THE LARGEST COLLECTION OF LEGAL JOBS ON EARTH
LawCrossing Feature
The Financial Costs of Law School – A Revealer The great amount of misleading data and half-truths about law school financial costs and employment prospects have reached a point, where, reluctant organizations are being forced to part with data they would have loved to keep hidden away.
The wide range of protests in all circles about how the
shoulders of students passing out from ABA accredited
ABA drags it feet over publishing law school related
law schools has been recently calculated by the
employment data has been so acute that the ABA
Law School Transparency taking into account all the
has launched a data portal with two-year old data.
factors that reports by other sites missed out on.
However, the ABA has promised that ‘in the future’
LST considered a 3% tuition inflation, a cost of living
public availability of data would be quicker, and as soon
inflation of 2%, the interest accrued for each semester
as the collation is completed. That’s good news for
using appropriate weighted interests – 6.8% for the
future generations of students. But even the little data
first 10.25 K and 7.9% for the rest, to round up the
that has been released has been sufficient to make
actual non-discounted costs that 50% of students
some calculations which were difficult to do before and
have to bear. Though LST may have still left out many
our kudos go to Law School Transparency for finding
incidental expenses, the average real financial cost of
out the real financial costs of law school education.
law school for those who would graduate in 2016 comes close to $200,595! That’s almost double of what had
In March, based upon the newly released data on the
been put up by U.S. News & World Report.
ABA web site and their own sources, the U.S. News & World Report stunned the public by putting up lists of
Until now, most organizations have not been following a
the top ten law schools that led to highest and lowest
principle rule of publishing when it comes to law school
student loan debt. It also reported that students
data – data must be relevant for decision-making.
passing from ABA accredited law schools were saddled
For those who are thinking of applying for law schools
with an average of $100,433 debt.
now, and who would be graduating in 2015 and 2016, the data published by US News & World Report on law
So, one can understand the general reluctance to
school debt is irrelevant, because it does not reflect
provide latest and accurate information by the ABA
what ‘they’ as prospective students today, would have
and its accredited law schools. But the joke is still on
to bear ultimately as law graduates. The US News &
the students as the U.S. News & World Report had
World Report data relates only to those who have no
done it calculations according to its own definitions
chance to use the data to take decisions – they are
– calculations that did not take into account either
already in law school.
inflation, or the inevitable percentage increase in tuition fees or associated interests, or the fact that at
People will continue to enroll in law schools for law
least half of the students have to bear non-discounted
practice is one of the most required and hallowed
costs.
professions. Corporate greed makes itself felt everywhere, from law firm management to law school
The real figure of law school debt riding on the
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management; no one is beyond its influence. However,
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