Getting into law school w/ a surveying degree

What area of Law?

Try http://www.surveying.otago.ac.nz/about/prospectivestudents.html

Derek

Business and money management. Some of the surveyors that I know are the worst people I know when it comes to managing the finances of their business.

JD with a concentration in Mediation and Dispute Resolution. They also offer an LL.M. with a concentration in Mediation and Dispute Resolution.

The guy you need to have a chat with is a fellow poster here. John Stahl, aka JB Stahl. He got his Esq long after his PLS and is highly renowned on a national basis.

I think there are a few other multi disciplined professionals, but John is a guy you can actually talk to and relate with.

"are there any classes anyone could recommend that would look good on a law school application?"

Way back in the olden days (right after fire, just before the wheel) I had the privilege of working with two lawyers, Sandy De’Alemberte and Janet Reno. Sandy went on to become the president of Florida State University and Janet Reno became Attorney General for the United States.
My opportunity to work with them arose while I was employed by ITT Community Development Corporation during the infancy of what is now called Palm Coast. I was young and inquisitive so I asked a lot of questions. Both concurred strongly that English was the bachelor’s degree of choice in preparation for law school. If not majored in, at least have numerous advanced English classes on your transcript.

Good luck and have a great weekend!

> My question is: with the electives that I still have to take in the course of finishing my surveying degree, are there any classes anyone could recommend that would look good on a law school application?

FWIW - I was sitting in a bar a few years ago before a DCALS (District of Columbia Association of Land Surveyors) meeting and the person next to me turned out to be the Director of JD Admissions at Georgetown.

Back when I was an pre-law undergrad, the rumor floating around was that the best degree to get into law school straight from collage was a double major in English/History (I was a double major in English/Political Science). The admissions person from Georgetown told me that they had found that the candidates best prepared for law school had academic backgrounds in one (or a combination) of the following: English, History, Philosophy or Classics.

You could make an appointment to go in and see someone in admissions at the law school where you are going to apply and ask them the same question. But I think it is a great idea and I wish you success. I hope you stay in surveying after you get your law degree.

I do plan to stay in surveying after I get my law degree. I don't necessarily want to be an attorney, I just want the knowledge of law. I am a surveyor.

To quote Walt Robillard, "Surveying is a disease; once you get it, you can never get rid of it."

I asked your question of the staff attorney here.

His answer was that a course or two in philosophy would be very helpful as the concept of logic was highly important in law school, and also very important in the LSAT. He taught the LSAT prep course.

Thanks. I will add that to my list.

My son has a law degree from Vanderbilt, went there on scholarship. The only real key is making a high score on the LSAT and having the money to pay.

The legal market is actually pretty flooded currently.

I have heard that the reason that lawyers major in english is to prepare them for all of the writing they have to do in law school and on the bar exam...

Reading and writing skills are important. But law schools are impressed with engineering degrees as they are recognized as one of the most difficult. They don't usually know about surveying or geomatics. I would make sure your applications tell them that surveying is a branch of engineering and a rigorous course of study. Point out the higher math required (I assume calc 2 or 3). The thinking is that if one can achieve a high GPA in engineering they have a good chance of being successful in the most demanding curriculum; the law.

My oldest son Wayne, went to Vanderbilt and graduated with a Law Degree. He thought law school was easy, and Vanderbilt is considered one of the top ten law schools in the country. He did score nearly a perfect score on both the SAT and the LSAT so his viewpoint may be a little biased. He has had his own law firm for about a year now. It is still a struggle. He is too honest to be a lawyer. I hope he stays that way.

My view of it from the little bit I have seen is Lawyering turns people into unpleasant people. You have to be willing to grill and harass witnesses at least to the edge of what you can get away with not too mention dropping a pile of discovery onto the other side. One Lawyer told me you have to be willing to go to work to fight every day; it can be stressful.

The other funny observation I have is have you ever seen a Lawyer at home on Saturday? They tend to be massive slobs on their own time, torn and stained t-shirt, torn shorts, 20 year old flip-flops. It's funny, I'm telling you. I think because they have to wear the "uniform" all week long they just go the opposite direction on weekends.

Wayne's job, as a lawyer, is very stressfull. Broken marriages, child custody, criminal cases, hurt people. Real life, not some television show or theoretical discussion. He has had major impact in folks lives. Talked several couples into reconsidering their divorces. As a lawyer, you see how "bad" folks are and it is hard not to get hardened and remain compassionate and caring. And he does tend to become the slob in his off time. Hard on your health also. At 30, he has lost 60 pounds and started working out to get himself back in shape.

I think if someone had the right personality being a Mediator could be very rewarding.

Law is a profession, where many that get into it are not considering justice or in helping people get it. They are driven by money and status which is gained in ways other than being a nice guy. That has been the trend long enough now to effect our justice system, our government and our private lives. It also impacts what and how the subject is taught in the Law Schools. Some exceptions around as always. We now have ample lawyers and many are forced into other things, I don't think that is good for the nation because of the attitudes and beliefs they carry with them. Can see it in ethics discussions, the prevailing attitude is not doing the right thing to others but what the law will allow you to get away with, that destroys the trust and cooperation which is needed to foster sound progress in every endeavor man is involved in.
jud

I didn't find it particularly difficult either, just a lot of time and work (especially while raising kids and working two jobs). Course I didn't find surveying or engineering particularly difficult either. But my comments reflect the way the law schools think (in my experience). It's important to know how the people examining an application are going to look at things.

I think we bring our morals and values to any job. Lawyers are the type of position where it is tough to hide that, even if one wanted to. It has its effect on the Lawyer and those they deal with. Tough for those with either strong or no principles. The first will suffer personally and the second will harm others.