Without a doubt, life as a nontraditional law student has its own unique challenges. Not only are you concerned with preparing for class and exams, you may also have a growing family and a part-time or full-time job to juggle as well.
Here are three things you can do to prepare for law school before you send in your tuition deposit:
1. Learn more about your reasons for going to law school.
It sounds simple enough, but pinpointing the reasons why you want to go to law school can make a big difference in your satisfaction level later. To get a head start, check out three questions you should ask yourself before deciding to go to law school.
One big caveat here is that you shouldn't count on making a lot of money once you graduate; although on average lawyers do fine financially, the coveted large firm jobs that pay big bucks right out of school go to a very small percentage of graduates, and not surprisingly the competition for these jobs is fierce. Many attorneys actually work in the public sector, nonprofit organizations, and public interest positions and make about what a starting teacher would make in many school districts.
2. Learn about law school life in general.
The Top 10 Online Law School Resources will get you off to a great start on figuring out the basics (LSAT, application procedures) and also give you an inside peek on to what happens in law school classrooms and what law school exams are like.
A nontraditional law student will deal with many of the same issues and challenges as a traditional law student, so you will find generalized resources on what to expect from the first day of class onward very useful.
3. Learn about law school life as a nontraditional student.
If you want to really get the low down on what life is like for a nontraditional law student, go right to the source. A great resource for this is NonTradLaw, a forum that discusses anything and everything that concerns nontraditional law students.
Also think about contacting the admissions office of a local law school and/or the one you're considering; they may be willing to set up a meeting for you with a nontraditional student or graduate.