I can't afford to pay out of pocket for a law degree
5. LSAT prep!!

Any help/advice would be much appreciated.

I went through a similar thought process and chose to go to law school, but it was a big decision and I don’t think it would be the right one for everyone. PM me if you want to hear more about my thought process in detail.

laotaipo wrote:Just wanted to say that I'm totally psyched to be about to realize my law school dream at USC! Fight on!

And also to say this: Having worked for about 30 years in the "real world," I firmly believe that if you feel that law is your calling and you can make it work financially (don't go into huge debt), go for it, no matter what your age. There's a lot of talk about how "boring" and "frustrating" law will be, but frankly, all jobs have some sucky elements. And if people say you're too old, the reasons they give for your unemployability will be valid whether you get that degree or you don't.

Bla Bla Bla Blah wrote:

laotaipo wrote:Just wanted to say that I'm totally psyched to be about to realize my law school dream at USC! Fight on!

And also to say this: Having worked for about 30 years in the "real world," I firmly believe that if you feel that law is your calling and you can make it work financially (don't go into huge debt), go for it, no matter what your age. There's a lot of talk about how "boring" and "frustrating" law will be, but frankly, all jobs have some sucky elements. And if people say you're too old, the reasons they give for your unemployability will be valid whether you get that degree or you don't.

As an old fart on the other end of attending a top 9er law school, I can tell you that "frankly, all jobs have some sucky elements" is the nonsense reasoning that all of us bright eyed old farts had going into law school. Save that kind of talk for when you get to the other side, if you still have it in you .

If you can make it work financially... why the hell would you want to give away all that money? Even if you don't go into huge debt, it is still a lot of pocket change. And the validity of the statement "you're too old" isn't what hurts... it's the fact that there are plenty of other mortgage sized purchases that you can actually sell back if that validity does in fact ring true (and a piece of paper with USC and your name on it isn't one of them... even a pack of Trojans will have a greater market value at that point).

Good luck to you old fart. But at 36 and successfully into my legal career, I'm not sure that the anxiety, tedium, and poor health (because there is a deadline and I haven't done much more than sit, pour through Westlaw cases, facts, and opposing motions while authoring my own... on 6 hours of sleep while ignoring my children for thr past 3 days) is something I would have chosen even over plopping my tuition money down on 7 in Vegas. And the great part: it never ends! I keep telling myself that I'll try to find more time for my kids, better work/life... yada yada. Not possible. I hardly have time to calender important "must attend" events.

"Real world" experience and law school are two polar opposites my friend. And in fact, real world experience can sometimes make it difficult to grasp some of the legal case principles that seem diametrically (think a rich trust fund kid's armchair philisophical musings) opposed to real world realities. In short, you're in for a real treat.