Career in politics without law school Forum

[Tangysalt]

Is it becoming more possible and more common to have a career in politics with a law degree? For someone I know, they plan to take on law school debt to have a career in politics, but not to practice law necessarily (because let's face it, it's pretty hard to get a decent job as a lawyer).

[Po$eidon]

Is it becoming more possible and more common to have a career in politics with a law degree? For someone I know, they plan to take on law school debt to have a career in politics, but not to practice law necessarily (because let's face it, it's pretty hard to get a decent job as a lawyer).

Umm a career in politics is MUCH HARDER than getting a reasonably good law job.

[Milksteak]

What is a career in politics? Local, state, federal? They want to run for office? They want to work on political campaigns? The want to work as policy/communication/constituent services staff? They want to become a policy analyst? Think tank researcher? Lobbyist? More specifics are necessary. In any case, there are lots of jobs in politics (most) that do not require a law degree.

[Tangysalt]

Is it becoming more possible and more common to have a career in politics with a law degree? For someone I know, they plan to take on law school debt to have a career in politics, but not to practice law necessarily (because let's face it, it's pretty hard to get a decent job as a lawyer).

Umm a career in politics is MUCH HARDER than getting a reasonably good law job.

Depends on what level of politics one is trying to enter. If he wants to start out running for governor, yes, that's going to be a lot harder.

I think getting a good starting salary, right of law school, is unrealistic unless it's a top 10 school. Told him he should only go if he gets a free ride. But even then, he's going to lose three years out of the workforce, so that's going to be years of lost income, even if his parents pay tuition.

I think he'd have better chances running in a local election than getting a job working for some big law firm. He has some very good connections in politics, knows people in high places.

If he wants to learn some legal theories, could he audit some courses in law school?

[PrezRand]

Is it becoming more possible and more common to have a career in politics with a law degree? For someone I know, they plan to take on law school debt to have a career in politics, but not to practice law necessarily (because let's face it, it's pretty hard to get a decent job as a lawyer).

The last 5 speakers didn't have a law degree. You don't need one.

[armc808]

If by 'politics' you mean elected office, then no you don't need a law degree to have a career in politics. While I think law school will teach you ways of thinking and speaking that are applicable to the world of politics, it's absolutely not necessary to invest three years and six figures of debt into a JD if your ultimate goal is to become a politician. The main things you need for a successful political career are community ties, a strong network of people who know how to run a campaign, advisers that can assist you once you are in office, and above all, money. I think the fact that so many politicians have previous careers as lawyers speaks more to the kind of person that the political world tends to attract, rather than a legal degree being a prerequisite of any sort for a political career. Just remember: Paul Ryan, Rand Paul, Nancy Pelosi, and even our president Donald J Trump are not and never were lawyers.

[Mullens]

Is it becoming more possible and more common to have a career in politics with a law degree? For someone I know, they plan to take on law school debt to have a career in politics, but not to practice law necessarily (because let's face it, it's pretty hard to get a decent job as a lawyer).

Tell your friend that if they don't want to be a lawyer then they shouldn't go to law school. Law school is not necessary to be in politics and it is three years that would be better spent working on political credentials. If they want to get involved in politics, then they should get involved in politics.

[nyu2019maybeplease]

Pm me. Topline: govt/politics easily achievable without law degree. Stamina (of every sort), comfort with ambiguity, clear thinking, and good instincts sufficient to go far.

[dannyswo]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the ... 691faf67f0

I don't know if there is a current version available, but this is a breakdown of the 113th Congress by occupation.