Anyone do Law School AFTER banking analyst stint?
Just wondering how common it is. I’m a junior at a semi-target going to a BB this summer. I also recently scored very well on the LSAT and based I’m pretty confident I can get into Harvard or Stanford law schools. I’m planning on applying next year, but if I do get in is it worth asking for a deferral to do 2 years as an analyst or going straight through?
Do you want to be a lawyer or a banker...?
You can be both, I am a Harvard Lawyer working at PJT and I am not the only one.
HaRvaRd LaWYeR working at PjT
Lol ok prospect
You can be both, I passed myself off as a Harvard lawyer while working at Pearson Specter until the pressure of lying got to me a little so I left to be an investment banker for a while at Sidwell
I wouldn't assume you'll automatically get into Harvard or Stanford Law just because you have good LSAT/GPA - but best of luck to you.
I actually think IB might be a good use of your gap years before law school. IB + Top law program makes for an impressive resume and earning an IB salary will help with cost of attendance / affording the forgone salary if you do decide to go.
Maybe consider a joint JD/MBA instead?
law school is just a function of gpa and lsat
It’s not, I organized several mock admissions activity with actual law school adcoms for an organization I was involved with in UG, and they look at a lot more stuff than just the LSAT and gpa
Most corporate lawyers I know are either unhappy/indifferent to their work and quite of few have/ want to go into banking. Just food for thought
Most investment bankers are also unhappy/indifferent about their work
So many hedge fund founders and so many investment professionals at buy side firms have JD degrees. Why does everyone think law school = lawyer. At that point professionally, couldn’t I use a law background as a strong case for an activist hedge fund or credit? I understand the argument of losing out on compensation, but unlike an mba, a JD is still a strong and unique value-add certification (so I see it as worth the extra year). My plan has always been to get a law degree if I get pushed out from my firm, and then rerecruit/return to credit.
Is my thought process missing something? I’m surprised everyone on wso is against JD for advancement in Wall Street or is this classic wso just dismissive of a path that isn’t their own?
You are missing the point. You go to law school to get a JD to qualify to sit for the bar exam (in most states) to be certified to practice law. Why would you spend three years doing case studies, memorizing the blue book, and mastering the ability to footnote to NOT practice law?
The point being that if you know this far in advance that you are not going to practice law, get an MBA. No one frowns upon JD holders in finance, it just isn’t very common. The fields are distinctly different and most know out of the gate which option suits them.
To your hedge fund example. Again, makes no sense. Why would you want to spend your college years studying law when you could be in an MBA program exploring investment clubs, targeting HF internships, and surrounding yourself with a potential network of business focused professionals? HF/banks/consulting firms pay lawyers to do the legal work and offload some risk (“well our lawyers said so”), you aren’t going to provide savings or anything because you can read an offering document better than your non-JD counterparts. The guy who runs the show at the HF will email the docs to his golf buddy who runs the show at the law firm and let them handle it.
Fortunately, you can do whatever you want and give us all the bird. That just might be getting a JD and never practicing law, but don’t find it strange when someone raises an eyebrow.