Law school only for elites??

[lsatlsat]

From the many post i've read on this site is seems most people feel if you aren't going to any ivy league school or highly ranked school, then you shouldn't go to law school.

This is very disappointing. There is the option to get an mba if you want to go to b-school yet i see the same attitude.

What does someone who wants to be a lawyer but can't get into those highly ranked schools do? Just go manage Chick -fil- a..

[reez]

If you just want to be a lawyer, most any school will do.  There's an emphasis placed on the top schools because they feed into the big (high-paying) firms; if you don't want to do that, and are comfortable paying off student loans on a much lower salary, then you really don't need to worry about the bias toward top schools.

[lsatlsat]

I guess my main concern is the way the economy is right now and im sure it will get better i worry that i will get overlooked in the job market based on going to an average school. I have confidence in myself so i will let this worry go and try to prepare and plan better. I have some contacts so i will utilize the best way i can.

Any other ideas or advice is greatly appreciated.

[reez]

Define "average school."  If you're talking about Tier 3/4 (which is below average, but whatever), that's when you need to be worried about getting "overlooked in the job market" entirely.

[xxspykex]

Define "average school."  If you're talking about anything below t14 ITE, that's when you need to be worried about getting "overlooked in the job market" entirely.

FTFY.

[reez]

Define "average school."  If you're talking about anything below t14 ITE, that's when you need to be worried about getting "overlooked in the job market" entirely.

FTFY.

I mean, fair enough.  But if he really only wants shitlaw, most of T1 should be okay.

Edited to add: Again, you have to reallllly want to be a lawyer to justify resigning yourself to huge debt and a crappy salary.  If that doesn't sound like a good time, then yes, you shouldn't go to a school outside of the top 10 or so.

[just some guy]

Define "average school."  If you're talking about anything below t14 ITE, that's when you need to be worried about getting "overlooked in the job market" entirely.

FTFY.

I mean, fair enough.  But if he really only wants shitlaw, most of T1 should be okay.

What happened to your post count?

[reez]

No idea.  I think it got too low.

[NYCFed]

No idea.  I think it got too low.

Name:   reez
Posts:   I am a geek!! (21902.369 per day)

Awesome.

[jaggedd1]

I think now a days, not much emphases is put on where one went to law school but more so on the way one sells him or herself to an potential employer.  I have a friend who went to an online law school and landed a job in a small firm three weeks after she passed the state bar.  I asked her how did she do it and she said, "during the interview, I focused on selling what I could do for the firm more so than talking about the law school I graduated from."  She turned out to be a very good advocate and legal counsel.

I see my peers who graduated from law schools at much lower tiers than mines still land good jobs in the legal field.  It's about presentation and how you present and sell yourself to your possible employer and not so much the law school you graduated from.