Law school tier system
Evidently, the recent past has experienced an increase in the number of students with the quest to pursue law. As such, various laws schools have been developed across various settings in the United States. Many at times, these law schools compete with each other; hence, seek to be ranked higher than its competing laws schools. As such, there exists a stratification system utilized to rank laws schools in the United States. Often connoted as law school tier system, this refers to particular compartment of university and college grading that targets law schools only. Many at times, such rankings are determined by existing experimental data derived from researches (McGrath, 2008). Precisely, such data are drawn from researches utilizing lawyers, educators, students, and law professors as the respondents or subjects. In addition, the tier system as applied in laws schools across the United States is based on qualitative data also derived from practical researches. Notably, the law school tier systems are based on measurable outcomes arrived at using different methodologies.
The Tier of my preferred law school
I have always nursed a fascinating admiration to attend Yale School of Law. As previously connoted herein, the tier system as utilized in the United States ranks law schools depending on different issues aligned with the performance of these schools. Worth noting is the fact that there exists close to one hundred and eighty seven laws schools in the United States. As such, these law schools have been ranked into four different subdivisions often connoted as tiers (McGrath, 2008). Evidently, my law school of choice; the Yale Law School falls in the first tier, which comprises of close to fourteen law schools.
Whether the tier of my law school of choice makes a difference
While much has been hypothesized regarding the tier system, it is essential to note that it indeed makes a great difference with regards to the law school that I look forward to attending in the future. Certainly, law has evolved into a competitive course of study. For this reason, attending a law school that is amongst those ranked at the top tier is a plus. Precisely, the fact that my law school of choice; Yale, is ranked amongst the top tier law schools, attending it will supplement my credentials. This will play a crucial role in enhancing my job prospects (McGrath, 2008). The fact that my law school of choice is amongst the top ranked law schools makes me relatively qualified over other lawyers graduating from lower ranked law schools. Overall, the tier of my law school of choice makes a difference because the fact that it is ranked higher makes me a more attractive candidate as I attend interviews and other formal events.
Stratification of the legal profession of law
Evidently, the legal profession is stratified into two; criminal law and civil law. As such, there exist criminal and civil lawyers. Speaking of civil lawyers, this connotes attorneys who enter into the field of law with the sole intent of advocating for the justice of certain populations or issues. Precisely, civil rights lawyers specialize on handling issues affecting certain interest groups. In other cases they focus of particular civil rights concerns (Schultz, 2002). The salary, tradeoffs, and working hours for civil lawyers vary depending on the employers. Nonetheless, the salary of a civil lawyer ranges from $69,000 to $ 145,000. The second stratification of the legal profession is criminal law, which is made up of criminal lawyers. Notably, this tier of legal personnel specializes in representing defendants in federal, local, and state law courts. As such, the working hours for this tier vary. On a similar note, their salary varies depending on the magnitude of the cases they are handling. Even so, average salaries for criminal lawyers vary from $45,000 to $130,000. As I foresee the future, I would like to see myself as a civil attorney. I have an innate quest to fight for the interests of vulnerable populations across various settings. This is the primary reason that would make me opt for civil law than criminal law.
References
McGrath, A. (2008). Ultimate guide to law schools. Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks.
Schultz, D. A. (2002). The encyclopedia of American law. New York: Facts on File.
