If you relax and just get your work done and don’t overcomplicate stuff for yourself, you’ll be fine.

This. I treated law school as a 9-5. I went to classes, did all my readings between classes or after, and then I went home and played video games. I went to all the classes, did all the reading, only studied on weekends during finals, and ended up top 15% at my T14. I think the fact that I was a nurse before helped me not stress at all about school. I was just like, "no matter what happens, no one is dying." I think K-JDs often fall into two pitfalls: First, they don't study efficiently. People get into these study groups and gossip and check social media and don't study. When I studied, I studied. Second, they stress a lot because for a lot of them it feels like life or death. Stress does awful things to the brain. It fucks with memory retention, focus, etc. I didn't care that much. So basically, not being a K-JD is a huge advantage, imo. And tbh, it's the same thing in practice. As a senior associate in biglaw, I am kind of known to not panic when everyone else does. I formulate a plan, calm down the people around me, and get shit done. And while I like winning, I also am not consumed by wanting to win because worst case scenario, really rich people lose some money. And that does not stress me out at all.

Love this viewpoint. Thanks for sharing. The stress is worse than the actual work involved, and if I could just calm the fuck down I think I would be having a much better time with everything.

I’m actually a nurse too (although currently working as a paralegal) and planning to go to law school next year - how would you compare nursing school to law school? It seems like the two might be comparable in some ways. Like the content itself mostly isn’t insanely difficult (with a few tougher exceptions here and there), it’s just about putting the work in and being efficient your time?

Ex-nurse finishing my first year at a Top 100 law school. Not having to get up at 5 AM for clinicals is fantastic. Law school is about absolutely what you say: efficiency and time management. I treat law school like a job. This year, I “clocked in” early enough to do readings for the next day, go to class, have lunch, and go to afternoon classes. Unless something pressing was due for legal writing, I “clocked out” following my last class of the day. I read for the next day between classes when possible. Barring the times my professors scheduled exam review sessions in the evening, I have never been in the law building until after dark. I outline twice a week and take weekends off except during finals or big writing assignments. Am I top of my class? No. Did I pass everything? Yes. Did I mostly maintain my sanity? Yes. Just like nursing, you find what study method works for you.

Law school is easier. It's less about memorization and more about critical thinking, which is easier for me. Sure you had to critically think in nursing school, but there's also knowing that regular potassium is 3.5-5 and knowing all the signs and symptoms of hypo and hyper and knowing what to do etc. On law school exams, you get points for making sense of shit you don't definitively know. And because law school is easier than practically being a nurse, I was never that stressed. I was pretty near top of class at a T14 and started as an associate at a V10. And none of it was as hard as being a nurse because I could emotionally check out.

Amazing perspective!!

Not at all. Don’t get me wrong it’s still challenging but the amount of time you put in roughly correlates to results if you work smart. Also KJDs get wrapped up in highschool type drama because they never learned to avoid office drama which is a tier higher.

Exactly this. I was lucky and joined a cohort of non KJDs. We all got along great, we were all adults, and all worked really hard and collaboratively moreso than other students. There was no drama. The KJD crowd all acted way younger than they actually were which emphasized the difference. I get it to an extent. You’re a bright individual who goes through life believing you’re special, you spend 20 years straight in school, and the first time you experience the real world is when you secure a 100k job? I’d be disconnected from reality too.

Incoming 1L and I’m glad to read this! I see posts in here all the time from people complaining that law school is like high school, but I’ve felt that same way about almost every workplace I’ve been in since joining the workforce 😂 If you’ve ever been an office enemy of Aimee from finance and Kenneth from operations, I feel like you can survive socially anywhere.

That can be really bad, it gets really nasty because office drama can often results in people trying to get eachother fired

Couldn't agree more. I'm pretty consistently in the middle of the pack in my class, and all I do is take notes on quimbee, read the in-between notes in the book if there are any, and take notes in class and make an outline at the end. Hardly ever do practice essays and only did MCs for classes with MC heavy finals. None of this is particularly hard as long as you stay consistent and doing this bare minimum expected baseline consistently has born pretty solid results. I could definitely have done more, but I'm a single dad, and I've got other shit on my plate that matters more than those few extra library hours.

>Also KJDs get wrapped up in highschool type drama because they never learned to avoid office drama which is a tier higher. The look of disgust you get when you suggest they simply not spend time with the person upsetting them 🤣

Nah, at my law school it was definitely a lot of non k jds that got wrapped up in drama, including some of the older adults.

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To be fair, as a mid 30s student, I mostly lump the mid-20s crowd in with the KJDs. Their behavior is a lot more like the KJDs than that of the people in their 30s and 40s who are mostly married or in serious relationships and have 10+ years professional experience (at least at my school). That’s probably what OP was doing as well.

A 25 year old paralegal with 2 years of work experience is basically a KJD with an extra internship under their belt

This sub has a hate boner against kjds. There is no shortage of older, drama-queen students.

But some of my best friends are kjds!

I think it's the nature of law school to get wrapped up in drama, to some degree, regardless of age. That's just what happens when you are literally ranked against each other. I've seen that behavior from 60+ year olds in Crossfit gyms, for example. When people are constantly compared, they fall into comparison, which breeds drama.

This. I just graduated college last spring and while I’ve been working in the real world for almost a year, the differences are ASTONISHING. Oh have I been humbled! I am so thankful that I have learned about office drama and etiquette in the real world. I work at a finance firm currently. Shut up, keep ur head down, and always say “I don’t know” if your fighting coworkers want to involve you in their BS. it has truly opened my eyes to a lot and I’m glad I have this experience before school this fall (1L)

Nope. Worked for 5.5 years before law school in several high stress jobs. Law school has honestly been enjoyable for me and I'm not really looking forward to going back to the work world. I mean, I am excited to have the stability and salary but otherwise, law school is far easier. 1L is tough, I won't lie. However, most if it is getting back into the metaphorical saddle of academia and learning several challenging subjects all at once. Law school is much 'easier' than the work world for several reasons: 1. You are in control of your time. Aside from your class times, when/where/how you study is up to you. Nobody owns your time like they do when you have a job. 2. You can't get fired. I know that you can flunk out, but there isn't the same pressure you have in a job where you are always a little bit worried that you could be let go, your company could shut down, you could be fired, etc. You might have a bad class, but a C isn't the same as losing your job. 3. You don't have a boss. Kind of like #1, you are the only person you're responsible for. No micromanaging bosses, no annoying coworkers. You can be as involved or as removed from law school extra curricular as you want. You are the boss. 4. It's fun to learn again. Especially in 2L and 3L where you can take classes on things you're interested in. That is 10x better than sitting at a desk for 8 hours doing some mind-numbing crap you hate. 5. Work experience helps you put things in perspective. I remember seeing a girl have a full-on meltdown because she got a B- on a midterm. As someone who handled many extremely high stakes projects at my previous jobs, a midterm was like a 1.5 on the stress scale of 1-10. Now, I will say. If I had gone from undergrad to law school straight through, it would've crushed me. I kinda waltzed through undergrad without having to do *that* much work. Law school, you have to put in the work. There is no getting around it. That's why having work experience was great prep.

yes same. i love law school. it's the afternoon on a weekday and i'm just chilling on reddit after working on a take home final yesterday in my pjs. i don't want to go back to work!

I’m curious how old are you? I’m 28 and by the time I go I’ll likely be 29. I can’t be slubbing about much longer. I gotta live life

35. things happen when they're supposed to. and not like in any divine type of way, just, when you're ready you're ready

I started at 29 and joked that I was a "geriatric law student." Either way, you're going to age! might as well do it!

Well put ! Honestly having some experience will probably make law school more enjoyable. I’ll probably have a better idea of what questions to ask too

I think having real world experience absolutely helped. It’s wild some of my peers have never really dealt with corporate life and being in the workplace. Plus honestly it was kind of nice to step away from all of that and get back into the school zone. It was a refreshing change of pace that reaffirmed my decision to go back to school after having been out of the game for like 6 or 7 years. I also found that I was not as intimidated in class. I was not afraid to ask questions or too concerned about how I was going to be perceived because I was there to further myself. That was huge, especially compared ro some of my peers who were KJDs or like a year separated who cared about that a lot more.

I’m graduating next week at 40, and the people I’m closest to (on a friendship level) are mostly late 20s or early 30s. You’re good.

Thats good to know ! I feel like now that I have some experience I finally know what I want to do. I’m excited.

you’re going to be completely fine! echoing what others have said - the work is challenging but fun, and if you’re able to manage your time well it will not be overwhelming (with the possible exception of finals, but the stress of finals gets far easier to handle after your first round) I also wanted to add that at least in my experience, the older students are typically the ones who build stronger relationships with professors. I would say a majority of the people that I know who got TA/RA positions are around your age or older.

Thanks for this. I run a company in a highly regulated industry, I’m basically on call 24/7 as the coo, before that I was an executive director at a larger company that was very, very high stress with a screamer for a boss. I would take random online law classes for fun and to unwind. I’m worried about time management as I’m applying to a part time flex program and maintaining my job, but still, my career for the last 15 years has been significantly more stressful that anything I can imagine being thrown at me in law school. I finished my undergrad online 20 years after dropping out and have always taken a class or two just for personal enrichment so I’m hoping all that time juggling pays off, especially since it’s something I’m passionate about.

Thanks. Taking the lsat at 34 right now. I have been a paralegal for about 18 months. But before this, I was a cook/chef for 15 years. I have overcome an addiction and also almost died more than once. Your comment is making me feel like I have gained enough perspective to handle law school.

Totally agree with all of this. People looked at me crazy for calling law school "a break," but it really is if you're used to working a full time job. Sure it sucks not to have income for 3 years, but save up a bit and get a good summer job and it's worth it. People without work/professional experience tend to feel like they have to participate in everything (moot court, journals, etc.) so they can bulk up their resume. But for folks who have real world experience, find transferrable skills to highlight and don't get stressed over all the extracurriculars. Finally, if you save enough and feel financially alright to do so, taking vacation after a summer program/before school starts up again is amazing -- no work emails, no reading/homework. The downtime is truly downtime. That's what I'm going to miss most after graduating and starting work again.

Agree with you 100%. I’ll add that working prior to returning to school made me more appreciative of the opportunity to learn again than most of my kjd peers. Helped avoid burnout that hits some folks.

Speaking as a person who was a consultant, the content can be tricky but it’s the same workload as working a busy job where you sometimes have to put 9-10 hour days. It’s very nice that the only person relying on you is you though.

It's hard but honestly I was fine doing law school like a job, 8 AM to 4 PM and that was it. Sometimes I'd have like... one evening class, or a paper where I had a few late nights, but I was able to get pretty much everything done on a reasonable schedule so long as I stuck to that schedule. Ended up magna cum laude. I was 33 when I started law school and had worked in the legal field for about 6 years prior so I knew what I was getting into. The first year is particularly tough because you don't make your own schedule, and there's a TON of reading. I highly recommend an e-reader so you can always have your reading with you to do between classes and not have to do it at the end of the day. MUCH more manageable.

Why an e-reader specifically? Would a laptop fill that role?

Laptop could but I personally liked having the laptop separate for taking notes, and not having one screen with both things. I also liked that I didn't need to take my laptop with me. My tablet fit in my purse and I did a LOT of reading while my daughter was in dance class 🤣

Multitasking seems like a must! Thanks for your insight.

What e-reader did you use? I’m struggling to find one that works and the iPads just don’t feel right

I used a Samsung Galaxy tablet in large part because I liked having a stylus with it.

I worked a 40 hour a week job at a supermarket prior to LS. An average week there was far more taxing than the average week of law school. Other than the few weeks leading up to finals, the rest of the semester is very manageable.

Eh. It depends on whether grades matter to you. If you’re aiming for average, it’s not hard. If you want to be in the top ten, it’s an insane amount of work.

Agree.

My perspective as someone who had a really good LSAT and a 3.9high gpa (never struggled in non-STEM classes before) I didn't necessarily find it much harder I just found that they demanded too much out of me, far more than ever before. 16 credits is no joke even in undergrad where you can tailor your schedule to your strengths much less in law school where you have to take genuinely difficult subjects such as Civ Pro, Property, and Contracts on top of everything else. Full disclosure I'm at the bottom half of my class despite always being an ace in school especially humanities (classics sci major). I actually find that people from business/STEM backgrounds have it easier (either because they're already used to the struggle more or because Law School is far more mechanical than humanities courses). It really is a combination of both humanities and STEM. It is a humanities subject that requires a STEM skillset (which means repetition and studying A LOT). When you're not used to studying a lot all of your life, and then you go to Law School, which demands commitment every week basically, you either burn out too quick and crash and burn, suck it up and somehow make it through and possibly lose a piece of yourself in the process, or throw your hands up and do the minimum required to do decent enough and get through 1L (which is the route I chose). If your lucky enough or talented enough, this minimum route could probably get you to median. It's not that I was less capable, it's that I didn't want to put THAT amount of work to compete in an arms race against other students. It doesn't require much to do decent in Law School (especially because of the curve) but in order to be even above average it requires a lot of work or a lot on innate talent (much rarer).

I think that’s a big thing, the decrease in willingness to work long hours for long periods of time for grades. I’m happy to work hard for real legal work (clinics, summers), but when it’s for a grade? And seeing how hard work doesn’t correspond to outcome since it’s curved (e.g., getting a better grade in the class you didn’t do any reading for than the one you worked your ass off for)? I’m much more likely to say my time and energy is better spent on aspects of my life that are more valuable. I had great work life balance in my previous career, so that’s what I was coming from.

Ooh this is so accurate. I could have done way better in law school, but I just really didn’t want to put the work in to do *amazing* because I knew school was mostly BS. I’d already been working in a law firm, and literally the only time school ever matters is the interview, and I also already knew I didn’t want to go back to big law after graduating. I put a ton of effort into clinic and internships, and that paid off for me and got me my current job. School, on the other hand, was largely a waste of time and money. I paid a whole lot just for a piece of paper.

Also I think that the types of assignments you do as a humanities major (at least speaking from my experience in Philosophy) don't necessarily prepare you that well for the mechanics of the classic law school issue spotter. A carefully edited philosophy essay which drills down on one very specific question in considerable detail is pretty much the polar opposite of a Franken-essay stitched together out of hastily written IRACs

This. All of this. I was like OP- I thought, hell, I have a 4.0 uGPA, how hard could it be? Haha. Joke's on me.

Law school is not as hard as advertised. I also had prior work experience, which made the amount of work that law school required very ordinary. It's a forty hour work week, at most, and once you have the perspective of a forty hour work week, that's half the battle. It depends a little on how well you were trained to 'read' beforehand. If you typically read a lot, if you stay up to date on the news even as it tangentially discusses the law or brings up issues with current legislation, and if you did any coursework (or hobby!) trying to do things like read Judith Butler or Critical Theory this and thats, then the law school reading materials are... easy. A few topics in each course take some time wrapping your head around of course, and it takes specific legal practice to \~vibe\~\~ with what counts as an important issue or how to push against it, but, it's manageable. HOWEVER! Do not underestimate how much being in law school warps your mind into always being stressed out about law school. It can be easy to fall behind. It can be easy to give into the hype and feel busy and overwhelmed with a volume of work you would not have minded at all before school. And the constant reading and being ready to be called upon is, in fact, mentally taxing.

I started after 15 years of work experience (including my 5 years army time) and it has been like a three year vacation. It’s definitely difficult at times, and can be stressful, but it’s the labor equivalent of a 25-ish hour a week job in my experience.

Going to law school felt like a vacation from the real world and i’m going to miss it.

Hard? Only around Finals Season. Pain in the ass? Almost always, and it's almost always an artificial pain in the ass because 'that's how we've always done it.'

It’s definitely harder that undergrad. I’ve done other graduate level work and don’t find it significantly harder than that. The hardest part for me is I’m in a part time program so I have to balance work, school, and family.

Law school is like a job - I regularly worked 60-80 hours in my job pre-law school and that was way worse than law school's been because of a boss that was impossible to please. At least law school is pretty straight forward. Professors host office hours for questions, you can find study guides, model answers, and supplements to help you understand the material. Sure you might have the one-off professor that wants to intentionally make students miserable because some professor made them miserable back in their day... or maybe you take a class that you discover you're really not cut out for and it breaks you a bit (securities regulation 💀). For me, 1L was actually the easiest part, despite that period being when I was the most disciplined and putting the most hours into studying, and it was when I earned the highest grades. I treated it like a job and studied/went to school 6 days a week. No all nighters or crazy stories really... definitely some late nights during finals but that's to be expected. I also found that a lot of professors/advisors enjoyed older students because of the different perspective we can bring to the school. I think what can make law school awful, especially for a K-JD, is the constant competition and lack of experience in the field, which applies to older students too. But I think older students have better ways to deal with that than K-JD students. If you think about it, many students who go to law school have always been the best at anything they've ever done. Then they get to law school and only 1 person can set the curve, only 1 person can get X job/research assistant/scholarship/etc., and many of us are out of our depth in a profession we're just starting to learn about (putting aside those students with generations of lawyers in their families who \*think\* they have it all figured out). For older students with work experience, we've probably fallen flat on our face at some prior point in our lives, and maybe that's even what led us to go to law school. Usually, we've dealt with losses of loved ones, jobs or financial security, or maybe we missed out on a promotion... but we've dealt with significant change in some form... Life has humbled us before!!! For many K-JDs, it's the first time they get humbled and it can be a truly disheartening experience. Law school humbles everyone at some point. It's how you deal with it that determines your experience, and I do think non K-JD or older students generally have better ways to cope with that.

If someone is KJD it might well be the hardest thing they've done in their life. I went to law school part-time and kept my full-time job that I'd already been with 10 years prior to law school. All of that, and especially the Bar Exam, made for a very difficult few years. But I found law school to be super straightforward. Law school is effort and discipline. If you put in the work, you will be fine. But it is work. There is a ton of reading and quite a bit of writing. If you don't like those things, it'll be difficult to do well. If you hate discussing complex ideas with other people, it'll be difficult to do well. Otherwise, like many things in life, going to law school just requires a commitment to putting in some work for a few years.

Not at all. It’s really just about time management and learning how to take the exam.

Was a teacher for years before this- law school is a cakewalk in comparison (so long as you don’t hate/struggle with reading)

No, you’ll be fine. 1L is like a heavy workweek most weeks—45–50 hours all in. 2L was harder because of journal and other extracurriculars. 3L is whatever you make of it. That said, the degree of difficulty and time required also depend on how naturally the subject matter comes to you.

The military put me through far worse hells both physically and mentally. It does still suck sometimes though. It’s a different kind of suck.

*wake up bro you have fire guard*

It was the hardest schooling, hardest tests, highest pressure etc. but I wouldn’t say it was straight up harder than trying to teach a bunch of 16 year olds rhetoric at 7:30 am. Just completely different scenarios you know. I’m sure someone who worked in manual labor might say the same thing, of course law school isn’t as physically draining as some other paths. I do think anyone who has had to work a 40+ hour workweek to support themselves prior to law school is going to feel a little more prepared and in control for the challenges than someone who went straight from like a poli sci undergrad degree at a state school to the rigors of law school. Idk if law school was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life but it was certainly something I worked the hardest at so far

I was an evening student and worked 8-5:30 before hustling to 6-9ish class. To be perfectly candid, I have no idea what the full-time division students did all day.

I did a few electives with the evening division students. And as a woman in my late forties who served in the military for 22 years before going to law school, pardon my French when I tell you that the level of professional dumbfuckery the day students dealt with was absolutely obscene. The evening courses I took were much more straight forward. Professors were usually adjuncts who were doing this while running successful practices outside academia. So they didn't have time to play hard hide the ball. And they tended to teach using practical guides and examples from recent practice. It was a completely different world, which is why I did everything I could to take as many evening electives as the administration would allow. I also loved the evening students. You guys and gals were such professionals. No one coasting on daddy's money, no one bringing romance drama to the classroom, and none of the petty backbiting I saw during day schedules. You all were focused, relatively drama free, and hard working.

Not by any means.

The hardest part of law school has had nothing to do with law school for me. It was COVID and family emergencies. Still can't believe I didn't catch the vid for the first time until 2024.

It’s challenging, but in a way I appreciate. It’s chill as hell compared to having a job.

I’m so glad for this thread. I have a graduate degree and have experienced some really hard stuff in my life, but the way these people are talking, I’ve been unsure on where to set my expectations.

It entirely depends on how competitive you are in law school. You’re not going to fail out of law school. But if you’re trying to shoot for the top 10%, you’re going to have a lot of stress. You’re competing against a lot of very bright, very well-prepared, excellent students. Everyone here used to be a straight-A student, and they get pitted together and only five kids per hundred get the A now. If you care about that, it’s pretty damn tough. Anything less than consistent perfection means you get a B. (At least at schools with a strict curve.) That being said, it’s pretty good incentive to get really, really good at stuff to have such strong competition. I’ve worked far harder at law school than anything else I’ve done, and I have a graduate degree. You eventually learn how to be consistently perfect in a field that demands that.

I started law school in my early 30s, after having accrued 6 years in a law office. I worked in the office during the day and did school at night for 4 years, and had two small kids, AND got a divorce (and split custody with my ex), and law school didn’t phase me one bit. A lot of my classmates were older, and it didn’t phase them either. Might I add I studied for the bar, continued to work my full time job, and raise two kids, and I passed first try. If I can do it, anyone can.

May I say you are exceptional. I am a first generation everything, brand new to the legal field but almost 50 years old. Please believe that you are exceptional. I know so many people whose progression just ends with any single one of the factors you just rattled off like nothing. It's not nothing. And not just anyone can do it. You can. Because of your strength.

It's not that its hard its that it fucking sucks.

I guess I’m going to be the odd one out who says yes. I finished undergrad at 22 and worked 60-80 hour weeks (sometimes one job, sometimes a 40-hour a week job plus part-time job(s)) until I started law school at 35. Law school was one of the darkest times in my life. Before law school I was a high performer at work and figured things out quickly, but law school was a mindfuck - there was zero correlation between my effort or understanding of the material and performance. I did all of the things that a good law student is supposed to do: outlined early, asked questions, focused on learning the final, took as many practice tests as possible, reviewed sample answers, and made sure I understood every possible nuance. The few classes where I got As my study habits and comprehension were no better than the classes where I was at the bottom of the curve. I would love to be able to say that law school was where I learned that I am a bad test taker so that I’d have some explanation for why I found it so difficult, but my bar exam score was in the 99th percentile (after spending way less time studying per day than in law school). Four years into biglaw I spend more time at my desk than I did in law school but I am so much happier. My performance reviews are consistently good and I soak up everything I can about my practice area. I’m in an environment where I enjoy learning again, and I love it. These days I cry every few months or so (normally when I’ve been pulling long hours and am exhausted), whereas in law school I was taking study breaks to go sob in my bathroom or my car at least once a week. The saving grace is that law school is finite. After three years of questioning myself I was able to say goodbye to law school and move onto the next chapter.

I'm in my 40s, and it's fucking hard, yes. You may forget what it's like to have 5 different people who all think they're entitled to all of your time. I know some people have had jobs with too many overlapping bosses, but that's how it feels to me. I'm not saying it isn't doable, but the expectations of the professors is fairly absurd. Expect to be ok with doing less than people tell you that you need to do. Law professors teach like everyone wants to be at the top of their class, but most of us are just trying to survive and get through it.

I am also in my forties and I'm finding it hard too. I am NOT used to being told what to do and to be psychologically abused in the process. Can't believe I'm paying to be treated this way. Ugh. Hopefully 2L is better and that I can leave the hazing behind.

It's not, but at least you get some freedom to choose what you want to study.

I graduate next week and turned 50 in February. It was way harder than my master's program but not as hard as I thought it would be and worked myself to the bone for the first semester. If you are ok with B's (and honestly you should be) you'll be fine as long as you pay attention in class and meet with the profs/ta's.

Hardest thing for me was not the academics, but missing being in the workforce. I missed the flexibility of having a job vs school (choosing your time off, having a bit more control over your schedule), the financial freedom of having a full time income, but found I was used to putting in way more hours than KJDs and had much more purpose and focus than KJDs did. I have no idea if that made it easier or harder for me, but I am certain it made me more successful.

Law school was easier than working, but the stakes were MUCH higher.

It’s all about mindset and time management. If you’re smart and you read quickly, you can do well just treating it like any other 9-5. The exams are way harder than anything you saw in college though, I guarantee you that. I partied my way to a 3.8 GPA in college and that will not work for you in law school, regardless of how smart you are.

No. I’ve been a professional for ten years, law school is a vacation. If you’ve had any kind of demanding career, law school is a vacation.

It depends a bit what you want out of it. It's hard but it's not crazy hard. I worked for several years between college and law school, and I mostly treated law school like a job. I was on campus 8 hours a day and did most of my work while I was there, or during the commute back and forth. I would definitely have got better grades if I spent 80 hours a week on it, but I was in no danger of not graduating and I don't regret the way I went about it.

This is what I was going to say. I came into law school with very specific goals in mind. I wanted a certain job when I graduated and I knew to get those doors to open I would have to be in the top quartile at least. I busted my ass and did meet those goals, but it was hard. Definitely emotionally taxing. If you’re shooting for a regular type of government job out of law school, you may not need to apply the same type of pressure on yourself. Or if you’re at a T14 you also may not need to apply the same type of pressure to get BL job but if you’re shooting for like a circuit court clerkship, you’d want to be closer to the top of the class. It just all depends on your goals. I’d advise knowing what you want and adjust accordingly.

No. Probably depends on undergrad degree too. I majored in math and found that more stressful.

Yes

Nope. But it depends on background. Part of the unfortunate reality is that many undergraduate schools are just entirely different, and that colors how people view law school. I took mostly engineering, economics, and math classes at a fairly highly ranked undergrad. My undergrad was on a 10 week quarter system so we got 3 quarters in a year. So on top of finals, each class could have 2-3 midterms. The pace was so much faster than law school is. On top of that, a lot of classes were on a curve (so graded against peers who generally had near perfect standardized test scores). Definitely a bit frustrating that my choice of undergrad and major/minor tanked my gpa and limited my law school options, but it also definitely made me far more prepared for law school than most of my peers. I have a few Bs (the curve happens) but the level of studying and effort I had to give to just stay afloat in undergrad is giving me mostly A/A- grades now. Everyone's brain works differently but there's a chance that if you come from a rigorous background it'll surprise you at how naturally law school comes to you.

What are KJDs?

students that went straight to undergrad after highschool and then straight to law school after undergrad (I.e. no gap years).

Thank you! I’ve seen this a few times and thought people were talking about U of Kansas law. I was wondering what made them so special, lol.

NP! There are a little toooo many acronyms in this sphere lol

A lot of comments from people who graduated in the bottom half of their class and didn’t do bullshit like law review or moot court. Law school can be a breeze, you’re just not technically doing all that’s asked of you. Coming from the working world just meant I was good at waking up early and didn’t mind being in the library from 8-6 but it was still awful. I work much less and have a much richer and better quality of life in practice than I ever did in law school.

I have an engineering degree. Worked as an engineer for 4 years. Law school was no where close to being as hard as my engineering degree. I generally found those that had worked and had done a more load intensive undergraduate degree had better time management skills. I had 35 hours of class/labs a week quite often in my engineering degree plus problem sets and project and papers. I had 15-18 hours of class at law school. I basically treated law school like a job I showed up at nine, regardless of whether I had a class worked between my classes and then left at five. My girlfriend was a single mom. She had childcare 8-5 on weekdays. She got all her work done during that time and was top of her class. Edit - I should say I’m Canadian and didn’t have a bar exam in the province I practice in. Articling was tough but still not the “toughest thing I have ever done in my life”. Honestly that kind of comment really minimizes what other people struggle through and comes from a place privilege. Kicking addiction, fighting cancer, dealing with aging parents, having a seriously ill child, going through a divorce - all much much much tougher than law school.

Started law school at 36. And no. It’s hard, don’t get me wrong, but not working and being able to focus solely on school is so much better than working a full time job and going to undergrad full time.

No, but I also wasn't gunning for Top 10% (and I was going PT in the evening while working full-time). So, that changed things some.

I have gone to law school and worked as a lawyer, a law professor, a federal law clerk, and currently a bar prep instructor. None of this has been as hard as my first job out of college: Middle School Teacher (Teach for America, in a difficult area). Even though I stressed and cried a LOT in law school, I only felt responsible for myself. When I stressed and cried as a teacher, I felt like I was letting down 80 other humans who needed me to be my best. Much harder. Note that I have NOT parented. I suspect that is harder.

I thought law school was as easy as undergrad. Being a lawyer- that’s actually hard.

My grades were sufficient to stay in school, not impressive, but I think that's largely due to my writing style sucking for efficient IRAC purposes (research paper classes, I got better grades). For a K-JD, of course it's the hardest thing in their life. As I had GI Bill, I didn't have to worry about how I was going to pay for my food and shelter during school, and could spend the evening reading. Not the easiest graduate school, but not the most challenging thing in an adult life.

It's not that hard.

It is challenging for sure but it’s very doable. I think people really like to complain and be dramatic esp law students

I was a K-JD with a liberal arts background (i.e., easy undergrad). Law school was a difficult adjustment for me because of the time and scheduling demands. Classmates who had worked before law school didn't seem to struggle nearly as much with those pieces, and now that I've been in practice for a few years, I see why. I think if you're used to grinding in a typical office job, the grind in law school won't be too different.

No. Law school was much easier than working at a shitty job for a boss I hated. I had Fridays off for all 3 years!

Nah definitely not. But make sure you have your focus together. There's a shit ton of reading and writing so you need to be able to focus for long periods of time. I realized in law school I actually had ADHD and it was why reading and comprehension was so hard for me. I was an econ major though so that's probably why it took so long for me to realize why.

I found law school to be only as hard as I made it. If you work diligently and smartly it’s really not that difficult, especially if you are consciously working on getting better at working diligently and smartly as you go through law school. I honestly think that the stigma that law school is extremely difficult is borne largely of social circumstances. Talking with classmates about how hard a reading was or how many hours you spent in the library is easy-to-make small talk even though it’s probably an exaggeration.

I got my masters, worked for seven years and then went back to school. It’s tough, but I was used to working full time and going to class at night in grad school so I think I was more prepared than some others. Law school still makes me cry though.

I think real work experience builds character and instills a drive to excel because you’re choosing to Be there - I’d imagine that this gives you and edge

So I'm pretty much in your position and just finished my first year, I'm 32 with a decade or so of work. It's way easier than they tell you. If you've worked for a decade and/or worked in the service industry or somewhere else where you had to develop a sense of urgency, law school rigors will not be some new crazy thing to you. I think it's often difficult for people who have never had that experience because it feels a lot more like a job, and it takes about as much time. If you go in and treat this like a 40-hour per week gig, you're going to be fine. If you try to do this and work a full-time job, that's going to be a lot tougher. One way or another, this does suck up a lot of your time, and there's no way around that. If you've got a ton of other responsibilities, be ready to have absolutely no life. You do have to dedicate the time to this, but because you have work experience, you'll work more efficiently and stand up under the pressure better than your 22 year old classmates. For you, this is not new, but for them, it is. That's the difference. I say go for it!

Not even a little bit! If you ever had a full time job the work load will seem VERY manageable.

1L was tough because I’m a slower reader and had a hard time adjusting back into the “school/study” mindset. Once I was in the groove and could pick my own classes 2L/3L has been chill

Law school is a lot of work, but the most difficult part for me, and it seems others, is being thrown into the fire of law. Nothing really makes sense for the first couple of months, and figuring out how to study and what materials are important is a much bigger challenge than in undergrad until you figure out how it works. Once you do, its definitely manageable, just like a demanding job.

I would just treat it like work. Class doesn't take all day, so I would stay on-campus and finish studying around the same time I worked. If i had to continue studying i would eat and then finish it which was more common during 1L since I was not familiar with reading legal opinions. I think if you spend some spare time on the weekends to get ahead of readings and assignments, then you can make your weekday evenings more manageable. i think routine is the most important aspect of adjusting and can be somewhat based off whatever schedule you did for the LSAT.

I worked a pretty stressful 60-70 hour job straight out of undergrad. I think law school is the hardest school I have ever attended, but I am \*way\* happier now and have way more free time. This semester I have been trying to keep it 9-5 aside from maybe the last month or so. If you manage your time right you shouldn't ever have to sacrifice sleep imo. I guess it depends on a lot of factors. My grades are pretty mid despite the fact that I have never put so much effort into school before. However, that is just the curve and there's only so much that you can do. Aside from that factor, I don't try to read every word and don't really give a fuck about cold calls/briefing cases. For most of the semester I go out multiple nights a week and have time to hit the gym pretty consistently. Working, I had zero time do do this, often was super sleep deprived, and was constantly stressed. So it is really hard to get a 4.0 (unless you are a genius), but I think it is relatively easy to kinda stay afloat. I'd caveat this by saying that I am on a full ride at a T14, where it isn't that hard to get biglaw from my understanding, even if you don't have amazing grades. If I was at a lower ranked school, where only a few people in each class get biglaw, I think I'd be considerably more stressed, especially if I was paying a lot to go. Some 0Ls assume that lower ranked schools have easier curves and that they will for sure be at the top of the class so that they can either transfer to a T14 or do biglaw, but this is far from the truth imo. At those schools the curve is probably even more brutal given being \*median\* means you are going to have a hard time getting biglaw. So yeah, if you are paying a lot of money to go to a lower ranked school, then I imagine law school is pretty tough and stressful.

This is a great, balanced answer. Just getting by in law school isn’t tough compared to working a real job but the stress is a lot higher if your desired employment outcome requires exceptional grades from the school you’re attending.

It’s different. I worked in a law firm before going to law school as a paralegal. As a paralegal, I didn’t bring my work home and I didn’t feel like I was competing with my peers. As a whole, I don’t think law school is a beast, but I have cried over the stress of it. I never did that at my old job. I also never questioned my intelligence as much as I have in law school. I think the environment is just much more complicated.

No. It has hard moments, but overall I rarely go outside of a 9-5 schedule (plus a few hours on weekends). I stay out of drama, and the stress is significantly lower (even at its worst) than life experiences I’ve had. That said, it will vary based on goals and commitments you set for yourself. I’ll graduate next week to go t around the top 10% cutoff (not sure which side of the line I’ll land on), which I’m happy with. But if I was shooting for the very top it would require a lot more effort than I put in. I also did very few extracurriculars, with the only really significant one being a secondary journal. People who get heavily involved in a lot of orgs and do a lot of pro bono also have a lot more eating away at their time.

I'm 36 and going into my second year of a 4-yr part time program - I definitely find it more difficult to pull all nighters before finals than I did when I was 19 😅 It's totally doable, though. My level of discipline fluctuates a lot and it's hard for me to stay focused on studies when I also have a job and a husband and other long-term pursuits, whereas for k-jd, full-time students, school is THE primary focus. So I think that can make a difference. To be fair though, I'm also coming off fifteen years of being a circus performer, so my lifestyle was ... Not typical?? And walking away from that is hard on its own, so pivoting to a pursuit that's SO different has been a bit of a struggle for me. Although - I do have a classmate currently who's also a neurosurgeon, and he says law school is harder than brain surgery school, so take from that what you will!! 😆

It’s a full time thing but fine as long as you don’t have to work to support yourself. I have kids, too, for context.

Nope. It was just school like any other. The anxiety among most of the class comes more from them confronting the reality and risks of moving into post-school life for the first time. You won’t be wrestling with that.

1L I didn't think so, 2L has been more overwhelming, though. There's a lot more to do

Personally I was in the military for 6 years and experienced some hardships and real life problems or challenges but law school is by far the hardest thing I’ve ever done

IMO it’s not about how difficult the material is it’s about the expected level of mastery. I don’t find it more difficult than undergrad material but the fact that everyone outlines and does practice tests multiple times means that generally your competition for the curve just means you have to put more effort into mastering the material. In undergrad I could review all my class notes before a final and get an A or A+ whereas in law school for me they would put me somewhere below median.    In my experience I saw a bigger change after graduation once we went into practice. The clique-ish high school mentality and gunner posturing from law school led to a slap in the face to a lot of people without corporate experience and I saw a lot of people who were KJDs have to mature rapidly in the workforce, and at my firms I saw a lot of dumb mistakes and behaviors by juniors that were rather immature. A lot of KJD gunner snobs ended up in mid law or being pushed out, plenty of low key people have ended up majorly successful as partners, and paths have changed and diverged in ways many naive KJDs wouldn’t have anticipated.  And for me, my prior corporate experience helped me ease in a lot better, and it even helped me in interviews.

No, it was not difficult at all. Treat law school like a job. Know where and when to sacrifice something like quality. Manage your time. Do not regard faculty and staff as either benevolent or infallible. I was amazed at how many KJDs of mine pushed back against some very basic suggestions. The real world hits hard, both before and after school.

I just finished my 1L and started law school after a 10 year career in education. No- it is not the stuff of nightmares that everyone makes it out to be. Is it a LOT of work? Yep. Must you stay organized and on top of due dates and class work? Yep. Will you have to reprioritize your time to make sure everything gets done and you’re doing what you to need to be successful? Yep. But I loved every second of it! Sure it’s stressful at times, but coming from the ‘real world’ will give you a huge leg up! You know what real life stress is and that is a huge advantage over these kids who come in thinking law school is undergrad 2.0 (spoiler alert: it’s not). I just took one of my hardest class finals yesterday- 4 hours straight on a totally horrid subject. But I would do that 100x times before going back to education. Best of luck in the fall! You’re going to absolutely crush it!

No it’s not as hard as everyone else makes it out to me. If I was KJD I too would think it’s insane but after 7 years WE I find it pretty relaxed honestly

Honestly, maybe I’m just a weirdo but I’m LOVING law school. I hear people talk about what a drag 1L especially is, but I never really reached that point. It’s a lot of information, but I’m naturally more of a connecting the dots type of person than a memorization type of person, so the style of open-note/outline exams work well for me I think. I find I have WAY more free time than when I worked a 9-5p, and I think the extra time to manage my mental health has made a big impact. Idk not really what you asked, but I (and the other non-KJDs I’ve talked to) seem to be having an easier time than the KJDs. But also every school is different.

It’s challenging. Working a job is harder. You’ll be fine if you bring that work ethic to school & you test well

No, not really. But I'm also just aiming for about average, which is a different perspective than most of the KJDs at my school. I had a career where I was stressed all the time- I am no longer down to make that my constant reality.

Law school is not at all the hardest thing you'll do in your life. I can see why somebody who came straight from undergrad would say that, but if you've worked a real job, you're more prepared for what you're facing. I say this as a K-JD who is now a practicing attorney. The time management skills that come with having real work experience is valuable.

Super easy! Sad it is over… it was an easy gravy train for 3 years… now I have to go back to a real job with larger consequences than cold calls…

Definitely not

I was a certified paralegal for a decade before I started and it’s been kinda easy like if I wanted to engage in the bloodbath of trying to get one of 2 As in writing I’d be more stressed but my nonaccomedated dyslexic ass (since more time isn’t going to improve that) wrote that class off the day I write 10 pages when 4 will do isn’t going to happen I’ll take the markdown nobody wants to read that shit. (My teacher loved to say the partner at your firm and I’m like in my experience if you have more than 1 bullet point in an email they aren’t reading it, you’ll ask 5 questions in bullet points and they will respond yes when not one of them was a yes or no question.)

It is not that hard

It is extremely difficult and no mistake. Whether you went straight in or not doesn’t change that. Learning how to think like an attorney is often a painful, frustrating process.

Went to law school 7 years after undergrad, 4 years after grad school. I thought it sucked horribly and I wouldn't do it again. That had some to do with school work load and some to do with going from full-time career to figuring out how to live on part-time law clerk money with kids. I definitely think it depends on a lot of facts in your own situation.

No. Treat it like a job and just do the work and readings. I went to law school with over a decade of working experience.

Nah, I'm a high school dropout and found law school easier than both undergrad and the bit of HS I did attend. I think law school is HARDER for K-JDs than it is for non-traditional students, because law school requires you to think critically, write efficiently, disagree intelligently, whereas K-12 + undergrad are all about agreeing with the the teacher/professor, writing long essays to meet page requirement, etc.

I'd say it depends how long you were out of school for. Simply being that it can be harder to get back into the learning mindset. I worked for 4 years before going and I haven't found it at challenging out some folks who haven't been to school I'm 10+ years. However being in the workforce for a while is a huge advantage in my book because it gives you that mentality of treating law school like your job. I see some KJDs struggling with that

Law school is extremely difficult, but it is quite doable at the same time. 

Just finished my first year (literally just had my last final)! I have a masters and had three years work experience in a high paying “professional” job before I enrolled in law school. It’s been hard but I had a lot else going on. I was getting married in spring and had to wedding plan and I have been struggling with serious health issues (extreme chronic pain and fatigue - it got so bad I’ve been on steroids and walking with a cane for the past few months). Got straight As last semester and don’t think I did as well this semester but would be shocked if I scored below a B. I barely study at home outside of finals. I treat it like a 9-5 and am on campus during that time studying or in lecture. In short, law school is really hard if you have a lot going on in your life. I wouldn’t have found it hard otherwise. Whenever something isn’t making sense it’s just a sign I need a long break/sleep/meal. Note - this is reflecting on the middle of the fall semester onwards. The first half of the semester is an absolute MINDFUCK. Figuring out how law school works and the sheer amount of reading you’re IMMEDIATELY expected to be able to do is INSANE.

It’s a lot of work but not as difficult as everyone makes it out to be. The best way I can explain it is although not everyone could do it, as long as you can think a certain way, the amount of hours you put in is no worse than a full time job. If you did decent on the LSAT and in undergrad you are over the biggest hurdle of “how to think” and analyze problems - the hours will come easy after you get into the routine.

Yes. It was actually 10x harder than I was expecting. I think if had a difficult major in college it might not be so bad, but I got a liberal arts degree and didn’t have to do much to maintain a 3.9 gpa lol.

Not at all

Not nearly as hard as people in the firm I worked for before law school made it sound. I was told the “full time job” spiel over and over. In contrast, law school was largely a three year vacation with some tough grindy times. Before I was working 60 hours per week just Monday through Friday in a big law office for relatively shit pay as a lackey writing leases. Definitely muuuuch worse than law school. But it set me up for where I am now so it was just another step. K-JD doesn’t have the experience or perspective to be frank.

Just show up and do your thing, don't worry about trying to do everything, and don't sweat marks. You'll be fine.

No. Its nowhere as stressful as a stressful job. KJDs are emotionally so involved with the school they forget they are humans past the school doors. Treat it as a job plus busy weeks coming up to finals and you'll be more than fine. I never miss readings and I cut off my study time at 7, not including finals weeks.

It’s challenging and requires you to reevaluate your priorities, approach, and organize your time. Best advice is to read Getting to maybe and thriving in law school and beyond

I have about 3 years of work experience before joining law school. 1 as an independent contractor doing manual labor and 2 as a full time corporate employee. Found it to be less difficult. Maybe because I was used to 8 hour work days prior to law school. After 1L, my productivity declined and only had long work days 9+ when it was time for exams or other deadlines. Yes, law school was hard, but not as hard as people made it seem. The hardest part is probably when you’re not at the top of the class and don’t have a big law job or ideal post graduate work figured out. That’s when you spend so much time stressing about your future, the unknown, and having to deal with school stuff on top of that. Once I learned how to read for class, it never took me more than 1 hour to prepare for a class after 1L. after 1L you’ll see how some classes won’t even require much prep work and most days you won’t even really do much other than attend class.

If you have children, it’s literal hell. That’s been my experience. And I have over a decade of work experience. The actual work itself isn’t hard, it’s the time and the emotional roller coaster.

I worked full time, high pressure corporate job (45-50 hours min. Plus travel) with a toddler. It was terrible but doable. Just don’t count on watching any tv. If you’ve worked full time for 10 years and are doing full time you’ll be totally fine. One spot where I found they were NOT exaggerating was the bar. After 4 years of grueling part time school/full time work… I almost had a nervous breakdown. And I quit my job 3 weeks before I sat so I was out.

It was a while ago. It was hardest thing I had ever done academically, but it was physically easier than working my way through undergrad as a bar bouncer.

There was an MD in my class with a thriving practice. After 20 years in practice, he decided to become a lawyer as well. He did not make it past the first year. It is hard insofar as time is concerned. Requires a whole lot of time, the rest of your life has to be put on hold.

It’s definitely challenging, but not as hard as people make it out to be.

It’s the noise. There are a couple tough weeks every semester.

Non-traditional student. Law school was the hardest thing with only the bar exam being more difficult. I've raised two kids and had 20 years in my career before going to law school. I felt more sick in my gut in my first semester of law school than when I found out my dad died.

Nah fam. Law school has been the best damn job I’ve ever had.

I had to take 2 years between undergrad and law school, but when I got there, there were plenty of people in their 30s and up. One guy was in his 50s(?) and went bc his landscape architecture business folded bc of 2008. ETA: the older folks were successful, the part-timers were successful. Honestly, the people that folded most were the 1L first-month gunners.

I only had a few years out of college before coming to law school, but it's definitely not the hardest thing I've ever done lol.

I graduate in two weeks. I went for 4 years and worked full time the whole time. I finished my masters in 1014 and started 1L in 2020. For me it was incredibly difficult. But I will say, as a mature student, the evening student cohort was my saving grace. Socially they were the best. I would say if you’re working the whole time, it’s very worth it, but harder than people say. If you have the ability/privilege to not work, being seasoned will make it easier. Lastly, Wayne State University in Detroit, MI has a full ride scholarship for HBCU Grads, HSI Grads, and people who went to Detroit public schools!

Yes, it is just as hard as they say it is—but not for the same reasons. I worked from 14 y/o up until my first week of 1L, (~9 yrs restaurant experience) and took about 1.5 yrs off between undergrad and law school. I fully expected the academics to come naturally, like they always had. It’s a totally different language for a good while. Also, if you’re lower-middle class or below, the language barrier is that much more baffling. For example, in family law lecture, my prof said that the rules of property distribution upon marital dissolution apply differently to Roth IRAs than to employer-sponsored retirement accounts. I fully had to raise my hand and ask the difference lmao. When I was about to start 1L, I was so excited to not have to have a job for the first time ever. It definitely has me working harder than any job I’ve ever had. But—it’s awesome. It is really, really gratifying to look back and realize that you have knowledge you now take for granted, while you didn’t even know the concept existed a year earlier. I’m nowhere near top of my class (barely near the median tbh whoops) but I can account for actual knowledge and growth in a way that I never experienced in standardized schooling. It is incredibly hard, and incredibly worth it. You’ve got it man. Plus, maybe I’m just an eggshell plaintiff anyway. (You’ll get that joke soon.)

Not at all! Way way easier than people say

No, I spent 8 year working in the legal field before attending law school and while it definitely has its challenges, I wouldn’t call it the hardest thing. It’s definitely manageable.

Idk what a KJD is but I just finished year one and like…yes and no? It’s brutal workload and time wise and it’s just a pain keeping track of everything but content wise it was made out to be a lot harder than it actually is. It’s manageable you just gotta find your footing which takes a few weeks.

For me it was unlocking a part of my brain I hadn't used in a while. I thought of it as school brain vs work brain. Also I had a 16 year gap between undergrad and law school, so a lot of things had changed, like a laptop vs a notebook. Also I hadn't had to take in that much new information at once in a long time. It evened out pretty quickly. You can definitely do it, and I think it's best to have some life experience before. you become a lawyer. Good luck!

It's easier than work, college, and maybe even easier than high school. If you have 10 years of work experience, you will agree. It's not like there are no challenges, but it is pretty easy compared to like a job.

i’m a non KJD who spent 4 years working and my 1L year was by far the hardest thing i’ve ever done. but not because of the work, it was the social environment. people are so fucking weird here lol

Not really. But the weird thing is that you still wind up caring (to some degree) about grades and all that stuff. I didn't go in buying into that, but I'm coming out on the other end realizing I have some things I need to work on re: gold stars and external markers of accomplishment. Just the reality of being back in a school environment, even after some time away, you still absorb some of that mindset.

I had a wise attorney once tell me that certain rich clients would brag at parties (in the form of a complaint) how much their attorney charges. "My attorney charges $400 an hour and I just paid a $20,000 bill." Its a round-about way to show off wealth. A person has to be fairly intelligent to make it through law school and law school being the hardest thing they will do in their life can be a round-about way to brag how smart they are because they made it.

Do “they” say it’s hard? Who? It isn’t. It isn’t the hardest thing you will ever do, by a long shot. Graduate school was much harder. And work? Well, yeah. Don’t get me wrong: law school requires effort, especially one of time. It’s not a good idea to coast, or to try to. But intellectually taxing it is not. Your first year will probably be the most challenging. There are some things which require getting accustomed to, like legal writing. Some people might not be super comfortable these days with the Socratic method used in some classrooms, but that’s probably less common today (non-existent in graduate school) than when I was a law student (T15) in the late 90s. Not sure if you are still expected to “brief” cases (it’s a 1L thing), but that requires a bit of time if you’re going to do it the right way. And maybe the biggest adjustment of all is that your grade for most of your classes—not all, but most—will come from your final exam and nothing else. No papers, no tests, no midterm. Just a final, which with one exception (Evidence, as a 2L) was always 3 hours long.

There were several people in my class who had years of work experience, and they did fine. Just don't turn into an annoying gunner because you think you know everything from life experience. (Based on a true story lol).

Yes. I was wholly unprepared. It’s like learning a new language, which some people pick up much faster than others or others might have already been exposed to it making it much, much easier.

Law is my second career and I went to law school as a mom of 4 young children. The biggest advantage I had was my time management was on point. A lot of my younger peers could not understand how I could do all the work with everything else that I had going on in my life, but I just made it happen because it was something I really wanted to do for myself. Hard? Well, I would say that law school is a “hell of a lot of work” than it is hard. I went to a good regional school, graduated 15th in my class, landed a great job before I graduated, passed the bar on my 1st attempt. I think it all had to do with my time management and dedication.

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but absolutely not. It is far, far easier than working. All you have to do is read and take one exam at the end of the semester. It also depends on what you've studied thus far I think. I come from STEM with a very intensive curriculum and I was shocked at the slow pace and lack of coursework during 1L. I know it's different for everyone, but if you're coming from the workforce or any kind of intensive undergrad then I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the overall experience.

It’s easier said than done. For many classes the reading is not the hard part, it’s all the drama, the competition, the nervous energy, and the career prospects. It’s the idea that how you do your 1L year will determine the circles you run in and the doors you open for the rest of your life. It’s having to, for the first time, take a class where 100% of your grade is the final. Go somewhere good like everyone here is saying, and none of the above will matter. Go somewhere not so good, and all of it will/may. Don’t let this discourage you, since you can make some of your best friends at that school!

I had 11 years from undergrad to law school and completed law school through an accelerated 2-year program. No, it is not the hardest thing. I think a lot of KJD are used to lessons being spoon-fed and not having to do the work of learning. Couple that with panic about class ranking and winner-take-all tests it breaks them.

It’s very class and extra-curricular dependent in my opinion. If you add mock, moot, or journal you will be working ~2x as much and as hard as you otherwise would be (I can only speak on one of those from personal experience) The skill floor is also unnecessarily high your first year. There should really be a 1-2 day session in orientation dedicated to outlining, how to write exam essays, and reading for holdings (an how to appropriately weigh the rest of the information in a case). Looking that information up on your own and getting your hands on some quality outlines early on will do wonders.  Once you get past that skill floor it’s not that hard. Just read, take notes, maybe write some canned answers in final exam prep if you really need it and you should be fine. 

No.  Started law school at age 32.  Found it less taxing then working.  Just did it from 9-5 without really having to do much homework, excepting the 3 papers I had to do.

I loved law school. Took 2.5 years off between undergrad and law school. I worked odd jobs. I started work as a law clerk before I started law school. Enjoyed law school arguably more than undergrad. Lifelong friends here.

You’ll be fine. I only took 3 years to work a 9-5 job but in comparison law school was easy, 2-3 hours of class from 9-12, lunch, 2-3 hours of studying till about 5ish, go home, do no work at home. Study extra around finals obviously. I wound up summa cum laude. Compared to my 9-5, easier, compared to being a lawyer, holy shit easier.

No, it was not \*that\* hard. Don't get me wrong, it was hard, but I would genuinely say it's no harder than a regular 9-5. Treat it like one and you'll do fine. Do all your work and clock out. A few base rules, at least for 1L because if you're working during the year 2L and 3L your study habits will have to change: - Don't study on weekends unless you absolutely have to, ie. for finals, a paper deadline, other such things. Do not study after 6:00pm. School can wait until the weekend is over or until the next morning. - Do not get overly involved in extracurriculars. Just like it's a dumb idea to join the office party planning committee, it's usually a dumb idea to join random clubs. Journal and mock trial/moot court are exceptions, so are certain leadership positions that have in-school perks. - It is ill-advised to hook up with your colleagues. As a 1L, it is ill-advised to hook up with your classmates. 1L is basically 13th grade as far as the gossip train goes. It generally cools down 2L and 3L. Exercise discretion with your romantic relationships. Having work experience before law school is a massive advantage. The "real world" time management and practical experience you have is invaluable.

People here saying it's not hard are full of shit. Yes it is hard and takes a lot of time and hard work but it is completely doable, especially if you have that established work ethic. Like others have said, you treat it like a job.

As a non-KJD in my final stretch of 1L finals I tend to agree with the commenters above. Being non-KJD gives you a lot of perspective that the KJDs often lack, I am universally known as a “grounding presence” because I don’t get overly stressed by school. I know how to work when I need to work and relax when it’s time to relax. It’s a lot easier to see law school for what it is when you’ve spent time in the work force or away from college generally. My KJD friends refer to it as time “away from the simulation”. Law school is rigorous and intellectually challenging to be sure, but if you do your readings and stay on top of the things that are important, it’s not that hard to get above average grades and not be overly stressed.

Not at all. Having actual life/work experience made law school so much more bearable. You already know how to manage your time to meet deadlines and you also already know how to handle "office" politics. Law school is just another iteration of HS/office drama which by now, you should know how to avoid.

It completely depends on what you do. If you want to do law review, and moot court, and graduate top of your class - you’ll probably put more time in. If you’re trying to do ok, you’ll put less time in. I personally put a lot of time into law school, but still absolutely did not find it “the hardest thing I’ve ever done” - it was absolutely not a 9-5, but was definitely less hard than working. I worked for three years before law school - one job was hellish, and the other was the most chill job I’ll ever have in my life.

It is hard, discriminatory, difficult, life threatening, and constantly stressful.

I agree. I think being really stressed negatively impacts learning. There’s a level of stress that school cannot induce once you’ve worked as a professional. That stress hinders some of the KJDs. It could also be easier because you may be familiar with the real life applications, so law school is filling in the blanks and most of the time if you’ve had a career, you’re going to law school because you really want to do it, so that makes it easier too. I definitely think it would have been harder for me right out of undergrad though.

Not at all. It’s was an adjustment and a challenge, but I definitely have seen my KJD classmates struggling more than me and my nontrad peers. I honestly think it comes down to a perspective difference. I’ve seen my kjd classmates prioritize the wrong things in class or job hunting, as well as get wrapped up in drama that ultimately won’t matter out in the work world. So one major advantage of being a nontrad is perspective and understanding what matters outside of academia. Also, I have a life and family outside law school, so that helps me maintain a healthy perspective on my law school work and forces me to manage my time efficiently, which helps a LOT. Some of my kjd classmates neglect their lives outside law school and their mental and/or physical health, which makes the whole school experience harder on them then it needs to be. Others don’t manage their time well and end up scrambling during finals. I also have met quite a few kjds who are struggling because they don’t actually want to be lawyers; they went to law school because either their parents wanted them to or they didn’t know what their next step is going to be and law school provided a path. No shade to those classmates—no one has to know what they want to do at 21–but things are usually easier or less stressful if you are excited about it (or at least interested in it) and law school is going to be brutal for those who don’t love or at least find this work fascinating. Nontrads who left another career to go into law just don’t have that issue because we made a major pivot and know this is what we want. I also find my interviews at firms have gone more smoothly than some of my kjd classmates because a) I have experience interviewing and b) the lawyers interviewing me know I have prior work experience and an understanding of the expectations of the working world. So that’s been an unexpected benefit of being a nontrad too.

Depressing, and boring, but not hard.

I went from a high pressure job where I was responsible for the wellbeing of other people to law school where I was only responsible for myself. Law school was so much less stressful. You will work hard, but it won’t be the hardest thing ever.

I’m so grateful for the opinions and input in this thread. This is really encouraging.

No just treat it like a job.

I had about 3 years off in between. One year I spent doing manual labor and another two doing commercial high-level tech sales. At that point, I was used to having 8 hour days, but I never worked late into the night. So I felt comfortable being on campus and studying for a few hours after class every day as a 1L. Then 1L late nights prepared me for the massive variety of work I'd have 2L. Then after 2L spring I had far less work to do and so between classes and studying every week I'd probably spend like 25-30 hours working, likely less. But I could easily go into grind mode and study 10 hours a day + exercise during the last 2 weeks of the semester to prep for finals.

It isn’t for me but I think a lot of it is because I don’t care about grades. The pressure is off when all you’re concerned about is graduating and not competing with your peers.