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Step 1: Earn Your Bachelor’s Degree
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Step 2: Take Entrance Exams
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Step 3: Which Law School?
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Step 4: Earn Your Law Degree
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Step 5: Pass the Bar Exam
As a lawyer, you will be an advocate for your clients, no matter what legal specialty you choose. Whether you represent a client in a criminal trial, as they sign paperwork to buy a new home, representing the state in a criminal action, or if you're assisting them in writing a will, you will use your legal knowledge and advise your clients about what they should do.
The work you do will be highly varied as you go through each work day. As long as you take your profession seriously and you work ethically, you will be a good attorney for your clients.
Step 1: Earn Your Bachelor’s Degree
All law schools require their students to have a bachelor’s degree in hand before they begin attending their law classes. While your degree doesn’t have to be in pre-law, majors such as political science, education, history, or even philosophy can give you the background you need for school. If you plan to work in corporate law, a bachelor’s in business administration (BBA) will help equip you for this legal specialty. Before you graduate, you should begin the application process for school.
Step 2: Take Entrance Exams (GRE or LSAT)
The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is required for anyone who wants to enter law school. However, some schools will allow you to take the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) instead of your LSAT. Whichever entrance exam you are allowed to take, your final results will be forwarded to the schools you are interested in; they will use your score in the admissions offices to determine whether you are a good candidate for their law program.
Step 3: Which Law School?
You have a wide range of choices here. As you are considering which school you want to attend, you can think about the school’s reputation, student-to-faculty ratio, and even its location. The first and biggest consideration should be the school’s accreditation. Ideally, the law program should hold an accreditation from the American Bar Association (ABA). When you find proof of accreditation, you know that the school’s program has been closely examined and vetted by lawyers who are experienced in their fields. Attendance at an accredited law program is also often a prerequisite for taking the bar exam, though you should check with your state if you want to know if it's necessary. For example, if you want to become a lawyer in California, you don't need to complete a degree with ABA accreditation.
Step 4: Earn Your Law Degree
The specific degree considered an entry-level law degree is called the Juris Doctor (JD) degree. If you are attending an on-campus law program, then you will have face-to-face access to professors and fellow law students. A few ABA-accredited law programs provide online JD degrees.
No matter which law program you select, you need to earn high grades so that you’ll be able to receive your JD degree. You need to attend all your classes, take part in every exercise, and complete every assignment, just like any other degree program.
Step 5: Pass The Bar Exam
After you earn your degree, you’ll have one more exam to take. This will likely be the most important exam of your professional life. As long as your law school program was accredited by the ABA, you’ll be eligible to sit for your exam in every state.
The exam runs two days and will cover a broad range of legal questions and issues. You’ll face essay, multiple-choice, and integrated question sets, as well as performance tasks. Once you pass the bar exam in your state, you will be qualified to practice law.
Lawyer Career & Salary
Where Might You Work?
As a lawyer, you may find yourself working as a public defender in the offices of a state agency. Or you may work as in-house counsel in a variety of settings, such as an interest group, corporate office, or government agency.
You may be the lawyer who represents a state child protective services agency, helping decide which children should remain in foster care. You could work for a large or small law firm that represents a range of business clients, or decide to open your own practice. If you open your own law firm, you will have to plan carefully, choose an area of the law on which you will focus, then begin building a network of referrals. Don’t forget about joining listservs and organizations so you can get the name of your firm out. It’s also possible that you may return to academia, this time as an instructor or professor.