Cost in Time and Money (Continued)
    Out of Staters - For those of you planning on attending law school out of state, a big factor is whether or not you can obtain in-state residency tuition.  If you can, you will realize a substantial savings.  You may be able to find out the in-state residency requirements by phoning the administration desk of the law school you plan to attend, but most likely, this will turn into your first legal research project.  Go to a law library and head for the statutes of the state in which you plan to attend.  You'll need to find a law library with multiple state statutes and hope they carry the state you're interested in, or go online to see if the state statutes are databased somewhere (try www.findlaw.com/casecode/#statelaw and scroll down to “US State Laws” section).  Once you’ve read the applicable statute, be sure to make a copy.  Keep that copy with you in case you decide to make a claim for residency tuition anytime before or during law school. 
    Normally, the issue at play in these residency questions is whether or not you moved to the state exclusively for educational reasons (in which case you’ll be charged out of state rates all three years).  The converse then is this: if you can show that you are truly a resident of the state in question (for tuition purposes) you are entitled to in-state rates after your first year.  Don’t confuse residency-for-education purposes with other forms of state residency.  For instance, you might be a resident of the state for taxation purposes and not a resident for education purposes.  Yes, that seems ludicrous, but these statutes exist.  Generally, if you move to the state, register to vote, take a drivers license in that state, and do other actions tending to show residency, you have a decent shot at winning a claim for in-state tuition.  You will be told that you have no chance of obtaining in-state rates.  The statute will look as though you will definitely lose your claim, but in almost all cases you should file a request for in-state tuition.  You have a much better chance of having your request granted than you think.

    The remaining worksheet numbers will not have this in-state, out of state split.  Everyone (both in-state and out-of-state applicants) must remember to multiply the tuition and fees figure out to three years!  So, if the school gives tuition and fees in semester form, then multiply by six.  If the school gives tuition and fees in annual form, then multiply by three.

    Books - Books will cost you $300 to $500 dollars per semester.  Again, don't forget to multiply by six.

    Support Materials - Support materials such as gouges, tapes, etc, will cost approximately $100 per semester.

Next>>