HOPE: Law school hopefuls undaunted by dim prospects.

Advocates for more transparency about law school cost and employment prospects welcomed recent news that the American Bar Association is examining the issue. However, a new survey of prospective law students indicates that better information would do little to stem the tide of law school applications — which hit an all-time high last year.

Veritas, a law school admissions consulting firm, polled 112 prospective law school applicants in June and July, and 81% said they would still apply even if “a significant number of law school graduates were unable to find jobs in their desired fields.” Only 4% said they would not apply to law school under that circumstance.

At the same time, more than half the survey respondents — 63% — were concerned about finding a job after law school, and 70% said they were worried about finding a position in the field of their particular interest.

Hmm. This suggests no bubble-bursting quite yet. But I wonder if that will change when applicants actually know a significant number of people — older siblings and friends — with heavy debts and no jobs? As someone who sells law degrees, I suppose I should hope that this study is right. My advice to potential law students, though, is to avoid the debt part, at least.