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Anyone applying to law school later in life, 2nd Career?
C.M. Hethcox
Member
I'm changing careers after 22 years and trying to cram all of this in hoping to knock this June LSAT out of the park and get accepted for Fall 2018. Just wondering if anyone else out there is in the same situation.
Comments
More or less, yes. I'm 33 and have been out of school for almost 12 years. Not quite as far along as yourself, but enough distance between me and undergrad to feel like a fish out of water when I think about going back to school. I know there's at least several of us in their 30s and I've seen a few beyond that too. You're not alone!
I'm in a similar situation. I left a career in business management to finish my B.S. and apply to law school. I'll be starting in Fall 2019. I'm also a single mom with two kids in middle school. Non-traditional? Yeah. That's me. It's a little scary, but I'm so happy I'm doing it. Best of luck to you!
Good Luck. I'm only 3 days into this and got to the Logic Puzzles and thinking wtf was I thinking.
Wow, I'm impressed. I was thinking today how hard it would be if I had kids to worry about. I couldn't imagine dealing with the day to day stuff AND having to study. Best of luck to you as well.
Everyone thinks that when they see the logic puzzles, I swear. I did, too.
Huge props for the single mom doing this. I'm a mom, but married, and this is hard enough balancing it all with two working adults (both also students).
Im switching from chemistry to law, I think were all making a great decision. Im also in that mindset of lets knock this lsat out of the water, quickly, and move on to bigger better things!
After 25 years in the military, I'm applying to law school in the fall of this year (to start in 2019). Complete 180 degrees from my previous life. Good luck with your prep.
I am leaving the IT industry after 25 years. I am getting ready to make the transition from IT manager to law student. I am in the category of changing careers. I am applying to law school and plan on attending Fall 2019. It is time leave the IT industry for me. Plus, I had a good ride. It is time to retire from it. It is time for me to follow my passion for the law and become a lawyer.
raises hand me! I've been working for almost 10 years and since I decided to push my timeline from 1-2 years to law school to 3-5, I'll be even older when I officially begin. At first I was really uneasy to push it back but I really need to save some more money before beginning becaue I refuse to take on a mountain of student loan debt in addition to the loans my husband and I already have. So you are in good company here friend
I'm 31 and currently working full-time as a paralegal, with a weekend job as a bar tender. I just started my current career as a paralegal 2 years ago, which was my first experience working in the legal field. I LOVE my job and am so excited to take the next step, albeit anxious. Props to all of you with families that are doing this! I don't even have kids and have found it very hard to find the time I need to study for the LSAT after work/on the weekends.
I'm 31 and I've been on active duty in the Air Force for 10 years now working in budget/accounting. I'm currently studying for the LSAT and hope to start law school in the fall of 2020. I definitely feel like I'm behind the curve compared to most students but extremely excited to start this new chapter in my life!
I've been working in the art world for the last 6 years since undergrad-- I help people based in the US buy and sell art in Asia. I originally went into the field because I being able to physically handle art, but over time I realized the part of my job I enjoy most is working with my clients to put together a plan for their collections. I am hoping to capture that part of my current job, along with a more stable career path in a career as attorney. I've submitted my applications and am hoping to start law school in Fall 2018!
36 years old here, applying after 15 years in the music business (what is left of it anyway!). Do any schools accept the June LSAT for this year's admissions cycle? Quick word of advice: it's been many years since you finished your undergrad and last wrote an exam - as it was for me this past December - I wouldn't underestimate the shock to the system the LSAT will/could be (despite being well prepared I thought, the stress of exam day sort of caught me off guard). I re-wrote last week, and felt infinitely better, having reacclimatized my system to the nerves of a real exam environment. Good luck to you, it's certainly a unique but exciting challenge applying to school later in life :-)
Another nontraditional student here. Always happy to see discussions about this.
I turned 40 last month
Been working since 1998 and am currently in a management position with a top medical insurer. Widowed for the past 8 years and my kid is heading to college in August and so am I. Completed grad school for an MS about 15 years ago, but am ready for a new challenge.
Hey,
Im 41 and I will be applying to law school for the fat 2019 term. I've always had an abiding desire to go to law school and now I'm finally able to go for it!!! I spend many years teaching high school mathematics and working on my real estate business and I now I fell financially stable enough to pursue my dream. I think that its never too late to go law school if thats your desire. Life is short and you never want to regret not achieving our goals
HI!! Me too! Music industry here, I work at a label.
Been in the industry for a little over 10 years, but yeah... it is rough out there. I’ve been lucky to survive many rounds of lay offs. :-/
Not exactly in my thirties, but feel like it. I'm 27, have worked the past 6 years as an accountant in a government institution. Realized I needed a change in the middle of doing my CPA and the last thing I wanted to do was touch my books.
Very happy to see this post! I am also a career changer and soon to be empty-nester. Like the OP, I am thinking of possibly Sept. 2018 but would be fine with 2019 too. Rutgers has a cut-off date of mid-July so if I feel good about my PT's and test in June, I will submit for this fall. I have an undergrad in the arts, on&off career in HR/Recruiting and Lower School Admissions. Had a real moment of clarity after losing my mom in 2016 (and after years spent attending to her health) and knew it was now or never! I feel very happy to be stretching myself in this direction though, it's like water in the desert... I cannot imagine having tried to do this when my kids were little! Those of you taking that on are amazing! Oh and I'm 51 - that should make all of you in your 30's and 40's feel good and young!
Wow!!! Good on you. This thread and the simple explanations on the course exercises have really made my anxiety drop. Wishing you the best of luck. I've been a chef for over 20 years and the way I look at it is, if I graduate at 43 that still leaves me with at LEAST 22 years of working in the field of law before retirement.
Yes. I am in a similar situation. I seem to be the senior here...47. I've always wanted to go to law school, but chose to go the paralegal route instead. Honestly, I'm glad I did. I worked as a paralegal for about 15yrs with my last position at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Nashville, TN. I loved it! I gained quite a bit of knowledge and understanding from the "inside" so to say. I now work as a Compliance Specialist with a healthcare company. I enjoy it, but I miss the legal aspect. So I've made the decision to do what I've always wanted to do, go to law school. I hope to apply fall 2019. Well wishes to all us NTS!
Reading through everyone's replies is really comforting. I always just assumed that everyone on here was following a much more traditional path to law school. I guess that's just the sort of assumption that you would be penalized for on the LSAT...
I'm 27, and worked as a bartender for the past six years after dropping out partway through my BA. I'm back in school now, finishing off my last year of that degree and studying for the LSAT.
Although I used to think I'm "behind", coming to my LSAT prep with more life experience and knowledge of myself is such an asset. It doesn't seem like such a big sacrifice spending my weekends studying (especially after so much time spent in bars, late night socializing lost some of its lustre!).
Will be 30 this year
Dude, this make not make sense to you now, but 27 is probably the best time for you to go. It may seem like all your friends have it figured out and are killing it, but they are just making it up as they go along. 27 is young and you made a decision and you got it out of your system. Get to work and go after what you want. I've been in F&B. You made a ton of money, probably partied with a ton of hot chicks, and seen a bunch of cool stuff, but you grew. You will never have a "what if". I mean you will, but not about this. If I went to Law School right after undergrad, I can promise you that I would not be a lawyer today. I had to get some stuff out of my system. Stay focused and good luck.
I am so in love with this thread! At 31, I thought I was one of the few older folks on here, its nice to know that there are more of us on here than I realized.
This thread is amazing for motivation. Ill be 33 when im done with school and its great to know that is a very normal boat to be in!
39 years old here. I am taking 8 classes a semester to finish my Bachelor's degree and working full time (60+ hours a week). My plan is to finish my undergrad and start law school in August of this year. I just took the LSAT last week and signed up for this course that afternoon. Best of luck and remember where there is a will there is a way!
That's kind of my exact thinking - RBG is 84! And Elizabeth Warren is 68 with no signs of slowing down... so my own math gives me at least 20 years. It seems ridiculous to not go out and do this simply because it isn't the norm to do it at this age. I have an imaginary advisory board (a little goofy, I know but: http://thewelldressedlife.com/create-your-imaginary-advisory-board/ ) - an idea I heard from Brené Brown last year in a speech she gave. I have a lot of women on it that have come into their prime older than me
so here's to all of us kicking a**.
Somewhat in the same situation. I am a retired Mil Officer as well as retired LEO Criminal Investigator. So not really changing careers just a different vector. Took the LSAT last year did ok but think I can improve my score so hoping to knock this June LSAT out of the park and get accepted for Fall 2018. As I wrote not a complete change but my LE life demonstrated, rather starkly, sometimes folks need assistance from the good guys, and on occasion the good guys need saving from the "good guys".
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HI! Ah, very cool :-) Good luck to you this cycle!
You are not alone! I am a 36 year old single mom. After working in law firms for the past 12 years as a receptionist, legal assistant and paralegal I decided I should be a lawyer by now dammit!
good luck!
You got this @nilakayjackson !
Another single mom here. I'll be 39 when I start law school. This is my second "life" after bozo left me and 6 kids, taking my career in his business with him. Went back to school for paralegal, and decided to keep on going. Not sure how I'll juggle everything, but doing it so far.
I’m 41, I’ve been a welder, a truck driver, a photographer and a picture framer. I’m finally ready to finish my BS, and start law fall ‘19. You’re not alone. Try to find the other nontraditionals, (which includes more typically-aged students if they have kids or are first-generation). We’re all here with more intentionality, and can be a great support for each other. Congratulations to everyone here for deciding what to do with your life! Better late than never! Plus, we’ll appreciate it all the more when we work so much harder for it.
Related question for the 2nd career crowd - Any thoughts on submitting a diversity statement accentuating your age / life / unique work experience? A claim made in another thread was that the average law student's age is 26-27. Many in this thread are 30's / 40's / and at least one self reported person in their 50's. Opinions on whether this constitutes an appropriate topic for a diversity statement?
Full disclosure: I'm a straight Caucasian middle class male. While I don't think anything in my upbringing or current racial / socio-economic status even comes close to qualifying as "diverse", I could argue (at least get to maybe) that my age (45 as of today) and life experiences (25 years active duty military, married with 4 children - one about to graduate from college) would make me at least different from the 'average' law school applicant, at least as has been defined by the 26-27 average age remark referenced above.
Despite you being a Caucasian middle class male, I do see that you are a nontraditional applicant as you are applying later in life and have substantive military experience. I personally think that you can very well write a diversity statement without raising eyebrows, unless the the law school application specifically states that you need to be of an underrepresented minority.
I'm 27, and I'm leaving the medical field for law school so it is definitely a second career! I have 2 small children, and I definitely feel like a crazy person for jumping ship on my current career, but you have to follow your dreams, right?
Thanks for this post. Its encouraging. I'm 31, married, pregnant with my first child and in the midst of preparing for the LSAT. I've had to delay taking the test at least twice. After four degrees (Sociology, International Affairs, 2 in Theology) that landed me working in a field I never had any intentions of being in (University Athletics? WTH!), I decided to make a drastic change in my career path. Some days, as I'm battling against major exhaustion or nausea trying to get through a freakin LG, I wonder if this is worth it and if I can do it. I plan on taking the test in September and not entering law school until the Fall of 2019. I'll be 33 by then. But, if you want something you are willing to take on the challenges to make it happen. It's never too late and honestly I think being older, wiser and more experienced gives me a drive and focus that many in their early 20s may be lacking. Being older is definitely to our advantage and I think we all have great grounds for writing a diversity statement based on our age, past careers and experiences.
Thank you for starting this thread, @"C.M. Hethcox". Considering law school when my youngest leaves the nest...I'll be 53! Love what you said about RBG and Elizabeth Warren, @jyarmo. I'm lucky to know amazing, smart, creative women in their 60s and 70s who inspire me. Perhaps I'll ask them to be an advisory board.
Graduating with no debt will be essential, so starting LSAT prep early. Good luck to all!
Hey y'all. I'll be turning 52(!) in a couple of weeks and I took the LSAT in Sept and Dec. I underperformed terribly. But, here's the kicker, even with my mediocre LSAT score and my so-so undergraduate GPA from the 1980's(!), I've been admitted to some solid schools with significant scholarships. Granted they aren't Tier 1 schools (although one is... barely.) But, at this point in my life, I don't need to go to HYS. Nor could I make enough money to repay my debts if I were to go to one of those schools. So, my point is, to all you non-traditional applicants, you can do it.
I wrote a diversity statement. It may have helped. But, I feel like writing is a strength of mine. So, any chance that a school gave me to demonstrate that strength, I took. I wrote something for every optional essay.
I'm pretty optimistic about law school. I'll get back to you in three years to let you know if I'm still so optimistic after I graduate and am seeking employment.
another NTS checking in! I'm 43 and finishing my BA in Criminology in December 2018. I'll be taking the LSAT this July for law school fall of 2019. I'll be 45 when I start law school, about to turn 48 when I finish.
I have three children - 25, 22, and 10 - the 25 year old will be starting law school one year before me
My husband is an appellate attorney with a corporate insurance defense firm (snooze fest if you ask me but he loves it). I've been working for the past five years as a photographer. I love the craft, hate the business (well, the advertising/networking/"look how awesome my work is you should hire me" part anyway). Prior to that, I've been a stay at home mom and a paralegal in a Workers' Comp defense firm.
I've always been fascinated with crime, ever since I was a kid. I've wanted to be a criminal prosecutor since I was about 11. With my 10 year old not really needing me to be a full time stay at home mom anymore, I needed to find something to do. I still work as a photographer, but I've switched genres and am only shooting stock photography now (which means I can work as much or as little as I want; consequently, it also means I'm broke). But I need something more cerebral. So here I am!
so glad to read all of these replies!! thank you so much for starting this thread!!
Just turned 46, and also a single mom. My kids are just old enough that I can now manage to leave them at home for a few hours at a time (no need for after school care, such a relief). I have a very non-linear path as well - was a PhD scientist, did well in research and teaching, then decided to become a stay at home mom for 5 years, then passed the patent bar and went back to work as an IP manager and contracts negotiator. I have wanted to go to law school for over 10 yrs, but the time was never quite "right." At this point, it feels that I've already done the "unthinkable" so many times career-wise, that going to law school seems pretty tame by comparison. I also have many non-traditional role models. My best friend had a high profile finance career, decided to go to law school four years ago, didn't like it after the first year, switched to social work grad school and loved it. She's now working again and loves every day she goes to work (she's the same age as me). Another friend of mine graduated from law school at age 50 and was voted the top IP law student in the nation her graduating year by the American IP Law Association. Honestly, for me, going to law school at 20 would have been too soon. I would have been settled in my career earlier, but I would not have been emotionally prepared for it all and probably naive about what type of law I was studying and why and where. Plus, the comfort of having had kids already is pretty substantial (I know a lot of people grappling with not being able to have them or not having the chance to be around them much). I have much more of an idea of what I want to do now and why, and no regrets about all the other cool stuff I got to experience along the way. I feel for those starting off young as well as old. Neither path is easy, and if the youngsters need to switch things around along the way, hopefully they'll understand it's going to be ok. Good luck to us all!
Lots of great vibes in this thread. Good luck to everyone, where ever you are in your journey.
Guilty as charged. This will be my second career. I have a BA and MS. My JD will complete my alphabet soup. I have been putting off LS for a while now. I've finally got tired of hitting my head on the glass ceiling, so my goal it to slay the June 2018 LSAT and start in the Fall of 2018. I met with the assistant dean of admissions today to my #1 school and was told admission in the Fall is possible but tight. They have a waiting list to clear first. So if not in 2018, then Fall 2019.
Same here. I have to score 155 to really make it. Took my diagnostic and scored 145. I was hoping that I would be more around 150, but I think I have time to get 10 points. I left my job so I spend all day studying. I'm trying to find a balance between studying and not burning myself out. Best of Luck.
I find this thread so reassuring for a lot of reasons. I am also a nontraditional student; I am 34 and law school will also be a second career for me. Going to law school is something I wanted, but didn't pursue, after undergrad and has been gnawing at me ever since. I work full time and struggle with studying, with anxiety about being older, and with feeling comfortable owning it, so to speak. Thank you to all of you here offering solidarity and encouragement!
As for the diversity statement for the non-diverse albeit nontraditional student, which I am also considering whether or not to write, I would say that being a nontraditional student in and of itself, regardless of the incredible amount of experience you've had, it not enough. You would have to present a compelling demonstration that your experience supports your ability to contribute something meaningfully different or unique, beyond simply having sweet project management skills, a steadfast work ethic, or stellar interpersonal communication, for example. Which I have no doubt we all can do!
Same here. I'm 36 years old. I was in the Army up until this past February (medically retired). I was supposed to take the LSAT this past December but operational requirements got in the way.
I always wanted to go to Law School, but got distracted by a job in the Intel Community, which brought me to the Army and ultimately my Masters degree. I'm taking advantage of having uninterrupted time to study between now and June.
I am a 54 year old grandmother who has worked in the industrial setting for my adult working career. I completed my associate degree in 2007. I have always made good money but never enjoyed or felt challenged by my job. Probably because it was a job and not a career. I will complete my studies for my bachelor's degree in August and write the LSAT in June. I have been overwhelmed at times and felt that I do not have the energy for law school but my heart tells me if I don't follow through on this, I will regret giving up my dream of getting my law degree, for the rest of my life. So, I just keep moving ahead one step at a time and I know I will get there. Besides, we all know how fast time flies after 30. I am inspired by all your stories, I thank you for sharing with us. I wish you all the best : )
This is a very comforting thread. Thank you! I am a professional writer and executive recruiter and decided to pursue my law career after a massive upheaval in my personal life made me really think about how I wanted my future to look. I tried as hard as I could to study for the LSAT, but did poorly in both September and December. I'm not sure when I'm ever going to get over those scores! Totally crushed my soul! I don't have the luxury of waiting until another cycle because I have major life decisions to make. It's either 2018-2019 or never. I put together my best application, wrote a diversity statement, LSAT explanation and sent in a writing sample. I also got the strongest, most persuasive, writers I know to write my LORs. I explained and took ownership that while I was studying, I went thorough about the greatest emotional turmoil a person could endure, worked full-time in my own business and was on deadline to complete a non-fiction book for my publisher...I truly gave it my all under the circumstances. I've been feeling pretty unsure about my chances. I applied to two school on 1/12 (I can't leave the state because I also care for my widowed mother) and haven't heard anything. I'm taking that as a good sign. So happy to know there are people here with an experience similar to mine! Whatever happens, I wish I just knew so I could start putting together plans. I've never been good at waiting, and particularly not so now. Good luck to all!
Me too.
48 is never too late!