| Topic Name: |
Part-Time Education |
| Message Name: |
Making it through law school |
| Date Posted: |
02/17/2006 |
| In Reply To: |
Spynavy:
Thank you for the excellent response. A bit on my background, I've wanted to go to law school for many years, but with an incredible opportunity at CIA, I've began to consider the part-time JD option. With that said, I would love to hear your thoughts on a myriad of things, but I'll keep my reply short.
Re: work-related tuition payments
I figured that DI would be quite hesitant to pay for most of the classes one would normally take in law school. As such, I am prepared to pay for as much myself (through paycheck, savings and commercial loans). And if they do have tuition assistance based on service committments, I would be very hesitant.
Re: workload
This is my primary concern. I have received a number of acceptances to DC law schools for this fall, but am still waiting on my clearance (in adjudication for appx 6 months). If clearance does not come through by fall, I'll start school. Otherwise, if work beckons before, I'll most likely defer.
I know the time committment is intense - but as someone bound to go to law school anyway, I feel that it makes the most economical sense to get it out of the way now.
Do you find that most employees at the Analyst level have difficulty putting in the effort that law school demands? Or is something that is most certainly feasible? |
| Message: |
I can only speak from personal experience, but I was an analyst throughout law school and I made it through, despite some "minor" annoyances like 9/11, the war in Iraq, and semi-annual overseas deployments. That being said, making it through is pretty much all I had time to do, as I had no time to participate in extracurricular activities like moot court or law review, which are very desirable for law firms. I also could not participate in summer employment or internships, which is how a lot of law students line up their first job after graduation.
So I guess the real question is why you're going to law school. If your primary interest is just earning your JD, then I would say go for it. But if you're trying to at least preserve the option of eventually working for a law firm, I would be hesitant in trying to balance intel work and school. Most of my friends in the evening program who got "good" law jobs upon graduation did it by (1) working as a clerk/paralegal during school and then just becoming a lawyer with the same firm, or (2) working b.s. day jobs, sometimes for less than 40 hours per week, with law school as their primary focus. Obviously, in the DI (1) is really not an option and I think following path (2) is a disservice to both the Agency and your own personal development as an analyst.
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