So I plan on going to law school, but how do I get there?
Well first, as any good journalism student, I interviewed people.
I talked to friends of friends who were in law school. I talked to professors
at school in the History and Government program, I talked to other students
wanting to be lawyers, and I talked to actual lawyers. This whole interviewing
process was very helpful. I was able to make some great contacts and get a
variety of helpful advice and opinions.
Second, I job shadowed. Before I made this kind of huge
career commitment, I wanted to make sure I would like it. I shadowed a variety
of lawyers in different areas of law. My favorite though was when I shadowed a
judge (who was a woman btw). I looked forward to getting up early (which if you
know me is unusual) every week to go and observe, learn and help out. It
solidified my decision to pursue law school, particularly in criminal law.
Third, I took the LSAT in June before my senior year. SO
glad I did that. I started preparing in late January of that year, but was able
to still have an entire month to devote solely to studying once I was done. I
took it again in October and regretted doing that 1) because I had mono and 2)
because it was more out of pride than out of necessity since my first score was
good.
Finally, I sought the wisdom of the written word. I went to
our school’s library and checked out all the books remotely related to law
school (and one about the first women lawyers for inspiration). It was an
obscene amount, requiring an extra bag just to carry them all. But they helped.
Now, don’t go thinking I’m some super star. I didn't actually read them all,
just specific chapters. I also looked at blogs and official websites like LSAC as well as websites of schools I wanted to apply to.
The end result? Well . . . come back soon to find out!
Next Week: Join me as I go more in-depth into the steps of the application process.
