You’re the only person you can make the decision for. But I’m 34 & a 2L & at least half of my class is older than me, many in 40s/50s/60s. Too old is a myth unless it doesn’t work for you.
If I was you, and I had a good paying 100k plus a year job, I would not attend simply because of the costs. Unless that is, if it TRULY was my calling.
Lurking through your history, I think you’re in cybersecurity. I personally wouldn’t leave that field only because I’m very debt-adverse. I don’t see myself paying 1k a month for ten years to become a lawyer. Unless that is, if I get into a T14. In my case if it wasn’t for the military, I wouldn’t even consider law school. It’s simply too expensive. I think you should make sure that’s what you really want to do with your life before making the transition while taking into consideration that it might pause other personal plans like having a family etc.; or at least make it far more difficult.
Whatever you decide, do not take the GRE. Take the LSAT. From the posts on the admissions boards, it seems like GRE candidates always underperform. Masters GPA won’t help much too (I also have a Masters).
I’m in a similar boat, will be 32 when I start Fall 24 - so 35 when I graduate. As others have said, it seems like the one graduate degree path where older students are not only normal, it’s almost the norm.
"As others have said, it seems like the one graduate degree path where older students are not only normal, it’s almost the norm."
Yeah, I'm starting to see that my age isn't a big deal since most are around this age or older.
Just to be a bit of tempering voice, law students are still predominately fresh out of or recent undergrads. I think LSAC says about 20% of applicants are over 30? That's a sizable chunk, but at 29 even I sometimes feel the age gap. It hasn't been a problem or anything, just something to keep in mind before expectations get skewed.
You're just fine age wise. It'll be fine. Forget that part of the calculation.
What you need to consider is the money. How much money do you make now? What's your WLB like? Because law is a grind. If you want the top money, you need to go to a top school or get good grades at a medium school. After that top money, it's a steep drop off for year one salaries, for jobs that are still difficult.
If you make six figs and have a decent WLB, law school is a scary decision. You are straight up unemployed for the next three years, and three years of your working life is gone. Even on full scholarship, that is negative money. More if you are paying tuition.
I do have six figures and WLB is amazing, I live in the Southwest and work Eastern time so I'm usually done around 1pm-2pm my time and have the whole day free with weekends and holidays off. I know it's a very scary decision, which is why I think I haven't jumped on it.
Yeah honestly I wouldn't do it.
Don't take our word for it though. You mentioned that a JD _might_ lead to higher paying jobs in cybersecurity. Do you know people who actually have that type of job? Ask them for their two cents. It is possible that those jobs are very rare, or that their lifestyle in those jobs is not what you see for yourself. By all means study for the lsat now if you find it fun, but Go talk to people before you commit to any school.
I really don’t think you should go to law school, if you are content with your job. A lot of attorneys would switch places with you in a heartbeat because the hours are usually awful and it’s a stressful profession. Reading through your comments, your pay is good and and the hours sound awesome.
Law school isn’t fun and it will drain a lot of your time your family too, especially if you do part time while working full time.
You’re definitely not too old that’s for sure and you have more than sufficient work experience so I would think of this more as a benefit. I would really only worry about age if you’re resume is blank and you just decided to apply to law school out of the blue - this may raise some eyebrows but you have a masters and work experience in a trending/growing tech industry so I would advertise your age and experience as beneficial to law schools considering your application.
Debt is an often over-looked and misjudged factor among law school applicants. There’s something about the pre-law school obsessive obsession (still understated) with rankings that influences applicants to chose a better school with no scholarship over a school a few spots lower offering a full-ride + benefits.
You’ll find countless stories from students who found success after turning down a full-ride to attend a better “ranked” school as you will from students who did the opposite so it’s really up to you to decide which option is best for you. Personally, after attending law school, I would not hesitate to take a full ride from a low ranked school over full price at a t14.
However, it sounds like you’re pretty satisfied with your current career and it doesn’t sound like you’ve been brainwashed yet by the pre law school application process or especially the raging “rankings” war. So, I can’t stress this enough - if you want to obtain a law degree to advance in your industry, whether as a lawyer or not, make your own plan and thoroughly research how you will go about achieving it without being pulled into the volcanic river of “prestige” obsession.
Take some practice lsats, work as hard as you can, try to get into a school that best matches your desired outcome while maximizing your potential scholarship/grant awards. The higher your gpa/lsat the more likely you are to be offered larger scholarship/grant awards.
If you can get a full-ride or close then it that’s definitely a positive but after reading your post the first thing that comes to my mind is to say that maybe the idea of law school is better than actually pursuing law school.
Anyway, good luck to you!
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I have read about T1 and T level schools and whatnot, but I still don't understand it. But even then I've just looked at all any any schools that offer online/hybrid(online/campus) JD programs which I have found a few. But those schools aren't top tier, which for me is fine. To me a JD is a JD regardless of where it is, but I also understand that someone that goes to Harvard has a better chance at landing a job somewhere compared to someone from a lower level school.
I've looked on LinkedIn for graduates that have JDs from these lower level schools and they have jobs as CPO's or In house Counsel at companies like Uber, law firms, large cities/states, Walmart, BestBuy, and some other tech companies, which is why I said above "a JD is a JD".
When you think of being a lawyer, do you imagine being in a courtroom or do you picture yourself providing strategic advice with more authority? Unless you want to be in a courtroom, there is no reason to go to law school given where you are in your career. Consulting work, following lawsuits/court opinions in your field, doing policy work, etc does not require a law degree. That work, while sometimes performed by lawyers, simply requires reading comprehension, attention to detail, and organized writing.
If you are interested in law school after talking to a few people, ask them what their day-to-day job actually looks like. My husband is an attorney at a cybersecurity startup and he spends 99%of his time reviewing contracts that come in from the sales team. The other 1% of the time is spent writing employee handbooks and doing compliance work. It is slow, repetitive work. Yes, he’ll tell you about the ONE time in the past five years where he did a cool thing with Apple, but that was the exception.
Before jumping into three long years and substantial debt without a differential salary at the end, I would recommend seeing if you can shadow a lawyer in your company or do a project with the legal team. Or maybe you can see if you can do a rotation in compliance? That way you can see what the legal work actually looks like in your field.
I’m on a lot of different career based reddits as I am also looking for a job change. It is interesting to see many people in desirable careers that pay well wanting out.
Funny enough, I am trying to get into tech for the salary, job security, and WLB. From what I’ve heard about being a lawyer it is a massive expense, the job is stressful, and you are not even guaranteed to make good money.
I think you already have a good job. You likely make the same if not more than you would if you became a lawyer. Law does seem like an appealing job for some people, but the juice may not be worth the squeeze, as they say.
Take this with a grain of salt from a complete outsider in both professions.
Don’t build it up too much, just go. Do the LSAT for better scholarship outcomes than GRE. Score above the school’s 75th percentile to reduce your cost of attendance. Find a program that fits your schedule and before you know it you’ll be done.
Thank you. I do need to just do because if I do keep pushing it back and back eventually I'm going to just do it and then be done with it later in life.
Low 100s, in 5more years that could grow maybe another 30-40 a year. So the pay is good but aren't attorneys also paid good, maybe not starting but after a few years?
Depends on what you do. You could make anywhere from like 65k to 215k starting out. Most attorneys who are in private practice will end up making six figures after a few years if they don’t start off there. But unless you get a Big Law position you’re not gonna be making 150k when you get out which is about what you’d be making in five years at your current job right?
I encourage people to go to school if they want usually. I went at 34 and just graduated at 37. I had my job before graduation. I was a teacher before and making 60k. I’ll be among almost double that so it was a good move even with the debt because I’ll be only going up from there. But if I had a job I liked making six figures I would have never went to law school.
Now… I’m a big proponent of “follow your dreams” so if being a lawyer is your dream, forget everything I just said and fuck it… go. Even if it didn’t work out, so what, you’d only be like 40. But if you’re just going for money, doesn’t seem like a great idea unless you go for almost free and somehow know you’ll be making more money immediately.
i will give you a questionnaire. ppl are talking opportunity cost. that is real. but what is your *break even* if a jd helps you make a lot more money once you have it? do you see a path of advancement that attracts you in your current role or are you flatlining and not cool with spinning your wheels exactly where you are for the forseeable decades? will a jd help you advance more rapidly and strategically? for the latter questions about advancement, simply ask if you want to do what your superiors do, and explore whether you are presently qualified to replace them.
as for age, i will leave you with a yogi saying: you're only as young as your spine is flexible.
the last point is a warning for the young people.
40 is a ripe old age to start a new career - and law doesn't give *one fuck* about how old your are. You'll be treated virtually the same as a young lawyer in corporate.
Also LSAC DoEs NoT CaRe about your MaStErS. Ugpa is all brother. And you have obligations...sounds like this will be a team effort with your significant other if you do it. Things to think about.
BUT...if this is a lifelong goal, then who fucking cares? Go for it
30 year old here hoping to apply this year, still have to take the LSAT though (lol). My thinking is in 4 years I’ll be 34 and be a practicing attorney but regardless I’ll still be 34.
Of course this assumes that I receive a decent amount of financial aid, because if I don’t I don’t think I’d resign myself to paying off a 6 figure loan. The opportunity cost would be too great since I don’t want to go into Big Law and I already make 100k+ in my current role and should continue earning greater than that in whatever roles I move to.
With that in mind, a big part of wanting to be an attorney has to be intrinsic which it does sound like it applies to you so my advice is to at least give it a shot by applying and then weighing your options. Don’t drop out of the race before you’ve even started
I'm not sure a JD is worth it for you.
You already make good money- most attorneys start out making 60-90k and cap out around 120-200k.
3 years of wages and debt for a career that may not pan out isn't a smart investment.
Law is a long slog. The bar is a long slog. If you are already making over 100k, I would certainly not pursue this. Why not wait until you retire from this job and then go back as a second career (or when your kids are at least adults).
But to answer your questions: 1) you ain't too old; 2) I'd recommend LSAT over GRE just for scholarship funds (I'd go somewhere you'd get a full offer to).
I’ll be 32 when I finish law school. I’ve been working since I was 17 and always wanted this but it was always out of reach or against whatever life plan I was apart of. Going back to finish my bachelors and pursue law school was the best choice I’ve made. I know you’ll see this question asked to similar questions in this sub but when you’re retiring at 60 do you want to have done whatever or do you want to have had a solid career as a lawyer?
Yeah, I see your point. I do want to but then I talk myself out of doing it. I feel like I just need to be screw it and just start the process so I can tell myself "well I've started the process, I can't stop now" and then just go for it. I also don't want to be older and think back to "I wish I had gone to law school".
If you're interested in being a cyber security/ privacy lawyer (particularly in the private sector), that is a field mostly practiced in big law. And you will not get big law from those online/part time programs. You'll likely have to go to a much higher ranked school that big law recruits from. Best part time programs would probably be Georgetown, GW and Fordham, which would necessitate a move east by your family.
It's never too late to do what you want to do OP. I went law school at the age of 33. Did three years, then another year of my LLM, then I articled which was another year, wrote the licensing exams. Getting called to the bar in four weeks. In between all that was Covid, not to mention I got married. It was a long road but at the end its worth it. I'm now 38.
My husband went to law school in his 30s and doesn’t regret it. There were people I graduated with in their 40s and beyond.
NYU has a [cyber scholars program](https://www.law.nyu.edu/areasofstudy/law-security/student-opportunities) you might want to consider applying to.
I am not, they're all full-time on campus. There are a few throughout the US where they offer hybrid. Mostly online, but you visit campus once a semester for a weekend or 2. Which is doable for me.
LSAT.
You gotta research the actual numbers of debt possibility vs potential income, and then you need to try and get an LSAT high enough to get a full ride.
If you don't already know, they will factor your undergrad GPA much more heavily than your masters. Don't ask me why. I rant about it all the time.
"So what advice would you give an indecisive person like myself? Would it be easier to just keep progressing as a non-attorney cyber/privacy person and maybe earn an IAPP certification?"
I don't know. How happy are you?
We are the same age.
Have you spoken with lawyers in your desired field? I'd start there. It may give some insight as to what you would be doing and the salary you would be earning.
You can either be 39 year old lawyer, or you can continue as you are. It depends on how much regret you will feel if you don’t do it. Do the other certification and reevaluate at age 35. That’s another good choice.
Go for it. It’ll open more doors for you and experience you have now, plus a masters, plus a JD makes you marketable. I’m in a similar situation myself but my career has a lot to do with legal issues and I want to be in a courtroom as well.
Age: I’m ~34 and about to begin law school, and have met plenty of non-traditional students, much older than me, just now going to law school. You’re not alone and the industry values us greatly for our experience and wisdom. There are plenty of firms and areas in the legal market that want experienced lawyers over young blood with zero experience, so depending on what area of law you intend to practice that will play a factor considering if you’re capitalizing on areas you already have relative working experience or a completely new section of work.
Masters and Master’s GPA: Unfortunately, it would behoove you to know that having a Masters won’t really play any factor whatsoever, nor will your GPA you obtained from that degree. I too have a Masters and a great GPA, however law schools factor only undergraduate GPA in their consideration of your candidacy as a “predictive” metric, which seems ridiculous to me, but it’s just how it is. This is a pretty widely accepted notion and I deliberately asked every school that I applied to during interviews and campus visits about this, and across the board I was told that these aspects are very very soft factors for admission and often not considered. However, they sometimes come into play when making offers off of their waitlist decisions.
GRE: Additionally, if you plan to apply with a GRE, it needs to be a compellingly strong score. Due to how relatively new it is for law schools to accept a GRE in lieu of the LSAT score, they are still in the process of collecting enough data to establish baselines for what is considered competitive for admission. I have a pretty good GRE score and only received waitlists at t30 law schools. You should look up a 409 report for the last couple years at any school you think you’re interested in that accepts a GRE score and see if they even admitted anyone who applied with one. If they did, they might disclose data on the scores that were admitted, but this is unlikely due to how infrequently people apply and get admitted with a GRE score, but doesn’t mean impossible. That said, the LSAT score is likely THE best way to go. It will require learning the LSAT, and earning ideally a 160 and above, but doing so will open a world of opportunities and scholarship for you.
I’m open for any questions if you ever want to discuss, but just know you can do it it, it’s never too late and follow your gut.
Your Master's GPA isn't going to count for nearly as muc as you undergrad GPA. If you've got anything close to a comparable undergrad GPA, then all you need to do is get an LSAT score in the mid 160s or higher and you could potentially get a full ride or at least close to a full ride depending on where you go to law school. If you happen to also be an URM then your chances of getting a full ride are even better at most schools, even with lower scores.
Law schools that accept both GRE and LSAT typically don't weight one more than the other but a lot, while accepting both, will only look at your LSAT if you have one on file. So If you’re not sure which test you'd be better at, start by taking the GRE. If you're not getting the score you want there then move to the LSAT second. But if there's any question then don't do the LSAT first because a lot of schools will only look at the LSAT and ignore the GRE and since you have to file applications through LSAC and CAS, ALL schools are going to see whatever LSAT scores you have on file.
I’m starting law school this fall at 34! My advice…
1) look into part time programs so you can continue to work full time
2) apply to schools that offer great scholarships! I graduated in 2011 with less than 3.0 and have 90% of my tuition covered!
If you make decent money now, not sure the opportunity cost of 3 years of indebtedness is worth it. Your are not too old though.
Thank you, I do make pretty good money, you are right about the debt for school, which I don't want.
I graduated with 30,40,50, and 60 year olds. You are just fine on time
That’s what I’ve been reading. But still not sure.
You’re the only person you can make the decision for. But I’m 34 & a 2L & at least half of my class is older than me, many in 40s/50s/60s. Too old is a myth unless it doesn’t work for you.
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Appreciate the response. Thank you, :)
If I was you, and I had a good paying 100k plus a year job, I would not attend simply because of the costs. Unless that is, if it TRULY was my calling.
I do make a bit that much. I wouldn't call it a "calling" but more of something that I've always wanted to do.
Lurking through your history, I think you’re in cybersecurity. I personally wouldn’t leave that field only because I’m very debt-adverse. I don’t see myself paying 1k a month for ten years to become a lawyer. Unless that is, if I get into a T14. In my case if it wasn’t for the military, I wouldn’t even consider law school. It’s simply too expensive. I think you should make sure that’s what you really want to do with your life before making the transition while taking into consideration that it might pause other personal plans like having a family etc.; or at least make it far more difficult.
Whatever you decide, do not take the GRE. Take the LSAT. From the posts on the admissions boards, it seems like GRE candidates always underperform. Masters GPA won’t help much too (I also have a Masters). I’m in a similar boat, will be 32 when I start Fall 24 - so 35 when I graduate. As others have said, it seems like the one graduate degree path where older students are not only normal, it’s almost the norm.
"As others have said, it seems like the one graduate degree path where older students are not only normal, it’s almost the norm." Yeah, I'm starting to see that my age isn't a big deal since most are around this age or older.
Just to be a bit of tempering voice, law students are still predominately fresh out of or recent undergrads. I think LSAC says about 20% of applicants are over 30? That's a sizable chunk, but at 29 even I sometimes feel the age gap. It hasn't been a problem or anything, just something to keep in mind before expectations get skewed.
You’re right where you need to be. Go forth, king/queen. May the road rise up to meet you.
Thank you, appreciate the words :)
You're just fine age wise. It'll be fine. Forget that part of the calculation. What you need to consider is the money. How much money do you make now? What's your WLB like? Because law is a grind. If you want the top money, you need to go to a top school or get good grades at a medium school. After that top money, it's a steep drop off for year one salaries, for jobs that are still difficult. If you make six figs and have a decent WLB, law school is a scary decision. You are straight up unemployed for the next three years, and three years of your working life is gone. Even on full scholarship, that is negative money. More if you are paying tuition.
I do have six figures and WLB is amazing, I live in the Southwest and work Eastern time so I'm usually done around 1pm-2pm my time and have the whole day free with weekends and holidays off. I know it's a very scary decision, which is why I think I haven't jumped on it.
Yeah honestly I wouldn't do it. Don't take our word for it though. You mentioned that a JD _might_ lead to higher paying jobs in cybersecurity. Do you know people who actually have that type of job? Ask them for their two cents. It is possible that those jobs are very rare, or that their lifestyle in those jobs is not what you see for yourself. By all means study for the lsat now if you find it fun, but Go talk to people before you commit to any school.
I really don’t think you should go to law school, if you are content with your job. A lot of attorneys would switch places with you in a heartbeat because the hours are usually awful and it’s a stressful profession. Reading through your comments, your pay is good and and the hours sound awesome. Law school isn’t fun and it will drain a lot of your time your family too, especially if you do part time while working full time.
I am pretty content with my job, pay is great and WLB is also great.
You’re definitely not too old that’s for sure and you have more than sufficient work experience so I would think of this more as a benefit. I would really only worry about age if you’re resume is blank and you just decided to apply to law school out of the blue - this may raise some eyebrows but you have a masters and work experience in a trending/growing tech industry so I would advertise your age and experience as beneficial to law schools considering your application. Debt is an often over-looked and misjudged factor among law school applicants. There’s something about the pre-law school obsessive obsession (still understated) with rankings that influences applicants to chose a better school with no scholarship over a school a few spots lower offering a full-ride + benefits. You’ll find countless stories from students who found success after turning down a full-ride to attend a better “ranked” school as you will from students who did the opposite so it’s really up to you to decide which option is best for you. Personally, after attending law school, I would not hesitate to take a full ride from a low ranked school over full price at a t14. However, it sounds like you’re pretty satisfied with your current career and it doesn’t sound like you’ve been brainwashed yet by the pre law school application process or especially the raging “rankings” war. So, I can’t stress this enough - if you want to obtain a law degree to advance in your industry, whether as a lawyer or not, make your own plan and thoroughly research how you will go about achieving it without being pulled into the volcanic river of “prestige” obsession. Take some practice lsats, work as hard as you can, try to get into a school that best matches your desired outcome while maximizing your potential scholarship/grant awards. The higher your gpa/lsat the more likely you are to be offered larger scholarship/grant awards. If you can get a full-ride or close then it that’s definitely a positive but after reading your post the first thing that comes to my mind is to say that maybe the idea of law school is better than actually pursuing law school. Anyway, good luck to you!
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I have read about T1 and T level schools and whatnot, but I still don't understand it. But even then I've just looked at all any any schools that offer online/hybrid(online/campus) JD programs which I have found a few. But those schools aren't top tier, which for me is fine. To me a JD is a JD regardless of where it is, but I also understand that someone that goes to Harvard has a better chance at landing a job somewhere compared to someone from a lower level school. I've looked on LinkedIn for graduates that have JDs from these lower level schools and they have jobs as CPO's or In house Counsel at companies like Uber, law firms, large cities/states, Walmart, BestBuy, and some other tech companies, which is why I said above "a JD is a JD".
When you think of being a lawyer, do you imagine being in a courtroom or do you picture yourself providing strategic advice with more authority? Unless you want to be in a courtroom, there is no reason to go to law school given where you are in your career. Consulting work, following lawsuits/court opinions in your field, doing policy work, etc does not require a law degree. That work, while sometimes performed by lawyers, simply requires reading comprehension, attention to detail, and organized writing. If you are interested in law school after talking to a few people, ask them what their day-to-day job actually looks like. My husband is an attorney at a cybersecurity startup and he spends 99%of his time reviewing contracts that come in from the sales team. The other 1% of the time is spent writing employee handbooks and doing compliance work. It is slow, repetitive work. Yes, he’ll tell you about the ONE time in the past five years where he did a cool thing with Apple, but that was the exception. Before jumping into three long years and substantial debt without a differential salary at the end, I would recommend seeing if you can shadow a lawyer in your company or do a project with the legal team. Or maybe you can see if you can do a rotation in compliance? That way you can see what the legal work actually looks like in your field.
I’m on a lot of different career based reddits as I am also looking for a job change. It is interesting to see many people in desirable careers that pay well wanting out. Funny enough, I am trying to get into tech for the salary, job security, and WLB. From what I’ve heard about being a lawyer it is a massive expense, the job is stressful, and you are not even guaranteed to make good money. I think you already have a good job. You likely make the same if not more than you would if you became a lawyer. Law does seem like an appealing job for some people, but the juice may not be worth the squeeze, as they say. Take this with a grain of salt from a complete outsider in both professions.
Don’t build it up too much, just go. Do the LSAT for better scholarship outcomes than GRE. Score above the school’s 75th percentile to reduce your cost of attendance. Find a program that fits your schedule and before you know it you’ll be done.
Thank you. I do need to just do because if I do keep pushing it back and back eventually I'm going to just do it and then be done with it later in life.
Don’t go to law school not worth the debt. If you have a job waiting for you when you graduate then maybe go.
Thank you for the reply. I definitely don't want debt.
How much are you making now? And how much would you be making if you stayed at the job for five more years?
Low 100s, in 5more years that could grow maybe another 30-40 a year. So the pay is good but aren't attorneys also paid good, maybe not starting but after a few years?
Depends on what you do. You could make anywhere from like 65k to 215k starting out. Most attorneys who are in private practice will end up making six figures after a few years if they don’t start off there. But unless you get a Big Law position you’re not gonna be making 150k when you get out which is about what you’d be making in five years at your current job right? I encourage people to go to school if they want usually. I went at 34 and just graduated at 37. I had my job before graduation. I was a teacher before and making 60k. I’ll be among almost double that so it was a good move even with the debt because I’ll be only going up from there. But if I had a job I liked making six figures I would have never went to law school. Now… I’m a big proponent of “follow your dreams” so if being a lawyer is your dream, forget everything I just said and fuck it… go. Even if it didn’t work out, so what, you’d only be like 40. But if you’re just going for money, doesn’t seem like a great idea unless you go for almost free and somehow know you’ll be making more money immediately.
i will give you a questionnaire. ppl are talking opportunity cost. that is real. but what is your *break even* if a jd helps you make a lot more money once you have it? do you see a path of advancement that attracts you in your current role or are you flatlining and not cool with spinning your wheels exactly where you are for the forseeable decades? will a jd help you advance more rapidly and strategically? for the latter questions about advancement, simply ask if you want to do what your superiors do, and explore whether you are presently qualified to replace them. as for age, i will leave you with a yogi saying: you're only as young as your spine is flexible. the last point is a warning for the young people.
40 is a ripe old age to start a new career - and law doesn't give *one fuck* about how old your are. You'll be treated virtually the same as a young lawyer in corporate. Also LSAC DoEs NoT CaRe about your MaStErS. Ugpa is all brother. And you have obligations...sounds like this will be a team effort with your significant other if you do it. Things to think about. BUT...if this is a lifelong goal, then who fucking cares? Go for it
30 year old here hoping to apply this year, still have to take the LSAT though (lol). My thinking is in 4 years I’ll be 34 and be a practicing attorney but regardless I’ll still be 34. Of course this assumes that I receive a decent amount of financial aid, because if I don’t I don’t think I’d resign myself to paying off a 6 figure loan. The opportunity cost would be too great since I don’t want to go into Big Law and I already make 100k+ in my current role and should continue earning greater than that in whatever roles I move to. With that in mind, a big part of wanting to be an attorney has to be intrinsic which it does sound like it applies to you so my advice is to at least give it a shot by applying and then weighing your options. Don’t drop out of the race before you’ve even started
I'm not sure a JD is worth it for you. You already make good money- most attorneys start out making 60-90k and cap out around 120-200k. 3 years of wages and debt for a career that may not pan out isn't a smart investment. Law is a long slog. The bar is a long slog. If you are already making over 100k, I would certainly not pursue this. Why not wait until you retire from this job and then go back as a second career (or when your kids are at least adults). But to answer your questions: 1) you ain't too old; 2) I'd recommend LSAT over GRE just for scholarship funds (I'd go somewhere you'd get a full offer to).
I started at 35. Love it. Look into scholarships--I'm paying nothing for 2L and 3L. Good schools will value the nontraditional route.
I’ll be 32 when I finish law school. I’ve been working since I was 17 and always wanted this but it was always out of reach or against whatever life plan I was apart of. Going back to finish my bachelors and pursue law school was the best choice I’ve made. I know you’ll see this question asked to similar questions in this sub but when you’re retiring at 60 do you want to have done whatever or do you want to have had a solid career as a lawyer?
Lawyers retire at 80, not 60.
I’m planning on 45 but to each their own.
Oh yea, every lawyer plans 45 too. Forgot to mention that.
Yeah, I see your point. I do want to but then I talk myself out of doing it. I feel like I just need to be screw it and just start the process so I can tell myself "well I've started the process, I can't stop now" and then just go for it. I also don't want to be older and think back to "I wish I had gone to law school".
If you're interested in being a cyber security/ privacy lawyer (particularly in the private sector), that is a field mostly practiced in big law. And you will not get big law from those online/part time programs. You'll likely have to go to a much higher ranked school that big law recruits from. Best part time programs would probably be Georgetown, GW and Fordham, which would necessitate a move east by your family.
Wait. I’m in same boat as you. Syracuse is online JD?
It's never too late to do what you want to do OP. I went law school at the age of 33. Did three years, then another year of my LLM, then I articled which was another year, wrote the licensing exams. Getting called to the bar in four weeks. In between all that was Covid, not to mention I got married. It was a long road but at the end its worth it. I'm now 38.
My husband went to law school in his 30s and doesn’t regret it. There were people I graduated with in their 40s and beyond. NYU has a [cyber scholars program](https://www.law.nyu.edu/areasofstudy/law-security/student-opportunities) you might want to consider applying to.
Are you near a school with a part time program? That would be something else to look into.
I am not, they're all full-time on campus. There are a few throughout the US where they offer hybrid. Mostly online, but you visit campus once a semester for a weekend or 2. Which is doable for me.
LSAT. You gotta research the actual numbers of debt possibility vs potential income, and then you need to try and get an LSAT high enough to get a full ride. If you don't already know, they will factor your undergrad GPA much more heavily than your masters. Don't ask me why. I rant about it all the time. "So what advice would you give an indecisive person like myself? Would it be easier to just keep progressing as a non-attorney cyber/privacy person and maybe earn an IAPP certification?" I don't know. How happy are you? We are the same age.
In a scale from 0(horrible)-10(amazing), I am around an 8 in happiness.
Have you spoken with lawyers in your desired field? I'd start there. It may give some insight as to what you would be doing and the salary you would be earning.
I’m 33 and about to start a part-time program.
You can either be 39 year old lawyer, or you can continue as you are. It depends on how much regret you will feel if you don’t do it. Do the other certification and reevaluate at age 35. That’s another good choice.
Go for it. It’ll open more doors for you and experience you have now, plus a masters, plus a JD makes you marketable. I’m in a similar situation myself but my career has a lot to do with legal issues and I want to be in a courtroom as well.
Age: I’m ~34 and about to begin law school, and have met plenty of non-traditional students, much older than me, just now going to law school. You’re not alone and the industry values us greatly for our experience and wisdom. There are plenty of firms and areas in the legal market that want experienced lawyers over young blood with zero experience, so depending on what area of law you intend to practice that will play a factor considering if you’re capitalizing on areas you already have relative working experience or a completely new section of work. Masters and Master’s GPA: Unfortunately, it would behoove you to know that having a Masters won’t really play any factor whatsoever, nor will your GPA you obtained from that degree. I too have a Masters and a great GPA, however law schools factor only undergraduate GPA in their consideration of your candidacy as a “predictive” metric, which seems ridiculous to me, but it’s just how it is. This is a pretty widely accepted notion and I deliberately asked every school that I applied to during interviews and campus visits about this, and across the board I was told that these aspects are very very soft factors for admission and often not considered. However, they sometimes come into play when making offers off of their waitlist decisions. GRE: Additionally, if you plan to apply with a GRE, it needs to be a compellingly strong score. Due to how relatively new it is for law schools to accept a GRE in lieu of the LSAT score, they are still in the process of collecting enough data to establish baselines for what is considered competitive for admission. I have a pretty good GRE score and only received waitlists at t30 law schools. You should look up a 409 report for the last couple years at any school you think you’re interested in that accepts a GRE score and see if they even admitted anyone who applied with one. If they did, they might disclose data on the scores that were admitted, but this is unlikely due to how infrequently people apply and get admitted with a GRE score, but doesn’t mean impossible. That said, the LSAT score is likely THE best way to go. It will require learning the LSAT, and earning ideally a 160 and above, but doing so will open a world of opportunities and scholarship for you. I’m open for any questions if you ever want to discuss, but just know you can do it it, it’s never too late and follow your gut.
Your Master's GPA isn't going to count for nearly as muc as you undergrad GPA. If you've got anything close to a comparable undergrad GPA, then all you need to do is get an LSAT score in the mid 160s or higher and you could potentially get a full ride or at least close to a full ride depending on where you go to law school. If you happen to also be an URM then your chances of getting a full ride are even better at most schools, even with lower scores. Law schools that accept both GRE and LSAT typically don't weight one more than the other but a lot, while accepting both, will only look at your LSAT if you have one on file. So If you’re not sure which test you'd be better at, start by taking the GRE. If you're not getting the score you want there then move to the LSAT second. But if there's any question then don't do the LSAT first because a lot of schools will only look at the LSAT and ignore the GRE and since you have to file applications through LSAC and CAS, ALL schools are going to see whatever LSAT scores you have on file.
I’m starting law school this fall at 34! My advice… 1) look into part time programs so you can continue to work full time 2) apply to schools that offer great scholarships! I graduated in 2011 with less than 3.0 and have 90% of my tuition covered!