<p>I'm currently a senior year undergraduate, really stuck on a decision: Law School OR Political Science PhD, researching in the American Politics subfield of judicial politics/public law/law & courts? Because the fields are similar and have a good deal of content overlap, I'm having a lot of difficulty deciding between them. I guess what it really comes down to is whether I want to be a professor or an attorney. If I go the attorney route, I'd like to work in public service--either public interest law or a government position. If I go for the PhD, I'm hoping to do research on judicial decision making. I will admit, however, that I'm worried about finding a Tenure-Track position in political science after grad school or having to take a job in an undesirable location. Are these fears warranted?</p>
<p>Any suggestions on how I should go about deciding between these two paths? Or maybe I should do both the JD and PhD? I would greatly appreciate any advice, as I have been contemplating this decision for a while and I can't seem to make up my mind.</p>
<p>I'd recommend setting up an appointment with a career counselor at your college. They have access to a battery of tests that may help you to focus more narrowly your career interests.</p>
<p>I will point out, though, that if you go to law school, the professorial tract is not closed to you, if you're close to the top of your class at a top law school. Law professors are usually paid better than political science professors, largely because they have more options outside of academia. You would still have the option of doing research on judicial decision making, and would also have a Plan B if you don't find that plum assignment in academia.</p>
<p>My impression of SJDs is that you can't do it straight out of undergrad--it's like the PhD to most departments' master's degree. You'd need to get a JD (or foreign law degree) and maybe an LLM first. </p>
<p>EEH, I think you're on the right track with your thinking: you really need to decide whether you want to be an attorney (maybe a professor in a law school, or a researcher, but both those jobs are unbelievably scarce) or a professor/researcher. Talking to people who have your "dream job," or just looking them up online to see what degrees they have might help. Also, working as a researcher for the government or a think tank in your area of interest for a year or two, or working at a public interest legal organization, could help you clarify what you do and don't want in a job.</p>
<p>To your question "I'm worried about finding a Tenure-Track position in political science after grad school or having to take a job in an undesirable location. Are these fears warranted?" my answer is YES they are warranted. It's not easy to get any teaching job, let alone tenure-track ones at schools in desirable locations. In nearly all fields, there are too many PhDs for the number of teaching jobs out there.</p>
<p>I don't know the answer to your question, but I can tell you the experience of one person. This person was interested in studying and teaching about the Constitution. He obtained a PHd in government/political science and taught Constitutional law to undergraduates at a major university. Although he made tenure and was a full Professor, he decided to go to law school. From a career standpoint it was not necessary. He went to law school because he always felt inadequate that he did not have the insight and experience of a "real lawyer". After he graduated from law school, he returned to teaching undergraduate students. The moral of the story is to ask the question whether you will be feel uncertainty about your qualifications if you go the PhD route and are not a "real lawyer"? I don't know how I would answer this question if I were in the position to do so; then again maybe that is part of the journey of life.</p>
<p>An SJD is an option available to law school graduates who graduated, typically, in the top 5% of a fully accredited law school and wish to teach law. An LLM is not necessary and is usually a concentration in tax or labor law, as well as a comparative law degree from an American law school for those with foreign law degrees. The LLM degree has nothing to do with the SJD degree except in the respect that both are higher law degrees which require the JD degree as a prerequisite. The law school at Duke University welcomes dual degree seeking students if you wish to persue both a JD and a masters or PhD.</p>