Where You Learn to Become a LawyerIsn't that, uh, fairly well understood? Anyone even remotely considering becoming a lawyer would, you'd think, already be aware of the fact that a law school is where one would naturally go.
Of course, I don't want to be too snarky; that sort of unhyped honesty is refreshing. I've never seen an ad like "New England School of Dentistry: Where You Learn to Fix Teeth," but that might be more pleasant to read on the train than the typical obnoxiously overeager ad copy.
Maybe this advertising concept could spread to job listings: "Join BigCorp: Where Your Soul Slowly Slips Away." Or "Hedge Funds 'R' Us: Where You Make Tons of Cash When You're Not Trying to Explain to Your Family that You Didn't Personally Cause the Global Economic Meltdown."
Back to academia: I double-majored in comparative literature and philosophy in college. What would the departmental slogans be? "Comparative Literature: Where You Learn to Compare Literature." Hmmm. What DID I do in the comp lit department? Hard to say. "Philosophy: Where You..." I won't even finish that one--it's like shooting fish in a barrel.
The slogan for the whole university is "In Deo Speramus," or, "In God We Hope." Quite vague. Hard to find a focus or mission in a broad statement like that. In contrast, "Where You Learn to Become a Lawyer" has a nice ring to it. A pleasing, simple certainty.
To play devil's advocate here... very few medical schools actually teach students how to be a doctor, from what I've heard. They teach medicine, sure, but they don't teach how to set up and run a private practice (essentially a small business), or how to deal with malpractice insurance, or even (at least in the classroom) how to deal with patients as humans. And good art schools will teach you how to make a career of art (if that's what you want) rather than just pushing you to develop your art for art's sake. I think a law school that teaches one how to be a lawyer is great -- better than a law school that teaches one how to be a douchebag, which is what so many law schools churn out...
ReplyDeleteWell, that's a great point.
ReplyDeleteMy film program (which I will eventually post about) fits your description of a good art school perfectly.
Oh good, so it won't turn you into a douchebag, then.
ReplyDelete