So I’ve come to a certain realization over the past few weeks and that is: before everyone gets to law school, they view admission as the end of the game. That is, so much is done in preparation for law school (getting good grades, doing tons of extracurricular work that might get, at best, a cursory look-through from ad comms, taking expensive LSAT classes, even to the point of like “LSAT summer camps”, visiting a pre-law advisor endless times, and stressing over multiple drafts a some personal statement essay). But no one seems to think about, “What happens once I get there?” A timely example would be a colleague of mine on this blog who, once already admitted to one of the best law schools in the country, decided law school and being a lawyer was not right for them at this time. Not to call this person out or anything, but it seems people are so focused on the end (law school) that they don’t stop to think about whether that desired path is right for them at all: a kind of tunnel vision. Why?

Is it the money that associated with a legal career? If so, you better make sure who get into a REALLY good school, and even then, the nature of the economy can leave you very much disappointed. That, or make sure you do VERY well once you get to law school, but this is hardly guaranteed especially if just getting to law school is your desired end. Is it the prestige of being able to say, “Yes, I am a lawyer”??? Maybe, but again, have fun with all that prestige when you’re paying off student loans for the next 10 years. Or is it that people with degrees in areas of study like Political Science, History, and English just don’t want to become professors or pursue a career in their chosen field and law school seems to be the only other legitimate option? Maybe it’s just that you’ve had some exposure to the practice of law (or, at least, people who practice law) and you think you would enjoy pursuing such a career. (this last justification seems a little more legitimate but I don’t think most people have had a sufficient exposure to practicing law for them to really know what it’s all about, myself included)

In any case, I don’t want to discourage anyone from doing their best to go to law school. In fact, I have nothing but distaste for those who post on blogs and law school forums about how they went to law school and are now trying to convince everyone that it was the worst decision of their lives (or that there is a kind of “law school conspiracy” to show ever-improving stats and career placement figures to help in their admissions, which may or may not be true). All I am saying is, before you get here, really make sure this is something you want to pursue in your life. Having been here only a few weeks, law school is MUCH too difficult, frustrating, time-consuming, etc. for you to also waste time pondering and soul-searching about whether you made the right choice.

So, like I said, I really don’t care for all the online posts that say, “Never go to law school. It’s all a sham. You’ll never be happy” or whatever. Just take some time to sincerely think about the decision. Step out of the tunnel vision for a bit and take a look around to see if there are other things in this world you would be happy doing. Given the economy, law school is too much of a black hole for time and money to NOT do so.

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