Do lawyers get paid more than Doctors?

[philibert63]

I am a sophomore in high school and I am TORN between these two professions.

I am passionate about the social sciences and politics interest me. I watched the news, and read newspapers, unlike most of the people my age. But I don't think I've made the best out of my high school years so far to become a lawyer. I was on the leadership council, and I am involved with Model UN, Me to We, Junior Council, I was homeroom representative, taking in enriched history, and in a well known drama program at my school. I am also a volunteer for my city councilor. However, I did not take enriched English yet, which I think is very important for law...but I am planning to take it in grades 11 and 12. Corporate lawyers, the highest paid lawyers, require business skill. I have the skill, but I have never and never will be able to take business since the drama program I am in requires me to have 2 courses of drama and an elective in the arts, and I'd like to have the rest of my courses to me math, science, social science, french, and English.

I am also passionate about health and assisting people, being a hero and making a difference in people's lives, and I know I am good at that. I'm currently volunteering at a hospital, and I am on my way to becoming a lifeguard. What bothers me about this field is that even thought I want to become a doctor, I get a sick feeling thinking about the fact that I must study math and science for a long, long time. I'm good at the subjects, it's not like I can't do them, but rather because I don't necessarily have interest is them, especially science. I'm scared to study to become a doctor but not feel complete about it.

What I wonder is...which professions get's paid more? I KNOW it depends, but analyze that.

[hampton83]

If you are going to do this simply for the money, get a business degree <THAT's where the money is. In simply choosing between Law or Medicine, if you simply want to know which profession earns more, go with Medicine.

You may hear about Law earning all these "big bucks", but what they don't tell you is that Law also has very high expenses.

Choosing a career is one of life's most important and difficult decisions. But knowing what your expectations are, and then comparing them to the realities will help you make educated decisions.

There are more attorneys than there are legal employment positions. We simply already have way too many Legal Professionals. AND the legal profession is dramatically changing: it is in absolute CRISIS! Job searching in this vocational field has changed >>DRAMATICALLY<< in the last five years. And, every year, more and more people graduate from law school, but there are fewer and fewer jobs. Even the largest and most reputable law firms are experiencing unprecedented cutbacks. I don't expect the situation to improve in the coming years.....

Be aware of what you are proposing on getting yourself into. Please do more research first. Reminder: We are STILL in a World-wide Recession. Obviously, economic conditions affect the number of jobs available. Consider career paths that have available JOBS.<< Even in a Recovery, there are some jobs that just won't return - the field of Law won't make a comeback. Too many things have changed in this vocational field. Unless you live in the State of Texas (which is the ONLY state in the USA that isn't going through a severe recession, because of OIL), you are going to be fighting the effects of a Recession.

Warning> Jobs in the field of Law are drying up fast!! This no longer is a good field to invest time and/or money into. This is a SHRINKING, crumbling, and dying vocational field. Many, many reasons: We now have computers. So, many people today (mistakenly) think they can do their own legal work, thanks to the Internet and legal books. Also, there are a lot of companies out there making very efficient legal software for the field of Law. Today's graduating lawyers tend to be very computer savvy, so they just do the work themselves to save themselves the cost of overhead - they aren't hiring legal staff. Also, the "Public" buys this legal software/law books in order to get legal work done without the expense of an Attorney. Also, we simply already have way too many Legal Professionals - we just have an absolute glut!! ("Legal Professionals" includes, but is not limited to: Attorneys/Lawyers, Paralegals, Legal Assistants, Legal Secretaries, Bailiffs, Court Reporters, etc, etc) For example: Sites like legalzoom.com have taken away work that many small-time attorneys/lawyers would do/used to do.

The field of Law has a mystique that actually exceeds reality. The field of Law is a vastly overrated career - especially by television.<< There are many myths regarding the field of Law:
**myth: working as a Lawyer is mentally challenging (Actually, most work as an attorney involves mountains of routine paperwork: research, cite checking, drafting documents, and document review. Attorneys need to write down and track EVERY activity they do, all day long [in 6 to 15 minutes increments, depending on the billing system] - a painstaking but necessary task - handling details is a large part of working as a lawyer),
**myth: being an attorney is thrilling, high-powered, and glamorous (remember: television is FICTION - the fictional lawyers on TV are ACTORS - the majority of work that an attorney does, does not happen in a courtroom),
**myth: law students think that because they are good at arguing they will become great attorneys (Actually being a great attorney is more in one's ability to mediate between differing sides and bringing them to agreement/compromise. Many people mistakenly think that being an attorney is about the ability to argue. Actually, a successful attorney is defined by his/her commitment to the PEACEFUL resolution of disputes. Lawyers are actually: mediators, advocates, negotiators, advisors, evaluators, and peaceful intermediaries between clients.),
**myth: as a lawyer I can correct injustices (actually legal decisions are more about reaching compromises than about right vs. wrong),
**myth: guaranteed financial success (actually when salaries are compared, you also need to account for cost-of living expenses [most large law firms are in large cities - the bigger the city, the more cost-of-living expenses will be], payment of debts accrued while attending law school, and time needed to build a client base. Many large law firms require lawyers to work 60-80 hours per week. There are a FEW attorneys that earn a lot of money - but MOST attorneys just about make a living. Most attorneys do not make as much money as most people think. Also, remember: there are more attorneys than there are available jobs.).
And then, to top it off, attorneys have to keep their client's information confidential. (You cannot use "juicy" tidbits that you have become aware of as fodder for the gossip circles.)

Law is a more demanding profession than most people realize. It is not like what you see on TV.

Cost of law school to be lawyer, approx $150,000+. Be prepared to take on a LOT of debt, if becoming an attorney is your "true", ultimate goal!!!<<<

Even if you do finish law school, you won't be able to find a job when you are done. Since this vocational field is shrinking (at an alarming rate), many new attorneys/lawyers are, themselves, having to work "down" as Paralegals, Legal Assistants, Legal Secretaries, Bailiffs, Court Reporters, etc, etc, to simply try to keep some of their bills paid <<this would be your competition. And the competition is fierce in TODAY's job market!!

Now... the law schools know this, but they won't tell you the truth >that the job market/economy is just SATURATED with way too many Legal Professionals. Instead the schools will feed you a fairytale and will LIE to you. The root of the problem is we already have too many law schools. We are STILL in a Recession, and the schools are fighting for their own survival - they will tell students anything to get to the students' money. (Which is why they won't tell you the truth about the job market for the field of Law.) And these schools continue to recruit and churn out even more graduates.............Remember>>> law schools are BUSINESSES - their TOP concern is making money for themselves.

>>>>>THE #1 MOST IMPORTANT THING (and I can't stress this enough>>>): You ESPECIALLY have to beware of the BOGUS, INFLATED law school salary/job stats given out by >law schools< (AND by the U.S. Bureau of Labor)!!***<<<<<

If you don't believe me, then:
**Check out these websites:
http://www.wikihow.com/Become-a-Lawyer-in-the-United-States
http://informeddecisionmaking.blogspot.com
http://calicocat.com/2004/08/law-school-big-lie.html
http://abajournal.com/news/triplt_bad_news_for_law_students_three_firms_aX_summer_associate_programs/
http://abajournal.com/news/as_rio_tinto_saves_millions_other_corps_will_outsource_too_counsel_says/
http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2009/02/03/dont-try-to-dodge-the-recession-with-grad-school/
http://lawschoolscam.blogspot.com
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/02/another-view-lock-the-law-school-doors/?ref=business
http://media.www.dailyorange.com/media/storage/paper522/news/2009/09/15/News/Law-Students.Face.Tough.Job.Market-3771810.shtml
http://thirdtierreality.blogspot.com/
http://finance.yahoo.com/career-work/article/109478/bar-raised-for-law-grad-jobs?mod=career-work
(A link to a website does not constitute endorsement.)
**do a SEARCH here on Yahoo Answers to see what other posters are saying about the current status of the field of Law.
**Call some local law firms - ask to speak to the Manager of Human Resources - ask them if they are hiring; ask them what they think about future job availability in the field of Law. Talk to a few Human Resource Managers who work at employers in the field of Law. Ask them what their opinion is on future job availability for the field of Law. Ask them if they have any current open positions. Ask them how many resumes they receive when they advertise ONE open position. (It is ususally approximately 300 resumes are received for each open position advertised.)
**Do "informational interviews" with several attorneys from at least two or three different firms. (You can find how to do "informational interviews" from your local Public Library - ask the Librarian.) Interviewing attorneys is a time-efficient and extremely beneficial way of discovering if law is the right vocational field for you. If you personally know a practicing lawyer, set up a time with them to do an "informational interview" to ask them about their career. Talk to many attorneys. Better yet, spend an entire day with one of them.
**Talk to recent law graduates. Ask them what success they are having finding employment opportunities.<<<<<<<<<<<<
**Read these books:
>"So You Want to be a Lawyer?" by Marianne Calabrese and Susanne Calabrese (ISBN 0-88391-136-1): "The United States has more lawyers than any other country in the world. About 38,000 students graduate >each year< from the 200+ law schools in the United States. The competition is very keen for jobs and clients." - Even Associate Justice Antonin Scalia (who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for more than 20 years) says there are too many lawyers. (9/14/2008)
>"CourtRoom 302"

[chason58]

Ok. PLEASE do not pick between professions based on the earning potential. Earning potential is directly correlated to your ABILITY in the profession.
A med student who is a bad doctor won't get a very high salary (~$90k) and will have hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans to repay. The "top paying" professions in the medical field are obtained many, many years later, and if you can't make the grades in med school then you won't be getting into that top field.
A law student who isn't good at law or at law school will get between $40k and $90k after years of working. Corporate law is the most stressful and time consuming "specialty" in the field, and after 80 hours of work/week, you'll only go home with MAX $250k.
Pick based on what you're good at. Please don't limit yourself to med school or law school. If you want to go into a profession to make money, go to business school, get a finance degree, and go work for a bank. Law and medicine are not sure-fire breadwinners. It's great that you're looking forward to possibilities, but feel free to expand your horizon. If you're SET on trying out law or medicine, then go volunteer at a law office as a runner, or go do some volunteer work at a hospital. Figure out if you even like those professions in practice before you decide to commit to that. Besides, you'll have all of college to decide or change your mind.

[gabrielo19]

Become a lawyer. It takes more than wanting to help others to become a doctor. You have to be passionate and interested in science to really enjoy the profession, and you're obviously more into business/leadership type stuff.
Isn't there a debate club or something at your school? Join it. You'll need that more than anything.

also, doctors get paid more, particularly psychiatrists, surgeons, obstetricians & gynecologists.