http://www.cnbc.com/id/100569350
Choosing a legal career is a big step. The article notes that graduates of American law schools can expect to have accumulated student loan debt of between $125,000 and $250,000. Considering the years of deferred income spent in school, that is a heavy burden for anyone to shoulder, and the landscape is made even more problematic given that the initial salaries new lawyers can expect to command on graduation have also declined.
In light of this, several law schools have changed the focus of the legal education they deliver. The traditional form of delivery has always emphasized exposure to content. This is not a surprise, as legal education is largely rule-driven; it is only when the rules are embedded that analysis and the development of plausible arguments or plans of action can follow.
Now, law schools are emphasizing skills training - how to manage clients, how to conduct trials, and how to operate a law firm.
It seems to me that this re-configuration creates an environment that is ideally suited to the types of hybrid learning espoused in Jose Bowen's book, Teaching Naked. If the lecture-oriented delivery of content could be downloaded to online resources that law students would be required to absorb pre-class, face time in class could be employed in creative discussions about such things as the proper roles lawyers play within society, mock trials, mock interviews with clients, and the way that lawyers should address the ethical problems which so often arise in practice.
If law students were to graduate with those types of skills, I believe they could expect to occupy the high ground in a difficult job market.
References:
Bowen, J. (2012). Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning, San Francisco , CA
Didn't realize how expensive it can be to pursue a legal career. Thanks for this information, Robert. My 13-yr old daughter plans to be a lawyer after high school and with this not so rosy outlook, I wonder if she'll change her mind. I think it's a good move to train lawyers to have these management skills for wider career options in the future.
ReplyDeleteHi Leyvi. Thanks for your comment. Remember that this article reports on the situation in the US, where costs can be quite a bit greater. Having said that, there are many students graduating from law schools in Canada who have accumulated loan debt amounting to many tens of thousands of dollars. No matter how you look at it, a legal qualification is not cheap. Make sure your daughter has a passion for the law!
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