4條建議：選擇收益最高的法學院
出國留學網(wǎng)訊 很多大學法學院的招生率在持續(xù)下降，但學雜費卻持高不下。怎樣讓自己在對教育高投資的同時也獲得較高的收益便成了一個值得深思的問題。本文就此提出了4條建議，一起來看看吧!
Law school enrollment continues to decline, according to a December report from the American Bar Association, but tuition and fees remain high at many institutions.
美國律師協(xié)會在一項報告中指出，很多大學法學院的招生率在持續(xù)下降，但學雜費卻持高不下。
While some schools have decreased or capped tuition to attract students, getting a J.D. is still expensive. The average tuition and fees in 2012 for private institutions was $40,634, according to the ABA. At public schools the average was $23,214 for in-state students and $36,202 for out-of-state students.
雖然一些學校通過降低學費來吸引學生，要想得到法學博士學位依然很貴。美國律師協(xié)會的調(diào)查研究表明，2012年私立大學法學院的平均學費是40,634美元，公立大學法學院對美國學生的收費標準是23,214美元，對國際學生的收費標準是36,202美元。
[Draft a law school budget early.]
"It makes sense for aspiring law students to carefully examine the total costs of earning a law degree and the broad consequences of financing a legal education with borrowed money," wrote Heather Jarvis, a law school financial aid expert who graduated from the law school at Duke University, in an email.
Below are four important things prospective students can consider as they determine which school will give them the best return on investment.
據(jù)美國杜克大學獎學金研究者Heather Jarvis所言，大學生必須仔細研究獲得法學學位的總費用和用借來的錢學習法律會帶來的潛在后果。以下4條建議能幫助大家判斷哪個學校能給您的投資帶來最好的回報。
1. Weigh career and life goals: Long before students become 1Ls, the common term for a first-year J.D. candidates, they should map out what life may look like as a professional, says Matthew Shinners, a senior consultant at jdMission, which helps prospective law students get into school.
Where students want to practice, he says, can make a difference in their paycheck.
"If you’re going to be practicing in Kentucky, obviously the salary you’re going to be earning is less but at the same time the amount of money you’re going to have to spend to live is a lot less,” says Shinners, a 2009 graduate of Harvard Law School.
He encourages applicants to think about what kind of job they want, the salary it could lead to and where they want to work. Prospective students should also review employment data at the websites forNALP, an association for legal professionals, and Law School Transparency, he says.
[Make an informed decision when considering law school.]
1.考慮好職業(yè)和人生目標：法學院高級咨詢家Matthew Shinners表示，去不同的大學讀法律，所得收益也會很不相同。“如果去肯塔基大學，那么你賺的錢也會較少，當然學費也會更少。”申請者應(yīng)該考慮好自己想做什么工作、想要怎樣的工資水平、想去哪個地方工作，也要在網(wǎng)上調(diào)查相關(guān)就業(yè)率。
2. Beware of scholarships: If a school offers prospective students a scholarship, they should carefully review the terms of it, says Hanna Stotland, who advises law school applicants and legal professionals as a private consultant.
Recipients should ask, "Is that scholarship guaranteed for all three years?" she says.
Some schools may offer several students a scholarship that requires them to maintain a high GPA. Because students are graded on a curve and a school may predetermine the number or percentage of students who will get a certain GPA or grades, it may be impossible for all of the 1L scholarship recipients to meet the requirements that would enable them to keep the scholarship as 2Ls.
“It’s very important to read the fine print and then probably ask more questions beyond the fine print," says Stotland, who also graduated from Harvard Law. Prospective students should ask what the GPA requirement is for keeping a scholarship and how many people can realistically achieve that GPA, she says.
2.全面了解獎學金的相關(guān)信息
如果一個學校提供獎學金，那么大家要有一個這樣的概念：“這個獎學金保證三年的學習中都會有嗎?”一些學校是會為成績很好的學生提供獎學金，但學校也可以提前規(guī)定好獲得該獎學金的學生人數(shù)，所以第一年獲得該項獎學金的學生在第二年可能就得不到了。應(yīng)該仔細閱讀好獎學金條款，如果任何疑問也可向?qū)W校咨詢條款上沒寫明的內(nèi)容。學生們不但要了解獎學金的具體要求，還要知道該項獎學金的獲得人數(shù)到底規(guī)定為多少個。
3. Think twice about part-time attendance: Part-time students may be able to work full time, which lets them get a paycheck all while going to class, but this route might not always be the cheapest.
Shinners has seen a number of students start off part time and then later switch into a full-time program. Because of the demands of law school, it can be hard to keep up while also maintaining a job, he says.
"Most people burn out on that really quickly," he says.
And working part time might limit a student's options for summer internships because an employer may not give the student time off to work elsewhere, he says.
3.盡量選擇全日制讀研
在職讀研是可以全職工作，在讀書的同時又能領(lǐng)工資，但這也許不是最實惠的。事實上法學院有很多在職研究生轉(zhuǎn)向全日制讀研。因為法學院的學習日程可能讓他們不能兩者兼顧。并且在職讀研的學生實習機會更少，因為很少有人會雇傭一個已經(jīng)在其他地方有工作的人。
4. Consider lower-ranked schools: If student can get into a competitive school, that same applicant may also be accepted at a lower-ranked school and receive a scholarship.
"Let’s say you get into a law school in the second tier. You may also get into a law school in the fourth tier at a huge discount," says Stotland.
But if a student accepts the offer from the lower-ranked school, he or she may sacrifice graduating from a school with a stronger brand, she says. Students who do this may only save money for the first year if they are eventually unable to meet the scholarship's requirements and must pay full tuition and fees.
For that price, students could have gone to a better school, says Stotland.
She also encourages students to speak with professionals in the field they want to get into and to make sure they'll actually need law school to reach their career goals.
Prospective students should also ask a school specific questions to find out as much as they can about employment options. They can even ask to be put in touch with a recent graduate who lives in a certain location and works in a certain field, she says.
The school may not be able to meet their request, Stotland says, but students won't know until they speak up.
4.謹慎考慮排名較低的學校
如果一個學生同時被兩所學校的法學院錄取，那么他在排名較低的那個學校讀書就會獲得一筆不小的獎學金，但這樣也同時放棄了名校畢業(yè)生的光環(huán)。并且，如果這個學生在第二年不能達到排名較低的那個學校的成績要求，那么他就只能獲得第一年的獎學金，之后要付全額學費了，因此，學生們都會選擇更好的那個學校。
申請者也應(yīng)該向?qū)W校咨詢一些就業(yè)選擇方面的問題，甚至要求學校給自己介紹一些最近畢業(yè)了的學生。學?？赡懿粫M足他們的要求，但是大家要勇敢提出要求，因為只有說了才會知道。
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