Seriously thinking about dropping out - Please advise
This is not one of those I didn't do well, so I want to leave posts. I am a 1L currently ranking in the top 10 in my class. The school covers my tuition, so my total student debt is only 9k in undergraduate loans, and I still have half of that in my bank account right now.
That said, I don't like it, particularly the writing component. Every time I think about those stupid memos, I get so stressed out that it makes me sick. I know that a lot of what attorneys do is right, and I can not see myself doing that.
Moreover, all I want is a 9-5 that doesn't make me think about work when I get home. I don't want someone's life to literally depend on my actions, and I care too much to distance myself from the result. I feel as though I will be miserable working in law, and that it may be best for me to go back to working for my state's department of agriculture with my Environmental Science degree.
I have just given up and am miserable, and I don't want to be this way anymore. Also, I hate the competitiveness of it all and the pettiness of the law.
Anyway, I am looking for advice. What should I do? Who should I talk to? What should I consider? I went to law school because I figured the pay would be good, and my spine is messed up, so I thought a desk job would be more doable long term. I do enjoy learning about the law and knowing things about it, but I struggle seeing myself as someone who could ever enjoy the actual work.
Posted Mar 30, 2026, 6:14 AM UTC