National Jurist - November 2007 - (Page 23)

Student debt is outpacing lawyer salaries, leaving many recent grads to struggle to pay their bills. What can we do to stem this crisis? ew York Law School sits in the mecca of the legal world. Manhattan employs more lawyers than any other city in the world and the city’s largest firms set the standard for salaries — currently paying $160,000 to first-year associates. But the private law school, just blocks from Wall Street, has watched as its graduates have struggled with debt. With the high cost of living in New York City, and a higher than average tuition of more than $38,600, New York Law School’s students are graduating with an average of more than $80,000 in debt. That number has risen in recent years, as it has for almost every law school. And debt has outpaced starting salaries, which ranged from $52,500 to $125,000 in 2004 for NYLS grads. Most graduates simply don’t land the highly-coveted jobs with $160,000 salaries. And even those who do, find that taxes, their debt and the expense of living in Manhattan quickly eat away at their standard of living. The end result is that many of the school’s graduates are forced to lead frugal N lifestyles and can put little towards savings. The situation is similar for most private law schools across the country. “We are reaching a point where students may conclude that they can’t repay what they need to borrow,” said Jeffrey E. Hanson, director of Borrower Education Services for the Access Group Inc., a nonprofit company that specializes in student loans, especially at the graduate level. “But most students still assume it is OK to borrow as long as they can get the money. There is a subconscious attitude that their school would not let them do something harmful. They are in denial.” New York Law School is one of only a few law schools that has recognized the problem, and is taking action. The school provides students with financial literacy training. “We learn about sex education in third grade, but we don’t learn how to balance a checkbook,” said David Friedman, public interest fellow for the Coalition for Debtor Education at NYLS. “The idea is that nobody is getting this type of education when they need it.” Many believe the situation is reaching a crisis point. Some schools, including NYLS and Suffolk Law School, are taking the lead in debt and finance education. But, even they point out that financial literacy education is not a cure-all. “It’s important for people to realize that even a financially literate culture cannot eliminate all the problems,” said Susan Gross, director of admissions and financial aid at NYLS. “New York Law School stands out as a model for how to do this well.” Why a growing problem? Student debt is growing at an alarming pace, especially when compared to starting salaries. The issue is compounded by excess borrowing, lifestyle choices and high consumer debt. And many law students just don’t realize how much their choices in school will impact their standard of living after graduation. The median debt among new lawyers is about $70,000, according to “After the JD,” the first research study of its kind to examine the early careers of a select number of newly certified lawyers. It found that most debt — about two-thirds — ranged By Karen Dybis and Michelle Weyenberg November 2007 THE NATIONAL JURIST 23

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of National Jurist - November 2007

National Jurist - November 2007 Contents Disturbing the Peace For the Record Blogs: The Death-knell for Law Reviews? Chemerinsky Heads UC-Irvine Ave Maria Dispute Raises ABA Inquiry John Marshall Establishes Veterans Clinic The Firm Report The Paper Chase Chronicles Law School Rankings at Math's Mercy Academic Freedom Called into Question St. Thomas Students Choose ‘Quality of Life’ Experience The Hidden Debt Crisis The Global Frontier International Education has to be a Part of Any Legal Education Employment Defender Career Hotline Off the Bench

National Jurist - November 2007

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