Restarting @ age 30...do I have hope?

[DainBramaged]

This is my situation for those that don't know.

I'm 28 right now, and will be getting out of the Marine Corps in a year.

As far as past experience go, aside from five years in the military, I have an associates degree and random work in the service industry.

My first priority after getting out is to finish a Bachelors. I have always dreamed of going to law school.

What are my chances of making a successful career this late? What are my chances of getting into a law school? With a family now, will I be able to succeed in this goal?

Even if I have basically no interruption from getting out to starting school and assuming seamless transfer to law school, I won't be starting a career until I'm 35. This is more than ten years after "traditional" students.

The closer it gets, the more worried I become...

 

[maziwanka]

i have a friend at work at the firm who was 40 as a first year. you can definitely do it. the only thing though - DO NOT take out a lot of loans to go to law school. the market is really different than what it was before. seriously.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

how soon are you expecting to die?

 

[Skel]

Of course it's possible. I've known tons of people that have switched careers at later stages of life then you are now. Might not be easy, and you'll prob stress..

 

[TheAdvocate]

You can definitely get into law school - they're just diploma factories after all, but finding a job will be tough right now, though not due to your age. Your background will be appealing to a firm who doesn't wanna hire some snot nosed kid with no real world experience.

But I wholeheartedly agree with the advice to do it as debt free as you can. Job market is soft, and there are too many graduates anyway. Do it cheap, do it well, and you'll be fine. Age will not matter at all.

 

[DainBramaged]

i have a friend at work at the firm who was 40 as a first year. you can definitely do it. the only thing though - DO NOT take out a lot of loans to go to law school. the market is really different than what it was before. seriously.

Thankfully, Post-9/11 GI Bill will be picking up most of the tab for that. Illinois will be covering the Bachelors.

 

[DainBramaged]

how soon are you expecting to die?

Well, I smoked for seven years. How's seventy-eight sound? I'm taking into consideration some advancement in medicine...

 

[classy]

You are fine. Many people start or don't step into a long term career until they are 35 or so. You've done good. Served in the military, got some schooling under your belt. You sound like you have solid foundation to me.

 

[Platypus]

can't wait till you're back in IL <3

 

[moshquerade]

go for it Dain! follow your dreams.

 

[DainBramaged]

can't wait till you're back in IL <3

Dude, me either. <3

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Well, I smoked for seven years. How's seventy-eight sound? I'm taking into consideration some advancement in medicine...

Yes. you have plenty of time in that case. you have have time for at least 4 different careers in addition to your military one.

 

[kedlav]

I don't hire any lawyers, but when we're hiring new folks, if its a choice between someone who has no experience and someone who's held a job in the military, the folks in .MIL get picked first, 10/10. Usually, this is also the case when its related experiencing in civilian world vs. related experience in .MIL. So long as you don't come out carrying a cartful of debt, you should be in decent shape. It took a friend about 15 months after graduating from a good T2 law school to get a decent job (she obtained her position 2 months ago), so keep in mind that the economy is shit and there are a lot more law grads than are really needed right now.

 

[Imp]

Never too late. The kids love partnering with the old people because they actually do work. Yes, you will stand out. Who cares?

Law school, even if it's free, could work out. Market sounds saturated though.

 

[yllus]

30 is young. Don't worry about it. And enjoy your hard earned GI Bill!

 

[zinfamous]

You chances and opportunity are as full and open as you want them to be.

It is never too late. ...and you're still quite young. Hell, I only have my bachelors and all of the post-docs in my lab are ~3-4 years younger than me.

wtf is my problem?

 

[DanTMWTMP]

I have a buddy whom i knew since elementary school. His dad started over, went to med school, and now is a successful doctor. I remember they were renting out a house, and his mom was keeping the family afloat (barely it seems). When we graduated college (we went to the same elem-middle-high schools and university), his dad had just finished residency, and now they have three prime properties. My buddy himself just finished med school, and entered residency just a mere 7-8 years after his dad finished his residency haha.

My dad's close friend was bored of his dead-end job as a car mechanic. He was almost 50, and decided to sell his shop. 5-6 odd years later, he's now a successful partner.

My friend who was in the marines, recently got married last year and is now in law school. Most of it has been paid by the GI bill. He's my age (29-30).

I have a couple friends of mine who were accountants. I guess they hated their jobs so much so that they gambled and grabbed loans, and just recently graduated with MBA's, and got hired into big trading firms.

I also know a few deadbeat dudes who still have no direction in life. It seems you already have a dream, plans, loving support, and drive to do what you want.

Also, being a vet is almost like having a cheat code in life hehe. VA home loans and the GI Bill will get you caught up with the rest of us REALLY FAST. You won't be hampered with large student loans like me . My cousin just got a VA loan on a very nice condo in LA. He makes around the same money as I do, except his place is a lot nicer than mine, and I had to save up like a bum to get my tiny place .

You're a cool guy here, and IIRC, you're deployed as we speak. Be safe out there, and again, thanks for your service. Good luck!

 

[ichy]

The job market for lawyers stinks, but if the gov't will cover the cost of law school then go for it. What in the world made you dream of going to law school though?

 

[yllus]

The job market for lawyers stinks, but if the gov't will cover the cost of law school then go for it. What in the world made you dream of going to law school though?

I have it on good authority that he is a big fan of Ally McBeal.

 

[highland145]

It is never too late. ...and you're still quite young. Hell, I only have my bachelors and all of the post-docs in my lab are ~3-4 years younger than me.

wtf is my problem?

It's your S.C. relations.
Dang. You might be my 2nd couzin. Which is almost like my 1st couzin. Which is almost like my wi......n/m

kidding.


OP, I was 41 before I went to work for myself. Granted, a lot of years in the business, but still a big step.

IIRC, in the past, OT lawyers have said don't become a lawyer.

Best of luck and thanks for your service.

 

[Taughnter]

This is my situation for those that don't know.

I'm 28 right now, and will be getting out of the Marine Corps in a year.

As far as past experience go, aside from five years in the military, I have an associates degree and random work in the service industry.

My first priority after getting out is to finish a Bachelors. I have always dreamed of going to law school.

What are my chances of making a successful career this late? What are my chances of getting into a law school? With a family now, will I be able to succeed in this goal?

Even if I have basically no interruption from getting out to starting school and assuming seamless transfer to law school, I won't be starting a career until I'm 35. This is more than ten years after "traditional" students.

The closer it gets, the more worried I become...

When I went to law school, many if not most of the students were over age 30. Many of them were on their second career. We had a few military guys, some doctors, a semi-pro soccer player, a restaurant/bar/club owner, a chemist, a few teachers, etc.. So as far as your age and your background, I would say that you're not in bad shape at all. Maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the students in my class came straight out of college. That being said, my law school did put emphasis on diversity and having students from all walks of life as opposed to many/most law schools, where they mostly want to see your grades and LSAT scores.

Now, when it comes to having a successful career, you could theoretically have a job making 6 figures in your first year out of school if you're willing to put the time and effort in, get straight A's, and work for one of the main law journals. That's going to depend entirely on whether you can understand the content, you want it bad enough to give up a lot of your social life, and if you actually want to do the sort of work that pays that kind of money.

I do want to point out that Law School is different for everyone. It really can be easy and fun for some people and other people may never "get it". It's not going to be cheap, though, and you should really talk to as man people as you can to get an idea what your school life will be like and then what your job will be like afterwards, because once you spend 3 years and 75-200 thousand getting your JD, then possibly the worst 6 weeks of your life studying for the BAR exam, you are not going to want to find out then that it's not what you thought it would be. I hate to say it, but that is REALLY common.

 

[SP33Demon]

You will get way more bang from your buck if you go into the medical sector (say, NP or PA). Less debt, easy to find a job = you come out ahead in the end. Everyone and their mom wants to do law. If you have to take on debt for a Tier 1 or 2 school, forget it. If you cannot go to a Tier 1 or 2 school (even if you can afford it), forget it.

 

[allthatisman]

Your age means nothing IMO. You already have most, if not all the BS courses knocked out with your AA, now you can start on the more interesting upper division courses and finish that BA/BS. As far as law school, like many have said, the market is a lot different from what it used to be, unless you can land a gig defending Lindsay Lohan But seriously, your military career(especially in the Marines)+ a bachelor's degree will take you far with the right interpersonal skills.

There are a lot of candidates for jobs right now, and many of them just lived at home and knocked out an MBA... hardly any of them have any real "life skills".

Just curious, what are you doing/done in the Marines?

 

[thegimp03]

I know for a fact that ex-marines get into great MBA schools (law school probably the same but I know less lawyers) and have gone onto jobs in investment banking for the big firms like Goldman Sachs, etc. People hiring for these jobs love to find people outside of the generic Harvard MBA grad who has spent his/her entire life in the library.

 

[DainBramaged]

Just curious, what are you doing/done in the Marines?

I'm a Pashto linguist, MOS 2676. I'm almost finished with my deployment, but I was at a small patrol base near Lashkar Gah. I would go with the grunts on their foot-mounted patrols whenever they felt like there was an above-average chance of taking contact from the Taliban or when they were going to meet someone (village elder, mullah, etc) and wanted someone they could trust (vs. a local national interpreter) to do the translating.