Wall Street Vs. Law School Vs. Graduate School

[dutchbrodymoss]

what about getting a JD / MBA? are those things useful or useless?

[Misfire]

[ QUOTE ]
what about getting a JD / MBA? are those things useful or useless?

[/ QUOTE ]

Go to amazon and buy "How to Get into the Top Law Schools" by Richard Montauk. It has a bunch of good self-assessment ideas to consider before doing any of this stuff including whether to get a joint degree.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...s&n=507846

[dutchbrodymoss]

i read that book already. montauk comes off as kind of arrogant.

he just seems a bit too arrogant to be taken seriously

his book seems to want to dissuade people., more than anything else

[eternalnewbie]

Are JD/MBAs useless?

They're certainly not useless, but they may be a bad idea.

Pros - Some employers will give a bonus to first year associates with a JD/MBA. Check out, for example, Latham and Watkins' website. I think its worth like $20K or something.

It may also help you get employed by law firms. Knowing about business transactions (and particularly finance) is a big plus in getting a job with a wall street firm.

Since I'm a law student, I couldn't tell you how it helps you with business jobs.

Cons - The obvious is the cost of the extra year of tuition, which is probably more than the first year JD/MBA bonus (which itself is the exception rather than the rule).

Also, it may hurt you with some firms. Imagine, for example that you are in your second year of law/business school. You would like a summer job with a law firm (this makes sense because you would like to make like $25K over the summer for doing nothing but eating a lot of free fancy lunches and drinking a lot of free alcohol). A lot of firms will be wary of you because you still have another summer before graduation. They don't like to invest all of that money when you are pretty likely to end up working for another firm.

Balance - I think it is a bad idea, but I may be biased by the fact that I chose not to do it.

2 final points:

1) If you are just interested in learning finance (e.g. for your personal edification) but want to be a lawyer, it is a waste of time. I have taken courses in law school on accounting and corporate finance taught by business school professors on an MBA level. I have also learned much more about economics (which is taken very seriously in law schools these days) in law school than I did in 40-some hours of undergrad classes. Conversely, if you really want to be a banker, but would also like to know something about the law, there are courses in most MBA programs that you can take to satisfy your curiosity.

2. Some people seem to suggest that you can't go into banking with a law degree - that all you can be is a lawyer. This is terrible advice. My firm works with the best I-banks in the country and colleagues have told me that it is very easy for a second-year associate to get a job working in a business capacity for one of the banks.

I'm not trying to push you to go to law school, but I did want to clear up some things.

[Misfire]

[ QUOTE ]
his book seems to want to dissuade people., more than anything else

[/ QUOTE ]

There are soooo many lawyers completely miserable in what they're doing. If someone is not going to absolutely get their jollies practicing law, it's not a bad idea for them to be dissuaded.

FWIW, I think Montauk actually has a joint JD/MBA.

[Misfire]

Oh yeah, if you do decide on law school and you want to start in fall 2006, you need to take the LSAT by December.

[scalf]

[img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]..funny thing..

he did not even consider medicine...lol..

i guess the word has gotten around...amazingly ez big bucks possible in law school and wall street; ya gotta suffer 8-10 years status post bachalaureatte to then get sued by some bozo who will make more money in one malpractice case than the poor m.d. will make in two lifetimes..

lol

who is john galt?

gl

[img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]

[Misfire]

[ QUOTE ]
who is john galt?

[/ QUOTE ]

[img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[dutchbrodymoss]

yeah, I'm looking at taking the october one because I'm not done with school until the end of August.

[HDPM]

Hey, when you see the malpractice case that pays 2 lifetimes of doctor salaries to the lawyers will you please refer it? [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]


Seriously though, law may be vile, but the money isn't as easy as people think. And I think overall/generally etc... medicine is a more rewarding (both financially and otherwise) career than law. So maybe too bad the poster didn't consider it. That could change as medicine is socialized more.