Doctor of Law (J.D.) vs. Doctor of Medicine (M.D., aka “the real doctor”) – College Friends’ Musings on Law and Medicine
Co-Authored with Evan Alexander Iliakis
Welcome back to the Third-Culture Lawyer! This article was co-authored with (future Dr.) Evan A. Iliakis, who is one of my best friends from college and a fellow third-culture kid (TCK). Evan is a third-year MD/PhD student in neuroscience at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He was born to Greek parents in the US and was raised in Germany. Evan graduated summa cum laude from Pomona College as a major in linguistics and cognitive science and went on to pursue borderline personality disorder research at McLean Hospital in Boston for two years before medical school.
A 45-year-old male with a history of schizophrenia (past trials of olanzapine, risperidone, haloperidol, paliperidone LAI, adherence issues), COPD, type 2 diabetes mellitus, housing insecurity, and a 40-pack-year smoking history was brought in by police after a violent assault, found to have symptoms of acute psychosis, now being treated with risperidone 3mg QD.
The above ‘one-liner’ or ‘summary statement’ – that is, the first sentence of a medical doctor’s assessment and plan for the patient in their note – describes a case that not only has medical and legal ramifications, but also exemplifies the degree of depth and intimacy with which physicians and legal professionals alike must approach their clients/patients in order to be helpful to them.
Both lawyers and doctors are privy to clients’/patients’ deepest secrets, share in some of their most difficult moments, and are expected to provide competent support in situations where the stakes are at times immeasurably high. Both lawyers and doctors must integrate an at times dauntingly large knowledge base with procedural skills ranging from effective and resourceful argumentation to complex surgical interventions. Worldwide, but especially in the United States, these professionals are typically well-compensated and well-respected (especially among in-laws). They often have to work long and at times unpredictable hours (resulting in alarming burnout rates in both professions), and are required to complete extensive training, both in the classroom and in real-life professional settings. Even after attaining their degrees, members of both professions require extensive post-graduate education with varying degrees of structure.
All too often, the complexity of these fields and diverse practice settings render the details of both the extensive training and the eventual professional day-to-day of both of these professionals opaque and inaccessible. While this is often a subject of jokes among friends and romantic partners from other fields, it poses significant barriers for interested individuals who do not have the connections or resources to gain knowledge about these career paths and acquire the credentials needed to pursue them. In fact, both law and medicine share yet another, more unfortunate commonality: racial and ethnic minorities and individuals from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds are underrepresented, especially in the upper echelons of both fields.
Our aim is to provide an integrated, comparative account of these two professions, with a focus on the system in the United States but consideration of both professions internationally. In doing so, we hope to shed light on these professions for the interested reader and individuals still in search of a career path.
I. Pre-Law and Pre-Med
Many people are surprised to learn that in the United States, both law and medicine are post-graduate programs that require a bachelor’s degree for enrollment, rather than an undergraduate course of study. These people are often even more surprised to hear that both law schools and medical schools allow for significant flexibility in undergraduate courses of study. Thus, while the study paths of medical students and law students are much more homogeneous and inflexible, the definition of what it means to be pre-law or pre-med is broad and heterogeneous.
Law — You can major in any subject in college to get into law school. Although politics (my undergraduate major) is a very popular major among pre-law students, you definitely don’t have to major in the social sciences subjects. I have seen that some law schools actually find STEM applicants interesting, and STEM skills can be useful in patent law for those who are interested in becoming patent lawyers. In fact, to take the patent bar, you have to have a STEM background, but that’s a pretty narrow sub-path that many intellectual property lawyers don’t take. But otherwise, if you have generally broad interests, any major is fine in the eyes of law school admission officers, e.g. a classmate in my Harvard Law School section has an arts background, and another has a theatre background in undergrad; they both did very well at HLS and are having successful careers in the law, sometimes finding ways to combine their interests in fields such as copyright law. That being said, I certainly encourage pre-law students to strengthen their reading, critical thinking, research, analytical, and writing skills. Law school and many career paths in the law involve a lot of reading, research, and writing, and it would be hard to learn those skills without a pretty strong foundation.
Medicine — Like law schools, medical schools generally do not require a certain major. However, applicants are usually required to have completed coursework in biology (1 semester with lab), biochemistry (1 semester), general chemistry (2 semesters with lab), organic chemistry (1-2 semesters with lab), physics (2 semesters with lab), mathematics, psychology, and sociology. Applicants often choose majors that fulfill these requirements, such as neuroscience or molecular biology, in order to budget credits for exploring different areas, and possibly pursue a double major or minor. 70% of students in Penn’s entering class of 2022 are science majors. Balancing pre-medical and linguistics requirements was at times challenging and limited my flexibility in choosing classes, but was also very rewarding and a unique opportunity to explore this interest of mine before embarking on my medical career. I strongly encourage you to pursue any major you are interested in, while considering how it might be helpful to you in the future. Looking back, I do wish I had also majored in neuroscience.
The pre-med path also generally demands extensive involvement in research and clinical experiences, such as shadowing and volunteering (see next section for details). For people who decide later on that they are interested in medicine, there are several 1-year intensive post-bacc programs that students can pursue. These can be feeder programs for certain medical schools. The MCAT is often not required for applicants from post-bacc programs. Some of my favourite and most competent classmates came to medical school from a range of industries, including finance, after completing a post-bacc program. It is not rare for individuals with PhDs to matriculate into medical school, and I even know someone who transferred into the MD/PhD program while in the middle of her PhD at Penn.
II. Applying
Applying to either law school or medical school is a complicated, multi-step process characterised by standardized testing, essay-writing, interviewing, and a selective admissions process. In 2020, approximately 60% of applicants applying for law school in the US were accepted into a program, versus 40% for medical school. Admission rates for the most competitive programs are low, with a rate of 6.9% for Yale Law School and 1.4% for Stanford University School of Medicine.
Law — The most notorious and dreaded component of law school applications is probably the LSAT. Depending on your perspective, you might either love or hate preparing for the exam, or maybe have a love-hate relationship with it. Thankfully, Harvard became one of the first law schools to waive the LSAT requirement and instead accept GRE scores – that happened around my college senior year as I started applying to graduate programs without strictly thinking about law school yet. I applied to that one school using my GRE score, which I had anyway for other graduate programs/fellowships. A pretty unconventional approach, I know, but increasingly, law schools are waiving the LSAT and accepting GRE scores, e.g. Yale Law School more recently. I think students still have the perception that law schools would favor the LSAT over the GRE and can’t personally say if that’s true or not, though.
Other than the LSAT, other application components are relatively standard. Law schools pay attention to undergraduate GPAs, student organization leadership positions, the application essays, interviews, etc. I think to a certain degree, the process is comparable to the undergraduate college admissions process in the US. The HLS interview was very short – just 20 minutes, and not very technical/legal.
Medicine — Applying to medical school is daunting and consists of multiple stages. The primary application, which I recommend submitting in early June (yes, 13-14 months before matriculation), consists of an academic transcript, MCAT scores, letters of recommendation, a personal statement, and a structured overview of up to 15 meaningful experiences, among other paperwork. This centralised application is sent to all schools you apply to. When submitting this application, I strongly encourage you to craft a coherent narrative that roots your medical aspirations in your life experiences and sets you apart from other applicants. Grades are not the be-all-end-all, but are also important. Set aside as much time as you need to do your best on the MCAT, and find effective study strategies for your classes. Medical school is academically rigorous, and grades and scores, though imperfect, are the main proxy medical schools use to assess applicants’ academic preparation for studying medicine. It is important to note that most medical schools have rolling admissions, and your chances of admission are therefore higher the earlier you submit your application. Try to plan ahead, if at all possible, and remember that it could take several weeks before your application is verified by the application system (AMCAS) and sent to the schools on your list.
Starting in late-June, the medical schools that you have chosen to apply to will begin to get back to you with invitations to submit a secondary application. Each medical school has its own secondary application format, asking for essays (e.g., why our medical school, a time you overcame a challenge, where do you see yourself in ten years), lists of activities, and other additional information. This phase of the application season is among the most arduous, since students on average apply to fifteen medical schools, and it is important to submit these applications as quickly as possible. While some people believe in a 24-hour turnover time, I usually ended up turning these over in 2-3 weeks since I was working full-time. I would say this is the upper limit before the delay starts affecting your admission chances, although this is school-dependent and I recommend checking forums and school communications/website for more details.
After frantically writing these essays, you will transition into interview season, with most interview invites going out any time between July and November, and the bulk of interviews happening between September and January. This season is a waiting game, and traditionally involved a lot of travel, but is now mainly virtual since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Interview formats vary and include anything from unstructured traditional interviews to multiple mini interviews (MMI). The goal of the interviews is to assess your passion for medicine, interpersonal skills, ownership of activities, and empathy. As a student interviewer at Penn, my advice for applicants is to relay these characteristics clearly. Craft a coherent and unique narrative that frames your passion, be friendly and respectful, and ask questions. It will be much easier for the interviewer to rate you and write a compelling report if you do the bulk of the thinking and synthesis for them, and they are more likely to be rooting for you if you are kind and respectful to them.
You can hear back from medical schools regarding an acceptance anywhere between October and March, depending on whether the medical schools in question have a rolling admissions process. Traditionally, admitted students are invited to a “Second Look” or “Revisit” weekend to compare schools and make a decision, although these have not always been possible in recent years due to COVID-19. By mid-April, applicants must hold no more than three acceptances, and withdraw from all other schools, and by the end of April, applicants must commit to one school at the expense of all others.
III. Law School and Medical School
Both law school and medical school are notoriously difficult. Courses of study generally last 3 and 4 years, respectively, and are characterised by rigorous coursework, high stakes exams, increasing focus on practical, real-life skills development, and preparation for a career after graduation. Unfortunately, both law school and medical school are also famed for a competitive culture. While this should not deter passionate individuals from pursuing this path, it is an important consideration.
Law — The JD program years are known as 1L, 2L, and 3L years.
1L year is usually considered the most difficult year, as 1) you are new to law school and it takes time to really “think like a lawyer,” 2) you are also adjusting socially to a new environment, 3) substantively, you are learning a lot of black-letter law, 4) everyone takes core classes 1L year and there is no freedom to select your own classes except 1-2 electives, 5) for people considering going to the private sector (especially for aspiring Big Law associates), 1L grades matter the most, as those are the only grades employers see before the on-campus interviews, and 6) because you are in a constant section environment with the same section-mates, it’s easy to have some sort of section drama and internal competitiveness.
Substantively, the core classes for 1Ls include contracts, torts, property, civil procedure, criminal law, usually constitutional law, sometimes legislation and regulation/administrative law, sometimes international/comparative law, and legal research and writing.
2L and 3L years can get more tailored or interesting, as you get to select the elective courses that allow you to dive deeper into your interests and/or bridge different disciplines (e.g. fun topics such as Law and Neuroscience, Sentencing, etc.). Schools like Harvard allow for cross-registration outside the law school, e.g. I took French classes my 2L year.
By your 2L or 3L year, you will have hopefully learned how to think like a lawyer, and have also narrowed down your interests a little bit to find a group of like-minded friends, as well as student organizations to focus on outside of classes. Some student orgs are geographically or identity-focused, e.g. APALSA (the student group for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders), Asia Law Society, West Coast Club, Texas Club at HLS. Some are very fun, hobby-based groups, such as the HLS Parody, where you can apply your writing, singing, and dancing skills. There are also many, many law journals/reviews for those interested in editing articles and contributing to legal scholarship. 1Ls typically only subcite, and 2Ls and 3Ls can get more involved in selecting and substantively editing articles for publication. Some journals focus on specific topics, e.g. entertainment/sports law. Some focus on sub-topics of the law, such as the negotiation law review. I love journals as more ways to build community and get more directly engaged in legal scholarship.
A recommendation I have for students, especially ones interested in potentially going into academia some time, is applying for an RA (research assistant) position. It was hands-down one of the most rewarding experiences throughout my law school career, involving getting paid to learn and research subjects I was passionate about, and (hopefully) contributing to my professors’ scholarship. There’s a lot of room for intellectual dialogues between you, your professors, and your fellow RAs.
Law students are also encouraged to participate in clinics, which provide more real-life practice experience before you graduate from the academic bubble. There are also student practice organizations that let you do pro bono work as early as your 1L year – at HLS, a really cool one I like is RAP – the Recording Artists Project – https://recordingartistsproject.com. There, you get to help budding young musicians out on their legal needs, e.g. drafting contracts.
Medicine — Generally, the medical school curriculum is divided into three phases: pre-clinical, core clinical rotations (clerkships), and a third more flexible phase in which students pursue advanced clinical rotations, clinical electives, research, and apply to residency. The content covered especially in the first two phases is standardized by the American Association of Medical Colleges. However, the duration of the individual phases and the ways in which schools go about teaching the required content differ from school to school.
The pre-clinical phase is 1-2 years long and generally consists of instruction in genetics, biochemistry, cell and tissue biology, anatomy, immunology, pharmacology, microbiology, and organ systems from both a pathology and pathophysiology standpoint, including the nervous system, cardiovascular system, respiratory system, gastrointestinal system, renal and genitourinary system, reproduction, endocrinology, pathology, and hematology. It is typically followed by Step 1 of the capstone US Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE).
The clinical phase is 1 year long, formerly known as “third year”, and consists of clinical rotations (“clerkships”) in a range of fields including internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, and neurology with many schools also requiring rotations in emergency medicine, family medicine, ophthalmology, anesthesia, radiology, and others. The format of these clerkships is discussed in the following section. These are typically followed by Step 2 of the USMLE.
After this phase, students complete so-called sub-internships (“Sub-Is”) in which they gain more independence and are expected to function more and more at the level of a first-year resident, a.k.a. Intern. They also apply to residency and complete various graduation requirements, including scholarly projects, electives, and capstone clinical skills examinations.
As in law school, there are many opportunities for extracurricular involvement. Aside from student-run free clinics, there are various student clubs and organizations, affinity groups, opportunities for research, advocacy, and recreation. I worked as a research assistant helping to adapt and implement a digital mental health intervention for Greek adolescents. This project was very rewarding and helped me connect with my Greek roots while pursuing research I was passionate about. My curiosity in neuroscience evolved into a summer research project looking at neural basis of negative reinforcement (a process underlying obsessive-compulsive disorder, substance use disorders, and other psychiatric disorders), which ultimately kindled my passion for systems and translational neuroscience and convinced me to apply to transfer into the MD/PhD program.
I also volunteered at a student-run free clinic supervised by resident and attending physicians that provided hypertension and diabetes medication management services to individuals without insurance, and facilitated connecting them to insurance. It was rewarding to see my patients’ blood pressure and blood sugar levels improve, and help see one of them through the insurance application process. He now follows with a primary care provider and has insurance coverage. Another rewarding aspect of medical school is working with student interest groups. I helped chair the psychiatry student interest group at Penn while also serving as the chair of my region through the psychiatry interest group network PsychSIGN that connects psychiatry interest groups across the country. Through this involvement, I got to host experts in the field to hold talks both at Penn and at national events, interfaced with residency program directors, and became close with peers both at Penn and at other medical schools.
In summary, some of the most rewarding aspects of medical school happen outside the standard curriculum.
IV. Clerkships in Law and Medicine
Clerkships mean two different things in law and medicine. In law, clerkships are where you work in a judge’s judicial chambers for a year, researching and writing about the law, e.g. drafting bench memoranda and judicial opinions, attending court hearings, etc. Some students choose to do two or even more clerkships after graduation. It is not mandatory and usually more favoured by students interested in becoming litigators rather than transactional attorneys. In medicine, clerkships are the foundational, structured clinical rotations that students complete in either their second and/or third year of medical school. However, clerkships in both fields share key similarities. They are often new graduates’ first, full-time exposure to the professional day-to-day of their fields in which they are expected to actively contribute. In this setting, experiential learning is emphasised, and trainees make the transition from studious test-takers to junior members of a professional team.
Law — Although clerking is optional for law students, the process is also very competitive, especially for federal clerkships, see, e.g., my article on this subject at https://harvardlpr.com/2020/07/28/when-judges-compete-on-a-lawless-terrain-possible-futures-for-clerkship-hiring/.
A wonderful aspect of clerking is that even though you are fresh out of law school, you get pretty hands-on, day-to-day exposure to legal research and writing. You are essentially writing legal opinions as the judge you are working for, who of course edits and approves your drafts, but still, that’s a very unique aspect of the US legal system.
For details of my clerkship experience, please visit https://aprilxiaoyixu.substack.com/p/some-reflections-on-my-judicial-clerkship.
Medicine — The “core clerkships” or clinical rotations are a required year-long phase of medical training, often taking place in the second or third year of medical school. Students have to complete rotations in a range of medical specialties. Depending on the medical school, students can rank the order in which they complete their rotations, and can submit certain site preferences. However, there is little to no flexibility in terms of what specialties students must rotate in.
The learning on clerkships shifts from the classroom setting to the hospital/clinic. Students function as members of a clinical teams, consisting of an attending physician, and physicians in training (i.e., fellows, residents, interns). While clinical responsibilities vary, students are generally expected to develop skills in taking histories and conducting physical exams on their patients, and interpreting this information in conjunction with vital signs, any lab findings, and previous information in the medical chart in order to create an assessment of the patient’s presenting problem and come up with a diagnostic and treatment plan. On inpatient or emergency medicine services, they are also expected to assist with tasks, including note-writing, calling consults, families, interfacing with other members of the clinical team such as nurses, and proactively suggest management items. On surgical services, students’ responsibility is more limited to retracting (i.e., helping expose target anatomy), suturing, and at times assisting in other small ways, while helping out with clinic rounds in the mornings before cases. Regardless of the service, if you gain more experience and prove competency at basic tasks, you will often be entrusted with more responsibility, independence, and more complex or advanced tasks. At most medical schools, students are evaluated on their performance in clinics, and residency programs take these grades into account when evaluating candidates. One of the main criticisms of clerkship grading is that it can feel like an arbitrary evaluation of clinical performance, often confounded by other factors including quality of relationship between attending and student. One of my friends who is a psychiatrist once told me that to get a good grade in clerkships, you have to be nice and helpful.
As in legal clerkships, medical clerkships offer students real-life experience that is an indispensable stepping stone to the greater level of responsibility that comes with being a resident physician. During clerkships, medical students operate as student doctors with oversight, often by multiple physicians at different stages in their training, and gain increasing levels of independence depending on their demonstrated competence. Over time, students become a helpful asset to their team. This method of teaching is often referred to as an apprenticeship model.
At many medical schools, students are also required to take shelf exams, which are so named because they consist of old USMLE Step 2 questions that have been decommissioned, i.e., “shelved”. These are generally rotation specific, e.g., psychiatry shelf, internal medicine shelf. After long days in clinic, students generally complete practice questions on UWorld, an online subscription practice question database. Shelf exams are difficult, and not rarely, students fail them and have to retake. Studying for certain shelves, especially the internal medicine shelf, can be a significant burden for students given the breadth of the material and the sheer number of practice problems one has to complete. Material is generally cumulative and students’ scores generally improve throughout the course of the clerkship year.
V. First Job - Rookie Lawyer vs. Residency
Finally – the glorious graduation picture in cap and gown. The stage walk. And those two letters! JD, MD. Juris Doctor, Medicinae Doctor: Doctor of Law, Doctor of Medicine.
“You made it!” your relatives exclaim; and while you share in their joy, you are acutely aware of the fact that you haven’t quite made it just yet, see, e.g., the Bar Exam and other post-graduation requirements for new lawyers at https://aprilxiaoyixu.substack.com/p/bar-prep-mpre-nyle-bar-application.
Law — The first job for a rookie lawyer varies – it might be a private sector role as a BigLaw associate (which is the most common path for HLS graduates), or government section jobs, or clerkships, or even a job that isn’t directly related to the law, such as consulting that some law students choose. The learning curve can be very steep for various areas of the law, but fear not – ask questions to formal and informal mentors and learn as you go. The law constantly evolves, and the legal profession encourages lifelong learning. I think one of the best parts of being a lawyer is the opportunity to constantly learn something new.
Medicine — After graduating medical school, newly-minted MDs must complete residency training before they can practice without oversight by an attending physician. Residency training can take anywhere from 3-7 years, and is often followed by fellowship training in a subspecialty. Although they continue to be trainees, residents are hired employees, with average salaries ranging from $50,000-$80,000 depending on specialty and year in training. Residents have the reputation of being required to work long hours, have difficult call schedules, and complete a significant amount of gruntwork, although this does notably vary by specialty and by program.
VI. Career Paths and Specialisation
The range of career paths a JD or MD can pursue is broad and varied.
Law — As briefly mentioned in the section above, there are many different career paths for lawyers and law students who choose to be non-lawyers. Those interested in criminal law can become prosecutors or public defenders at the state or local level. In the private sector, there are many different practice areas, including capital market, corporate, banking, litigation, bankruptcy, tax, employment law, real estate, and beyond. Junior associates typically start as more of generalists than specialists, and gradually narrow down their niche focus as they become more senior. Some lawyers go on to become law professors (at top law schools, professors have formidable resumes, often featuring SCOTUS clerkships). Some law school graduates choose non-legal professions, e.g. bankers, consultants, and authors are not rare.
Medicine — MDs are not limited to careers in clinical practice. Many pursue clinical research and some even complete post-docs and become basic scientists. Some pursue public health, public policy, and advocacy. Others pursue medical education, career advising, work in industry, or even become full-time YouTubers. Even within clinical practice, there is a vast range of practice settings, including inpatient hospital wards, intensive care units, outpatient clinics, mobile clinics, telehealth, private practice, etc. Academic appointments often allow for protected research time alongside clinical practice.
VII. International Perspectives
Unlike degrees in other fields, such as the sciences, humanities, engineering, computer science, and finance, a significant consideration with a medical or law degree is that of international mobility. For both authors of this article, who have grown up at the intersection of multiple countries and cultures, this is not a trivial concern.
Law - Many international students worry that it’d be hard to practice law outside the U.S. after the JD program, say, in their home countries or another country where they hope to live long term. For transactional lawyers in global firms, chances are you are able to locate to foreign offices to continue working on US law matters, e.g. international capital markets. For litigation fields, it might be a bit more challenging to switch countries/offices due to the domestic nature of various areas of US litigation work, but international arbitration and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), I heard, are subfields within litigation that can allow for more international applicability. For the public sector, international law is often an attractive area for international students. I’ve been advised that international criminal law, for example, might require some serendipity to get into and it doesn’t always have many entry-level positions, say, in Geneva. Those are a few factors to consider. Another factor to consider is that different countries’ legal systems can have an impact on how you shape your career post the JD program in the US. In Hong Kong, for example, there is a difference between barristers and solicitors. Finally, different countries also have different qualification requirements/conversion exams/other bar exams. I suggest reaching out to people in your network and researching as much as possible before committing to the JD programs if you have doubts on the citizenship or geographic location front.
Medicine – Transferring a US medical license to outside the US is possible but can be difficult and often requires passing a series of exams and proving linguistic competency. However, US medical school graduates often have an easier time obtaining licensure outside the US than non-US doctors seeking to practice in the US. Generally, non-US doctors are required to take all steps of the USMLE and repeat residency in the US, a process that can take up to 7 years, before attaining the right to practice independently. US residency programs are partial to domestic graduates, making it difficult for international doctors to obtain permission to practice in the US.
VIII. Common Myths
Law
“What, like it’s hard?” – Legally Blonde aside, a notorious public perception about law school and the legal profession is that it’s very hard (academically/substantively and socially) to survive, competitive, toxic, and people are in there for the $$$$$$. While there are some gunners in law schools and people generally work very hard, the culture has gotten a lot better since lawyer and author Scott Turow’s 1L days. Many law students and young lawyers I’ve met are genuinely multi-disciplinary, interesting, and kind individuals. Many of us formed study groups in law school that aimed to help each other understand difficult topics with positive vibes and can-do attitudes. Many people I know from law school are very into politics and public service. I graduated from HLS last year, and at least one classmate from my law school clinic on democracy has already run for public office on the West Coast – very impressive. I’ve also had the pleasure of being friends with a number of public interest lawyers – recently, for example, I’m learning a lot more about animal law than I had before and have seen a number of friends and new connections from law school working on important legal issues associated with environmental law. One of them even started her own non-profit organization focusing on litigation at a very young age. Within law firms, there is also a growing trend of increasing attention to pro bono work that’s aimed to help our communities with our legal skills, which I really enjoy in my legal practice (e.g. family law, immigration law, housing law, corporate law in the non-profit context, criminal law, etc.).
You have to be super extroverted -- this is a myth in my view. While many lawyers I know do love to talk (especially litigators), I find that there are many introverts among my peers and colleagues, including myself. Law is a detail-oriented profession. A lot of the work we do is not necessarily talking/arguing with people all the time, although good communication skills are pretty important for both litigators and transactional lawyers. The negotiation workshop was a class I enjoyed in law school.
Lawyers work in courtrooms and their lives are dramatic, like what we see on TV -- this is also a myth. A good portion of my law school classmates are now transactional lawyers, i.e. non-litigators whose work does not focus on courtroom stuff. A common way people explain the difference between litigators and transactional lawyers is that litigators are always fighting with their opposing counsel – it’s adversarial in nature; on the other hand, transactional lawyers like to say they are collaborative – lawyers for different parties generally want to advance a deal forward, e.g. working together on contracts and other agreements. I think all kinds of lawyers definitely all collaborate to a certain degree. Transactional lawyers’ lives are very, very different from what we see in most lawyer-themed TV shows/books (except books/TV shows like Partner Track). There are also specialist practice areas at many US law firms, such as employment (ERISA), tax, real estate, and bankruptcy groups. Each practice area has its charms. I’m personally grateful to be able to do a rotation in International Capital Markets (which is one of the transactional practice areas) and a different rotation in Litigation.
Medicine
Medical/legal training is very difficult: this is true (for medicine at least). Every stage, from the pre-medical courses, to the application, to the actual medical studies, to residency, and even the eventual career, is challenging and emotionally taxing. At the same time, it is deeply rewarding and satisfying, and I think it is worth it provided you are truly passionate about this career.
Studying medicine/law is a good way to make bank: I would strongly recommend pursuing a career in finance or computer science if you are in it just for the money. Medical training in the US is long, arduous, very expensive, and emotionally taxing. You are better off getting a bachelor’s degree in computer science and getting a job at a large tech firm and making 8+ more years’ worth of 6 figures than your medical colleagues.
I can’t study medicine in the US if I am not a citizen: it is possible, but not easy. You will be at a disadvantage relative to applicants who are US-citizens. I encourage you to give it a shot if you believe your application is competitive. If you have significant doubts about your application and are in the US on an F1 student visa, consider applying for OPT and pursuing 1-2 gap years to improve your application before submitting. Applying to medical school can cost upwards of $5,000 and re-applicants are generally not viewed as favorably. Apply when your application is strongest to maximize chances of admission.
Note: The law side of this article focuses on the Juris Doctor (JD) program, rather than the LLM or SJD programs, as I am more familiar with the JD program from personal experience.
Also note: This article solely represents our individual views – not that of our schools or employers. We recognise that we are still young professionals in our fields and would love it if you point out anything you disagree with if you have more experience in the fields.
And finally: In case you see both British spelling and American spelling in this article, our apologies for any inconsistency — it inevitably illustrates that we’ve used both spellings in various stages of our lives as TCKs + IB/international school graduates:)
Any comments/questions are more than welcome!
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