A Simple Guide on What to Do After Graduating Law School

Attending law school is many people’s dream goal. You work hard, from a young age all to ensure that you get the grades required to get into law school. However, the work does not stop once you graduate and there are many steps you can follow in order to start your career within the legal industry. 

You may be feeling confused about what to do next. If you have not considered a future after graduation, particularly as there are so many different routes you can take with your law degree. If you have recently graduated from law school, in this article we will provide you with a simple guide on what you can do after your graduation.

  • Take the Bar Exam

As you may be aware, having a law degree does not always mean that you are legally qualified to start practicing law. There are further steps you must take in order to begin this process – one of them being taking the bar exam. This is crucial, particularly if you wish to be a lawyer as this is the qualification that gives you license to officially practice law. This particular exam is difficult and requires a lot of effort, time, and preparation from yourself in order to get ready. For these reasons, you must be fully committed and determined to pass this exam and ensure that during preparation time you solely focus on your revision and avoid any unnecessary distractions.

  • Consider an Internship 

Considering the many different types of lawyers and industries that require legal representation, deciding which area to work in can be an overwhelming process. If you have an idea of what you want to do but need additional support to make a decision, a great way of doing so is by taking an internship at a law firm. 

You can look online for different firms in your area. That’s because most of them will provide websites, along with the one provided by the experts from https://www.tatelawoffices.com/car-accident-lawyer/, which gives you thorough information of what type of firm it is and what type of cases they deal with. You can have different internships with different types of firms, for example, firms dealing with criminal law, or firms dealing with traffic law and personal injury. 

Completing an internship will allow you to experience first-hand what lawyers do in their day-to-day and check whether this is something you are comfortable doing. Moreover, internships allow you to put into practice all the theoretical knowledge you have gained from studying at university.

  • Consider Getting a Clerkship 

If you want to follow a different route than being a legal representative, and you are passionate about the criminal system, you should consider a judicial clerkship. This is similar to what a regular internship offers, although you would be getting a closer view of the role of judges and lawyers in legal situations.

Evidently, being offered such a position is an honor and something that many students will aim to get after graduation. Therefore you must do what you can in order to stand out from the other applicants and if you get offered a position, be committed to learning as much as you can.

  • Follow the Academic Route

Studying law does not always mean that you will have to follow the usual route of becoming a lawyer and practice law as a legal representative. If you have a passion for both law and teaching, you can combine the two and follow the academic route, which has many different benefits. This is not any easier than any of the options mentioned previously – you will have to continue to work hard and studying will not stop, as you need to ensure you have enough knowledge to be teaching other law students.

Additionally, there is a lot of work beyond teaching others, as usually, professors’ goals is to have their own research published. If this is your case, you will have to conduct research and keep up with the majority of empirical research published.  There are often roles available at every law school, as a teacher or research assistant. This is ideally best done whilst you study, however you can also achieve this after your graduation. This way you can get the skills and experience you require to get a job as a professor and researcher later on.

 Graduating from law school is an incredible achievement and you should be proud of yourself. However, it is understandable if you feel overwhelmed and unsure of what the next steps are. There are so many options available, you must carefully consider what your passion is. Experiment with different roles and obtain different work experiences to help you decide. Following the tips above, should give you some guidance to develop a clear view of your future in the law industry.