DDS JD?

[KZakhary]

Hi there,

I'm currently a second-year dental student out in California, but as time progresses in school, I keep coming to the harsh realization that being a General Dentist is not what I want to do with my life. I've taken a good hard look at my options, and have discussed the prospect of Law School with several people in the field, and have decided to pursue a career in either malpractice, corporate, or real estate law, essentially earning a dual-doctorate degree (DDS + JD). I'll be graduating in 2011, and hope, if all goes well to roll into Law School without any down time. My question is: will having a professional degree (i.e. Doctor of Dental Surgery) be to my advantage in getting into a T1 or maybe T2 school, and if so, is there a different process I must go through? I graduated from a UC school w/ a 3.4 cumulative BS in Biological Science - Medical Biology and a Minor in Economics, with my Economics Minor GPA being close to 3.9. I haven't taken the LSAT yet, and I'll be 24 when I graduate from Dental School. What should be my next step, and realistically, what kind of scores should I be getting? I don't think it'll be worth going to law school if I cant get into a T1 or at the very least a T2 school, so I feel I have to go through this process with as much care as possible. Any other information would be greatly appreciated.

Schools of interest: (in no particular order):
Yale
Columbia
Stanford
UPenn
UCLA
USC
UCDavis

Thanks for the responses,
- KZakhary

[KZakhary]

Actually, I'm not entirely sure Brown has a law school, I just heard about an affiliate school they had, of which I currently have little information. I'm actually leaning towards Columbia, but that's only because Ive done the most research there. However, their focus seems to be on law involving copyrights and patents, and other intellectual property; a division of law I have no interest in. Concerning the accrued debt, I will have a very hefty sum to repay, but the personal value the DDS holds to me justifies the cost.

Thank you,
KZ

[Ninja1]

To settle the easy point first, Brown and Dartmouth don't have law schools.

Anyway, just a heads up, but I have heard of people with MDs having a hard time getting into law school just because of their professional degree. Sort of a "you made your professional degree bed, now lay in it" thing. I haven't heard anything one way or the other about folks with a DDS though.

So why law, besides not having to deal with screwed up teeth for a living?

[KZakhary]

First of all, I'd like to thank you for the clarification on Brown and Dartmouth.

In terms of "lying in my professional bed," being interested in mal-practice law should play in my favor, as it is arguable that a good attorney is well acquainted with both sides of the law, i.e. both the medical and legal fields. Also, I'm sure many schools will take into consideration the fact that I'm turning down my family's largely successful dental practices for this opportunity.

To address your question about the seemingly sudden shift in careers, it's a long story, but just know that I'm one of the youngest dental students in Southern California, so I have PLENTY of time to chase after dual degrees.