Grad School, pt. 2

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

So, I'm sorta sick of teaching and thinking about going back to school (as long as someone else pays for it).

 

I'm trying to choose between law school, public policy, or diplomacy/international commerce. Any advice?

 

I'm looking at you, Carlito Brigante.

[Mik 0]

My advice would be - don't do it.

 

Almost done w/ my 4th year of graduate school and I regret the decision nearly all the time.

 

Any of the 3, though, I'd do with law school. 1) It's only 3 years; 2) If you're smart about it - you can make a good life for yourself

 

Grad school for the other two options seems to be the typical not ready for the real world type graduate student that gets made fun of on the Simpsons and other TV shows.

[Guest Smues]

So, I'm sorta sick of teaching and thinking about going back to school (as long as someone else pays for it).

 

I'm trying to choose between law school, public policy, or diplomacy/international commerce. Any advice?

 

I'm looking at you, Carlito Brigante.

 

I don't know shit about the other two degrees, but the world doesn't need more lawyers, so go with one of them.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Actually, mik, the other two are shorter than 3 years and would give me a pretty decent shot at employment, although I may not make as much as I would as a lawyer.

 

P.S. I already have one MA, but it's in Education, so it's pretty much useless unless I want to stay in teaching.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Which one of the three would have you doing the least amount of harm to society?

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

I think I could screw things up pretty good with all three.

 

I could be an ACLU lawyer.

 

Or some government bureaucrat who makes you get socialized medicine.

 

Or maybe some State Dept. diplomat in the Obama administration who insists on talking to the brown folks in furn countries rather than bombing them all.

 

Pick your poison.

[Mik 0]

Well as long as you're not talking a 5 year PhD, then I guess any option is fine.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Or maybe some State Dept. diplomat in the Obama administration who insists on talking to the brown folks in furn countries rather than bombing them all.

 

I'd have to go with this. After all, you'd also be outsourcing your lunacy to other countries. And then when the brown people launch an attack on our land after getting the time to plan thanks to your "diplomacy," the people I usually vote for will be back in office until they double the size of government (yet again).

 

Of course, I'm sure you'd be all about bombing the white folks in furn countries that have a problem with Muslims overrunning their sovereignty.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Don't waste your time with grad school unless you can't get a decent job without it. MA programs, as much as I loved mine, are cash cows for universities and don't give you much more than the chance to get in the door for an interview. I would think harder about jobs before returning to the loving bosom of grad school, where you will learn almost nothing, dislike it most of the time, and realize 6 months in that you wish it were over.

 

That goes doubly true for law school. Anyone I've ever known who's gone to law school without really liking law has come out hating it and the fact that they now have to be a lawyer to pay back their loans.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

I got accepted to law school.

[Dandy 0]

Congrats. Where will you be going? I have a friend that is thinking of going to a law school north of Lexington, but I don't remember the name of the school. It wouldn't be Northern Kentucky, would it?

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

That school in Northern KY is called Chase. I got accepted to UK in Lexington. That's the only one I applied to since my wife has a good job in Lexington that she likes.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

You know, and I was thinking just the other day how this world needs more lawyers.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

I got into the other two programs, too. I don't know what the hell I'm gonna do.

[Guest Tzar Lysergic]

Flip a coin.

[Dandy 0]

What is your dilemma, Smitty?

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Does other two programs mean "two more law schools," or did you apply to different stripes of graduate programs in the end, too?

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Law school, public policy, or diplomacy/international commerce. Or some combination thereof (I can get a joint law/public policy degree or a joint law/diplomacy degree).

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

If I did the diplomacy/international commerce thing, I would almost certainly have to move to DC.

[Scarlett_Rayne 0]

If I did the diplomacy/international commerce thing, I would almost certainly have to move to DC.

 

 

Or along the borders... Congrats on law school admission though. I'm looking at that same route myself in a few years. I just need to get myself financially back on track first or get one hell of a scholarship, then I'll be good to go. How are you financing it?

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

So, I'm doing a joint MA/JD program--law mixed in with a little diplomacy & international commerce.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

How are you financing it?

 

I am currently a high school teacher, so I thought I'd start selling pot to my students. Then once I become a lawyer I would be able to defend myself in the criminal case.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Or maybe loans with an academic scholarship. I've also heard that if you do well in law school (like top 10-15% of your class) you can pretty much pay for tuition with the money you make during the summer for big firms.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Or maybe loans with an academic scholarship. I've also heard that if you do well in law school (like top 10-15% of your class) you can pretty much pay for tuition with the money you make during the summer for big firms.

Sorta kinda. What I've picked up from my various law school buddies: I believe weekly salary for a summer associate in urban centers is around $2100 now. Maybe a little higher. Most summer positions are 12 weeks, so that's $25k before taxes. Unfortunately, even being in the top 10-15% of your class doesn't guarantee you'll get a summer position after 1L year. Most people can get them after 2L year. You obviously have to pay for where you live then too. Seems that summer positions can pay a portion of your tuition, but probably not a majority of it.

 

My roommate went to William & Mary law for a year, and they gave him a scholarship that paid a good chunk of his tuition. Maybe half of it? 2nd and 3rd tier schools may throw some money at you if you're a very strong candidate. Now he goes to George Mason and gets an in-state tuition break.

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

UK Law is "1st tier", but it's pretty cheap, so even if I have to take out loans, they will be manageable.

 

Also, I might not even go to law school. My first year will be in the diplomacy/intl commerce program and if, when I finish that, I decide I just want to get that degree and get a job, I can skip law school and only be out a $100 deposit.