Are friends/family shocked at your salary?

Well, shit, if you live with your parents or just in a small apartment by yourself and don't sink all your money into a wife and kids, then, yeah, you can probably make enough to get by and then some.

Shit, you could go out plenty and probably go on vacations if this is the case. Live with your parents or rent a cheap apartment. That leaves a lot of disposable income for you, my friend.

 

Good stuff, Waylon.

I'm considering going to law school myself. I know this sounds like an "excuse," but I just want to wait until after I get married in August so I can devote my full attention and funding to it. Will probably wait a couple years to have kids, so it will be a good time period to go to law school.

I could take the LSAT in June, but I've been so consumed with wedding stuff and working three or more jobs, that I don't think I'd do too well. I'd rather wait another few months and then study my ass off to do well on my LSAT. Like you said, that will help me financially, and since my undergrad GPA was a lukewarm 3.0 (yeah, I partied a lot but got through fine), I'll need to get a decent score. I've started studying with some of those Kaplan manuals, though, and so far I think I'm doing alright.

In the meantime, I'm making enough money through UI, freelancing gigs and other part-time jobs to pay the bills for now, but I know that won't last forever.

I'll have to keep in touch with you, though. Sounds like I'll need to go through some of the same processes as far as being married, changing my career and being very diligent about how to pay for law school as you are. Anyways, best of luck.

 

Your first step should be to pick up your Kaplan manuals, all of them, walk over to your nearest trash can, and deposit them there. They are garbage. They use made-up questions, which are of zero value.

If you or anyone else is serious about it, I can give you plenty of advice on which books to study and how to go about. I scored in the 97th percentile and don't consider myself particularly brilliant, just diligent and strong-willed and resourceful.

 

I got married in 1992 and we combined to make less than $20k, and that included Pell Grants and student loans. Still one of the est years of our lives and recalled with "never again" fondness.

 

Well, I defer to you. I haven't started any real serious studying, just a few hours here and there going over questions in the Kaplan manuals.

But you know more than I. Tell you what, I'll keep in touch with you on this board. I'll probably start studying seriously in the near future if I decide to go the law school route, and I would much appreciate help pertaining to what sources you used to study and the best ways to go about the process.

Thanks.

 

I'm hoping to go with Plan B on that living situation. Beyond that, I'm hoping that's pretty accurate, although I still doubt I'd go out much. Then again, for me, going out is a meal at Subway, which I still don't do often.

 

I love that I can work OT without fear of losing my job. Kind of a refreshing change.

 

Of all the horseshit spewed on this thread -- this is by far the most honest. It isn't that sports writing isn't making any of us, well except for Stephen A. Smith. rich -- it is that the combination of no raises, no future and no long term growth has finally worn most of us down.

I make a decent living. Will my paper exist in a year? Two? How about three? I don't know and I don't know if anyone can honestly answer those questions with a yes.

 

Ya that's absolutely right. Sure, it's great to go cover a college football game or NBA, NFL, whatever. But it would be even greater to have season tickets and go watch the games for enjoyment. Same perks, but juiced up a little bit because there's no small news holes or deadline pressure to deal with. At least, I'm hoping that turns out to be the case once I leave this business....

 

Unfortunately, having bollocksed up that decision once, I don't really trust myself. I'm registered for some classes for a new degree and am very nervous.

 

That's unfortunate, considering how much teachers are needed in many parts of the country. I know there are exceptions, like California, where teachers are actually losing their jobs, but there are still many places still needing teachers desperatley -- especially in the math or science route.

I am going through an alternative certification route in Texas that is entirely online. The only qualifications to be accepted into the program are: 1) A Bachelor's degree and 2) a 2.5 GPA. You pay a $50 application fee, get accepted and then pay a $375 program fee to start. Then they send you the coursework, and you have to finish in six months but can finish as fast as two months if you move fast. But in the meantime, you're also able to go look for a job because you're considered highly qualified and can get a probationary certificate. If you want to teach something other than what you're degree is in, you have to take a content area test to be able to teach that. So if your degree is in journalism and you want to teach history, you have to take a content test for history.

The program costs about $4,200 for everything, but you can be put on a monthly payment plan that can be deferred until you start teaching. After you finish the coursework, teach for one year (what they call the "internship") and pass the final test, you're certified.

The state minimum for teachers in Texas is somewhere around 36K/year. But in the DFW area, I've yet to find a school district that pays first-year teachers less than 40K. I would say 95 percent of the districts run from 43-45K/year. And you get salary bumps for having a Masters (usually $1,500 per year), being bilingual (around $3,500-5,000 per year), and other things.

Health insurance for teachers in Texas sucks if you're not single, but other than that, not too many complaints. Texas' Teachers Retirement System is pretty solid and you won't have to rely on the stock market.

 

My brother, a teacher in Phoenix, learned in the last week that his position is being eliminated for the next school year. As of the end of May, he is officially unemployed.

And for all of you who think law school is the panacea, once you've invested three years and untold thousands of dollars what do you expect to do? Start your own struggling pratice? Become a partner in a major firm immediately? Or ...

Pay your dues as a junior associate at a salary a lot less than you all think, if there are even any jobs available.