So, after more than a month off, I actually had to go back to class today. This was a shock to my system because I think I almost forgot what it was like. It wasn’t as bad as I remembered it, though I really do abhor being forced to get up any time before noon.
A new semester with new professors always brings speculation and commentary from various people about how good a professor is, how funny, how likely to make a public spectacle of you if you fail to read, etc. One thing that always amuses me or annoys me (depending on my mood) is the “So and so isn’t a very good teacher” comment, because of the assumption that it’s their job to teach.
In a similar vein, Doug pointed out a post by some former blogger whining because he went to a tier 4 school and didn’t get a six-figure job. Wah. Cry me a river.
You might also remember The Attractive Nuisance. She’s recently deleted her blog, but she’s one of the folks who has the sense of entitlement present in both of the above scenarios.
Trudging through 3 years of law school does not entitle you to a six-figure salary. In fact, not even going to Harvard and finishing at the top of your class entitles you to that. That’s a good way to earn it, but nobody OWES you six figures. (Unless you are the bank financing my education, in which case I owe you that much.)
Paying your tuition to law school does not entitle you, despite what some might think, to being spoon-fed legal doctrine. I do not believe it is a professor’s job to teach you. I didn’t think that was the case in college, and it’s most certainly not the case in law school. They provide you a curriculum. They direct your studies. They provide feedback if you ask for it. They even lecture from time to time. At the end of the day, though, your failure to learn is not a failure by a professor to teach — it’s a failure that is uniquely yours.
If you are unhappy with your life, or your lot in it, you have one (and only one) person to blame, and that is yourself. It is not law school’s fault that you had unreasonable expectations. It is not the legal profession’s fault that you were not handed the job that you wanted. If you don’t like something about your life, change it. If you can’t change it, learn to deal. Petulant whining is not going to make your life any better, and it will just make you look like a spoiled child.
…but… uh… I guess this post was originally supposed to be about this semester. So, to that end, it looks like it’ll be fun. So far, classes are looking okay. The same old people are up to their usual tricks… but they’re not really fooling anyone any more. Scout is doing great, maybe we’ll have a photoshoot this weekend for you. So life is good.
(PS: I’ve gotten a few questions from AskPete… I’m going to work on them this weekend. Hopefully I’ll have answers for you all by Monday. If you’ve got questions you’re dying to have answered… send ‘em in.)
“If you don’t like something about your life, change it. If you can’t change it, learn to deal.”
That aspect of your personality is my favorite thing about you. Seriously.
I think the purpose of a professor in college/grad/law school is to help you in your quest to gain knowledge. I said help, not tell you all you need to know. At the end of the day, it’s up to the student to learn it. Now, granted, some professors do a better job of assisting students than other professors. But one can get an “A” in any class they want, no matter the professor, if they spent the appropriate amount of time learning and learn the appropriate material to justify that grade.
In regards to the crying about the salary… that is about the most liberal thing I have ever heard. That’s a pathetic entitlement belief to have. Education is an investment in your future earning ability. Some investments perform better than others.
Maybe I’m being naive… but I thought people went to school and got various degrees to do what they wanted to do… not solely to make money. The money I make in public accounting is very good… but that’s not why I do my job… it’s because I like my job (odd as that may be). If you just want a lot of money… go rob a bank and find a way to get away with it. OR marry rich.
Or… here’s a novel idea. If you really want a 6-figure job and don’t get it right out of school, take a “lesser” job, do a really, really good job at it, network with higher professionals, get noticed, and in a couple of years, go work for the bigger company. It’s not like people sign lifetime contracts with their employers.
Bobby: But one can get an “A” in any class they want, no matter the professor, if they spent the appropriate amount of time learning and learn the appropriate material to justify that grade.
I’m very skeptical of this. You have to know what material IS the appropriate material in order to be able to study it enough to get a good grade, and I’ve had plenty of professors (both in law school and in various undergrad schools) who simply weren’t clear about what it is that they wanted you to learn.
However, even in a situation where you knew exactly what to study, I’d still be skeptical of your theory in some situations – in law school in particular, no amount of work guarantees an A because we’re on a curve. No amount except “more than everyone else,” I guess, and still even then I’d remain skeptical.
Pete: I do not believe it is a professor’s job to teach you.
My disagreement with this is not because I don’t think that it’s generally true, but that I really think it ought not to be.
I think that people attend all levels of school with widely varying goals, and that profs who don’t teach are fine for some people (people who are interested in the academic exercise, for instance, or people who plan on having further schooling), but that for people who want to learn things that will be useful out in The Real World*, profs who teach are rather useful. Both types have their place, but it’d be nice to know up front which kind you were getting.
*Not the MTV show.
Um, so what are they doing when they’re not teaching? And why am I paying to be here? Y’all keep talking about people feeling “entitled.” But I didn’t pay for this with Monopoly money.
And no one I know is upset about not making six figures the first year out. The complaints I hear are more like, “The school gave about 75 percent of the class a scholarship, which in order to keep, recipients have to remain in the top 50 percent of the class.”
“Why am I paying to be here?”
Christ only knows. You can leave whenever you want.
As for the 75%/50% thing… nobody likes losing a scholarship, but admissions is pretty straightforward about the fact that you have to be in the top half of the class to keep it, and, honestly, would these people rather NOT have a scholarship first year?
At the end of law school you’ll have had to pay $X. A scholarship reduces that number regardless of whether or not you get it for all three years or just one of them.
To put it another way: nobody owes anyone a scholarship, so it amazes me when people whine about getting one and then not getting one later.
Pete. You never get the point. You just have two stock don’t-question-me tricks, “No whining!” And, “What, you have a better idea?” (Is that anything like the ‘you just don’t get it’ stock don’t-question-me-trick? —PH)
I’m not whining. I’m simply pointing out that my class is scrounging for $40k a year jobs. That UNLIKE college, where if you wanted to learn something, they would talk to you until, ta-da, you could understand. Here, just asking for help seems to mark you as someone who “doesn’t get it.” And that once you start piling on the debt, it’s stupid to leave. Even though there’s no real chance left to gain something substantive. (Although the opportunity to observe tools in their natural habitat has been so fun).
And I don’t have a better idea. But I am NOT exactly the first person ever in the history of the world to notice that the legal educational system has little to do with training lawyers to, you know, do stuff.
“Here, just asking for help seems to mark you as someone who ‘doesn’t get it.’”
That hasn’t been my experience… and I apparently am someone who “doesn’t get it.”
That UNLIKE college, where if you wanted to learn something, they would talk to you until, ta-da, you could understand.
I’d like to know where you went to college then, because my professors in college were more worried about hitting on the grad students and/or their research/publication than teaching. Here at least you know the professors are usually in the building and even though my default is to never ever ever talk to one of them, every time I’ve broken that rule I’ve been better off for it.
I’m simply pointing out that my class is scrounging for $40k a year jobs.
From the Career Services Office:
The median salary for the class of 2005 (which, obviously, is not your class of 2007, but I think is significantly similar) was $86,391. This is higher than the national average.
The median salary for public sector workers from 1999-2005 was $44,556 (higher than the national average), and for private sector workers the median salary from 1999-2005 was $77,319, a mere $26 under the national average.
There’s no IU median salary given for public interest groups, but the national average is $42,035, and there seems to be every indication that IU grads would be competitive with that.
Thus, since even public sector workers are making more than $40k/yr, and certainly not everyone in your class is looking for public sector or non-profit jobs, the assertion that your class is “scrounging” for $40k/yr jobs indicates that either there is something wrong with your class or (more likely) that you have not talked to enough people.
Also: yes, people in the 25th percentile of the private sector were making “only” $56,357 (significantly above the national average), but neither this statistic nor any of the others take cost of living into account. If you’re starting out your career working for the government making $44k/yr in New York City, well, then life is going to be tough – although not as tough as it would be for a starting teacher in NYC making a mere $35k (according to numerous Google results). Comparably, if you’re starting in private practice in Indianapolis making a low-end $56k/yr, then you’re doing quite well for yourself.