seeking comments from those in college or who have finished

[Brit Boi Gee]

Well this is probably more for the people who have done joint honours, but it applies to anyone who can give me advice on going through academia.

I am in my last year, and will be finishing in early june. I chose English because I like writing, and reading and thought It might help me get a job, and I chose social science because of its breadth, i.e. I could learn some philosophy, political science, economics, sociology, psychology, anthropolgy etc etc. Well to cut a long story short I feel I've reached a crossroads, because I don't know 1.) which subject I prefer 2.) if I want to do a masters or not, and if so in which subject. My grades are good enough to pursue one of these avenues, but I feel it is hard to make a decision. I have thought about everything from Teaching, Journalism, to living a lowly life as a poet and giving my life to that. People have also said that maybe I should do something more vocational, i.e. more of a guarantee of a job at the end and and maybe goto law school, but I don't know what to do at this point.

I know some things in life end up choosing you, but with my graduation fast approaching It is now forcing my choice, and i'm running out of time.

any advice?

Thanks

[Red1]

you're not running out of time. you dont have to jump right into grad school/law school immediately after you finish your undergrad work. Take some time to travel, work, write perhaps, then make go back to school when you have a better idea of what you want to do with your life.

[UnbrokeN]

menaz will know the answer to all your questions

[Brit Boi Gee]

hes not that arrogant

[Ghet for Prez]

Time flies, man.

Gratz on your last year. Hope all is well.

To choice something based off of interest is complex. Some choose their education paths because they know themselves and what compliments them. Others choose it because the context and publicity surrounded by a field of information. But for the most part, people don't know why they like what they like.

I say finish up.. take some time off.

You'll either slip away or bounceback harder than before.

[menaz]

There is no QUESTION to answer here only ADVICE to give.

You seem to enjoy Writting and reading = Poet/Scholar material.

Travel is good for the free-spirited, But I feel someone has you on time constraints. It seems you know what your passion is. So a time constraint shouldn't matter, Unless You have set periodic goals for yourself by age.

A Good poet suffers life and writes eloquently from those experiences.
A Good scholar devotes his life to endlessly learning.
A Good journalist keeps his Bias-Ideology out of his writting,
Of course that depends upon what the journalist is writting about.
I recommend a social science course know as "Civics."

But in the end it's up to you. Choose the right path a ride it.

[B. Fury]

It will eventually come to you. I graduated with my Bachelor's of Arts degree in English as well. Currently, I am trying to start my own magazine publication focusing mainly on Hip-Hop with another friend of mine from college.

However, I am also in grad school persuing a Master's in Secondary Education so I will be able to teach in case the mag biz doesn't turn out successfully.

So whoever told you to do any vocational studies was giving you some great advice. You want to be able to obtain an occupation that can make full use of your college education.

[Sun Zoo]

Try teaching. Maybe try traveling abroad, if you haven't done that much already.

But in terms of career, try teaching. It pays poorly, but for the right person, it's a lot of fun and incredibly rewarding. I taught high school kids this summer and it was a fantastic experience...I'm a junior right now so I have a year more than you, but I imagine I'll eventually end up teaching too..

take some time to explore though. Just try things out, you might as well...you don't wanna just take some job becuase its there and then stay doing it the rest of your life becuase it's convenient.

[Speedy Gunzalez]

As you may know, I'm currently in grad school and I have essentially pondered the same questions you are asking yourself.

I had two reasons for taking a year prior to grad school:
1. To take time and reflect as to whether I was certain about making a long commitment to study.
2. Work and pay off some of my loans.

As cliche as it may sound, I would advise that you follow your passion and become in tune with what drives your spirit.

Good luck with whatever path you choose to pursue.

[McGirth]

I remember when you posted about not doing so great. It was apparent to me anyway that you could turn things around, and I guess you did, good on you.

I'm in law school right now & faced a similar situation to you.

Some things are might want to think about are, [that i wish i could change in retrospect]:

1-IF you want to do Law School but you have an inclination for grad school. I suggest you go to grad school first. Its alot easier to do grad THEN law school, if you feel like it, then to do Law school THEN grad school. Law schools tend to be 3years, in addition after you will have to work while doingBar school if you want to become a licensed lawyer. The longer you wait, the harder it can get. So its hard to justify going to grad school after law school. Plus, generally most law schools are expensive so you may have to pay off your debt.
Also, Law schools admissions will look kindly on having completed a masters. So it ups your chance on getting into a good program.

2-dont take a year off unless if you have money to go on a nice long trip. I sugges t not starting another Job (like teaching) for year. Whats likely to happen is that you will develop habits associated with making more money with a student. As a result you will find it very difficult to return to studying.[your standard of living will have changed] Its better to keep up the student lifestyle till you can earn a steady income. This way you wont develop any habits/modes of life you ahve to give up. which is a pain.

3-if you go to law school, go to a theoretical one (most of the top ones are theoretical). I think a "black letter" law school would be really really boring.

At the same time TRY not to go into too much debt. Debt destroys leisure, so theres no point going to a theoretical law school if you have to worry about getting grades to a job.

In sum, if i could do it over i would do a masters right after undergrad or win the lottery and go backpacking for a year :P

[Brit Boi Gee]

Originally Posted by McGirth

I remember when you posted about not doing so great. It was apparent to me anyway that you could turn things around, and I guess you did, good on you.

I'm in law school right now & faced a similar situation to you.

Some things are might want to think about are, [that i wish i could change in retrospect]:

1-IF you want to do Law School but you have an inclination for grad school. I suggest you go to grad school first. Its alot easier to do grad THEN law school, if you feel like it, then to do Law school THEN grad school. Law schools tend to be 3years, in addition after you will have to work while doingBar school if you want to become a licensed lawyer. The longer you wait, the harder it can get. So its hard to justify going to grad school after law school. Plus, generally most law schools are expensive so you may have to pay off your debt.
Also, Law schools admissions will look kindly on having completed a masters. So it ups your chance on getting into a good program.

2-dont take a year off unless if you have money to go on a nice long trip. I sugges t not starting another Job (like teaching) for year. Whats likely to happen is that you will develop habits associated with making more money with a student. As a result you will find it very difficult to return to studying.[your standard of living will have changed] Its better to keep up the student lifestyle till you can earn a steady income. This way you wont develop any habits/modes of life you ahve to give up. which is a pain.

3-if you go to law school, go to a theoretical one (most of the top ones are theoretical). I think a "black letter" law school would be really really boring.

At the same time TRY not to go into too much debt. Debt destroys leisure, so theres no point going to a theoretical law school if you have to worry about getting grades to a job.

In sum, if i could do it over i would do a masters right after undergrad or win the lottery and go backpacking for a year :P

Thanks for the replies everyone, they have been most helpful.

I have have a few questions regarding your comments, Mcgirth.

In the UK, there I think the law system is a bit different. Can you do a BA in law? You can over here and it seems to be the main pathway. Hence, I will have to do a diploma in Law for introduction then another 2 or 3 years (a long time).

1.) What was your BA in before going on to law school?

2.) What made you want to go into law?

3.) If you could have gone to grad school, would you have done a law related subject, or could you of done say political science and still gone into law?

4.) Your are right about taking years out. They can hinder your study pattern ( a process which you have been in for awhile). It is harder to go back into it sometimes. If I do it i'm gonna just keep going.

5.) Sorry, but I dont understand the diffeence between a theoretical law school and a "black letter" school. Can you elaborate a little on this?

6.)I have been thinking about doing a masters in either English or Social sciences too and maybe going into teaching. Whatever I do, seeing as I don't want to leave with a degree and find a job, it is going to take me another couple of years atleast but i'm okay with that. So its either BA then Law school. Or Masters in either soc sci, or English, ( 1 Year) followed by PGCE (teacher training also 1 year) then Job placement. Ofcourse, I could a MA in English and go into journalism, or something else, and the same goes for Social Science.

Thanks for your time

[identity-X]

do what makes you happy?

how's that for simple? if taking some time of to figure out what will ultimately make you happy will make you happy then do that.

[McGirth]

Originally Posted by Brit Boi Gee

Thanks for the replies everyone, they have been most helpful.

I have have a few questions regarding your comments, Mcgirth.

In the UK, there I think the law system is a bit different. Can you do a BA in law? You can over here and it seems to be the main pathway. Hence, I will have to do a diploma in Law for introduction then another 2 or 3 years (a long time).

1.) What was your BA in before going on to law school?

2.) What made you want to go into law?

3.) If you could have gone to grad school, would you have done a law related subject, or could you of done say political science and still gone into law?

4.) Your are right about taking years out. They can hinder your study pattern ( a process which you have been in for awhile). It is harder to go back into it sometimes. If I do it i'm gonna just keep going.

5.) Sorry, but I dont understand the diffeence between a theoretical law school and a "black letter" school. Can you elaborate a little on this?

6.)I have been thinking about doing a masters in either English or Social sciences too and maybe going into teaching. Whatever I do, seeing as I don't want to leave with a degree and find a job, it is going to take me another couple of years atleast but i'm okay with that. So its either BA then Law school. Or Masters in either soc sci, or English, ( 1 Year) followed by PGCE (teacher training also 1 year) then Job placement. Ofcourse, I could a MA in English and go into journalism, or something else, and the same goes for Social Science.

Thanks for your time

BBG,
BA's in law are (to practice) are in the UK and Canada. In the US you get a JD. However, in Canada the LLB (bachelor of laws) is the equivalent to the US JD, since you need a prior BA to get it. Its widely considered to be like graduate school, not like undergrad.
I know in the UK law school is straight out of hignschool. its not really the degree as US/Canadian law school as a result. I heard that some of hte better UK schools are instituting a post-BA program like in canada and the US.
if you do a masters i could see it being irritating going to school with ppl straight out of highschool. Maybe think about some of these better UK programs or even Canadian or US law? (don't know if you want to live here though - though degrees from some schools can get you jobs in many countries, including england. harvard, chicago, yale, mcgill, uoft(maybe), stanford, etc...)

i did poli sci during my BA. I wanted to go into alow out of academic interest, it being the secon thing im interested in, after political theory. If i went to grad school, and if you do, it does not have to be law related in any way to go into law after. As long as its either science, humanities, or social science your fine. Its actually an advantage to have a masters/phd when applying at a top school (POST BA schools). so, for example, if you applied to harvard. if you have the same grades as someone else and u have a PHD. you get in over them pretty much. You still need to have comparable undergrad grades and a high LSAT score however. so its something to put you over the top if your borderline.

A black-letter law school is one that teaches you waht the LAW IS NOW. i.e. you look at current cases and statutes and they synthesize to teach you the state of the law now. the problem is the law changes. Theoretical law schools teach you waht the law is, what the law was, and how the law could change in the future for what reasons. law school is honestly very interesting. the only thing im not liking is that most students want to either go in corporate/are liberal activists. there are few that want to study law to know the reality/truth of it.

your chosen path sounds sufficient. but do more reasearch. you might find pursuing law school now to be better. I, personally, would not wnat to go to a law school for 3 years with ppl straight out of high school after completing a masters/phd.
you might even want to consider coming to canada/us if you can get in. anyway. all stuff you have to research.

[Brit Boi Gee]

Hey McGirth, thanks a lot for the help you have given me.

It seems the ways into law vary from country to country so let me try and clear up a little confusion. In England for example, you cannot do law school straight out of highschool. Anybody who wants to start an undergraduate degree in anything needs A-levels which are usually over 2 years and fall between highschool and College. I managed to do it in a year but it was hectic. After this you can either do a three year law degree (some are 4), and then start your training to be either a barrister or solicitor in your chosen area. Because I will have a degree in the social sciences and humanities I can do what they call a (GDL) a graduate diploma in law, which is one year followed by 2 years training. Because you need a BA to start the graduate diploma there wont be anyone there straight out of highschool.

Political science is interesting, infact i'm doing a course called political ideologies this year which covers a whole range of thinkers and theory, and i'm really enjoying it.

I most definatley would prefer a theoretical law school. I feel it is important to learn the history and evolution of the law and be able to think about where it is going in the future. I like you, do not like to be spoon fed, and trying to learn the reality or truth to it seems like the most valubale mindset to tackle law school with.

I will definately do more research into this, and will consider perhaps studying in the states, but I think it would hurt me greatly financially to do so. (its expensive here as it is.)

But thanks for your help, and I'm sure you will be succesfull at law school if you keep the same attitude to learning that you have had up to now. And remember, nothing is forever, you dont have to think that you have to make a decision on the whole of your future right now, try it, see what you think of it, reach your own conclusions then see where you want to be.

all the best