Going to Law school to become a lawyer

A lot of people don't know this, but there are seven states in which people can become attorneys without first attending law school. Depending on the state in which you live, and assuming it's one of the states that allows the licensing of attorneys who have completed apprenticeships, the process may either be easier or harder than attending school. One thing, however, is certain. Becoming a licensed attorney without law school avoids high tuition rates of legal educations.Law school is expensive, to say the least. Some law schools cost upward of $40,000 per year. If you really want to become a lawyer and unless you're in the market for a costly student loan, I would recommend first considering in-state university law schools, which often have lower tuition rates, and then even considering the possibility of becoming an attorney through an apprenticeship program.The fact is that an apprenticeship program, if available in the state where you live, will probably better prepare you for a career as an attorney. Much of law school is the study of theory and the philosophy--the "why"--behind laws and the current legal system. It provides very little opportunity to see the practical application of laws, and it provides very little opportunity to learn how to serve clients. The upside, of course, is that law school forces analytical thinking, which is a valuable skill in itself for any lawyer.Another reason to consider a legal apprenticeship is the cost of school, as alluded to above. Student loans today are some of the worst forms of loans, because if you are not 100% certain about your chosen career path, then you may end up saddled with a lot of debt and no way to repay it. Plus, student loans will follow you forever, until they are paid off, because they cannot be discharged in bankruptcy.Apprenticeship programs alleviate both of these issues. First, you will likely get paid to learn rather than having to borrow for it. Second, because an apprenticeship is practicing law--because there is no disconnect between the process of learning and the process of practicing, as there is in law school--you will know whether you like being an attorney before you've invested tens of thousands of dollars and three years of your life.If this all sounds appealing to you, you can learn more about the process of how to become a lawyer by doing some simple research that begins with determining whether or not the state in which you would like to practice offers an apprenticeship program.

Read more: How to become a lawyer?