Non-trads Face Economic Dilemma
Submitted Question:
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I’m not going to be overly dramatic and say that if I don’t apply this year, I might never go to law school, but I’m certainly not getting any younger. I’m a non-trad, in my mid 30’s, working for a large corporation. I’m fully aware that the legal profession is in the dumps. Does this mean that non-trads should hold out and wait for some signs of life in the market before we apply? - GPA: 3.4 LSAT: 166 |
Corey:
Over five-thousand attorneys have been laid off by major law firms in the past twelve months. Further, in this same time period, law schools minted thirty-thousand new attorneys. I’ve spoken with third-year students at both Harvard and Stanford who are confident that, despite their best efforts, they will graduate without securing legal employment. Jobs are scarce and, assuming you apply now, ~100,000 new attorneys will be dumped into the market before you graduate. Now, I don’t presume to know what the future holds and maybe the economy will expand in such a way that legal hiring will return to 2004 levels, but attending law school with this expectation seems like an insanely expensive gamble.
All of that said, I still think you should send out applications this cycle. Your situation calls for a carefully targeted, cost-efficient application strategy. Budget about $350 for applications and pick the five schools in your range that you are most serious about attending (aim for one safety, two targets, and two reaches). Once you have the decisions in hand, re-evaluate:
- If you are accepted to a school you want to attend and the economy is picking up – attend.
- If you are accepted to a school you want to attend, but the economy is still sluggish – ask for a deferral. If refused, reapply next year.
- If are are not accepted to a school you want to attend – reapply next year.
This method seems give you the greatest amount of flexibility should things turn around.
Tags: Economy, Non-Traditional
