You know law schools are deeply troubled when you ask a dean what it feels like to be under constant fire and he answers the question with a question of his own

 

    When you ask the dean of a law school continued to suffer attack is what feeling, and he asked a question of when, you'll see, these institutions are in trouble.

 

    "When you say'coming under fire, 'what are we really talking about?" asks John Corkery, Dean of the John Marshall Law School in Chicago. "Which fire are we talking about?"

 

    "What do you mean by 'under attack' what is said?" Chicago John Marshall College of law (John Marshall Law School) President John Kokri asked. "We talk about in the end is where they come from attack?"

 

    You can't blame him for seeking clarity. Truth is, law schools have not merely fallen out of favor in recent years, as jobs have become scarce and unemployment among freshly minted JD graduates has soared. Law schools have become the most despised part of the academy

 

    You can't blame him for the pursuit of accuracy. The fact is, in recent years, with the increasing scarcity of employment opportunities, fresh PhD graduates unemployment soaring, law school situation is not only "disgrace" two words can describe. These colleges have become the most despised University departments.

 

    Most people associate lawyers with misery: an unfair lawsuit, a divorce. But at least previous attacks had come from outside of the profession. In recent years, plenty of criticism has come from insiders, mostly law school professors who acknowledge that schools have supplied far too many lawyers than the market can absorb, and from graduates who now carry six-figure debt loads and can't get jobs in law

 

    The mention of lawyers, most people always think of some of the pain experience: an unfair proceedings, divorce. But at least the previous attacks from outside the industry, a lot of criticism and the recent years emerged from the industry, basically by professors and graduates. Many professors admitted to law school culture, the number of lawyers pile up in excess of requirement, far beyond the market's ability to absorb; a large number of graduates now burdened with up to six digits of the debt burden, but cannot find the work of professional counterparts.

 

    Corkery's school has been sued by its graduates for embellishing employment prospects. When asked if he considers his position difficult, though, he deflects: "The fire I'm thinking of is that there are a lot less people going to law school," he says

 

    Kokri's law school has been suspected of beautifying the employment prospects are graduates of the school charges. However, when I asked Kokri if he thinks he's tough, he changed the subject, said: "I was thinking, criticism is, now a law school student much less than before."

 

    It's telling that Corkery first lists a problem that afflicts the schools rather than the graduates. He's on the mark about one thing, though: Law schools are trying to put out fires from all directions

 

    Kokri first presented a problem, rather than the law school graduates problems, this really afford much food for thought. But there is one thing he was on to something, that is: law schools are struggling to cope with the attack from all sides.

 

    For the past three years, the media has picked up the attacks with relish. The New York Times, in an article on a graduate with $250000 in loans, put it this way: "Is Law School a Losing Game?" Referring to the graduate, the Times wrote, "His secret, if that's the right word, is to pretty much ignore all the calls and letters that he receives every day from the dozen or so creditors now hounding him for cash," writes the author. Or consider this blunt headline from a recent Business Insider article: "'I Consider Law School A Waste Of My Life And An Extraordinary Waste Of Money.'" Even though the graduate profiled in the piece had a degree from a Top 20 law school, he's now bitterly mired in debt. "Because I went to law school, I don't see myself having a family, earning a comfortable wage, or having an enjoyable lifestyle," "he writes. I wouldn't wish my law school experience on my enemy"

 

    In the past three years, the media according to the law school launched wave after wave of offensive, and always enjoy it. "New York Times" (The New York Times) has reported a $250000 loan from bear, also has such a title for this passage: "law school is a doomed game?" When it comes to the graduates, "New York Times" wrote, "his secret (if you use this word is right) is basically ignored, from more than a dozen creditor calls and letters every day, these people now all day chasing him again." Business insider financial news website "" (Business Insider ) a recent headline is more sharp: "I think the law school is a waste of life, a lot of money." Although this article depicts the protagonist graduated from a ranking of the top 20 law school, but now he is also the heavy debt pressure pain. "I have not married, did not earn a decent wage, pleasant way of life is out of reach. All this is the first choice of law school to blame, "he wrote. "I don't even have the heart to curse my mortal enemy encounter I went through law school."

 

    Why are law schools being singled out? After all, the recent recession left Americans with an endless supply of things to complain about. (Corkery casually noted that journalism school graduates aren't doing that well, either.)

 

    Why do you stick to law school? After all, the recent wave of economic recession to the Americans left too much to complain about. (Kokri pay no heed to that news, college graduates are having a difficult time.)

 

    One theory is simple: everyone's jealous. Bryant Garth, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine who helped author a study on buyers'remorse among law school graduates, suggests that law school haters just want to see the frontrunners fail

 

    One theory is very simple: law school graduates are jealous. University of California at Irvine (University of California, Irvine) law professor Bryant Garth wrote a report, to explore the law school graduate, why "buy in regret" (buyer 'remorse. In his view, those who hate the law school is just want to see the leader eventually defeat the scene.

 

    "The law degree has always been, in this country, the default degree for ambitious and talented people, who've then gone into business, have gone into politics, gone into law practice, gone into a whole range of areas," "Garth says. And basically everybody who is ambitious thinks about whether or not they want to go to law Perhaps it's school." satisfying to proclaim that those know-it-alls have been making the wrong choice all along

 

    "In this country, a law degree will always be young talent choice. Out of the campus, they either do business, or politics, or independent practice. In short, law school graduate, has a very broad stage of life, "Garth said. "Almost every aspiring young people will decide whether to go to law school." Now that these learn the professional choice from first to last is wrong, may make people feel very comfortable.

 

   But while there's some merit to that theory, it doesn't explain the fact that plenty of law school graduates have spoken out against the system. Statements like "I consider law school a waste of my life don't exactly save face."

 

    This theory is certainly has some truth, but it can not explain another fact: a large number of law school graduates have been, lashed out at the system. Like "I think the court is a sheer waste of life" this statement will not save the law school's face.

 

    A 28-year-old civil litigator and graduate of Boston College has a different theory. "It's sort of cathartic -- someone finally said it," Benjamin Winterhalter says. Winterhalter, who's written for Slate about the law school crisis, describes longstanding resentment among Graduates -- resentment that has exploded in the face of economic conditions that no longer favor lawyers

 

    A graduated from the Boston College (Boston College), the 28 year old civil procedure law has a different set of theory. "This is a kind of spiritual catharsis -- finally someone said this, '" Benjamin said. 'once for the online magazine "slate" (Slate) wrote an article on the crisis, law school. In his view, graduates mutual resentment has already been. Once the economic situation is no longer conducive to lawyers, the outbreak of this resentment will.

 

    Since the 1970s, an intellectual movement by the name of "law and economics" has steadily crept through law schools, Winterhalter says. The idea is that the law's usefulness should be measured by how smoothly it lets the market function. "I think that ideological shift means that it's often very difficult for people to feel able to critique law school, because they sort of go to law school and they hear,'Oh, it's the free market, everyone makes choices, I made a choice to go to law school, you get what you get, '" he explains. "There's something very seductive about that sort of thinking, but it also leads to some people feeling kind of powerless... There's this whole complex repressed anger., and I think that comes out"

 

    'say, since the 70's of last century, known as a "law and economics" (law and economics) trend begins quietly sweeping the law school. This movement of thought idea, the validity of the law should be made by it can help the smooth operation of the market to measure the extent to which. "I think, this kind of transformation ideology means, people often think of critical school of law is a very difficult thing to do. The reason is, get into law school, they heard was, 'Oh, this is a free market, everyone in the choice, I choose to go to law school, selected the income,' "he explained. "This way of thinking is very tempting, but it also causes some people to produce a sense of powerlessness...... Many people burst into anger, the causes of complex emotions used to be depressed, I think it broke."

 

    Corkery maintains that getting a well-paying job has never been part of the deal at John Marshall. "We never promised that, and don't promise it," "he says. What we promise is that you get a really good legal education that can serve you well for the rest of your life"

 

    Kokri insists that, in the John Marshall School of law, was part of a well paid job is never a transaction. "We never promised to this point, there is no commitment," he said. "Our commitment is, you can get the very quality, for your career very favorable legal education."

 

    Schools aren't fairy godmothers with the power to bestow sparkly jobs upon all of their graduates. But placing little weight on the fact that professional schools exist to help people enter aprofession -- to help people move up in the world -- amounts to willful ignorance. Why else would employment rates factor into every popular school ranking? (For the record, only 18.7% of John Marshall's class of 2011 was employed at graduation, according to U.S. News)

 

    The law school is not a drop from the clouds fairy, it does not have a limitless power, to grant all graduates shining jobs. However, professional institutions exist to help people enter an industry (to help them climb the career), ignoring this fact is being deliberately obtuse. Otherwise, why each a much approved law school rankings have the employment rate of graduates into consideration category? [according to "American news and World Report" ( U.S. News) to provide digital, John Marshall College of law 2011 graduate employment rate is only 18.7%. ]

 

    Even worse, Corkery's statement is at odds with the account of Amy Cramer, a John Marshall graduate who left with $250000 in loans and spent almost two years without full-time work; she just recently started her own firm. She owes much of her staggering debt to an LL.M. she pursued in employee benefits. "I was certainly led to believe that employee benefits was the wave of the future with Obamacare, and that people would be knocking down my door to get me to work for them," Cramer says. "And that has not happened. I don't know if it's a matter of time, but I don't see those jobs out there for Obamacare, and so that has certainly been a disappointment"

 

    What is worse, differences with Amy Cramer claims Kokri's narrative. Graduated from John Marshall College of law, Cramer has $250000 in outstanding loans, nearly two years did not find full-time work; she was recently founded his own company. The staggering debt basically is owed during studying for master of law. She is the pursuit of employee benefits. "Under the guidance of their, I certainly believe that, along with the Obama plan (Obamacare) implementation, employee benefits will be the wave of the future, and will continue to have the initiative door-to-door, invited me to work for them," Cramer said. "It hasn't happened. I don't know if this Is it right? Sooner or later, but I did not see the pursue of Barack Obama's health-care plan jobs. No doubt, this situation is very disappointing."

 

    So, then, if getting a legal education isn't about getting a job, why bother selling it like it is?

 

    So, if has nothing to do with the job accepting law education, law school after graduation, why should be able to find a good job as a selling point?

 

    J.D.s certainly don't come cheap. It's almost unheard of to attend law school without taking out significant loans. What's more, the average debt load is mounting: in 2001-2002, JDs borrowed on average $46500 at public law schools and $70000 at private law schools; by 2011, those numbers rose to $75700 and $125000, respectively

 

    A doctor of law is certainly not cheap. I almost never heard any student not to borrow a large loan can afford school of law. More importantly, law school students average debt burden is on the rise: 2001 to 2002 school year, public law schools in reading Dr. borrowing $46500 per capita, the number of private law school for $70000; by 2011, the two figures were $75700 and $125000.

 

    If you think the debt is spread around evenly, think again. "The financial aid structure at so many law schools is exactly the reverse of what it is at just about any other educational institution," "Winterhalter says. The bottom of the entering class -- which tends to be women, tends to be minorities, tends to be people from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds - effectively subsidizes the top of the class, who get merit-based scholarships." In the scramble for higher rankings, law schools focus on reeling in high-scoring candidates rather than helping students who might need it most

 

    If we think that these debts are uniformly distributed, please think it again. "Financial aid structure many law school and almost any other educational institutions, just the opposite is the case," 'said the. "The minimum admission score students (often women, minorities, or from the social economic background of vulnerable families) in subsidies entrance scores of students, the latter often able to obtain a scholarship." In order to compete for a higher ranking, School of law, a one-track mind to attract high applicants, instead of helping students who are perhaps the most in need of help.

 

    This starting point doesn't contribute to warm feelings for law school, which is a notoriously strange atmosphere to begin with. Winterhalter says it's a lot like the reality show "The Bachelor." "Everyone sort of pretends to get along, but it's very clear that beneath the veneer, there's a sort of lingering tension that comes from people's competitive drive," he says

 

    The starting point of course help to improve student students warmth, law school first grade of atmosphere is very strange. 'say, this kind of situation is very like a reality show "the Bachelor" (The Bachelor). He said: "everyone to get along with each other, but in under the illusion, there is clearly a lingering sense of tension, because the pressure of competition result."

 

    And if the Law School of your dreams says it's not like the others, you might want to take that claim with a grain of salt. "There's a saying at Boston College that it's the Disneyland of law schools," " Winterhalter says. Apparently, it's supposed to be a metaphor for how nice and friendly and warm and welcoming it is. To me, this is the... The perfect metaphor for how sort of phony people are about the fact that they're being competitive. At the end of the day, it's still a rigidly hierarchical school. It's graded on a curve. Only a certain number of people can get in. There are big classes where people are fighting to be at the top, and it seems like that social dynamic is just too powerful to be completely overridden, no matter how hard you try to be nice"

 

    If you want to enter law school claimed his out of the ordinary, you'd better not accept this excuse. "There is a school of law, Boston College is in the Disneyland (Disneyland)," said Hardt venter. "This is obviously a metaphor, to emphasize the law school how friendly, warm. In my opinion, this analogy vividly demonstrated, its students are very hypocritical disguise themselves competing facts. In the final analysis, it is still a level of school. It still pursue the curve score model. Only a certain number of people to enter this school. In a large number of classes, students race each other, aim high. The competing seems too strong. Therefore, no matter how hard you to put on a friendly face, are very difficult to completely hide."

 

    When competitive people work hard and don't get what they want, the result isn't pretty. "I think that often, they feel like what they thought was a mode of moving up in the world ends up just sort of stagnating them economically, and I think that, broadly speaking, people feel sort of bitter about that," "Winterhalter says. That certainly makes people more receptive to critiques of law school and to ideological examinations of what's going on"

 

    If the very competitive students make efforts, but did not get what they want, it will cause a very wonderful consequences. "I think, most of the time, the students will feel the real world and their original imagination be quite different. They would not be promoted step by step, even income is also at a standstill. I think that, from a broad sense, they will produce some kind of hatred, "'said the. "This certainly make it easier for people to accept criticism of the school of law, as well as torture those issued status of the school of law from the perspective of the ideology of the."

 

    So, there you have it: Law school's perfect storm. As an educational institution, it admits highly ambitious students, pits them against each other with little attempt to level the financial playing field, and releases them into a market that can't absorb them. When students struggle, schools shrug and say they never guaranteed employment in the first place

 

    The law school has the perfect storm is brewing a. The law school as an educational institutions to recruit a large number of aspiring students. It is almost never tried to eliminate the students between the economic conditions are not equal, direct them to compete with each other, then put them into a fundamental inability to digest their labour market. And when students are in trouble, school just shrugged, boast without shame to say what, they had no promised after graduation can find professional job.

 

    But there's some evidence that law schools are taking steps to put out the fires. In the past few months, schools such as the University of Iowa, Penn State, and Roger Williams University have cut tuition

 

    But there is some evidence, law school is to take measures to quell the flood of criticism. In the past few months, the University of Iowa (University of Iowa), the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) and Roger Williams University (Roger Williams University) and other schools have cut the law school.

 

    Even Corkery has some disarmingly practical advice for prospective lawyers. "You know, you might not be able to afford to go where you want to," "he says. I think tuition from public schools to private runs from around $13000 to $16000 a year, up to probably $56000 to $57000." Full-time tuition at John Marshall is $41304 per year

 

    In order to eliminate the applicant's suspicious, even Kokri also for the future of the lawyers to provide some practical suggestions. "You might not be able to afford the preferred colleges in your mind," he said. "As far as I know, the public and private law school tuition for one year a lot of difference, the former is about 13000 to 16000 dollars, and the latter may be as high as 56000 to 57000 dollars." John Marshall law school full-time tuition is $41304 per year.

 

    "Now, where are those Low-Tuition law schools?" he adds. "They're just in pockets across the country. One thing you might do is explore schools with lower tuition and see if you can get admitted and work out financing to go there"

 

    "So, these inexpensive law school where to find?" He added. "In fact, the country has such a school. One thing you can do is, to look at these low fee schools have a look, can be admitted, whether make a go to school there financing plan."

 

    Institutional reforms aside, maybe the best first step is a little more real talk

 

    Leave aside for institutional reform, say some truth may be the first step in improving the situation of the school of law.