Rachel Bouman - Law

The Career Journey of A Legal Profession

Make Your Job Search After Law School More Manageable

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Getting a job is competitive. Getting a job in today’s legal market is very competitive. Here are some tips to help set you apart from the competition and set you up for success.

 

Know What’s Trending

One way to stay ahead is to see what sort of legal jobs are trending. Check out websites that post surveys and hiring projections. Keep up with how technology is being merged with law. Stay informed. See what the in-demand practice areas are and how you might be able to best fit into them. Who knows, if you are unable to land a job in a specific practice area, you might just help a friend of yours to do so.

 

Network

It’s not an absolute, but it is definitely a trend: most people get jobs, legal and otherwise, through the people they know or at least through the people of the people they know. It’s not just about speaking to someone in the hopes of getting a job. It’s a long-term game of cultivating contacts, learning about different opportunities, and ultimately figuring out what sort of work you plan on doing yourself. This is more than just LinkedIn and Facebook. It’s about casting a wide net of emails that includes people who are not in law. It’s about setting up phone calls. And yes, it’s also about setting up coffee dates and happy hours. The more people the know, the more likely you are to land a job.

 

Give Your All to Law School

Publish articles, hold a leadership role in a law association, do pro bono work–do everything you can to set you apart from other job candidates. You’ve heard this before, but having a great GPA (although needed) will not be what ultimately gets you hired. Think outside the box and consult with your peers to hear how they’re going the extra mile themselves.

 

Cast a Wide Net

Unfortunately there are just more great law candidates out there then the traditional legal job market can support. Fortunately, there are a number of jobs outside of the traditional market that value your degree. Have you considered JD Advantage positions? There are a number of jobs out there where law degrees aren’t required, but are preferred. You may find yourself working in a consulting or accounting firm, e-commerce company, financial institution, or even a tech startup. Don’t rule anything out.

 

Make Use of Your University Career Services

Your university’s Career Services is a valuable resource. More than just helping you buff up your resume and practice for interviews, career services can connect you with internships, networking opportunities and even jobs. Who knows, perhaps you may end up applying for a legal job that you never even knew existed.

 

For a look at more job tips, check out this article and this one.

 

Defeating Your “First Year of Law School” Demons

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library-869061_1280Starting law school is as terrifying as it is exciting. As crippling as that fear may be, it can definitely be used for your personal growth if you approach it the right way. Here are a few of the most common first-year-of-law-school fears and how to deal with them.

  • Picking Your Own Courses – The idea of picking your courses can be daunting. Often times, you’ll want to avoid certain courses because they sound scary. If the legends are true, the professor is evil, you’ll never pass, and your GPA will be destroyed forever. But don’t allow those fears to dictate which courses you take or don’t take. The courses that you are most fearful of are the ones that you probably need the most help in. So take those “scary” courses. Work hard. Excel.
  • Law School Exams – Freezing up on exams happens to everyone. It’s even worse when you can hear all of your classmates scratching or typing away at their tests, while you can barely comprehend the first question. The fear of looking unintelligent on paper is very real; you know that your professors will read your exams and be judging your answers. Try to relax. The professors are not out to make you look bad, and will be looking to find the good (or salvageable) in all of your work. Just take the time to write out all of your thoughts on the topic, and then go back and edit. Your first year of law school will be the perfect time to get over your fear of tests. You’ll be ready for the bar exam before you know it.
  • Speaking Out Loud….In Front of Anyone – Talking in front of anyone in law school may seem terrifying at first. Whether it’s a normal conversation during a lunch break or answering a question in class, speaking out loud, where everyone can hear your thoughts and judge your words, can cause you to freeze up. Just remember that if you’re being called on in class, your professor is training you to work under pressure. If you’re nervous about whether you match up to your peers, just remember that you got into law school just like the rest of them. You’re qualified and you should use this time to grow confident in yourself and exercise your conversational abilities.

 

For more advice on surviving your first year of law school, see this article.

 

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