<p>I’m currently a civilian attorney and am a USNA grad. However, when I went to USNA, the LAST thing I wanted to do was become an attorney. That desire came to me about 5 yrs into my naval career. I fully enjoyed my time in the USN and also know that I left that career at exactly the right time for me – and am very happy and fulfilled as an attorney.</p>
<p>Personally, I believe that having a military background and a technical education only help you as a lawyer for reasons too numerous to go into here. I also believe that people are typically happier in law school and as a lawyer if they’ve had another job/career first. Not universally true, but often the case.</p>
<p>I suggest he consider why he wants to be an attorney – does he want to help the little guy (something most attorneys do NOT do, sad to say), make a lot of money (something only some attorneys achieve), be challenged intellectually all the time, or something else. Is this something he sees as a long-term goal or something he wants to do right away?</p>
<p>The above notwithstanding (how’s that for lawyer-speak?), if your son’s overwhelming desire is to be an attorney, I’m not sure USNA is the best path for him. It will be at least 9+ years before he can even attend law school. If, every minute of that time, he hates what he’s doing, what’s the point? </p>
<p>Happy to discuss further via PM.</p>