Life as a law student- Choosing a career is one of the most difficult tasks which one encounters. The one who chooses it wisely survives and others fail. Beautifully said by Steve Jobs in the Commencement Address of Stanford University, 2005-
“ Your time is limited, so do not waste it by living someone else’s life. Do not be trapped by dogma which is living with the result of other people’s thinking. Do not let the noise of others’ opinion drown out your inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”
To take the plunge and apply for admission to a law school is rather a tough choice, especially when one has no connections to the legal world and embarking upon a life completely unknown is worth praising.
A law student’s life is like a roller coaster ride, full of ups and downs. One has to go through many challenges. So, it is very important that one wisely chooses what is “expected of” him and what he truly wants to do.
The most important thing in a law student’s life is academics. Studying is the part and parcel of a law student. He/she has to read, a lot. One is always under an immense pressure to complete the tasks at hand. We can usually witness a bare act in almost every law student’s hand. The frequent changes in interpretation of the provisions of law resulting into new judgments cause a lot of stir among the legal fraternity and of course, the student needs to be updated with it. The law student somehow has to learn to manage his time wisely because it is the ability to balance workload that distinguishes one from another. Logic, persistence and patience are the three keys to success in the field of law.
Attending lectures early morning is very well associated with law students. No matter how tired you are, or you are ready or not, you are expected to attend the lectures at the specified timetable. It is very much the compulsory percentage of attendance system prevailing in almost all the law schools which compels a law student to be so regular. Moreover, punctuality and hard work are the core attributes to be found in a law student. One more thing, missing even one of the lecture also makes a difference.
Besides studying there are a plethora of other events which form an integral part of a law student’s life. These include the very informative seminars, conferences and career events. These seminars and conferences become all the more important if one wants to understand in depth topics and develop his/her researching and writing skills. These seminars are an excellent opportunity for the student to express his opinion and ask any question on the topic he would have been struggling with. Also, there are a multitude of career events taking place inside a law school like discussions, presentation from various law firms, legal research forums, barristers’ chambers and law fairs etc. These events make the life of a law student simpler by helping them to engage in various tasks and showcasing their talent. One must remember “Networking is the key and knowledge is most definitely power here”. If the student is successful in impressing the legal fraternity at these events, it provides a gateway to his future.
Well, the list does not end here. There are various other things which are directly related to a law student’s life. Things like mooting, publications, debating etc. holds a prominent place in one’s life. Mooting is all about enhancing the speaking and researching skill of the student. It revolves around a fictitious case where the teams argue against each other consisting of three members each, two speakers and one researcher. The student finds this activity very interesting as these hypothetical cases not only increases the knowledge of students but also turn their dream of becoming a lawyer into reality. It is very well inspired by the Chinese proverb, “Teach me, and I will forget. Show me, and I will never forget.”
If a student is successful in getting few publications of research papers it adds feather to his student life. It helps not only in improving their knowledge and researching skills, but also it carries a lot of weightage for placements, LLMs etc.
The life of a law student is centered around the very proficiency in speaking. A lawyer is known by his voice. So, this calls for the participation of students into competitions like debates, elocution etc.
Not only this, the law students sometime engage themselves in pro bono activities like legal aid and services. Most of the law schools have a well -equipped legal aid and services clinic. These clinics help the needy section of society thus inducing into the students much needed skills through village camps, conferences, seminars etc.
Above all, a law student must not only be bookworm, he should not always be engaged in books, he needs to do some extra -curricular activities too. If student does not take out time for these he might end up being anti-social. Being social is very important. So, generally the student indulges in part time activities like internships during the semesters or full time internships during vacations. The internships are done under various NGOs, lawyers, judges, law firms etc. Also, there are various online internship programs in which the student needs to write articles, blogs etc. on the relevant topic. These internships help in gaining practical knowledge. This makes the students enthusiastic as they are keen on learning the nitty-gritty of the area.
The best part about the life of students of a law school is the very fact that these colleges allow you to be yourself. There is ample scope for every kind of people, everybody in the college gets a chance to show their talent and develop their strong points. Be it a social or anti-social person, everyone can survive in a law school. In the process of becoming a lawyer, one makes friends and enemies both. Though the process is cumbersome and sometimes one has to face the dark phase, but once these black clouds disappear the sky becomes crystal clear. It is very important to make loyal friends as they will help him/her in their rough phases.
Overall, the journey of a student in a law school depends on how the student perceives it. If a student is enthusiastic about the approach of his career goal and takes the journey as an embarking stone for it, then surely he/she will succeed.
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