<p>So I am a political Science and Economics Major soph at UMich, but i am trying to do Business or Public Policy... really i am in a debate between Medical school and Law School right now. i used to be a minor in Bio and Chem but it gave me too much of a time constraint (classes/labs) bc i row and play water polo also. </p>
<p>How does one really decide to go to Law School? I have grown up around Lawyers my whole life - My mom is one, my g-pa was a top exec and top lawyer at Fortune 500 company, my uncle is a lawyer and they all love it. I am in a pre-law frat and i am really interested in law with eventual business aspirations but....</p>
<p>I am intrigued by medicine... i am not sure what field, but it fascinates me. I usually watch discovery health all the time, and i have shadowed a family friend that has his own medical practice. it all interests me but the cost and time needed to put into it... is it worth it? I know you can't decide for me... but how do i decide??? how did you decide, those that decided half way through college, help???</p>
<p>If you like medicine, be a doctor. You will have lifetime job security.</p>
<p>Shadow a laywer in a big law firm, a lawyer in a corporate environment, a criminal lawyer, a DA and someone who does administrative work that requires a law degree.</p>
<p>Shadow a Doctor in a hospital, a doctor in private practice, a doctor doing research, etc.</p>
<p>Ask them what they like about their work, and what they don’t like. What impact has their work had on their life? </p>
<p>Observing someone in their day-to-day environment might help you decide.</p>
<p>The economics of both the medical and legal professions will likely undergo substantial transformation over the careers of Fall 2009 1Ls, and probably not entirely (or even principally) to the good.</p>
<p>In fact, the economic downturn has substantially impacted law firm profitability, although some practice areas (bankruptcy, financial fraud criminal defense, foreclosure defense, for example) have become more lucrative in recent months.</p>
<p>Many routine law office practice procedures such as document drafting will likely be off-shored, done by consumers directly using resources such as LegalZoom.com, or relegated to massive squads of paralegals. Litigation probably cannot be delegated offshore, but periodically faces tort reform efforts which threaten to limit lawyer income.</p>
<p>The Baby Boom generation will start passing soon and the medical profession may find itself facing dwindling numbers of patients per physician. Increased government intrusion into the medical services market may take the form of rationing or enforced cost suppression. Off-shoring hospitalization may reduce the demand for domestic medical services. All of those things, together with developments I cannot possibly foresee, would tend to diminish overall physician income.</p>
<p>New doctors and lawyers may face a world very different from that we who are approaching our dotage did.</p>
<p>you could always do a dual MD/JD program</p>
<p>check out University of Houston Law Center which offers a joint MD with Baylor College of Medicine</p>
<p>People who have both an M.D. and a J.D. generally have them because they decided at some point they had made the wrong decision. I can’t imagine deciding to get both at the outset. Professional education is just the beginning of professional development. It’s just not practical to practice two professions, and trying to do both is usually a guarantee that you will do neither of them well.</p>
<p>Senior’s Dad - I agree with all that you said, but what is you point? The truth is, unless you’re a teacher, doctor, nurse, engineer, or any other profession that will not constantly be in demand, you don’t have lifetime job security. Does that mean everyone should become a teacher, doctor, nurse, engineer, etc, for the sake of job security? Nope, there are hundreds of professions out there, all with some degree of risk. People will continue to go to Law school and become lawyers regardless of economic change. Yes, the future will be a different world, but that doesn’t mean abandon what you truly want to do and pick a more secure profession. </p>
<p>An MD or JD on its own is a big decision to make - both at once?! I imagine that being beyond difficult. Take more time to decide what YOU truly want to do with your life. Does medicine fascinate you enough to get you through Med school, residency, internship? Or is Business/Law where you belong?</p>
<p>I did not enunciate my point very clearly, did I.</p>
<p>I guess what I meant to advise was: Don’t choose law or medicine as a means to riches untold. Choose to do with your life what you love to do.</p>