Avoid Tier 3/4, and 5 Law Schools- End of a Golden Era!

[booya]

that is the problem we keep bringing up new and alternative options! We want to distort reality in our minds to make it seem its fine, and I will not be like that guy who went to a school no one knows about and owes well over 100K in debt wihtout a job in sight! If you go to an unrecognized law school, it's real tough to find your nitch, and if it were free then go for it, education is always a plus, BUT, this is not Denmark even public universities cost money here! I honestly just got fired from my bartending job(I also have a masters, LAME) that I hated, but the money was alright, I was making about 1,000 a week, sounds great lets plug in the numbers! 1,000 a week is four thousand a month and about fifty thousand a year! Now you went to Tier3/4LawSchool and like 90% of your class did not make the top 10%, and you graduate with plus or minus a few dollars with $150,000 in debt. Students are F**K*D in the way that their student loan interest rates are higher then like homes, auto, and even credit cards! So 150,000 times .07 equals 10,500 thousand dollars in interest alone per year.  You are paying $10,500 a year alone in the first year(the next year will not be much less), but to actually put a dent in your loan you will have to double or triple the interest, so we will say about 25,000 a year to be safe! You will be paying 25,000 in net liquid cash to the banks who loaned you the money and are most likely laughing at your foolish decision! The term is called getting bamboozled, that means you were the sucker who fell for the bad deal! Let's say you attend Florida Coastal and according to their numbers 97% work within six months and starting salary is about 48,500(this is number is less trust me, every law school lies about this *&^%)! Cool you are making 48,500 a year, now let's pay bills:
Salary:      $48,500(don't forget this number is gross not net)
Rent:        $800
Food:        $300
Car/Ins      $400
Int/Cable    $50
Cell         $75
CreditC      $150
Misc/Ent/Vac $0 You cannot afford it for a few years!
StudentLOANS $2,100

Total Bills: $3875 net not gross
Monthly salary: $4,000(gross not net)
I think after paying taxes from your salary you are in the negative!

You might have to get rid of cable, cell phone, and/or move in with your parents or find a roommate like a sophomore in undergrad at the local university, remember the kegstands! You will be 32 doing them kegstands with your 21 year old roommate who has the ability to get hammared on a nightly basis! I guess there is one plus you know he will always have some hotties there who just turned 21 and down to party! OR you can live with your girlfriend who is a nurse and went to school with job security from day one!

This country lacks the safeguards to protect the students from setting themselves up for failure, and it's unfortunate that educational facilities jump on the occasion to profit on students who want to pay for an honest education, but are deceived by reality upon graduation! 

[Thistle]

see http://www.projectonstudentdebt.org/july1-2009.vp.html

[AynRand]

So 150,000 times .07 equals 10,500 thousand dollars in interest alone per year.  You are paying $10,500 a year alone in the first year(the next year will not be much less), but to actually put a dent in your loan you will have to double or triple the interest, so we will say about 25,000 a year to be safe! You will be paying 25,000 in net liquid cash to the banks who loaned you the money and are most likely laughing at your foolish decision!

^That's not how loan repayment works, unless you somehow got an interest-only loan (which I believe subsidized student loans are until graduation). The monthly payment is more than (Int. rate)(Principal Amt)/12. Principal deduction is added into every payment, and as you get closer to the end of your term, the less each payment goes to interest, and the more it goes to paying down to your principal.

I'm not, however, commenting on whether or not going to a lower-tiered school is in fact a good value...just providing some more information about how loans work.

[merde]

HUH?

[cpierce11]

Your numbers are not accurate. Also you are not taking in to account many law graduates will be in relationships or marriage by the time they graduate. Like most couples today both people work. So the numbers you portray are not accurate because lots of times you have two people working off one debt.

[nealric]

I think most people, save for the delusional (which I believe to be a minority) understand that a T3/4/5 law school is no surefire road to riches. But some of them are willing to take the risk and go anyways.

Frankly, the big issue is that there are no hard facts and figures about employment (both short and long term) from these schools. Most people are flying blind, even if they understand there are risks. I do think it's a bit patronizing to go and add up living expenses and loan repayment numbers. Anybody capable of getting into any law school is perfectly capable of putting together a budget.

[big - fat - box]

In my experience, attending a tier 2/3 and a t14, I'd say most students don't really know what they are getting into.

At the tier 2/3/4 schools, a lot of students think they're on the fast track to a comfortable upper middle class lifestyle because "everyone knows" lawyers make good money. Certainly, none of them expect to make $30-50K, which is what a lot of small law firms pay. They also think that a law degree entitles them to something and gives them some kind of edge in non-legal employment over MBAs and such. A lot of them remain delusional about job prospects even up until after they take the bar exam. Reality doesn't really hit until they start looking for post-grad work and find out what the jobs available to them really pay. (if there are jobs available to them)

At the t14, a lot of students are delusional about what it's like to work at a big firm. Many have a hotshot attitude and think they'll make partner and will take on a lot of responsibility for big cases or deals very early on. The public interest/govt people all seem to think they'll end up at a place like the DOJ, EPA, or Amnesty International after graduation.

[big - fat - box]

For couples that only have one set of student loans, great. I don't have any hard stats on this, but I think if you talk to a lot of couples where both partners are young professionals, you'll find that they BOTH have student loan debt. In many cases both partners will have hefty student loan debt. Reason being that most professional careers require a grad degree of some sort and most grad degrees involve going into at least SOME debt.

Your numbers are not accurate. Also you are not taking in to account many law graduates will be in relationships or marriage by the time they graduate. Like most couples today both people work. So the numbers you portray are not accurate because lots of times you have two people working off one debt.

[nealric]

At the t14, a lot of students are delusional about what it's like to work at a big firm. Many have a hotshot attitude and think they'll make partner and will take on a lot of responsibility for big cases or deals very early on.

I've never met anyone with that attitude here. Everyone I have talked understands that you start out with grunt work and have a slim chance of making partner.
There are a few delusional PI types, but pretty much all of the ones I have met understand that they will probably not be working for the ACLU right out of law school. Most of the people I know applying to the DOJ have a pretty decent shot at it.

There were, of course, people whose hopes and expectations were dashed by ITE. But I think that's a bit different situation.

[Contract2008]

What are the alternative choices for these history/political science majors who are not in demand at all in today's job market?