Question for Attorneys

[MrSamrtGuy]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Beyond the other requirements, the ones directly related to science and medicine, how much does your former career count for?

I say this because I am a lawyer, but I lack the pedigree of a prestigious BigLaw firm. I do small law firm personal injury (no med mal!), workers comp, and a tiny bit of matrimonial and employment law. In the legal profession, many people look down on this as "shift* law." I was wondering if medical school admissions committees will look down on this as well.

Any other humble small law career changers or are y'all pedigreed? I worry that my thus far extremely humble legal career will somehow make me seem like a less serious applicant.

*minus the f

 

[Old&InTheWay]

I am not a lawyer, but I am a non-traditional applicant/soon-to-be student. I don't think it really matters what your previous career was as long as you weren't doing something horrible (meth dealer, hedge fund manager, etc.). More important is what you have gotten out of your education and career. I would start thinking about the skills you have gained as a lawyer that will be assets to you in a career in medicine and find a way to highlight those aspects in a genuine and honest way.

 

[anichols8]

Beyond the other requirements, the ones directly related to science and medicine, how much does your former career count for?

I say this because I am a lawyer, but I lack the pedigree of a prestigious BigLaw firm. I do small law firm personal injury (no med mal!), workers comp, and a tiny bit of matrimonial and employment law. In the legal profession, many people look down on this as "shift* law." I was wondering if medical school admissions committees will look down on this as well.

Any other humble small law career changers or are y'all pedigreed? I worry that my thus far extremely humble legal career will somehow make me seem like a less serious applicant.

*minus the f

I had a private practice with one other attorney for five years before beginning the transition to the medical path and while I know what you mean about the stigma with small firms, I consider my career anything but small and humble. I think there is much to be said about personal one on one relationships with clients that can sometimes be absent in BigLaw. I had a lot more courtroom experience very early on in my career that is not always to be said about large firms. I am not downing big law in anyway but I think that there are different pros and cons for both sides. I have met with adcom members at different institutions and no one has even hinted at the type of law firm I practiced in. They were much more interested in why I wanted to change courses.

 

[DrMidlife]

it's a huge mistake to consider your prior non-medical career as a major factor in med school admissions. a law career predicts neither success nor failure in medicine.

med school admissions people are going to look at your academic readiness, the legitimacy of your motivation to practice medicine, and your ability to not be a weirdo freak in an interview. that is an enormous, all-encompassing effort that repeats itself constantly, year after year.

after, and only after, you make it through the evaluation standards that are applied to everybody including the still-wet 21 year olds who've never done their own laundry without assistance, noting that those standards are used to reduce the app pile from 5000 to 1000, your prior career might add (or remove) interest in your candidacy.

think of your legal career as being at most 5% of the package. prioritize accordingly.

best of luck to you.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

it's a huge mistake to consider your prior non-medical career as a major factor in med school admissions. a law career predicts neither success nor failure in medicine.

med school admissions people are going to look at your academic readiness, the legitimacy of your motivation to practice medicine, and your ability to not be a weirdo freak in an interview. that is an enormous, all-encompassing effort that repeats itself constantly, year after year.

after, and only after, you make it through the evaluation standards that are applied to everybody including the still-wet 21 year olds who've never done their own laundry without assistance, noting that those standards are used to reduce the app pile from 5000 to 1000, your prior career might add (or remove) interest in your candidacy.

think of your legal career as being at most 5% of the package. prioritize accordingly.

best of luck to you.

Thank you. You've been blunt but given great advice. I worry about the stink of personal injury but I have also done other things while striking out on my own so I think I can spin that as being entrepreneurial instead of being unsuccessful.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

I had a private practice with one other attorney for five years before beginning the transition to the medical path and while I know what you mean about the stigma with small firms, I consider my career anything but small and humble. I think there is much to be said about personal one on one relationships with clients that can sometimes be absent in BigLaw. I had a lot more courtroom experience very early on in my career that is not always to be said about large firms. I am not downing big law in anyway but I think that there are different pros and cons for both sides. I have met with adcom members at different institutions and no one has even hinted at the type of law firm I practiced in. They were much more interested in why I wanted to change courses.

Well by stigma I mean specifically that I have done personal injury law (never med mal). Not entirely by choice, but to pay the bills. I have done contract work and covering court in this area while trying to strike out on my own. Thus far it's been decent. The market for legal work sucks. That's not why I want to leave law, but it's an unfortunate coincidence that I think maybe makes my application look suspect-the crappy legal market combined with my lack of a prestige job.

Trying to become a little more successful in my legal career so I can apply from a position of strength instead of "This guy just wants to bail out of law because he sucks at it."

 

[Law2Doc]

...I don't think it really matters what your previous career was as long as you weren't doing something horrible (meth dealer, hedge fund manager, etc.)...

To be fair more doctors have had bad dealings with trial lawyers than meth dealers...

 

[Law2Doc]

... I think there is much to be said about personal one on one relationships with clients that can sometimes be absent in BigLaw....

Meh, there's plenty of one on one relationships with clients in BigLaw. You just go to nicer golf courses. 🙂. To be fair though, many BigLaw clients are organizations, not people, so you may be working closely with certain executives at your level to get the deals done while your bosses schmooze their bosses, but the client is the entity who employs them both. So both get treated as if they were your client. But essentially "one on one" just has no meaning when you aren't representing an individual.

 

[Apollo1]

OP, how long have you been practicing? I ask because it's been noted on here before that a quick shift from a separate profession to medicine can raise concerns about the reasoning behind the switch.

 

[Goro]

I have to go into my native tongue for this as a NYer.

If I saw on your ap that you from "Smith, Smith and Smith", vs J Smith, Esq, I wouldn't have any F'ing idea how big your firms were.

It would have ZERO impact on me.

What I want to know is why the switch from Law to Medicine, and if you can handle medical school.

Beyond the other requirements, the ones directly related to science and medicine, how much does your former career count for?

I say this because I am a lawyer, but I lack the pedigree of a prestigious BigLaw firm. I do small law firm personal injury (no med mal!), workers comp, and a tiny bit of matrimonial and employment law. In the legal profession, many people look down on this as "shift* law." I was wondering if medical school admissions committees will look down on this as well.

Any other humble small law career changers or are y'all pedigreed? I worry that my thus far extremely humble legal career will somehow make me seem like a less serious applicant.

*minus the f

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

OP, how long have you been practicing? I ask because it's been noted on here before that a quick shift from a separate profession to medicine can raise concerns about the reasoning behind the switch.

About a year. But in my immaturity I allowed my parents and my less than employable BA pressure me into law school. But yeah, I know what you mean. This is more me going back to where I started from than a complete 180, but I suppose that doesn't make me look any better. Realistically though, I will probably practice law or do something related out of necessity (bills and such). So by the time I start a postbacc I'll probably have practiced almost 3 years.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

I have to go into my native tongue for this as a NYer.

If I saw on your ap that you from "Smith, Smith and Smith", vs J Smith, Esq, I wouldn't have any F'ing idea how big your firms were.

It would have ZERO impact on me.

What I want to know is why the switch from Law to Medicine, and if you can handle medical school.

Thanks for pointing this out. I think people within any profession/career tend to seriously overestimate 1) how much laypeople know about what they actually do and 2) how much they care.

 

[Goro]

Believe me, there really are people from Brooklyn who talk like that!

I didn't knows youse was from NY. You may goes west of st louis, but youse still a New Yorker. And don't forget to take care of dat' thing

 

[Goro]

I rest my case!

I am from Brooklyn!

 

[Dares Dareson]

I worked at a tiny firm and I got in.

 

[MrSamrtGuy]

I worked at a tiny firm and I got in.

High-five! How long did you practice?

 

[Goro]

Ey?! You axin' me a question? You godda problem wit dat??

Youse gotta a problem with 'dat!

 

[anichols8]

Meh, there's plenty of one on one relationships with clients in BigLaw. You just go to nicer golf courses. 🙂. To be fair though, many BigLaw clients are organizations, not people, so you may be working closely with certain executives at your level to get the deals done while your bosses schmooze their bosses, but the client is the entity who employs them both. So both get treated as if they were your client. But essentially "one on one" just has no meaning when you aren't representing an individual.

Ok, I definitely didn't say the relationships didn't exist, lol. There is an apparent difference between the usual relationships with clients at BigLaw and relationships in smaller firms; each having their own parameters. Either way, OP, I don't think the size or area of law will be a handicap.

 

[Grace184]

I love the side Brooklyn dialogue going on between @Goro and @gonnif ! Made my day!

And gonnif, didn't you say a tiger dad smacked you in your office bc his daughter didn't want to go to med school?? I can't imagine you not going Brooklyn on his a$$!

 

[Goro]

You kiddinme? That Tiger dad is now sleepin' wit' da fishes.

I love the side Brooklyn dialogue going on between @Goro and @gonnif ! Made my day!

And gonnif, didn't you say a tiger dad smacked you in your office bc his daughter didn't want to go to med school?? I can't imagine you not going Brooklyn on his a$$!