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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]If you're not paying for law school, who is?[/quote]

He will take loans.[/quote]

This is the bigger issue. Expect tuition to increase about 5% per year. Loan principle will be about $300,000 after 3 years. Not sure, but I believe that interest will accrue from the time one receives loan money so he will graduate with student loan debt exceeding $300,000 in interest & principle for law school student loans assuming that he will live rent & utility bill free for all 3 years. This debt will continue to grow as interest continues to accrue on any unpaid balance. If your son graduates into a weak market for employment in the legal field, then the indebtedness will become the primary focus of your son's life possibly resulting in foregoing marriage, having kids, buying a home all while becoming a long-term tenant in your basement. Some highly indebted young attorneys engage in thoughts of self-harm due to the overwhelming financial stress.

To answer your question, live at home all 3 years if the law student can study at home without interruption. Many law students like to study in the law school library after, before, and between classes.

Another poster inquired about your son's LSAT score; this is a reasonable question as well as his undergraduate cumulative GPA. A law school applicant's LSAT score and undergraduate GPA are the primary factors used by law schools to award merit scholarship money.

The fact that your son is focused on attending one of just two law schools--Georgetown or GWU--suggests that he would be comfortable living at home in the basement apartment.

Has he taken the LSAT and, if yes, then what is his score ? Undergraduate cumulative GPA ? These stats will generate further, more meaningful discussion of how your son should approach law school. Many prospective law students take one or two years between undergraduate school and entering law school in order to do 2 things: get post undergraduate work experience and to improve his or her LSAT score.

Exiting law school with anywhere near $300,000 of student loan indebtedness is like placing a noose around one's neck and a ball and chain around one's ankles. Such student loan indebtedness is unreasonable and only marginally justifiable if one attends a top 6 or 7 law school (Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Chicago, or NYU). However, if a law school applicant's numbers (LSAT score & undergraduate GPA) are high enough to get an offer of admission to a top 6 law school, then that applicant should be able to generate significant scholarship grant money from several lower ranked top 14 law schools and full tuition & fees scholarships to several non-top 14 ranked law schools.

Does your son have an interest in practicing in a particular  area of law such a as tax, intellectual property/patent law,  environmental, criminal, securities, corporate, etc. ? The answer to this question may lead to suggestions regarding law schools and law school financials.

What is your son's undergraduate major area of study ?

Why law school versus earning an MBA degree ?

My best advice to your son based on the scant information shared in this thread is do not enroll in law school without a substantial merit scholarship award and keep costs down by living at home if attending a nearby law school such as Georgetown or GWU.[/quote]

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