For many people, the thought of going to law school is a dream come true. However, that dream does not come cheap. It is not a secret; law school is expensive. Very expensive. For the 2023-2024 school year, the average cost of attending a private law school was $53,034. While the average cost of a public law school was $29,610. Ultimately, a large majority of people just can’t afford something like that. So why is that? Why is law school so expensive? A study by Halt describes three reasons for this.
1.
Discriminatory Pricing
Law school rank is an honor. Each law school strives to be
the best and build a prestigious reputation. How does a school do so? They need
the best students. In order to enroll the best students, law schools offer
scholarships to the best students in hopes that their performance in the
classroom will work in their favor. Unfortunately, the downside of this is that
the lower ranked students have to cover the costs of these scholarships, which
leads to higher tuition.
2.
Services Provided
The success of a law school goes beyond the students
currently enrolled. Law schools also build a reputation for the graduates of their
institution. Due to this, law schools look to offer services such as career
support and opportunities to work real cases while in school to fully prepare
them for a career post-grad. These services don’t come for free and are also
factored into tuition.
3.
Federal Loans
Federal loans are a lifeline to students who otherwise would
not be able to afford higher education. Federal loans are guaranteed to
students and are a much cheaper option than a private lender. However, as
federal loans make law schools more affordable to students, tuition prices can
rise without effecting a school’s enrollment rate.
Obviously, many factors contribute to the constantly rising
costs of law school tuition, however it is interesting to consider just some of
them. It seems that the trend for prices to rise will continue and I’m not sure
there is any stopping it. As of now, it seems that the cost is ultimately worth
it but will this continue to be true in the future?
Hey Axel,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this blog post, as I am someone who had to take out federal loans to attend Stetson. I think they are very helpful and I agree that they are a lifeline for students who cannot afford law school outright. But unfortunately, I think they are also a large hindrance due to the amount of debt students come out of school in, which I am not specifically looking forward to. I am curious to see how Biden's student loan forgiveness plan unfolds. Great Post.
Great post! The cost of law school, and almost all education it seems like at this point, has gotten out of hand. We at Stetson luckily do not have to worry about this, but I have heard a little bit about predatory law schools that are sadly out there. These law schools sadly exist and still charge the high rates of attendance, yet do not provide much in return and even are quick to kick students out. I personally do not have much knowledge of this, but have only heard stories from students who unknowingly attended such schools. It is sad enough that students have to take out massive loans to get through school. It is terrible knowing there are schools out there that take advantage of this.
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