Lawyer Salary

Originally Posted by Unregistered

baker m&a dropped to band 3. 10 char

If got Andrew Martin become band 3. Now have Theo heng super star next year save them become band 1 liao

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Any thoughts on the latest Chambers rankings?

Why is Clarence Lun and Fervent not ranked. The rankings must be rigged.

anyone else dying with work around christmas / new year?

sian ttm

Hi,

I'm at a significant crossroads in my academic and career journey and could really use your insights! I've been fortunate enough to get accepted into the Oxford Master of Financial Economics (MFE) and the SMU Juris Doctor program. I'm still waiting on the results from the NUS Juris Doctor program.

A little background: The Oxford MFE is a 9-month program, whereas a typical Juris Doctor in Singapore spans 3 years. My parents are supportive and willing to fund my education. My undergraduate studies were in Architecture, where I graduated with a First-Class Honours, and I've also scored 338/340 on the GRE. Additionally, I've applied to master's programs in Finance and Financial Engineering at NUS, NTU, and overseas institutions like MIT, Yale, and Columbia.

Here's where I need your advice:

Passion: Although my background is in design, I find myself passionate about various fields. My experience includes internships at several architecture firms, where I adapted to the intense 996 work culture. Both law and finance intrigue me equally, as I've spent a few months exploring the teaching materials in both domains.

Salary Concerns: Salary is a primary consideration for me. While the salary structure in big 4 law firms is quite transparent, I'm curious about the prospects in the job market for someone with a master's in finance, especially without a relevant bachelor's degree.

I'm torn between these paths and would really appreciate your perspectives, especially from those who might have been in similar situations or have insights into these career fields.

TL;DR: Accepted into Oxford MFE and SMU Juris Doctor, with a background in Architecture and high GRE scores. Seeking advice on career prospects and salary expectations in finance vs. law.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hi,

I'm at a significant crossroads in my academic and career journey and could really use your insights! I've been fortunate enough to get accepted into the Oxford Master of Financial Economics (MFE) and the SMU Juris Doctor program. I'm still waiting on the results from the NUS Juris Doctor program.

A little background: The Oxford MFE is a 9-month program, whereas a typical Juris Doctor in Singapore spans 3 years. My parents are supportive and willing to fund my education. My undergraduate studies were in Architecture, where I graduated with a First-Class Honours, and I've also scored 338/340 on the GRE. Additionally, I've applied to master's programs in Finance and Financial Engineering at NUS, NTU, and overseas institutions like MIT, Yale, and Columbia.

Here's where I need your advice:

Passion: Although my background is in design, I find myself passionate about various fields. My experience includes internships at several architecture firms, where I adapted to the intense 996 work culture. Both law and finance intrigue me equally, as I've spent a few months exploring the teaching materials in both domains.

Salary Concerns: Salary is a primary consideration for me. While the salary structure in big 4 law firms is quite transparent, I'm curious about the prospects in the job market for someone with a master's in finance, especially without a relevant bachelor's degree.

I'm torn between these paths and would really appreciate your perspectives, especially from those who might have been in similar situations or have insights into these career fields.

TL;DR: Accepted into Oxford MFE and SMU Juris Doctor, with a background in Architecture and high GRE scores. Seeking advice on career prospects and salary expectations in finance vs. law.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Between finance and law, it's a no-brainer. Always pick finance. Being a lawyer does not pay anywhere near as well as finance does.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hi,

I'm at a significant crossroads in my academic and career journey and could really use your insights! I've been fortunate enough to get accepted into the Oxford Master of Financial Economics (MFE) and the SMU Juris Doctor program. I'm still waiting on the results from the NUS Juris Doctor program.

A little background: The Oxford MFE is a 9-month program, whereas a typical Juris Doctor in Singapore spans 3 years. My parents are supportive and willing to fund my education. My undergraduate studies were in Architecture, where I graduated with a First-Class Honours, and I've also scored 338/340 on the GRE. Additionally, I've applied to master's programs in Finance and Financial Engineering at NUS, NTU, and overseas institutions like MIT, Yale, and Columbia.

Here's where I need your advice:

Passion: Although my background is in design, I find myself passionate about various fields. My experience includes internships at several architecture firms, where I adapted to the intense 996 work culture. Both law and finance intrigue me equally, as I've spent a few months exploring the teaching materials in both domains.

Salary Concerns: Salary is a primary consideration for me. While the salary structure in big 4 law firms is quite transparent, I'm curious about the prospects in the job market for someone with a master's in finance, especially without a relevant bachelor's degree.

I'm torn between these paths and would really appreciate your perspectives, especially from those who might have been in similar situations or have insights into these career fields.

TL;DR: Accepted into Oxford MFE and SMU Juris Doctor, with a background in Architecture and high GRE scores. Seeking advice on career prospects and salary expectations in finance vs. law.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Finance without a shadow of a doubt. Oxford is a top target school for finance in both London and Sg, even at graduate level. If you know how to interview you can practically walk in to any firm/bank. Unlike law, in Sg finance in general is heavily skewed towards overseas grads.

To put it into perspective timings-wise - if you get into a very good IB in Sg straight out of your ~1 year MFE, you'd be on at least $120k base.

Whereas if you did law, it would take you at least 7 years (3 years JD, 1 year TC, ~6 months Part B, and then 3-4 PQE at B4) to get to $120k.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Finance without a shadow of a doubt. Oxford is a top target school for finance in both London and Sg, even at graduate level. If you know how to interview you can practically walk in to any firm/bank. Unlike law, in Sg finance in general is heavily skewed towards overseas grads.

To put it into perspective timings-wise - if you get into a very good IB in Sg straight out of your ~1 year MFE, you'd be on at least $120k base.

Whereas if you did law, it would take you at least 7 years (3 years JD, 1 year TC, ~6 months Part B, and then 3-4 PQE at B4) to get to $120k.

The numbers cited for Big 4 are generally accurate. To add further:

Not sure about Oxford MFE programme specifically, but I'd imagine Oxford as a target school would easily give what OP needs, which is an interview and to land an internship opportunity in the City. So long as OP is ready to hustle.
LSE would be a good choice too.

OP, NUS JD is a terrible prospect if your priority is money, which it rightly should be at this age.
You're gonna give up/pivot away from your existing career track and amassed skillset, forego 5 years in salaried opportunity cost, plus spend a ton of money that isn't government subsidized. And only to end up at square one: the same position as a 24 year old law undergrad.

Don't be fooled by the programme name. "Juris Doctor" in Singapore is not a prestigious professional grad degree on par with an MBA or a North American JD. Its basically an undergraduate law degree disguised as a postgrad degree to sucker people with a dream to do law. Career outcomes are no more different than if you'd studied law at the undergrad level.

A Singapore JD will not put you in an advantaged position to join US White Shoe or int'l firms where you access US law firm pay levels (which is the only outcome that would make such a career pivot worthwhile). You'd likely still have to grind in a Big4 firm for 2-3 years before being competitive for int'l firms, and even then have to fight with multitudes of Big4 junior assocs also looking to jump to these firms.

Do the JD ONLY if law is so strong a personal aspiration that you're willing to stay way behind your peers (of the same age bracket) financially for a long time, and possibly put a lot of life plans on hold.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

The numbers cited for Big 4 are generally accurate. To add further:

Not sure about Oxford MFE programme specifically, but I'd imagine Oxford as a target school would easily give what OP needs, which is an interview and to land an internship opportunity in the City. So long as OP is ready to hustle.
LSE would be a good choice too.

OP, NUS JD is a terrible prospect if your priority is money, which it rightly should be at this age.
You're gonna give up/pivot away from your existing career track and amassed skillset, forego 5 years in salaried opportunity cost, plus spend a ton of money that isn't government subsidized. And only to end up at square one: the same position as a 24 year old law undergrad.

Don't be fooled by the programme name. "Juris Doctor" in Singapore is not a prestigious professional grad degree on par with an MBA or a North American JD. Its basically an undergraduate law degree disguised as a postgrad degree to sucker people with a dream to do law. Career outcomes are no more different than if you'd studied law at the undergrad level.

A Singapore JD will not put you in an advantaged position to join US White Shoe or int'l firms where you access US law firm pay levels (which is the only outcome that would make such a career pivot worthwhile). You'd likely still have to grind in a Big4 firm for 2-3 years before being competitive for int'l firms, and even then have to fight with multitudes of Big4 junior assocs also looking to jump to these firms.

Do the JD ONLY if law is so strong a personal aspiration that you're willing to stay way behind your peers (of the same age bracket) financially for a long time, and possibly put a lot of life plans on hold.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your helpful comments. I understand the higher upside of IB compared to law, but I'm also aware of the intense competition in finance, with less than 1% of graduates securing coveted roles. In contrast, law might offer a lower ceiling but seems to have higher average salaries than the financial field. For instance, while Big 4 law firms pay less than IB, my chances of landing a role there seem higher than securing a position in IB or a Bulge Bracket firm.

I'm also contemplating how a 9-month Oxford MFE will impact my employability, given my architecture background. From what I've seen on LinkedIn, Oxford MFE grads from Singapore with engineering backgrounds have had varied success - some securing analyst positions at Deutsche Bank with decent salaries and bonuses, while others find roles at local banks like DBS or OCBC with salaries around 5 to 6k.

For context, I am currently 23 and my ultimate fear is ending up as an insurance agent or in a sales role at a local bank like OCBC, not that there's any disrespect to those in such positions, but I feel I've put in significant effort to shift my career. This decision is quite complex, and I'm in a challenging spot. I'd appreciate any further insights, especially regarding the real-world implications of an Oxford MFE for non-experienced individuals.


Thanks again for your guidance.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your helpful comments. I understand the higher upside of IB compared to law, but I'm also aware of the intense competition in finance, with less than 1% of graduates securing coveted roles. In contrast, law might offer a lower ceiling but seems to have higher average salaries than the financial field. For instance, while Big 4 law firms pay less than IB, my chances of landing a role there seem higher than securing a position in IB or a Bulge Bracket firm.

I'm also contemplating how a 9-month Oxford MFE will impact my employability, given my architecture background. From what I've seen on LinkedIn, Oxford MFE grads from Singapore with engineering backgrounds have had varied success - some securing analyst positions at Deutsche Bank with decent salaries and bonuses, while others find roles at local banks like DBS or OCBC with salaries around 5 to 6k.

For context, I am currently 23 and my ultimate fear is ending up as an insurance agent or in a sales role at a local bank like OCBC, not that there's any disrespect to those in such positions, but I feel I've put in significant effort to shift my career. This decision is quite complex, and I'm in a challenging spot. I'd appreciate any further insights, especially regarding the real-world implications of an Oxford MFE for non-experienced individuals.


Thanks again for your guidance.

Don't pick the JD route if you are thinking about financial returns.

It is more likely than not that you won't recover the opportunity cost lost from studying full time for the JD, studying for Part B (SG bar exam), and doing a full year of traineeship for shitty pay. Even after all that, you may not even get into the Big 4 which means you may be earning pay that's shitter than the 5-6k salaries you mentioned in local banks like DBS or OCBC.

Not to mention AI is catching up really quickly, junior lawyer jobs are likely on the chopping block in the next 5 to 10 years.

You should ask people in the finance forums about the ROI for Oxford MFE.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your helpful comments. I understand the higher upside of IB compared to law, but I'm also aware of the intense competition in finance, with less than 1% of graduates securing coveted roles. In contrast, law might offer a lower ceiling but seems to have higher average salaries than the financial field. For instance, while Big 4 law firms pay less than IB, my chances of landing a role there seem higher than securing a position in IB or a Bulge Bracket firm.

I'm also contemplating how a 9-month Oxford MFE will impact my employability, given my architecture background. From what I've seen on LinkedIn, Oxford MFE grads from Singapore with engineering backgrounds have had varied success - some securing analyst positions at Deutsche Bank with decent salaries and bonuses, while others find roles at local banks like DBS or OCBC with salaries around 5 to 6k.

For context, I am currently 23 and my ultimate fear is ending up as an insurance agent or in a sales role at a local bank like OCBC, not that there's any disrespect to those in such positions, but I feel I've put in significant effort to shift my career. This decision is quite complex, and I'm in a challenging spot. I'd appreciate any further insights, especially regarding the real-world implications of an Oxford MFE for non-experienced individuals.


Thanks again for your guidance.

Have you done internships in finance or law yet though? Might be more worthwhile to do an internship or two before taking the leap.

Also, why not a masters at London Business School? That would be a clear win