failed the bar 3x...

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous]I once heard Massechusetts referred to as Passechusetts. .


I've never heard that but I've taken both the CA and Mass. bar exams. CA was three days and very tough. Mass. was one day and a walk in the park.

[Anonymous]

My BIL who went to Thomas M. Cooley (and flunked out once and still paid to go back and finish), which is the lowest ranked school, took and passed the New Mexico bar exam on DH's advice and works as a public defender in some town nobody would ever want to live in.

So if she really wants to be a lawyer, it's possible, but it's probably not worth it.

[Anonymous]

I am related to someone that failed the bar 7 times before passing it. He now has his own law firm. Please let her pursue her dream without passing judgment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am related to someone that failed the bar 7 times before passing it. He now has his own law firm. Please let her pursue her dream without passing judgment.

If it's really her dream the I agree. She can find a way to make it happen. It's unclear if this relative of OPs possesses the drive to do this, though.

[Anonymous]

I second the PP who suggested seeking a contracts role. If she's more of a people person, HR jobs also deal with a lot of legal/compliance issues and I can see a law degree being useful. If she's more analytical, she could go the policy route and look at think tanks or congressional offices, etc.

None of these jobs are going to pay off her student loans in 5 years, but most law jobs she'd get wouldn't either...

[Anonymous]

Op here. I think she likes law and would like to be a lawyer. She has about 300k in loans from undergrad and law school. She is running in to trouble becuase she has no real skill set for which people will hire her and a huge gap in her resume. I think she would eagerly do the contracts or compliance for a company or the government but I don't think she could get one of those jobs. She can't even seem to get doc review jobs. She lives in DC with her parents who support her but aren't wealthy so can't pay off her loans and don't have connections for her.

[Anonymous]

I don't understand why anyone would take on that sort of student loan debt without a really solid plan, no way is domone from a third tier law school getting a big law job unless they are at the very top of their class, and without this plan or some way to get loan forgiveness that's just crushing debt. I realize it's too late to change this person's situation, however let this be a cautionary tale to others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[quote=Anonymous]I once heard Massechusetts referred to as Passechusetts. .

I've never heard that but I've taken both the CA and Mass. bar exams. CA was three days and very tough. Mass. was one day and a walk in the park.

I call BS. I have taken and passed both. MA is actually 2 days, as you would know if you'd taken it.

The third day made the CA exam more grueling, but the CA essays and MA essays were comparable in terms of difficulty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why anyone would take on that sort of student loan debt without a really solid plan, no way is domone from a third tier law school getting a big law job unless they are at the very top of their class, and without this plan or some way to get loan forgiveness that's just crushing debt. I realize it's too late to change this person's situation, however let this be a cautionary tale to others.

Op here and I agree - but when you make these decisions at 18 and 22 you don't fully understand and nor did her parents. They all thought oh law schools is a ticket to a good job. I am certain she regrets the choice now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[quote=Anonymous]I once heard Massechusetts referred to as Passechusetts. .

I've never heard that but I've taken both the CA and Mass. bar exams. CA was three days and very tough. Mass. was one day and a walk in the park.

I call BS. I have taken and passed both. MA is actually 2 days, as you would know if you'd taken it.

The third day made the CA exam more grueling, but the CA essays and MA essays were comparable in terms of difficulty.

+1

And learn how to spell it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. I think she likes law and would like to be a lawyer. She has about 300k in loans from undergrad and law school. She is running in to trouble becuase she has no real skill set for which people will hire her and a huge gap in her resume. I think she would eagerly do the contracts or compliance for a company or the government but I don't think she could get one of those jobs. She can't even seem to get doc review jobs. She lives in DC with her parents who support her but aren't wealthy so can't pay off her loans and don't have connections for her.

I honestly think she should look into becoming an expat, working abroad, and defaulting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why anyone would take on that sort of student loan debt without a really solid plan, no way is domone from a third tier law school getting a big law job unless they are at the very top of their class, and without this plan or some way to get loan forgiveness that's just crushing debt. I realize it's too late to change this person's situation, however let this be a cautionary tale to others.

Eh, not necessarily. Plenty of folks don't go to the top, top law schools (maybe their ambition, drive work-ethic hadn't quit kicked in at the age of 22 or so when applying to law schools after college). Some (like myself) come into my own after having gone to a middle tier law school. I am smart, hardworking and really great at the particular niche area of law that I work in. I have a great law career (and the name of my law school alone wouldn't necessarily suggest that!). In fact, in my field, it is that arrogant Harvard attorneys who've come in and out over the years (yes, it is a lucrative area of law -- business/finance related) that don't seem to last. Often these guys want the name "Harvard" to do all the work for them.

I say all of this to give a different perspective. Live is full of opportunities for people who work hard, have passion and are really good at what they do. No way is all of that determined when you choose a law school in your early 20's. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

pp here - sorry for the typos, but you get the idea. need a bigger phone!

[Anonymous]

Maybe she could find a non-attorney federal job and qualify for loan forgiveness after 10 yrs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe she could find a non-attorney federal job and qualify for loan forgiveness after 10 yrs.

This is my suggestion. Also, OP, what area of the law is she interested in? What kinds of internships did she do in law school?