Ann Israel is the legal profession's Dear Abby. A New York legal recruiter since 1979, Ann is a past president of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants. Advice for the Lawlorn is updated every week.

Q: Perhaps failing to engage in the proper due diligence before law school shows I never had the requisite talent for this field. I became a member of the New York and New Jersey Bars in January, after graduating from a poorly-ranked law school.

Through my own fault, I learned too late in the game how the law school I graduated from would set my value in the marketplace. Accordingly, I only have myself to blame for ending up in No-Fault earning less in both real and inflation-adjusted dollars than I did in my think-tank job between college and law school, with obscene loans to pay.

Everybody makes mistakes in life, except from my read of the landscape, Hester Prynne had better odds of shaking off her stigma than those of us with J.D.s from poorly ranked law schools. What is the best exit strategy from the practice of law?

Dear Hester: Sorry about this mess.

Just think, if only you could have done all of this about five years ago -- oh how different things might have been.

Back then firms were just about hiring anyone who could breathe for certain practice areas. If you had graduated from your very same "poorly ranked law school" with a B+ or better average, and had been admitted into the New York bar, you more than likely would have found yourself working into the wee hours of the night, seven days a week, at some New York BigLaw firm in their M&A or Corporate Finance department.

Oh what a difference a few years make. That was then and this is now.

Not that this is going to make you feel any better, but those graduates from the top tier law schools are not finding things much better than you at this time. Have you read the blog that is now on-line entitled, "The diary of a laid off BigLaw corporate attorney?" Or have you spent any time on Unemployed Lawyers website?

And I suppose there are lots of other similar Web sites put up by attorneys with what are considered to be impeccable credentials, but who are unable to get hired at this time. I speak with them everyday.

But as I wrote above, I doubt that makes you feel any better.

I suppose I could tell you, this too shall pass and eventually you will find a job. Hmmm, I'm not going to say that because my crystal ball is cloudy today and I can't see when this will all end.

What I can tell you is that there are alternative jobs for people with a law degree and you should never, ever believe that those three years in law school were years wasted. That law degree will make you such a viable candidate for so many other professions and no one will care where you went to law school.

Banking, politics, business affairs, legal aid and teaching all jump out at me right away. Of course, becoming a recruiter -- in any area, not just legal recruiting, mind you -- also is an option. Of course, with your law school background, legal recruiting seems to be a natural choice. Have you thought about any of these professions?

What have you been doing besides responding to ads and sending out your resume (which doesn't have any work experience on it anyway)? Have you been networking like crazy? Are you going to every bar event, speaking to everyone you know or have ever met, calling your law school's career services office frequently and then even more than that?

And, as I have mentioned several times before, if you do want to try to continue (or start, as the case may be for you) in the practice of law, have you looked at any of the branches of the United States Armed Services?

As I read on some Web site the other day (and said "ick" when I read it), your new job is looking for a job. That doesn't mean part-time -- or sometime or when you feel like it. It means full-time, all the time. So, if you want to leave the world of the law, sit down and figure out what you intend to do and then get going and find a job in that area. Perhaps you might want to sit down with a professional career guidance counselor to determine what you are best suited to do besides practicing law.

But the main thing you need to do right now is stop blaming yourself for not knowing that your law school was not going to be good enough, and thinking that is the reason you must leave the practice of law. I just am not buying it right now. You passed both the New Jersey and the New York bars? Something sunk in during those three years sitting in a classroom. You may not get hired at Cravath but before you leave the law you might want to reconsider all of your options.

It's a tough job market out there, no doubt, but don't be a quitter just yet. There are jobs out there and maybe it won't be your dream job right now, but this mess will eventually turn around. Best wishes.

Sincerely,
Ann M. Israel
President, Ann Israel & Associates