We are in graduation season, and that always makes me nostalgic for my own graduations, beginning with New Boston Central School. I don’t think we had kindergarten graduations back then. Although, I will never forget our wonderful teacher, Linda Hersey.
For those of you considering a career in law, I thought I would devote this month’s column to a discussion of what a legal education involves. Which undergraduate courses or activities best prepare a student for a career in law? Unlike medicine, there are no prerequisite courses for law school. My father’s advice when students interested in law would ask him what they should study in college was to take courses in everything except law. It is the last chance you will have to study a variety of subjects that interest you, because once you start law school, you will have time for nothing else.
While that is true, I have learned from meeting people over the years who were unhappy with their legal education and career that it helps to gain some knowledge of what lawyers do before making that important decision. Try things like working in a law firm as a summer job, shadowing a local lawyer for a few days, or participating in a mock trial competition.
As for your education itself, when you have the ability to choose courses, choose ones that will help you develop skills in critical thinking, persuasion, logic, and an understanding of history. But don’t neglect math and science. Whenever I have a case involving a dispute about the cause of a car crash, I regret not having taken physics. On the other hand, while I haven’t had a case that required me to use artistic skills, I’ve never regretted the high school and college art classes I took. There are lawyers, especially who live in cities that have a high concentration of visual and performing artists and businesses, who have rewarding careers specializing in these areas.
Taking a variety of courses in college will also help you learn what field of law you might want to focus on. Courses like public speaking and English literature are good foundations for trial law, as well as participation in activities like drama and debate. Math, economics, and accounting courses will serve those who might want to find work as a corporate lawyer.
For those who are passionate about sports, there are many opportunities in law, such as individual, team, and union negotiating. Courses such as religion, government, sociology, and psychology, which explore human nature, can help prepare students for those fields. Many high school and college students have no idea what career they will eventually choose, which is another reason to pursue as broad an education as is available.
The skills needed to do well in school, such as organization, attention to detail, analyzing, and researching, are crucial to being a successful lawyer. So if you learn those, when the time comes to make a career choice you will have the foundation you need for success in any field.
What is involved in applying to and selecting a law school? When you reach the point when you are considering a legal career, the LSAT is a requirement. It is intended to be a test of aptitude—comprehension, reasoning, and writing ability. Therefore, it is not one for which studying will guarantee success. However, when I was in college, studying for the LSAT was not common. I believe many students now do study for it. As with any test, the better your score, the more likely you will be admitted to the law school of your choice.
When choosing a law school, one of the most important factors is its job placement rate. Several law schools have come under criticism in recent years for advertising a placement rate that includes employment in any area. That is, counting graduates who were unable to find employment as a lawyer, and had to settle for non-law-related employment.
Another factor you may want to consider is the law school’s culture. Does it foster collaboration among students, or competition? When I attended law school, I was lucky to end up in a school fitting the former description. Instead of an atmosphere of professors shaming students in class, and students stealing each other’s notes, the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s culture was friendly and egalitarian. It did not widely publicize class rankings, thus giving students with strengths in other areas better employment opportunities.
My school year and summer jobs were learning experiences as valuable to me as my classes. These helped me feel certain, when I decided to come back to New Hampshire to practice with my father, that I was choosing the right path.
Third, consider life after law school. When I mentioned to my father that I was interested in law school, he said, “You know, you can’t do that and have a family.” While I considered that statement to be a little behind the times, it is true that “the law is a jealous mistress.” Your clients need your time and attention all the time. Your mind and their needs don’t shut off when you are not in the office. But as society’s expectations have changed as more women enter the profession, practicing law and raising children have not become mutually exclusive.
All lawyers who wish to maintain their license to practice law must earn continuing education credits by attending, online or in-person courses. I was lucky early in my career to join a few professional associations, which offer such courses at conventions around the country and even in other countries. Learning from and meeting lawyers from every state and some other countries has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my career. And, because of a willing husband, I was able to turn many of those trips into mini family vacations, and expose my children to many different places and people.
It hasn’t always been easy, and our life has sometimes been more chaotic than I would prefer. But I’ve yet to hear about the perfect profession, so I hope as you approach the major decision point of choosing a career, this information will be helpful to you.
