no, you probably shouldn't go to law school.

anytime you want to do something, as yourself, "why?" then ask yourself "why?" five more times.

& sorry for the sound quality--i didn't realize my mic would pick up my AC like that!! now i know :(

suits, legally blonde, and matlock, oh my! - 0:00
why people regret law school more - 1:14
deconstructing reason #1: i want to make a lot of money - 3:17
student loans are making young lawyers miserable - 4:48
what is work-life balance worth to you? - 5:52
deconstructing reason #2: i want to help people - 8:25
helping people without a JD - 9:47
deconstructing reason #3: being a lawyer looks fun & exciting - 10:42
deconstructing reason #4: i don't know what to do with my life - 13:00

sources:

*affiliate link, which means I receive a small commission if you purchase from this link

💕 f o l l o w m e 💞
@cecexie everywhere

🎶 m u s i c 🎵

❓ F A Q s ❓
how old are you? 31 ('91 baby)
which schools did you go to? yale (undergrad) and harvard (law school)
what did you major in? economics
what was your gpa and lsat score? 3.86/176
what sign/MBTI/enneagram are you? aries, ENFJ, 3w4
are you sure you're not a virgo? no part of my star chart is virgo or an earth sign, i swear

[kevinkeller]

I went to law school because I did well on the LSAT and didn’t know what else to do with my life. Honestly, my life changed at law school. I found an internship at a public agency and fell in love with the job. Eleven years later, I am still there. I have found my career and purpose. I am so glad I went to law school even though at 21 I didn’t really know if it would be for me or not.

[theeternalgus]

I think people should make decisions like going to law school once over the age of 25... or maybe even older.
Its a helluva decision. Ive decided to go back at 31 and honestly it's less stressful then trying to do it in my early 20s. I think its because I've developed more as a person.

[AJDJ]

Watching this on my break while studying for the LSAT 😅😅

[KandarianQueen]

I'm currently applying for law school! *However, * I'm turning 30 next month. I spent time after undergrad working in the legal field as a court reporter. That experience was invaluable and made me realize that my personality and skills were best suited for law. There's no shame in taking the time to work in a field before committing to it, especially because law school involves a lot of time and a lot of money!

[NilaMatters]

I graduated from law school last year, and for me, it was not the right career choice. If you don’t love the law and law school, there are options for you within the field. But if you don’t love it, there is NO SHAME in leaving the field like I did. Best decision I ever made.

[anujapotdar]

I am a law student and I love it!! It's amazing it feels like your life has a higher purpose, I am loving every second of it! If you really love it the working part feels effortless!

[woofnmeows]

Not me wanting to go to law school based on legally blondeee 💀 That was literally me. I had recently changed my degree to Criminology as I felt that everything I was learning really didn't fit with what I wanted. Your videos made me realise that Law wasn't for me, and I thank you for that. Everything you have said about the law profession, and the legal industry, was literally everything that I thought, but I didn't realise this because I was too stuck in the fantasised life of wanting to be a lawyer, and earn lots of money. Thank you Cece! ❤️

[bryonywhitaker]

Fellow attorney here!! Completely agree with this advice. Saw so many people dropping out because they went to law school for their family or because they didn't know what to do with their lives. What I would say is that it can be the best decision you ever make depending on whether you do your research first! I'm in litigation now and it genuinely is a fast paced, exciting career where you get to use your brain! In terms of mitigating debt, choose your law school wisely; balancing prestige with cost is a good idea. I went to one of the cheapest T1 schools and was lucky because I could do my JD in 2 yrs rather than 3 (this may be the case if you have an LLB from England). RA work and clerking also chopped the cost in half. It is doable and if this is your passion, go for it! Just make sure you know what you're getting into first!

[Checkersss]

I'm in law school and have no regrets. Worked in the legal field for years prior to law school. Know what you're getting into, don't go into it blindly - the debt is like "golden handcuffs" and you may feel overwhelmed.

[PetraWiggin]

As a law school tour guide, I tried really hard to help people consider these things. A book that I always recommended was "Most Law School Advice Is BS" by Andy Brink. Its a great read and really helped me consider things that mattered like law school debt, location, networking, and the lie that is big law and on campus interviews. So anyone here who wants more guidance about deciding to go to law school and then deciding where to go to law school, consider this book!

[thrombolin]

While I understand why the author emphasizes carefully considering a legal career before committing to law school, I disagree with the author's outlook on the career. I hated every moment of law school, but love the practice of law. Law school itself, I found, had little to do with the practice of law. Law requires that you solve problems, manage clients and opposing counsel, and secure and protect the rights, property, and freedoms of companies and people. I also think it is disingenuous to recite the starting salary for attorneys without caveats or context. The author fails to mention that many career paths in the public sector include excellent benefits and/or retirement; that compensation rises quickly with years of experience; or that different geographies command different starting salaries. And with respect to helping others, I understand that law students want to "make a difference." The reality is that attorneys do make a difference, but often on a small scale. Every conviction, divorce, will, patent, bankruptcy can massively impact the client - whether that client is a person or a company with thousands of employees. Again, while I understand the points made by the author, but I do think the advice given is overly myopic and negative.

[flowersmadi]

im 17 right now and was generally opposed to going to law school because of the course load, finances, and the fact that the media glamorizes it (as you said). however this all changed once i read "Assata", seeing what it was like in the 60s with the lack of black lawyers defending innocent black people infuriated me. even though it was way back then, instances like that still happen today. within the prison industrial complex still standing strong today in the states, i feel as if i have to make change. as angela davis said, im no longer accepting the things i cannot change, i am changing the things i cannot accept. i got an a in my grade 11 law course and taking grade 12 law next year. the law is unjust, people of colour are being mass incarcerated by storm, none of that will change if i just sit here and sulk! and for that reason yeah, i wanna go to law school and i wanna be a criminal defence lawyer! its me vs the prison industrial complex

[catherinenikolajeva]

I remember being 16 and doing work experience in a firm where everyone tried their best to discourage me from studying law, jokingly telling me it was the Devil's work and to get away while I still can. Ditto with any law students I met before starting college, and since starting studying college I've realised that pretty much all of my coursemates have experienced the same. I think if you can hear about all the downsides that come with working in the legal sphere and that *still* doesn't put you off, it's probably I sign that you're the right fit

[mbesbzc]

"I want to help people" except the people you wish the help can't afford your hourly rate :(

[FNLWYR]

I spent my first 11 years after law school as a prosecutor. I loved it, but my law school loans were more than my mortgage. I couldn’t afford to get married or have kids. I also carried a heavy case load, so I worked 12-14 hour days, 6 days a week. I never got my vacation time, so it just piled up. Eventually, a friend of mine from the public defenders office and I decided to go out on our own. He died two years later, and I was stuck carrying a tremendous amount of costs, even though I down sized the office and staff. I then spent the next 14 years hustling every day to bring in business. I never got rich, and in fact made the same money on my own, as I did as a prosecutor, but worked as hard, if not harder. I had three heart attacks by the time I was in my early 50’s. I had always planned to be a lawyer and was pre-law as an undergraduate. I even taught pre-law undergrads as an adjunct, to supplement my income. I don’t recommend anyone go into the law, unless they are absolutely prepared to sacrifice their youth, their chance at having a family, etc. for the first 10 years of their lives. I did enjoy your video. Thanks!

[genesisdeters]

Thank you so so much for this!! Currently taking a gap year after graduating with my bachelor’s- this provided timely and detailed insight!!

[KevinBolz-kd]

I thought I wanted to go to law school my entire life, but to be honest I was so obsessed with the idealistic values of being a lawyer, that I never asked myself if that was really what I wanted. So i decided to take a step back and look over my entire life and look back at memories that really made me happy. And me worrying about if I was going to be good enough to get into law school, are not any of them. The first memory that came up is when I went to the aquarium and saw people swimming and checking the water to see if the water was okay and checking on the animals, I looked into it and saw some promise in it. But I then realized I would have to move so far away from the entirety of my family and I would not have any family support nearby. Which would make me more anxious then I already would be from living alone. I then realized that I gained so much joy from providing nourishment from food, seeing the smiles, hearing the laughter, and seeing people happy from what I cook so I am now looking into culinary school. The moral of this story is: It's okay to take a step back to reevaluate you life and what you want from it even if it is a complete 180 from what you initially wanted.

[abbyhatch]

For some reason Youtube has pushed a video with basically the same premise like once a month since I applied to law schools. I start next month, but I always watch them just out of curiosity (and spite!) This was by far the best one. I came in annoyed at it's existence and now feel as though it is a valuable and interesting resource for those early in the process. Good job!

[kaceynm]

I only graduated in 2020, so I’m not some old, wise person who knows tons about this, but if there is anyone watching this who’s in college I HIGHLY recommend listening to what she says from 10:20 -10:45. There are so many factors to jobs that interviews and internet research can’t tell you when you’ve been in school your whole life. Actually working in the field that you find interesting straight out of college will give you far more information than those things ever will. As a child of immigrants there’s this pressure to get graduate degrees as fast as possible and I’ve come to the decision that that’s actually a bad idea.

[carrieannkouri]

Interesting info. I was a paralegal in the 80's at a big firm. Our attorneys were regularly at the office by 6:30 and some didn't leave until 11:00pm.