It's worth it if it's what you want to do and you're willing to be flexible, consider alternate career pathways, and aren't afraid to be more persistent than you could possibly imagine would be necessary.

Refugee law (or possibly immigration law?) is not something that's going to be lucrative in the way the general public thinks a law career inevitably is. On the other hand, if you're going to law school on an assumption that you're going to work at Big Law and quickly pay off your debt with six-figure starting salaries - that is when you should NOT NOT NOT go to law school.

Careers still can be had. I ended up mostly where I wanted, but it took a Herculean effort. And I have to start doing it all over again in six months, because this is only a 2-year gig. But I should have a decent shot at continued federal employment and, while it's not Big Law, one can certainly make one's student loan payments on the federal salary.

I have noticed that the executive ranks of my company are full of non-practicing lawyers - should said person want to go "Corporate" it may be a leg up in that world as well.

I took out more in loans during my first year of law school than I did during my entire 4-year undergrad. While I am also more or less where I want to be professionally, financially is a different story (I fight Big Law, I didn't join them because I felt having a life outside work was important... plus the economy fracked up the starting salaries there anyway).

As far as choice of school goes, unless you're going into practice for yourself -- school matters. You could graduate in the bottom of your class at Stanford, and you'll ALWAYS have a job because a Stanford attorney is marketable to clients and recruiters, PERIOD.

Basically, I pay $400 in loans per month, every month until.... 2036. There is NO way out of these loans, unless I get permanently disabled or die. So it is a big decision that is not to be taken casually. You really have to want to be an attorney when you pop out on the other end!

This is what I've always assumed, EuroMeinke. A law degree never hurts. I'm happy to hear your experience tells you this is still true. It seems like common sense that law training can only help, even if you're not a practicing lawyer.

Ouch, Chernabog! Thanks for your post. It helps put things into focus for me.