二流美国法学院JD毕业就业前景

秋天的虫子

想生活安逸又想去好学校进biglaw，哪有这么容易的事，要是看重生活质量，大可拿个奖去低一档次的学校啊，只要你将来不后悔

同样的道理，进了法学院你就知道不是你想不想做patent,是背了10几万的债又没有其他途径去biglaw，是全家老小陪你受穷还是赚钱养家的问题，当然你要能拿到Top10%大可当我说的crap

btw，who the hell tell you guys that transaction lawyers are not as boring as patent attorneys?

come on, it is true-life, nobody works like daniel crane  

neohawk

以下是引用秋天的虫子在2007-3-27 23:45:00的发言：

想生活安逸又想去好学校进biglaw，哪有这么容易的事，要是看重生活质量，大可拿个奖去低一档次的学校啊，只要你将来不后悔

同样的道理，进了法学院你就知道不是你想不想做patent,是背了10几万的债又没有其他途径去biglaw，是全家老小陪你受穷还是赚钱养家的问题，当然你要能拿到Top10%大可当我说的crap

btw，who the hell tell you guys that transaction lawyers are not as boring as patent attorneys?

come on, it is true-life, nobody works like daniel crane  

I love Denny Crane, really funny guy,

秋天的虫子

PS: 貌似这个帖子每页说得都不是一个话题。。。

polyester

Yes, but do not NYU boast an excellent loan forgiveness program? As long as you make less than say, 45k USD (e.g. work in China), the law school would pay for all your loan.

秋天的虫子

i am talking about ppl like me and neohawk, not you kids at t6

Lilac29

以下是引用neohawk在2007-3-27 23:13:00的发言：

谢谢poly大侠的指点

呵呵,我知道在我的帖子里面流露出太多的功利的想法,钱啊,cost/benefit什么的,我也不是说要盯住patent而关上别的门,我何尝不知道做patent 比较枯燥而做别的可能更有意思更让人感兴趣呢.但是象我这种出身中部农村,小时候挨过饿,大学靠奖学金和打工度过, 上有在家乡的父母,中有妻子,下有未来的孩子的人,当这么多人指着你的时候, 就不能不把生存放在兴趣前面. 这就是为什么我反反复复问有关patent方面问题的原因. 无非就是我觉得以我的背景patent可能对于我来说相对容易找工作一点,在以后要是找不到别的方面工作的时候想确认一下是不是比较有可能把patent作为一个保底来付清债务和承担起对家庭的责任. 呵呵,这里城市孩子居多,可能很难理解我的想法.

我理解你要做专利的想法。我身边的人听说我想读法律，条件反射就认为是要学专利。环境使然，
        也无可厚非。但我觉得你现在既不能现在考专利考试，就可以等上学后再决定你以后想做什么好了。

neohawk

以下是引用Lilac29在2007-3-28 0:42:00的发言：

我理解你要做专利的想法。我身边的人听说我想读法律，条件反射就认为是要学专利。环境使然，
  也无可厚非。但我觉得你现在既不能现在考专利考试，就可以等上学后再决定你以后想做什么好了。

呵呵,谢谢,要是以后上学后发现一个我更感兴趣又能找到工作的领域,我不可能说傻到非不去做. 现在无非就是在谈论一个最坏的打算, 好让自己在付出大量的时间和金钱之前有个心理准备.

polyester

完全理解，除了patent，你也可以考虑一下tax。如果仅仅为了生计的话，immigration似乎也不错。

另外，你国内搞不好还是我师兄呢，叫我大侠真是不敢当。

neohawk

以下是引用polyester在2007-3-28 1:04:00的发言：
完全理解，除了patent，你也可以考虑一下tax。如果仅仅为了生计的话，immigration似乎也不错。

另外，你国内搞不好还是我师兄呢，叫我大侠真是不敢当。

惭愧

Expert123

Patent is a niche that certainly gives you a leg up in the job search. For someone who is patent bar eligible, choosing another specialty may add in some risk in getting a well-paying job. Of course, this may not be true for people in HYS or at the top of their classes.

The truth is many of the "non-firm" job options such as clerkship, teaching, and top international non-prof orgs, at least in the U.S., are only for the lucky few. Namely, you have to be graduating from Yale, Harvard, Stanford, etc., or at the top (1-25% depending on the school) of your class to have a realistic shot. This is true for both American and international students. While there are perhaps 100 Chinese JDs (per year) graduating from Top 20 schools, the number of people who actually fit into this description is amazingly small. I'd say, maybe 20 among these 100 have a realistic shot. Then, among these 20, those options may not be viable for the ones who have a family to support or have a large amount of debt.

Of course, people are quick to point out there are public interest jobs that may have "loan forgiveness programs." Again, ask yourself, are you willing to work for $30000-50000 a year in exchange of having $10000-20000 forgiven a year? This is unrealistic for someone who has 150000-200000 in debt at graduation. Again, those at HYS may say that their loan forgiveness programs are far more generous. But then, most of them don't need these generous programs anyway since they have great job options.

For the vast majority of Chinese JD students in the US, the most logical (and realistic) choice is to find a big law job in a specialty with little competition from natives. Patent is such a practice, so is tax, so is international corporate work with a Chinese focus. Those job choices has nothing to do with a person's lack of idealism. They are just the few options available for many Chinese JDs here.

Sure, we all hear about Jds who become Judges, Senators, Presidents, CEOs, etc. But we also hear about lottery ticket winners. The question is not whether these roles in life are desirable, ambitious, or idealistic. It is whether such roles are attainable by a Chinese who is pursuing a JD degree in one of the non-elite schools with a family to support, and a loan to pay off.