Hello everyone,
I know my post is a bit untraditional for admissions but, any advice would be greatly appreciated on the below dilemma.
I love legal work, but unsure if I ever want to be a practicing attorney. Not because I wouldn't enjoy it to some extent, but rather I just think I equally enjoy other avenues such as compliance roles in corporate settings or government work. Currently I work as a legal researcher at a firm where I do most of the same work already as a compliance professional, so I began a Master of Legal Studies at Vanderbilt so I would have a degree to support that I know what I am doing beyond my work experience since my undergrad is fairly unrelated to what I do. But, this inspired me to study for the LSAT and potentially pursue a JD so it seems "more official". However, unlike my MLS program that I am already accepted into at a "good school", the JD programs I am likely to get into for the 2027 cycle would be much less prestigious and regional "Tier 4" schools with probably at best Rank 60 more likely Ranks 80-120. I already am doing the applications just to see if I get lucky with good aid or miracle admissions to law school, but with no aid from my MLS, would a JD to going into a non-traditional role later be a waste of time and money if I could do these things with an MLS from Vanderbilt already? Would finishing the MLS mean better or the same job prospects in that context with much less time commitment than a 3-year law school? Would a JD be better to have from a "lower prestige" law school, or will it always not matter if I want to go untraditional and avoid practice? My biggest limiting factor here is that I do not really have the money or loan capacity to "easily" go to any law school without aid, and of course I am kind of gambling for the next cycle here. But, I am on a time restraint since I would have to continue (and pay 15k) for my MLS by the time most law schools would admit/reject me (early Spring).
I have a lot of questions that include nuances of these. But, I think my dilemma here is fairly articulated and I truly would want any advice on the situation that y'all have. Really any advice on this would help so much, as I have a lot of stress trying to balance these decisions with law school being such a major decision financially and time-wise. I look forward to hearing from y'all and thank you for whoever is reading and bearing with my long post.
4 comments
I think the best thing here is to really ask yourself 1) what do you want to do in the future and 2) does that job require a JD? If you'd like to continue some aspect of your present position in legal research, compliance, etc., then an MLS should be just fine. But if you want to pursue a job that requires being a member of the bar, you're going to need a JD.
So envision the job you want, then do some research into whether or not that job requires a JD. Talk with the admissions office at the MLS program and/or their career office - what do their graduates go on to do after the degree? I think this will help you figure things out!
Thank you so much for the advice! This definitely is a helpful perspective.
The most difficult part with compliance I have been encountering is many compliance roles at senior levels require a JD for continued mobility, admission to the bar not always. But, weirdly, they allow equivalencies very often aside from the JD preferred roles. So it truly does make it a tough decision, especially with the difference in costs, years of completion, and styles of teaching at various schools.
I'll definitely ask around more with the program's office, and do what I can with their snapshot of graduate success afterwards. Thank you!
I used to recruit attorneys for legal and JD advantage roles. Go for the JD, even if you don’t practice.
Thank you for the response! This is something I definitely thought of as a preferred position as well for JD Advantage roles. But, I am curious, what makes you say that? And does school matter at all? In this case being a Vanderbilt MLS vs a lower ranked law school? Mainly just curious how that looked in recruitment with reasoning in mind.