4条建议：选择收益最高的法学院
出国留学网讯 很多大学法学院的招生率在持续下降，但学杂费却持高不下。怎样让自己在对教育高投资的同时也获得较高的收益便成了一个值得深思的问题。本文就此提出了4条建议，一起来看看吧!
Law school enrollment continues to decline, according to a December report from the American Bar Association, but tuition and fees remain high at many institutions.
美国律师协会在一项报告中指出，很多大学法学院的招生率在持续下降，但学杂费却持高不下。
While some schools have decreased or capped tuition to attract students, getting a J.D. is still expensive. The average tuition and fees in 2012 for private institutions was $40,634, according to the ABA. At public schools the average was $23,214 for in-state students and $36,202 for out-of-state students.
虽然一些学校通过降低学费来吸引学生，要想得到法学博士学位依然很贵。美国律师协会的调查研究表明，2012年私立大学法学院的平均学费是40,634美元，公立大学法学院对美国学生的收费标准是23,214美元，对国际学生的收费标准是36,202美元。
[Draft a law school budget early.]
"It makes sense for aspiring law students to carefully examine the total costs of earning a law degree and the broad consequences of financing a legal education with borrowed money," wrote Heather Jarvis, a law school financial aid expert who graduated from the law school at Duke University, in an email.
Below are four important things prospective students can consider as they determine which school will give them the best return on investment.
据美国杜克大学奖学金研究者Heather Jarvis所言，大学生必须仔细研究获得法学学位的总费用和用借来的钱学习法律会带来的潜在后果。以下4条建议能帮助大家判断哪个学校能给您的投资带来最好的回报。
1. Weigh career and life goals: Long before students become 1Ls, the common term for a first-year J.D. candidates, they should map out what life may look like as a professional, says Matthew Shinners, a senior consultant at jdMission, which helps prospective law students get into school.
Where students want to practice, he says, can make a difference in their paycheck.
"If you’re going to be practicing in Kentucky, obviously the salary you’re going to be earning is less but at the same time the amount of money you’re going to have to spend to live is a lot less,” says Shinners, a 2009 graduate of Harvard Law School.
He encourages applicants to think about what kind of job they want, the salary it could lead to and where they want to work. Prospective students should also review employment data at the websites forNALP, an association for legal professionals, and Law School Transparency, he says.
[Make an informed decision when considering law school.]
1.考虑好职业和人生目标：法学院高级咨询家Matthew Shinners表示，去不同的大学读法律，所得收益也会很不相同。“如果去肯塔基大学，那么你赚的钱也会较少，当然学费也会更少。”申请者应该考虑好自己想做什么工作、想要怎样的工资水平、想去哪个地方工作，也要在网上调查相关就业率。
2. Beware of scholarships: If a school offers prospective students a scholarship, they should carefully review the terms of it, says Hanna Stotland, who advises law school applicants and legal professionals as a private consultant.
Recipients should ask, "Is that scholarship guaranteed for all three years?" she says.
Some schools may offer several students a scholarship that requires them to maintain a high GPA. Because students are graded on a curve and a school may predetermine the number or percentage of students who will get a certain GPA or grades, it may be impossible for all of the 1L scholarship recipients to meet the requirements that would enable them to keep the scholarship as 2Ls.
“It’s very important to read the fine print and then probably ask more questions beyond the fine print," says Stotland, who also graduated from Harvard Law. Prospective students should ask what the GPA requirement is for keeping a scholarship and how many people can realistically achieve that GPA, she says.
2.全面了解奖学金的相关信息
如果一个学校提供奖学金，那么大家要有一个这样的概念：“这个奖学金保证三年的学习中都会有吗?”一些学校是会为成绩很好的学生提供奖学金，但学校也可以提前规定好获得该奖学金的学生人数，所以第一年获得该项奖学金的学生在第二年可能就得不到了。应该仔细阅读好奖学金条款，如果任何疑问也可向学校咨询条款上没写明的内容。学生们不但要了解奖学金的具体要求，还要知道该项奖学金的获得人数到底规定为多少个。
3. Think twice about part-time attendance: Part-time students may be able to work full time, which lets them get a paycheck all while going to class, but this route might not always be the cheapest.
Shinners has seen a number of students start off part time and then later switch into a full-time program. Because of the demands of law school, it can be hard to keep up while also maintaining a job, he says.
"Most people burn out on that really quickly," he says.
And working part time might limit a student's options for summer internships because an employer may not give the student time off to work elsewhere, he says.
3.尽量选择全日制读研
在职读研是可以全职工作，在读书的同时又能领工资，但这也许不是最实惠的。事实上法学院有很多在职研究生转向全日制读研。因为法学院的学习日程可能让他们不能两者兼顾。并且在职读研的学生实习机会更少，因为很少有人会雇佣一个已经在其他地方有工作的人。
4. Consider lower-ranked schools: If student can get into a competitive school, that same applicant may also be accepted at a lower-ranked school and receive a scholarship.
"Let’s say you get into a law school in the second tier. You may also get into a law school in the fourth tier at a huge discount," says Stotland.
But if a student accepts the offer from the lower-ranked school, he or she may sacrifice graduating from a school with a stronger brand, she says. Students who do this may only save money for the first year if they are eventually unable to meet the scholarship's requirements and must pay full tuition and fees.
For that price, students could have gone to a better school, says Stotland.
She also encourages students to speak with professionals in the field they want to get into and to make sure they'll actually need law school to reach their career goals.
Prospective students should also ask a school specific questions to find out as much as they can about employment options. They can even ask to be put in touch with a recent graduate who lives in a certain location and works in a certain field, she says.
The school may not be able to meet their request, Stotland says, but students won't know until they speak up.
4.谨慎考虑排名较低的学校
如果一个学生同时被两所学校的法学院录取，那么他在排名较低的那个学校读书就会获得一笔不小的奖学金，但这样也同时放弃了名校毕业生的光环。并且，如果这个学生在第二年不能达到排名较低的那个学校的成绩要求，那么他就只能获得第一年的奖学金，之后要付全额学费了，因此，学生们都会选择更好的那个学校。
申请者也应该向学校咨询一些就业选择方面的问题，甚至要求学校给自己介绍一些最近毕业了的学生。学校可能不会满足他们的要求，但是大家要勇敢提出要求，因为只有说了才会知道。
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