Would I Be Able To Get Into An Elite Law School?

Want to get to Law school but not be a lawyer?

• Im 27 and in between career change...I a biology major and did a health education masters but now want to switch to International Law, which requires getting in to law school. My only question is that i know I have to get in to law school but i dont really want to be a court room lawyer. What can i expect in law school? Will I be able to achieve my goal of international law without having to do courtroom law? Am I too old to switch to law school? Any suggestions would be great!

• Answer:

  International law is a huge field - what exactly do you want to do? There are plenty of people in law school who won't ever actually practice law the way most non-lawyers think of it. I have a large number of friends who are going into public policy and other such positions and will likely never see the inside of a courtroom. However, most law schools do have some sort of advocacy or trial requirement and you'll need to learn the basics of trial law. If you are not willing to do that (even if you have no intention of ever actually litigating a case) you don't belong in law school. You are not too old for law school (all law schools have a fairly significant number of students who have worked for a few years prior to law school) but I would encourage you to decide if this is really what you want. International law (all sectors) is a really tough field. Jobs in any law field are hard to come by, and law school is expensive. Can you afford law school? Can you pay back your law school loans if you don't get a job after law school? Do you know what international lawyers actually do on a day-to-day basis? There's no harm in exploring this option, but please do a lot more research before you make any sort of serious time or financial commitment.