My friedn is thinking of majoring in pre-law, but she's worried of not landing a job if she doesn't follow through with law school. How would you advise her?

Thank you.

Honestly, you better be committed to go to law school before majoring in pre-law. Besides, pre-law won't really be an advantage when entering law schools, because they don't require any particular major.

By the way, you may have read elsewhere that "pre-law" or a "pre-law major" don't exist. While it is true that law schools require no pre-law major, some schools do offer such.

Hope that helps.

You're welcome too.

Thanks for the reply, Augustina. I didn't know some doubt that pre-law courses exist.

However, I do know about law schools accepting applicants without a pre-law course. I know a lot of friends who study philosophy, English literature, history and the like that train critical thinking.

Again, thanks.

Although classes on common law, criminal law and the like prepare you for the law school, you'll have to study politics mostly. However, classes on politics tackle public administration, international law and international relations.

Those who intend to go to law school engaged in civil service usually. You may want to work in government institutions, if not begin your career from such. Local courts are one of the best places to start out, same with law enforcement.

You don't major in pre-law per se. You take key classes that prepare you for law school, which may be combined with any undergraduate degree. So go grab a degree you like and then pass the Law School Admission Test (LSAT).

You're welcome.

Hey, you may also want to take up business degrees, specifically accounting and economics. Finishing a business course could land you a pretty decent job, just in case you change your mind on pursuing law school. And if you have to pursue law school, the job you'll hopefully land for finishing a business degree would bring a financial advantage to pay for the costs of law school.

You're welcome.

Heck, you could even major in art history and still go to law school.

These are the typical steps for pursuing a law school. First, you take up an undergraduate degree, which could be anything. Once you're certain of finishing the degree, you take the LSAT, which is more difficult than a SAT. As you are studying for the LSAT, you apply to a law school of your choice. If you pass the LSAT, send the results to the law school you applied. And then you wait and pray (hehehe).

I am not too confident that Pre-Law courses are of help in law school. I've read comments from law students regarding the glaring differences between the teaching methods in Pre-Law courses and those in law schools. Save time and money and take an undergraduate degree you will enjoy and excel at.

If you persist on pursuing law school, though, visit American Bar Association - Defending Liberty, Pursuing Justice for expert advice.

Good fortune.

Not even Paralegal courses?

Yup. Paralegal courses are unlike law school. The two may have subjects of the same name, but the teaching is different. Where law school walks you through current laws and cases and the theory of contracts, paralegal studies deal more with assisting the lawyer and the functional and technical aspects of drafting a contract.

By the way, those business courses Ruby mentioned are indispensable if you plan to establish your own law firm too.