Law School
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Summer Series: Hustle Sold Separately–Securing a Summer Associate Gig
Summer Series 2019 continues! Today we have Yadilsa Diaz, another repeat (and just as beloved) guest writer to this series. We have seen Yadilsa has been so kind to share her pre-law summer, her 1L summer as an in house counsel and now she shares her tips on how to hustle and get the big law summer associate position. Getting a foot into big law is no easy feat, and she shows you a road map on how to get it–of course, it take preparation, discipline, and faith–but she’s got it and so do you! Hola hermanas! My name is Yadilsa Diaz, and I am a rising 3L at…
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Summer Series: The Right Mindset to Conquer The Bar
Summer Series 2019 continues! Today we have Karen Martinez, a repeat (and beloved) guest writer to this series. We have seen Karen conquer her 1L summer, master networking to nab a great second summer internship, and now she gives us a peek into her Bar Prep. She has the right mindset and animo that we should all hope to capture when studying for this beast of an exam! One month into Bar prep has felt a lot more stressful than the last three years of law school. I have also realized that it is only more stressful because it is 3 years of law school condensed into 2…
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Summer Series: Success is What You Make Of It
It is time for Summer Series 2019. Truly my favorite time of the year! We are so lucky to kick it off with Gaby, a rising 2L at Yale, who shares her summer plans with us. But more than her summer plans (a summer in New Haven!) she shares the struggles that happen to many of us during 1L year and the courage it takes to pick your own path when law school pushes us to pick proximity to power over better options. When I was preparing to start my 1L year at Yale, I was incredibly confident. I was sure that I would not be the one to end…
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What Law School is Not
Recently someone interested in pursuing a more academic career asked me about the nature of law school and the ability to discuss ideas and social issues along with cases. It reminded me of my own experience when I first started law school and how incorrect I was when it came to the purpose and focus of law school. The summer before my 1L year I was really lucky to participate in a program for low income students to prep them for law school; like a mini-boot camp. I was stationed at Notre Dame and was bright eyed and ready to go on my first day. The program had three courses,…
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If Kim Kardashian Can Do It, So Can You? : Alternative Paths to Becoming a Lawyer
By now most have heard about Kim Kardashian’s plan to become a lawyer without going to law school. There was some confusion because a lot of people don’t know of California’s apprenticeship exception that allows you to circumvent law school and instead learn the law in a non-traditional manner. People assumed she was “buying” her degree rather than doing it the “right” way. While I am not one to support or defend the Kardashian conglomerate, the path she’s pursuing is clearly an option that’s available to people. But the real question is, is this a realistic option that will result in a practical, useful, and successful career for those of…
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In Defense of a Gap Year
First, it’s really brazen for me to decide to tell you it’s worth considering a gap year before you go to law school when I didn’t take one. But that best part of time and experience is that you can look back at your missteps and think of ways things could have gone better. I want to talk about taking a gap year (or two) between undergrad and law school because I think gifting yourself this time can be super valuable to your career. If you’ve read Becoming then you know Michelle went straight through from Princeton to Harvard without much assessment as to whether law school was right…
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Am I Dumb? Combating the Microaggressions at Work that Question Your Intelligence
First, I’m so glad we have a space here to talk about this because I’ve been thinking about this for a long time. And, recently, when I read this article about how “well-meaning” liberals often dumb themselves down for our supposed benefit it all kind of clicked… Let me start at the beginning—tell me have you ever experienced any of the following: You’re really good at your job, but it seems almost impossible to be assigned complex cases, important clients, or other glamour work and you’re not sure why? You give guidance, advice, input on cases, but colleagues, even subordinates, question or push back on your correct analysis? Or You’re…
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Planting Seeds: Your 1L Summer Job
Many people say your first summer out of law school doesn’t matter and that is somewhat true. It’s not like the thing you do that summer locks you into that practice area for the rest of your life. So you do have a lot of wiggle room. However, this is also where you plant a seed. If you plan it correctly, this summer can be the stepping stone to your career. It can lead to more opportunities, connections, and give you a peek of what you want your career to look like. But just how do you decide what your summer will be like? Here is how I decided:…
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Does Rank Matter? Picking the Right Law School
How many have heard the advice to not go to law school if it’s not in the top ten? Or don’t go to law school if it’s not a free ride? Or just, don’t go to law school? As a reminder, there is a lot of general public opinion about who should go to law school and why. And very rarely does that general advice take into account the special circumstances many Latinas find themselves in when it’s time to apply. So when you hear advice that dissuades you from your goal, consider who is giving it to you and if you’re even the audience they’re considering when they offer…
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Final Exam: It’s the Little Things That Make the Difference
It’s almost here—final exam season! Yikes I know so many of you are busy prepping outlines, studying, and figuring out your final exams. Over the weekend, I helped review some mock essays and want to offer the same bits of advice here. I’ve gone over (in video) mastering IRAC and how to handle emotions during the actual exam, but today I want to discuss the little things that trip you up and how to manage them. So, here are three things to remember while you take your exams: One. Pay attention to the detail. Good hypos have key important information that leads you to the answer. Read it carefully, notice…