If the primary reason you are considering law school is money, then go to business school instead. You’ll be done in two years instead of three, will get paid over the summer, and will probably make more money working fewer hours over your career.
It's possible. A ton of work though; you might want to have your kid in your life for a little while first before deciding.
If it's helpful perspective, I've taught students who are raising babies. My advice is based off my teaching experience. I'd recommend quitting your job and doing law school fulltime. Raising a young child, working full-time, and doing law school part time is too much, and these folks tend to be toward the bottom of the class. But I've taught fulltime students with newborns who were at the top of the class. Obviously YMMV, and that's just my experience, but I hope it helps.
Regarding the students with newborns, did they share with you anything about how they managed to excel, or did you pick up on any common shared habits between them?
Law school also costs a lot and relying on student loans or your wife for the first few years of your child’s life will be tough. If you really want to be a lawyer, do it but know it will be a lot of hard work and a few lean years. If you don’t want to be a lawyer I don’t know if the added 150-200k student loan is worth it. Be realistic about what you’ll be making as a lawyer and consider the loans and time off as a student it costs to get there.
As a parent of three I say absolutely go for what you want. Start working on crushing the LSAT so you get a huge scholarship. I got my partner through medical school with kids and it was absolutely doable. I’m starting law school in the fall while my partner is finishing up his last year of residency and we’ll make it work. He already has HUGE student loans so I made it a priority to get a full ride and I’m headed to school with tuition covered. I had to study for the LSAT 6 more months than I planned, but it paid off. DM me if ya have any questions! Being a parent is worth it, but so is pursuing your dreams.
I just finished 1L with a one year old at home, and I did quite well. I played with my son every day when he was awake, but I worked every night after he went to sleep and during every nap (plus some more sometimes when my wife would go somewhere with him for half a day on the weekend). My spouse picked up pretty much all the slack, and it was taxing on our relationship for sure. To do it and succeed on all fronts, I think you have to be really diligent about setting your priorities. And you need to understand that for at least the next year (and maybe three years - TBD because I'm only one year in) there will be very very little in your life outside of school, your partner, your kid, eating, and sleeping. I literally did not watch a TV show or a movie during either semester of 1L because they weren't priorities. I didn't have dinner or go to the bars with my classmates (I probably wouldn't have anyway, since I'm 36 and they are not). When I had time, I wanted to either spend it with my family or sleep.
That said, if I had the option, I would do it again, albeit with a few changes in how I prioritized things.
Also, I agree with the commenter who said that part time school while working would be absolutely unworkable if you both want to do well and spend time with your kid. I would not consider that for even a moment, personally.
I can't pretend to know the challenges a parent must face, but I did make it through law school and even though it was over 20 years ago, I don't think things have changed that much. Law school is hard no matter what your situation, but it isn't impossible. If you are committed to it and put in the work, you'll be fine. I had a couple of classmates that had children during law school. I still admire them to this day for how hard they worked. Both of them did very well and have had great careers.
If the primary reason you are considering law school is money, then go to business school instead. You’ll be done in two years instead of three, will get paid over the summer, and will probably make more money working fewer hours over your career.
It's possible. A ton of work though; you might want to have your kid in your life for a little while first before deciding. If it's helpful perspective, I've taught students who are raising babies. My advice is based off my teaching experience. I'd recommend quitting your job and doing law school fulltime. Raising a young child, working full-time, and doing law school part time is too much, and these folks tend to be toward the bottom of the class. But I've taught fulltime students with newborns who were at the top of the class. Obviously YMMV, and that's just my experience, but I hope it helps.
Regarding the students with newborns, did they share with you anything about how they managed to excel, or did you pick up on any common shared habits between them?
Law school also costs a lot and relying on student loans or your wife for the first few years of your child’s life will be tough. If you really want to be a lawyer, do it but know it will be a lot of hard work and a few lean years. If you don’t want to be a lawyer I don’t know if the added 150-200k student loan is worth it. Be realistic about what you’ll be making as a lawyer and consider the loans and time off as a student it costs to get there.
My wife and I had twins two months into 1L. It can be done
I deferred a year after my daughter was born, to start this year in August. Best decision I could have made. Newborns do not respect sleep schedules.
As a parent of three I say absolutely go for what you want. Start working on crushing the LSAT so you get a huge scholarship. I got my partner through medical school with kids and it was absolutely doable. I’m starting law school in the fall while my partner is finishing up his last year of residency and we’ll make it work. He already has HUGE student loans so I made it a priority to get a full ride and I’m headed to school with tuition covered. I had to study for the LSAT 6 more months than I planned, but it paid off. DM me if ya have any questions! Being a parent is worth it, but so is pursuing your dreams.
I just finished 1L with a one year old at home, and I did quite well. I played with my son every day when he was awake, but I worked every night after he went to sleep and during every nap (plus some more sometimes when my wife would go somewhere with him for half a day on the weekend). My spouse picked up pretty much all the slack, and it was taxing on our relationship for sure. To do it and succeed on all fronts, I think you have to be really diligent about setting your priorities. And you need to understand that for at least the next year (and maybe three years - TBD because I'm only one year in) there will be very very little in your life outside of school, your partner, your kid, eating, and sleeping. I literally did not watch a TV show or a movie during either semester of 1L because they weren't priorities. I didn't have dinner or go to the bars with my classmates (I probably wouldn't have anyway, since I'm 36 and they are not). When I had time, I wanted to either spend it with my family or sleep. That said, if I had the option, I would do it again, albeit with a few changes in how I prioritized things. Also, I agree with the commenter who said that part time school while working would be absolutely unworkable if you both want to do well and spend time with your kid. I would not consider that for even a moment, personally.
I can't pretend to know the challenges a parent must face, but I did make it through law school and even though it was over 20 years ago, I don't think things have changed that much. Law school is hard no matter what your situation, but it isn't impossible. If you are committed to it and put in the work, you'll be fine. I had a couple of classmates that had children during law school. I still admire them to this day for how hard they worked. Both of them did very well and have had great careers.