Lynne Lambert, a senior law student, started her freshman year at the Hebert Law Center, and she quickly changed her career goal from practicing law to working as a financial planner.
Lambert is not alone. Two to five percent of law graduates are using their Juris Doctorate/Bachelor of Civil Law degree in professions outside of law.
All Hebert Law graduates receive the existing J.D. degree and a B.C.L. degree upon graduation. The B.C.L. degree is not a graduate degree but a first-level professional school degree.
“I would prefer not to do typical law firm work,” Lambert said. “I am more interested in the business aspects of law. I want to try estate-planning work as a financial planner instead of a law practitioner.”
The two to five percent of students who choose a career outside of law have endless opportunities, said Gwendolyn Ferrell, assistant director of career counseling.
Students can use a law degree in such fields as education administration, public office, energy and natural resources, financial services, human resources, insurance, international affairs, national security, marketing, media, real estate and transportation, Ferrell said.
Also, people get a law degree knowing that a J.D. will be a valuable asset in the business world, said Professor Frank Maraist.
With a law degree, Maraist said students have skills that a corporation will need – legal skills. Students knowledgeable of law are valuable employees and have the option to go into business for themselves, an option less available to an MBA graduate.
Students’ law degrees work well with undergraduate degrees also, Maraist said. For example, a petroleum engineer can practice law in firms whose clients are in the oil business. Lawyers with a medical background are more favorable in medical malpractice cases, Maraist said.
A law degree is the most versatile professional degree, Ferrell said. Practicing law or not, a J.D. gives students analytical, research and writing skills to carry over in higher levels of management in any field.
“I suspect more lawyers are climbing the ladders in corporations and becoming CEOs than 30 years ago,” Maraist said. “CPAs are not as dominate.”
“To gain experience and apply their education, 55.9 percent of law graduates start their career by doing legal research for a judge in judicial clerkships,” Ferrell said. “And two to three percent of graduates pursue military practice.”