Is one month long enough to study for the LSAT?

[Anonymous]

I've always been a bad test taker but felt like 1 month with a Barons book was enough. My brothers went to law school and basically said either you'll pass or to won't and studying won't change that much. I think they're right. Waiting might have been better from a stress stand point because the test was the Saturday before finals week and my grandmother was dying, but waiting probably wouldn't have made a huge difference realistically.

[Anonymous]

You are the exact person who should not be going to law school OP. I was like you. First in my family to graduate college, parents thought I'd make *such* a great lawyer or that worst case, I can do *anything* with a law degree!

Dad offered to pay for some LSAT classes. Ended up scoring in the 97th percentile (and had a high GPA with honors). All of a sudden top tier law schools started throwing scholarships at me. Now I hate being a lawyer. It wasn't my dream, it was because I wanted to make my parents proud.

My only saving grace is that I don't have a ton of loans so I didn't have to take a soul sucking big law job like a lot of my peers. You are ahead of me because you've at least worked in the legal profession (I went straight through from college).

If you truly love the law and can get into a TOP school without needing to take out 150k in loans, it might be worth it for you. Otherwise, don't assume you'll be the exception and all these articles on what a bad investment law school has become aren't true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Over the holidays both parents sat me down and spoke to me about that they would like me to go to law school, that they think I have a natural propensity for it. I have worked as a legal secretary, and ended up doing paralegal work, and was a philosophy major. Even though I hadn't wanted to go in the past, their words made sense and now I am interested in attending.

This is a terrible reason to go to law school. Please do some research before applying. I am a law professor, and I advise many (definitely not all, but many) students against attending law school these days. You should only attend law school if 1) you actually want to be a lawyer, not because you don't know what else to do, 2) you are accepted at a good law school (some would say top 14, some top 25, some top 50), 3) you won't end up with tremendous student debt, and 4) you understand what the legal employment market is like. Some reading:

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/12/17/law-school-enrollment-falls-to-lowest-level-since-1987/?_r=0

http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/lsd/legaled/value.authcheckdam.pdf

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/business/09law.html?pagewanted=all

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tucker-max/law-school_b_2713943.html

http://insidethelawschoolscam.blogspot.com/

[Anonymous]

MarleySkye840 wrote:Op, I'm not going to tell you that you shouldn't be a lawyer if that is what you want. However, the fact that you started this off with "my parents said..." kind of shows that you don't totally have your heart into this. It seems like something that you are going in to just because your parents think it would be good for you. You are probably very smart, and could make it as a lawyer, but if that isn't what you want to do, you are going to hate every minute of it, and resent your parents for it.

-parents planned for me to be a lawyer since I was 2, I decided that wasn't for me at 16. They understood, and got over it.

Thanks for the advice.

I feel conflicted. I care deeply about feminism and after seeing my mother be pulled through the ringer during her divorce, I care passionately about helping women to get a better deal in the courts system. When i was working for the law firm, we did family law, and I really loved when i got to help out a woman who was dealing with abuse or had been SAHM-ing and was about to be left with no money by a wealthy husband. I would love to work for that, it would be very gratifying to me.

What I'm not excited about is law school, and the drudgery of having to take grunt cases while I work my way up.

[Anonymous]

^Idk, your SAT score is really good, and your test taking propensity is obviously there. But you do want to think about the long term, whether it will be something you want to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Take a practice test and see how you do. If you score above a 160 without any practice, you may be able to raise your score by a few points in a month to make you competitive.

Since you were a philosophy major, I assume you took your fair share of logic courses, so the part that stumps a lot of people may be easy for you.

It's really about learning how to take it. When I took my first practice test, I scored 157. After a Kaplan course, I scored 175. That's a big jump, obviously. I am a happy and successful lawyer today.

That said, I would not recommend going to law school unless it's what you want to do, not what your parents think you should do.

You should quit and do infomercials for Kaplan given that score increase.

[Anonymous]

I didn't study for the LSAT at all...not one minute of prep. Did fine. Went to state law school (applied to both state schools, got into both, went to the better one).

Question: why do you want to go to law school, and how will you pay for it?

Please don't go because your parents want you to go. While law schoo wasn't difficult for me, it is a big commitment. And it's expensive unless you go to state school. If you have to take out loans, please reconsider. The job market is tight. Please don't assume you will graduate and get a six figure job...that's highly unlikely unless you are top of your class, graduate from a top tier one school, and aren't as old as I think you might be (nobody wants to hire older second-career folks).

[Anonymous]

there are a glut of lawyers. There are very qualified grads who have been apprenticing for free at firms. please think twice. there are no jobs!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Will your parents pay for law school? Will you support yourself for the next 3 years?

My parents are divorced. Father will pay for some but I will have to take out a good amount of loans.

Then take longer and study more so you get a good score. It's so not worth taking out loans unless you can get into a top school. The employment stats coming out of second tier law schools are abysmal.

+1. In fact, I wouldn't bother going unless I got into a Top 10 school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn't study for the LSAT at all...not one minute of prep. Did fine. Went to state law school (applied to both state schools, got into both, went to the better one).

Question: why do you want to go to law school, and how will you pay for it?

Please don't go because your parents want you to go. While law schoo wasn't difficult for me, it is a big commitment. And it's expensive unless you go to state school. If you have to take out loans, please reconsider. The job market is tight. Please don't assume you will graduate and get a six figure job...that's highly unlikely unless you are top of your class, graduate from a top tier one school, and aren't as old as I think you might be (nobody wants to hire older second-career folks).

I'm 26.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh my gosh, please think twice about going to law school bc your parents want it. It is an awful lot of time, work and money if you aren't that into it. Hell, even if you are that into it.

+1. and the market for employment is awful unless you come out of a very top school.

[Anonymous]

What else are you doing during that month? If you aren't working or in school a month is enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have worked as a legal secretary, and ended up doing paralegal work

The best people to ask whether you might be a good lawyer or not are the lawyers that you worked for, not your parents unless they are lawyers. They are also your best recommendations. As for the LSAT, there really isn't anything to study. Just take a practice test and see how you do. Then match up your score and GPA to check if you're in the ballpark for admission.