Hi everyone,
I know it has been a really, really, inexcusably long time since I have blogged. And I am sure that I have lost most of my links or readers. But I want to check in with a little update in case anyone still looks because the scam-busting movement is just as important to me as ever, if only from the sidelines.
Graduation came and went with little fanfare on my part. I told my family not to bother making the trek because I don't feel there is really anything to celebrate about graduating with a ton of debt, no job and a group of friends in the exact same situation. None of my close friends from law school have jobs yet, and only a few of my acquaintances do. I will say that if I feel good about anything, it's the fact that I will never be in a classroom again and no one will ever get another tuition dollar from me. That said, graduation also marked my official transition from depressed law student to completely unemployed law graduate. Yes, I am unemployed for the first time in my life since I was fourteen, which is pretty demoralizing even if it has only been a few weeks.
A few things going on in my personal life convinced me to put off taking the bar until February. I have been looking for non-legal jobs and if I find one I like I might not take the bar at all. Or even if I find one I don't like. Who knows? At this point what I really need is a paycheck; I don't want to mooch off of my fiance forever.
I literally have nothing but time right now, so maybe I will take this opportunity to post more often. So many of the really important scambloggers have done a great job advocating for various types of reform, and I think they will be better advocates for such things than I will. They are more eloquent and, frankly, more creative. But perhaps I can turn this into a job-search journal. I have been applying for non-legal jobs for three weeks now. In that time I have had two interviews. (Two and a half if you count a phone interview that lasted about a minute.) Perhaps I will post more about those later, but the real take-away from all three is what I (along with many others) have been saying all along. A law degree is NOT an asset in any field but law. The law degree scares people away. A position that you are fully qualified for and could perform well in will be out of reach because the employer will be scared that you will leave for a "$100,000 law job."
Plenty of people go to law school not knowing what the practice of law entails, and therefore not knowing that they might not like it. That is bad enough, but what really pains me is to hear about people who plan on getting a law degree *knowing* that they have no desire to practice, thinking that they can "do anything" with a law degree. The employers I spoke with beg to differ.
I will be checking in with some job market updates as I get them. Once again, I am sorry for the months with no updates, but I can tell from reading the scam blogs that the movement has not suffered! The truth has a way of getting out eventually, and it feels good to know that I have played even a tiny part.
From former Biglaw associate and current psychotherapist Will Meyerhofer:
ReplyDeletehttp://thepeoplestherapist.com/2011/05/04/someone-likes-a-quitter/
"Does this mean I’m seriously advising young law students all over the country to give up and drop out – simply abandon their legal education mid-way through?
Yes.
I am prescribing a mass exodus from law schools. A semi-mass exodus might do the trick.
Tune in. Turn on. Drop out.
If you don’t know why you’re there – and you’re not sure what you’re getting yourself into – if you’re not at a top school, or even if you are, and your grades are a little iffy, and likely to stay that way – then please, get out. Today. Before you spend another cent.
The legal education scam works because it follows two key rules of all successful Ponzi schemes:
First, it plays to your greed. You dig your own hole because you’re in it for the money.
Second, it keeps you distracted. You never realize you’re getting fleeced."
http://thepeoplestherapist.com/2010/11/03/extremely-versatile-crockery/
Back in November 2010, Meyehofer also showed CONCLUSIVELY that a law degree is not versatile. In fact, non-legal employers are hostile to attorneys applying for such jobs.
Thank you for the update, I wish you luck on your job-finding quest.
ReplyDeleteMy 2 cents: If you have any doubt whatsoever about going the non-legal route, then plan on taking the bar exam and passing it in Feb 2012. If you are not going to practice then yes focus on non legal postings that have career potential.
ReplyDeleteAs I told JD PainterGuy: MOVE TO AUSTRALIA. They won't hunt you there because it's too far away.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your future endevours.
Of all the scamblogs, this is my favorite.
ReplyDeleteIn undergrad I've heard so much about "the diversity of a J.D." or from well meaning people who went to law school in the 70s (when you could actually work your way through it) who told me "hey, I got it, and I ended up doing something totally different." Your posts really give a realistic impression of what it's actually like out there, and helped me dodge the poisonous debt of law school. Good luck with everything.
@5:30AM -- Thanks so much... It is so rewarding to hear that my posts had an impact and that I was able to help persuade someone to avoid throwing their money away.
ReplyDelete