OT: UConn Law School

[jojipoji]

Not trying to argue with you but like I had said above unless you’re dead set with becoming a lawyer there are less stressful ways to make $. I have friends that also don’t work many hours in finance and make insane amounts of money. I went to law school, worked for a firm and hated every minute of it. The redundancy, constant pressure of billable hours and anxiety that you might have missed something is not a pleasant experience. I am a currently a small business owner that works 10 hours a week and make decently into 6 figures. Unlike you I love what I do (even though it’s only a couple hours a day). FYI, Your situation is not the typical attorney situation.

Psolo -
I lived with the uncertainty that you are now experiencing, and I feel your anxiety. Ignore the posters above - they are trying to be funny or something and they don't mean harm.

I was wait listed at UConn Law many years ago. I was qualified to get in. Very high LSAT score, graduate degree pre-law school. I was wait listed in part because I applied late.

I kept calling, and every time I got, "you'll be notified if you are taken off the wait list." I put up with that about 4 times, and then it was August, and finally, I asked, "has anybody been taken off the wait list?" She said, "yes." I thought, "wait, I've gotta be high on the wait list . . . ." I then told the secretary/call screener, "I would like an in-person conference with Dean _____," who was the dean of admissions at the time. She said, "she's too busy." I said, "I'm coming in tomorrow at 8 am when you open. I'll bring work and things to do (pre-internet, so not easy!!). I said, "if she has 5 minutes, I would like to talk to her. If she can't see me, I understand, but i'm going to be there every day until the last spot is taken." She was exasperated, but said, "whatever."

10 minutes later the phone rang, and it was the dean. She said I was in, come sign the papers.

I'm not sure if that's helpful or not, dude, but it worked for me. Persistent, without being an . Squeaky wheel got the grease. First time in my life I was that proactive.

Regarding being a lawyer, I don't love it. But it pays reeeeaaaly well, and I work for myself, and I work when I want, and I charge what I want, and I punt clients when I want. I love my lifestyle. I put in about 5 years at the mega-firm sweat shops, to cut my teeth, and now I work part time, make plenty of money, and have a large % of the day to do whatever I want. Lot to be said for that.

If you want more, PM me.

Truth is, the 3 years I spent at UConn Law were 3 of the best years of my life. I loved getting that education, and the cost was ridiculously low. Money and time invested versus lifetime earning potential was a massive PLUS. Can't stress that enough.

Regarding some uninformed posts, above, ignore them. You'll make plenty of money as a lawyer. If you bust your ass and do well in school, you'll get in a big enough firm, if that's what you want. If you're a self-started and you can teach yourself, and you're a good dude and charismatic, people will beat a path to your door.


But I love my lifestyle, and I would never trade it to work some 9-5 job in a cube farm or working in an office somewhere.

Good luck dude. Don't give up on it. If you want to be a lawyer, it really doesn't matter too much where you go to law school unless you are trying to get into an AmLaw 50 firm. Several judges in my jurisdiction went to sub 200 law schools.

Get your degree, work hard, call clients back when they call you, treat them with respect, have clear billing practices, do your job well, and you will ALWAYS have a good source of income.

Peace.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Agreed. They need to explain that better about regional recruiting.

But if you aren’t sure you want to be a lawyer I don’t recommend law school

Totally agree. As long as we don't define "lawyer" narrowly. I certainly did not know if I wanted to be a "lawyer" in the traditional law firm sense. And it turns out, I didn't. That was fine. There are tons of in-house jobs. It is a bit of a gamble, unless you are an engineer or chemist and want to become a patent lawyer. That's solid gold.

OP said he was "pre-law", which I assume is a major that shouldn't exist. It probably won't matter in law school and doesn't help you much if you don't go. Oddly enough, I found my Finance major was ideal. There is quite a bit of accounting understanding necessary in law school. Contracts, UCC2, UCC9, Tax even environmental law require some math/finance knowledge. Poli Sci is useless. English Lit would be decent, especially with Accounting 101 as an elective.

 

[the Q]

Totally agree. As long as we don't define "lawyer" narrowly. I certainly did not know if I wanted to be a "lawyer" in the traditional law firm sense. And it turns out, I didn't. That was fine. There are tons of in-house jobs. It is a bit of a gamble, unless you are an engineer or chemist and want to become a patent lawyer. That's solid gold.

OP said he was "pre-law", which I assume is a major that shouldn't exist. It probably won't matter in law school and doesn't help you much if you don't go. Oddly enough, I found my Finance major was ideal. There is quite a bit of accounting understanding necessary in law school. Contracts, UCC2, UCC9, Tax even environmental law require some math/finance knowledge. Poli Sci is useless. English Lit would be decent, especially with Accounting 101 as an elective.

But you normally have to be outside before you become in-house, no?

 

[HuskyHawk]

But you normally have to be outside before you become in-house, no?

My department hired one straight from law school about a year ago. The patent team did as well (he clerked with us in the summer). But yeah, I'd say that normally you start outside.

 

[Mike75]

Some good advice here.

Did you apply to the evening division? If not, see if you can. Its easier to get into and after 1L people move back and forth between the day and evening divisions.

I'll echo the sentiment that you really need to ask yourself if you want to be a lawyer and understand what it (and law school) entails. There were a sizable amount of people in my class who were there simply because they didn't know what they wanted to do and figured they could hang out in law school for three years and figure it out. You don't want to be one of these people. They tended not to do well academically (its not like undergrad, its a grind) and as a result tended to be unhappy with their job prospects.

After 1L, take the classes that interest you. You will be told to take certain classes because "they're on the bar." Don't heed that advice. You can learn enough about trust and estates during bar exam prep to pass.

Regional hiring is a thing. I remember being told that most law grads end up working within a 100 mile radius of their school. And its true. If you don't want to stay in the northeast, I would look elsewhere.

Outside of attending an elite law school, all things being equal, public beats private.

 

[UConnNick]

IDK if it would work with UCONN Law, but some schools accept a certain number of students, and then there's a little drop off between acceptances and enrollment. I was wait listed for a grand total of one day. I contacted the Dean's office right after the start of the semester and sure enough, there were a few folks that didn't show up. I met with the Dean the next day and he told me to register. They do look at the numbers, and want to fill out each class to capacity at most law schools.

 

[the Q]

Some good advice here.

Did you apply to the evening division? If not, see if you can. Its easier to get into and after 1L people move back and forth between the day and evening divisions.

I'll echo the sentiment that you really need to ask yourself if you want to be a lawyer and understand what it (and law school) entails. There were a sizable amount of people in my class who were there simply because they didn't know what they wanted to do and figured they could hang out in law school for three years and figure it out. You don't want to be one of these people. They tended not to do well academically (its not like undergrad, its a grind) and as a result tended to be unhappy with their job prospects.

After 1L, take the classes that interest you. You will be told to take certain classes because "they're on the bar." Don't heed that advice. You can learn enough about trust and estates during bar exam prep to pass.

Regional hiring is a thing. I remember being told that most law grads end up working within a 100 mile radius of their school. And its true. If you don't want to stay in the northeast, I would look elsewhere.

Outside of attending an elite law school, all things being equal, public beats private.

This is all the OP needs to read.

End the thread now.

 

[401husk]

Either go H, Y, another T14 orrrr the cheapest available option. Outside T14 it's all about who you know

 

[Psolo12]

Thanks everyone for all the advice. I did not apply to the evening division but I will definitely look into it now. I applied to the University of Richmond, George Mason, and UConn law and got wait listed at all 3, lol. I without a doubt want to attend law school and have interned with some courts to help gain law experience, which I thought would be helpful in applying. I applied to only top 50 law schools, but I guess I will have to start applying to some lower level schools. Thank everyone again for the advice, I will take it all in and hopefully keep working to get off one of the waitlists!

 

[the Q]

I don’t know why applicants looks down on evening division.

You can backdoor your way into day with a great gpa with the different competition.

When I was a tough UConn law at lot of the evening transfers ended up with top jobs, much to the dismay of many of the day students who suddenly fell behind them In class rank.

 

[J187Money]

Unless you’re dead set on becoming a lawyer there are many more easier ways to make significant $. I read somewhere that law has highest percentage of people that got their degrees and stopped practicing after 10 years and also one of the highest rates of alcoholism. I speak from experience.

Also if you don’t get into a top tier school, it becomes infinitely harder to get a higher paying large firm job.

Experience as a lawyer or an alcoholic? Or both?

 

[J187Money]

Not trying to argue with you but like I had said above unless you’re dead set with becoming a lawyer there are less stressful ways to make $. I have friends that also don’t work many hours in finance and make insane amounts of money. I went to law school, worked for a firm and hated every minute of it. The redundancy, constant pressure of billable hours and anxiety that you might have missed something is not a pleasant experience. I am a currently a small business owner that works 10 hours a week and make decently into 6 figures. Unlike you I love what I do (even though it’s only a couple hours a day). FYI, Your situation is not the typical attorney situation.

Fair points - all professions have ups/downs. If you have to work for your money - there are always trade-offs. I do well, and have always worked corporate jobs in finance - but I also don't have a lot of control over my own schedule. I get paid enough to deal with that, but sometimes it wears you down.

 

[nomar]

Psolo -
I lived with the uncertainty that you are now experiencing, and I feel your anxiety. Ignore the posters above - they are trying to be funny or something and they don't mean harm.

I was wait listed at UConn Law many years ago. I was qualified to get in. Very high LSAT score, graduate degree pre-law school. I was wait listed in part because I applied late.

I kept calling, and every time I got, "you'll be notified if you are taken off the wait list." I put up with that about 4 times, and then it was August, and finally, I asked, "has anybody been taken off the wait list?" She said, "yes." I thought, "wait, I've gotta be high on the wait list . . . ." I then told the secretary/call screener, "I would like an in-person conference with Dean _____," who was the dean of admissions at the time. She said, "she's too busy." I said, "I'm coming in tomorrow at 8 am when you open. I'll bring work and things to do (pre-internet, so not easy!!). I said, "if she has 5 minutes, I would like to talk to her. If she can't see me, I understand, but i'm going to be there every day until the last spot is taken." She was exasperated, but said, "whatever."

10 minutes later the phone rang, and it was the dean. She said I was in, come sign the papers.

I'm not sure if that's helpful or not, dude, but it worked for me. Persistent, without being an . Squeaky wheel got the grease. First time in my life I was that proactive.

Regarding being a lawyer, I don't love it. But it pays reeeeaaaly well, and I work for myself, and I work when I want, and I charge what I want, and I punt clients when I want. I love my lifestyle. I put in about 5 years at the mega-firm sweat shops, to cut my teeth, and now I work part time, make plenty of money, and have a large % of the day to do whatever I want. Lot to be said for that.

If you want more, PM me.

Truth is, the 3 years I spent at UConn Law were 3 of the best years of my life. I loved getting that education, and the cost was ridiculously low. Money and time invested versus lifetime earning potential was a massive PLUS. Can't stress that enough.

Regarding some uninformed posts, above, ignore them. You'll make plenty of money as a lawyer. If you bust your ass and do well in school, you'll get in a big enough firm, if that's what you want. If you're a self-started and you can teach yourself, and you're a good dude and charismatic, people will beat a path to your door.


But I love my lifestyle, and I would never trade it to work some 9-5 job in a cube farm or working in an office somewhere.

Good luck dude. Don't give up on it. If you want to be a lawyer, it really doesn't matter too much where you go to law school unless you are trying to get into an AmLaw 50 firm. Several judges in my jurisdiction went to sub 200 law schools.

Get your degree, work hard, call clients back when they call you, treat them with respect, have clear billing practices, do your job well, and you will ALWAYS have a good source of income.

Peace.

Some good advice here, but don't pay $200k to go to a law school outside the top 20 unless you're SURE you're going to finish at the top of your class.

 

[nomar]

Thanks everyone for all the advice. I did not apply to the evening division but I will definitely look into it now. I applied to the University of Richmond, George Mason, and UConn law and got wait listed at all 3, lol. I without a doubt want to attend law school and have interned with some courts to help gain law experience, which I thought would be helpful in applying. I applied to only top 50 law schools, but I guess I will have to start applying to some lower level schools. Thank everyone again for the advice, I will take it all in and hopefully keep working to get off one of the waitlists!

 

[UConnNick]

Experience as a lawyer or an alcoholic? Or both?

I was an alcoholic LONG before I attended law school. UCONN offers an excellent training program in that field, which I took full advantage of.

 

[Walker11]

Not trying to argue with you but like I had said above unless you’re dead set with becoming a lawyer there are less stressful ways to make $. I have friends that also don’t work many hours in finance and make insane amounts of money. I went to law school, worked for a firm and hated every minute of it. The redundancy, constant pressure of billable hours and anxiety that you might have missed something is not a pleasant experience. I am a currently a small business owner that works 10 hours a week and make decently into 6 figures. Unlike you I love what I do (even though it’s only a couple hours a day). FYI, Your situation is not the typical attorney situation.

Any advice for making 6 figures working 10 hours a week?

 

[8893]

Any advice for making 6 figures working 10 hours a week?

Tiny classified ads.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Any advice for making 6 figures working 10 hours a week?

Have a lot of money to start with. Invest it in an income generating business that requires almost no oversight (automated car wash?).

 

[the Q]

Have a lot of money to start with. Invest it in an income generating business that requires almost no oversight (automated car wash?).

If you have enough cash, dividend stocks alone can do that.

 

[Walker11]

Have a lot of money to start with. Invest it in an income generating business that requires almost no oversight (automated car wash?).

Well then how do I cook good meth?

 

[alphasigko]

Totally agree. As long as we don't define "lawyer" narrowly. I certainly did not know if I wanted to be a "lawyer" in the traditional law firm sense. And it turns out, I didn't. That was fine. There are tons of in-house jobs. It is a bit of a gamble, unless you are an engineer or chemist and want to become a patent lawyer. That's solid gold.

OP said he was "pre-law", which I assume is a major that shouldn't exist. It probably won't matter in law school and doesn't help you much if you don't go. Oddly enough, I found my Finance major was ideal. There is quite a bit of accounting understanding necessary in law school. Contracts, UCC2, UCC9, Tax even environmental law require some math/finance knowledge. Poli Sci is useless. English Lit would be decent, especially with Accounting 101 as an elective.

To quote Otter: "Pre-med, Pre-Law, it's all the same!"

 

[uconnphil2016]

Have a lot of money to start with. Invest it in an income generating business that requires almost no oversight (automated car wash?).

Know a dude who does this. I think it’s a pretty mob friendly business lol

 

[NJHusky]

Some good advice here, but don't pay $200k to go to a law school outside the top 20 unless you're SURE you're going to finish at the top of your class.

This is the best advice in this thread IMO...if you want to work for a big firm.

 

[the Q]

This is the best advice in this thread IMO...if you want to work for a big firm.

It’s funny how many people claim at orientation that they want to work in public interest....and then they see their bill and magically big law becomes the option for them.

 

[Waquoit]

OP: I’ve applied to law school....

Boneyard advice columnist: Become a plumber.

In New Haven