<p>Would it be better for my undergraduate degree to be:</p>
<p>1.BSc. Transatlantic Business (DCU - Ireland) & BSc. International Business (Northeastern) [JOINT DEGREE - 2 years at each]</p>
<p>or</p>
<ol>
<li>Law - Trinity College Dublin (No.1 Law School in Ireland) and New York Bar Pass
?</li>
</ol>
<p>I heard they like a varied education or something, and number one involves extensive study of US history and politics - they might not know this, however :(</p>
<p>If you graduate from a law school in the UK, why would you go to a US law school ?</p>
<p>Because I intend to work there, and I heard that you’re better off getting a JD in the US to get a job there.</p>
<p>Those are undergraduate degrees that i mentioned…</p>
<p>The Dublin Law degree would be useless, employment-wise, in the US. Moreover, I think you’d end up having to get an LLM, and on top of that there are very few locations in which foreign-trained US-LLM recipients can practice. Also, the job market for newly minted LLM-recipients isn’t that good… at all. The one exception, of course, has always been the NYU Tax LLM.</p>
<p>So would i be in with much chance with the DCU/Northeastern business degree?
It does have modules in US politics and history, i heard they like these.</p>
<p>I understand that they care more about your GPA and LSAT anyways.</p>
<p>We rarely use GPA in Ireland, what % would i need to be getting to maintain a 3.8/3.9?
Over 90%?Over 95%?</p>
<p>Would they care about/put much weight on my high school leaving cert?(Irish final school exam before college)</p>
<p>thanks :)</p>
<p>a 3.8 is generally an A average so I think maybe around a 94-95%</p>
<p>Do you have dual citizenship? Many foreigners are under the illusion that getting a US JD means they can stay and work here. It doesn’t. With the current high unemployment rate among US attorneys, it is probable that by the time you can complete law school it will be far more difficult to get employer sponsorship than it is now. So, don’t build your hopes on the assumption that getting into a good American law school means you’ll be permitted to stay and work here. </p>
<p>As far as I know, the “translation” is based on the degree, not the percentage. For example, a 2:1 from Oxbridge is generally converted as a 3.5. I don’t know if Irish universities work the same way.</p>
<p>No, i dont have citizenship.
I was hoping that a h1b visa would be possible if i went to a top 14 law school, but this would be in > 7 years time, so its hard to say</p>
<p>Firms that want to hire you will hire you, bad economy or not, and take any necessary steps to hire you. You just have to convince one that it’s worth hiring you.</p>
<p>Yeah i heard in the top schools like 99% of the class have a job before they graduate…</p>
<p>Do the firms just appear towards the last year and approach students or is it done through the school?</p>
<p>I imagine this would be v.common in NYU and Columiba, theyre already in Manhattan?!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>There is an interviewing program held on-campus after your 1L year, where employers come and interview candidates (in previous years, about 500 employers game to recruit from a class of 350-450; this year, I think it was more like 350 employers). Futurenyustudent isn’t really telling the whole story (I’m guessing, partly, because of his inexperience). Though, in a better economy, anyone at NYU or CLS who participated in this program got a job (which, almost always, started at $160,000 per year), the story was entirely different this year. Many students at NYU and CLS didn’t find anything, and it doesn’t help that they started law school under the assumption that they’d get that $160,000 job. Moreover, things don’t seem to be improving in the immediate future.</p>
<p>That’s not to say that the hiring prospects are bad. In an economy as bad as this, I think it’s glorious that there are even people willing to pay 6 figures to someone with no experience in the field. But again, it’s not at all like the glory days.</p>
<p>I don’t know the OP or his reasons for wanting to come to the US. I also realize that I’m often viewed as a “I want to rain on your parade” type on this site. All that said…</p>
<p>I would recommend that the OP make his choices based on the assumption that it might not be possible to come to the US and that (s)he may not want to do so. I don’t know if any of the Irish schools offer dual degrees with American law schools. I do know that Columbia and Harvard both have them with the UK. At least the one at Columbia takes kids directly from secondary school. They end up with both American and UK law degrees. Since Ireland is part of the EU, the OP might want to check out this option --and see if Trinity, UCD, etc. have any similar arrangements. This is a great option .</p>
<p>Under current law it IS easier to get a h1b visa if you get an American JD. However, you have to pay for it. We are talking about $150,000 or so NOW. It may be more in 7 years. At many top law schools, aliens are ineligible for loans. (Most law schools rely heavily on federal student loans for their students; non-citizens aren’t eligible.) So, you may have to pay for it. Can you? </p>
<p>BTW, the US government will NOT assume that you can. You will have to PROVE that you have sufficient funds from some source to pay the bill before you will be given a visa to come here and enroll in law school. </p>
<p>The laws on immigration are not determined by individual law firms. The quotas are set each year by the federal government. Again, I don’t think anyone has a crystal ball so powerful that they can tell you that it will be easy to get a h1b visa 7+ years from now. I personally think that given the desperate straits in which many young American law grads currently find themselves, it’s only a matter of time before the # of h1b visas issued for attorneys will be reduced. Even if they aren’t reduced, I think law firms are going to be less willing to sponsor people. </p>
<p>Even if you can find a law firm that sponsors you, there are other issues. For example, currently, some law firms are deferring summer associates. (The way it has worked in the past, most law firms interviewed students before or at the beginning of their second year for summer jobs after that year. After working for the summer, you are or are not given an offer for permanent employment after graduation. In the past, you’d study for the bar exam during the summer after graduation and start work at a law firm in August, Sept. or October. Now, many law firms are delaying the start dates of new employees by as much as a year. Will this continue or will it happen again 7 years from now? Who knows?) If you are NOT working for your sponsor, you HAVE TO LEAVE THE US. So, even if you get into a top 14 law school and get a job with a firm that is willing to sponsor you, you may find yourself UNemployed and out of the country for a period of up to a year. You may not be able to get a good job in Ireland during that year. </p>
<p>Many firms allow those who are defer to work for non-profit organizations/government during the deferral. As far as I know though, that will NOT be an option for an alien because you have to work for the employer who is sponsoring you. </p>
<p>Of course, if you are laid off by your law firm–not all that rare these days–you have to leave the US. </p>
<p>Now, again, this is not my area of expertise, but my understanding is that there are additional hurdles for those who have spouses. Usually, from what I’ve seen, a spouse is allowed to accompany the h1b holder. This does NOT mean, however, that the spouse will be permitted to work. So, while at 18 or so you aren’t thinking of marriage, you might be by 25. (And if you’ve only got a boyfriend or girlfriend, (s)he will have to have some other basis for being able to accompany you.) </p>
<p>So, if you were my kid, I’d tell you that I wasn’t enthused about you making a decision as to what degree you should get based on the assumptions that you would do well enough in your program and score high enough on the LSAT to be able to attend a top 14LS; will be able to pay the bill of at least $150,000; will get a job with a law firm willing to sponsor you; that by the time you attend the days of law firm deferrals will be over and you can start work immediately. </p>
<p>So, if you are sure you want to be an attorney --even if it’s in Ireland–I’d suggest checking out the dual programs. That would be your best best. If that’s not possible, I’d suggest going for the Irish law degree. That alone might get you a job in the states as an expert in IRISH law with Freshfields or some such firm–though getting a h1b visa will be harder. You could also enroll in a LLM program in the US. Most take 2 years, so that will save you at least $50,000 vs. a JD. (Moreover, it would take you 5 vs. 7 years. ) And, if you didn’t get into a top school for your LLM, you’d still be qualified to get a job in Ireland doing what you want to do. </p>
<p>I don’t know, but I THINK it would be at least as easy to find a h1b sponsor with a LLM as with a JD. And, if everything fails, you could return to Ireland or any EU country with a credential that would enhance your job prospects. </p>
<p>Again, I’m not an immigration attorney. But if you were my kid, I wouldn’t want you to bet the ranch on the assumption that you will want to come to the US, you will do well enough to get a top 14 law school acceptance, you will find a way to pay for it, you will find a job with a firm willing to sponsor you and be able to get a h1b visa, and you will be permitted to start working soon after you graduate. </p>
<p>Just my two cents. </p>
<p>Again, this isn’t my area of expertise.</p>
<p>After checking further, I see that an earlier poster was correct. In some states, a LLM won’t do the trick for admission. You’d have to check the rules for the state of interest. </p>
<p>Here’s info on Columbia’s joint program from a UK perspective. Looks like you can’t apply for it before enrolling. [UCL</a> Laws: International Programmes](<a href=“http://www.ucl.ac.uk/laws/prospective/international/index.shtml?columbia]UCL”>http://www.ucl.ac.uk/laws/prospective/international/index.shtml?columbia) so it’s not as good an option as I thought.</p>
<p>I believe an LLM is fine for admission in NY. Again, I think most LLMs, even then, aren’t worth it. The job prospects suck, and hearing my LLM classmates about their troubles kind of clues me into the situation. However, an LLM is incredibly useful if you want to pursue a job back home. A lot of my classmates seem to be practicing attorneys in their countries of origin, hoping that an LLM will give them access to more opportunities back home.</p>
<p>But for pursuing a job here, with an LLM, I think the only LLM worth it is NYU Tax. Otherwise, I just think it’s a junk degree.</p>
<p>It’s worth it under current law because having a US degree that’s a master’s or equivalent puts you in a different category for getting a visa. Of course, a JD works too, but if there’s a freeze on employer visas, he can’t get a job with a JD in Ireland or anywhere else in the EU. Again, it’s not my area, but that’s my understanding. And, of course, it’s a total of 5 years for a LLB (Irish) and LLM vs. 7 for the program he’s talking about with Northeastern + JD and at least $50,000.</p>