🚀 go-pugleaf

"Marc J. Byrd" <byrd@harc.edu> wrote:
>Hello,
>
>Having accumulated a bit of debt in obtaining a
>PhD, I'm not interested in accumulating even more
>to go to law school (Intellectual Property).  Are
>there alternative methods of support such as 
>consulting or freelance technical writing?  Is
>it possible to obtain support from a firm in
>exchange for technical consulting and/or a
>promise of future service?  Are the top-tier
>schools likely to frown on any of these
>arrangements, or would they encourage them?
>
>Does anyone have experience they care to share
>regarding non-loan sources of support?
>
>Many thanks,
>
>
>Marc Byrd

I go through college the old-fahioned way: let someone 
else pay for it!  I started my undergraduate career at 
GMI, where General Motors subsidized tuition, paid me 
a salary, and even gave me a new car at wholesale.  I 
finished my engineering degree (EE) while working for 
UTC, which had a generous tuition reimbursement 
program and generously allowed me a leave of absence 
(with full benefits) when I went back full-time.

The Patent Office helped pay for the first part of my 
law degree (about 60%) - but Phds do NOT fare well 
there (they have too much of a quantum view of the 
world, I'm afraid).  My first law firm did not pay for 
tuition (which according to the IRS at the time, was a 
taxable benefit) but did increase my salary to cover 
tuition.

My motto: Get the job first - they have them pay for 
the education necessary to get your credentials.  This 
way, you already have a job upon graduation.  
Moreover, if you can't find someone willing to pony up 
the dough, maybe it is not such a lucrative field to 
be in.

BTW - in the DC area, all the law schools (GW, G'town, 
GMU, UMD, American, Catholic, Howard) have night 
programs - there is no stigma attached to night school 
in this town.  Earn while you learn is the norm.  New 
York, on the other hand, is looking more for top 5%, 
Harvard types.