Feeling Lost (help)
I am about to start my senior year at an Ivy League school and I am still not sure what to do with my life. I plan on attending law school (17X LSAT and 3.6X GPA), but I am not fully confident in this decision nor career opportunities it may provide (hoping for top 25). My industry knowledge is limited, and my only experience is pre-law experience (working for law firms). Here are some bullet points:
- I am good at English and at Math, I understand multivariable calculus, got 1600 SAT and 36 ACT
- I am drawn to law school + biglaw route for the salary progression but have heard that law school would be a mistake
- I have limited finance knowledge - would need to learn on the job
- I have a family member who owns an Elite Boutique CRE Brokerage Firm and may be willing to give me exposure to the industry
- I would rather do an MBA than JD (in terms of the educational benefits) but I don't have any work experience lined up after graduation, and would rather not have to go back to school
- I have considered JD/MBA at whatever law school I attend, but I have heard that this is a bad move
- I don't even know exactly what I am looking for in terms of compensation, career progression, day-to-day, work-life balance, or entrepreneurial spirit - would rather work be more exciting than boring
- I would rather dress more casually over formally
- I am worried about the implications of AI and how it will affect my early career
- I will graduate undergrad, JD, MBA, or both completely debt free
Any advice about what I should do? Maybe I should just become a teacher. All help greatly appreciated.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, here are some insights and advice for your situation:
Key Considerations:
Skillset and Interests:
Law School vs. MBA:
Career Opportunities and Work Environment:
Personal Preferences:
Recommendations:
Explore Both Fields:
Evaluate Long-Term Goals:
Consider a Gap Year:
Seek Mentorship:
Stay Open to Alternatives:
Conclusion:
Given your strong academic background and versatile skill set, both law and finance are viable options. However, it's crucial to gain more practical experience and reflect on your long-term goals before making a decision. Consider exploring both fields further, seeking mentorship, and possibly taking a gap year to gain clarity.
Sources: Recent grad, super lost. Can anyone give advice/help me choose between an MBA, JD, or MA?, Talk me out of law school (HYS law), Struggling between applying to t14 law schools and t15 mBA Programs, Q&A: Recent Law School Graduate at a T30, Q&A: Recent Law School Graduate at a T30
Let's just take a step back for a second. From my initial read, here's my view of you (in the nicest way possible): you are a bright student who can do what you're told to do very well. Obviously very smart and hardworking but just one issue: it seems to me that you haven't done a lot of deep, independent thinking on what you want your life to be like. And it's totally ok to not know the answer to that btw, but it just seems that you "heard" that certain routes are safe and good. You probably "heard" getting into an Ivy League is the way to go then "heard" you should study for the LSAT and grind purely a good GPA. Then you say you're drawn to law school but have "heard" it's a mistake. Then you considered a JD/MBA but "heard" that was a bad move. Seems like a lot of just doing what you're hearing.
Are these primary sources telling you these things? Are these people you aspire to be? Are they from lawyers who have that job already and can easily say law school is a mistake (quite convenient to say after they're done with it - just like how many ex-IB Analysts tell everyone IB is not worth it)? Or is it from people who couldn't do it? Both opinions should be taken with a grain of salt imo. Same with everything you "hear."
What you need to do is proactively reach out to people in these fields and ask targeted questions to discern what the pros and cons of each path truly are in the context of what you want to do, and stop passively hearing things. Furthermore, every time someone tells you not to do something, they base that recommendation against their own preferences - you don't even know what you want per your post, so their recommendation shouldn't really hold any weight unless you have the same preferences they do (comp, work-life, progression, etc.).
I'm really not trying to be overly critical or make you feel down - I'm sure there are many smart people in your shoes who succeeded following the structure of higher education but get lost once that structure goes away upon graduation. But, at the end of the day, we can't tell you what to do because you don't even know what you like or don't like. So my advice is to 1) sit down and think what you want to do in life independent of what you've "heard" and 2) start picking up the phone, actually talk to people in different professions in a targeted manner, and tell them to give you the real, DL life/day-to-day of whatever they do. Compare that info against step 1 and there's a good start for you. Best of luck :)
Additional quick responses on some other bullets: "limited finance knowledge..." - everyone does when they start, dw about that; "family member at CRE..." - do it only if RE is interesting to you; "casually over formally..." - look into tech/corp job; "worried about implications of AI..." - non-issue for you right now, dw about it.
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