Should You Go to Law School?

When you think of becoming a lawyer you might think of something like the show “Suits” or the show “Forensic Files” but do you really know what it is like to be a lawyer? Let’s first start off by talking about how to even become one in the first place. It is a grueling process. It all starts by getting good grades in high school and trying to get a good GPA and SAT/ACT score to get into college. Once you’ve been accepted into college, congrats you have completed the first step. Now comes step two which is navigating through undergrad. This requires lots and lots of studying and some late nights all while living off of loans and being broke as a joke. After doing this and keeping a high GPA, it is now time to take the dreaded LSAT. This is an exam that requires approximately 2-3 months of studying but the more the better. After taking the exam, you receive your score, and it is good enough to get you into law school. Now comes the application process. Now you need to obtain three letters of recommendation from your professors, as well as type up a good personal statement. Now that you have completed the application you must submit and wait for responses. Congrats! You’ve been accepted into law school and have made your decision! Step 2 is complete. Now comes the challenging part, getting through law school and passing the bar exam. This requires living off ramen noodles for three more years all while incurring debt and getting very little sleep. But finally, after all of that you have graduated from law school and passed the bar and now able to make good money as an attorney. It only took 7 years of post-secondary education and $200,000 but it was all worth it for the salary and prestige of being a lawyer.

Now this all sounds like a lot which it is but this post is not meant to scare you but to inform you of the path ahead. I write these blogs to educate you and guide you on the process of becoming a lawyer. As awesome as it is to become a lawyer there are some questions you need to ask yourself before going to law school. The main question is do I want to be a lawyer, and if so why? Many people go into law for the wrong reasons. If you are going into law for money there are so many easier ways to make lots of money as it takes years and years to become a lawyer and often involves lots of stress. Some might go into law for the prestige. People like that tend to not last long in this field because of the stress that occurs. Some might go because they were told they are good at arguing. Just cause you are good at arguing does not mean that you will be a successful lawyer. I just gave you some bad reasons for going to law school but what are some good reasons? Some good reasons to go to law school is that you love the law. If you love the law and are passionate about justice, then law school might be for you. Another good reason to go to law school is because you love to read and write. Law school and the lawyer profession require lots of writing and reading so if you can tolerate that then you can make it through law school. Lastly, if you enjoy learning this might be another reason to go to law school as you will be learning a lot in law school.

In conclusion, there are many reasons to go and not to go to law school. This blog piece was written so that people will consider other options before going to law school and to look at the pros and cons of law school. If you have read this article and this post describes you then law school might be a good fit. If not, there are other careers out there for you to try.

How to Conquer the LSAT

The time is finally here. You’ve gotten into college, studied hard. kept your GPA up and made relationships with your professors. Now comes the most dreaded part of the process: the LSAT. This is a 3 1/2-hour long test that is administered year-round about 4 days a month. It is a test that must be taken in order to get into law school. Not only that but it can make or break weather you get in. If you have a bad GPA you can make up for it with a really good LSAT score. On the flip side a bad LSAT score could keep you from getting into law school despite a good GPA. It also helps with scholarships. This test could be the difference of getting a full ride and have to take on a crazy amount of debt. The good thing is that you can take it up to 7 times. The other good news is that many people have conquered this test including myself and you can too with the right study plan and habits.

The first question people might ask is when the best time is to take LSAT is. While there isn’t a certain time that is necessary most people take the LSAT the fall of their final year of undergrad. If you are taking a gap year, then you can do it sometime during that time. Another thing to take into consideration is how many times you might take you to get the score that you want. For this reason, it might make sense to take the LSAT as early as possible. For example, taking the LSAT in August would allow for you to take it again in October in case you didn’t do as good the first time. This will allow you to improve your score while it still being early in the application cycle.

The next question people ask are how much time you need to study for this exam. The recommendation for studying for the LSAT is 250-300 hours over a 3–4-month period. Now this is just the recommendation, but there is no harm in studying for more than that. The more studying the better. There are many ways to go about studying the LSAT. There are many free sources online such as Khan Academy and LSAT Demon and you can watch YouTube videos on how to answer the LSAT questions. If you are able to spend money getting a tutor is a good idea as they will give you that one-on-one interaction. I offer one-on-one tutoring for as low as $115 an hour and would love to help you. I am also developing an interactive course that will help you get to where you need to be and get your dream score.

The last thing that I would like to mention is how to be mentally prepared for the test. This part is very critical as this could make or break your score. Many people including myself studied really hard but was not necessarily prepared mentally. To prepare for the test it is important that you refine your test taking skills. It is also important to note that you are on a time limit of 35 minutes a section so learning how to manage time is also a key skill for this exam. It is also possible to get accommodations like extended time or being able to move around during the exam. In order to do this, you must have a written note from your doctor that proves that you are in need of the accommodations. This could include things such as ADHD, and dyslexia. Take advantage of these things if you can and they won’t affect the way that law schools look at your score. Another thing to do is to get good sleep the night before the exam. It is important that you make sure that you are well rested and have enough energy during the exam.

In conclusion, the LSAT is a very rugged exam that takes lots of time and preparation to succeed and ultimately determines your future of getting into law school. But you are not alone in this process. Many people have taken this exam before and have succeeded, and you can too. Good luck!!!!!

PSA: I offer one-on-one tutoring for the LSAT and will have an LSAT prep course in the next month (still a work in progress). If you are interested, you can schedule a free 30-minute consultation on my website by clicking the scheduling tab.