Let’s say that you are pretty sure that you want to be a lawyer—but not one hundred percent sure. Or that your LSAT score is ok but ideally you would like a lot more time to try to improve it. Or that you didn’t really have the time to do a legal internship during college. Should you still go straight to law school after college? Or take some time off?
No time to do a legal internship? No problem. You will be reassured to learn that many law students take at least one year off between college and law school. In fact, at some law schools, up to 80% of the incoming class did not start law school immediately after graduating from college.
If you think you might be one of them, what can you do during your time off between college and starting law school? The opportunities are countless. Law school admissions offices will not necessarily expect that you worked for a law firm or in a legally related job during your time off.
Here are a few ideas!
You could do something legally related: I think that everyone should try at least one legally related job before applying to law school. It will give you the opportunity to see what lawyers do on a daily basis. It will also give you the opportunity to network and make connections. It will also help you as a 1L in law school since you will have learned to do legal research and become somewhat familiar with legal terminology. Many law firms, government agencies, corporations and non-profits hire college students, post-grad, to work for a year or two before law school. You do not necessarily have to have a paralegal degree. Start with the online job listings at your college and by talking to your undergraduate pre-law advisor, who might have some ideas for you about where students have worked.
You could do something good: There are many nonprofits that would be happy to have your help, even if for a year. I worked for a nonprofit in New York City for a year before law school, which was an extremely interesting and valuable experience. AmeriCorps and Teach for America are two examples of places where I have seen many of my students work before starting law school. Be aware that some of these opportunities may be for two years, instead of one.
You could do something totally different: While working as a legal assistant in a law firm, working for a nonprofit or doing something like Teach for America are typical ways to spend your professional development year, you could do something completely different. You could travel. You could work in an industry totally unrelated to law. You could spend more time with your family. You could visit friends. You could spend months studying for the LSAT, without the pressure of being a student at the same time.
One of my students climbed Mount Kilimanjaro during his year off. Another taught English in Japan. Another did a program in Europe where he was provided free housing in different countries in exchange for doing volunteer work. Another took classes at a European university. Several started businesses.
Is there something you want to try to accomplish before going to law school? It will not impact you negatively if you take time off before applying to law school—in fact, it might help you get in.
Hillary Mantis consults with pre-law students, law students and lawyers. She is the Assistant Dean for the Pre-law program at Fordham University and the author of career books for the legal profession. Admissions questions? You can reach Hillary at altcareer@aol.com.
