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Culture Conflict: Extracurricular Activities and Latinos
Last week we talked about the importance of cultivating soft factors for law school. Most of that entailed getting involved in activities outside of school. However, I’m classifying getting involved in extracurriculars as a cultural conflict because Latino involvement in these programs is the lowest compared to other ethnic groups. There are many reasons why our participation is low: 1) our cultures really encourage children (girls, especially) to stay home; 2) finances may severely limit a family’s ability to pay for extraneous things; 3) parents (who may not have obtained their education in the U.S.) don’t understand the importance of these activities or connect how they relate to advancement in education;…
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Raise Your Voice: Student Activism
My freshman year in college, I innocently walked into a workshop about white supremacy. I had imagined I would learn about overt acts of racism (a la the KKK) but I when the workshop ended, I walked out stunned. My 19 year old brain had never been exposed to the idea of systemic oppression (please cut me some slack–it was very early 2000s and information did not travel like it does now). That day was probably one of the most formative days in school–it was like a curtain had been pulled back and suddenly so many things made sense, while so many more created confusion. After that workshop, it still…
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Breaking Barriers: Cultivating Soft Factors
This series, Breaking Law School Barriers, tackles the big and small issues that come into play when you’re deciding if you’ll even attend law school. The purpose is to give practical advice for college students, and for current law students and attorneys to give suggestions about their real world experience. If you’ve researched applying for law school then you know that LSAT score and GPA is king. And if you believe most online forums, then you may think that you shouldn’t bother to apply if you don’t have Elle Woods type stats. I remember when I first started applying, I believed all the hype from the forums and became nervous because I…
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Latinas and Domestic Violence.
A friend from law school works in an agency that represents survivors of domestic violence and posted this poignant and incredibly sad alter for Day of the Dead to honor the murdered victims of domestic violence. As someone who works first hand with DV survivors this really struck a chord, I hear countless violent stories of survivors who barely made it out on time—and then there’s so many incidents of choking/head trauma that make me worry about the future health of those clients. Unfortunately, DV is a major problem in all communities, including ours. One in three Latinas will experience physical inter-family violence in their lifetime. This means that too…
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Mistakes at Work: how to avoid them & how to fix them
While in school, I often heard that the big difference between medical school and law school was that no one’s life was at stake. Technically true. While no mistake we make as attorneys will cost someone their life (excluding criminal defense lawyers—no pressure), the fact is that big mistakes still can impact a client’s life in big ways. We’re entrusted to handle sensitive, consequential matters that may not be life and death, but will often affect the quality of life for that client. Unfortunately, we’re human and mistakes will happen. Part of growing into your job means learning how to independently manage all the required steps in your work so…
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When Family Emergencies Impact Law School
The unfortunate thing about law school is that you don’t go through it in a vacuum. Other people keep living their lives and experience milestones and setbacks while you’re trying to make it to the next semester. If big emergencies arise it can really affect your grades and law school trajectory in big ways. In my case, the morning we were supposed to register for our spring semester 1L courses–I spent the day sobbing because my father had been diagnosed with cancer (he’s healthy now, thank God). I was just an emotional wreck, and while I needed to let it all out emotionally, I ended up missing out on registering…
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Looking Good: Eyeshadow Primer for Work
One of the negatives about makeup is that it’s so easy to get it wrong. Too heavy-handed and it can look overwhelming; a slight misapplication can look sloppy; too light and it’s gone in an hour—I takes patience and practice, imo. One big thing for me is that if you’re going to wear makeup in a professional setting it needs to look appropriate and be applied well. A big problem I see (and I categorize it as a problem because it can be distracting) is smeared eyeshadow/liner. Eyelids can get oily, even mine and I have a super dry skin. I hate to admit that I’m often distracted by people at…
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The Importance of Diversity (and I’m not talking about Race)
If I have not scared you enough into preparing for your summer job then rest assured I will keep trying. Appointments with career services will be here soon and deadlines will be fast approaching, and one of the things you have to decide soon is where you’re planning to apply. Perhaps you had a really good experience with an agency your 1L summer. Or you’ve been interning during the fall semester with a new agency that you really are enjoying. It’s natural to want to keep working for a place you enjoy. However, if you’re dealing with a legal market where offers are not certain, or you’re working public interest where…
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The Question to Ask during Mid-Terms: Am I doing Ok?
One of the most common problems with law school is that we barrel past every week without thinking much about what you just learned. This makes sense because who has time to sit down and think about past topics when you have so many new ones to learn, on top of papers, job applications, life… But it’s a big misstep to not stop and ask yourself during mid-terms: am I doing ok? And I’m not referring to mental health (though do stop occasionally to think about that). Rather, are you understanding the material? Do you get what the professors are trying to teach you? Are you forming and flexing the…
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What Can Mentorships Look Like?
We have spoken before about finding mentors that work for you. And having someone (or many someones) guide you is vital to a flourishing professional career. But when you’re new to this profession; when your family doesn’t consist of professionals—how do you find someone to take you under their wing? Because I came up without having much (any) connections to the legal industry, I thought it would be helpful to show what my mentorships have looked like and how these relationships formed. Overall, the main theme has been that my relationships grew organically—I never sought anyone out and asked if they would mentor me. Rather, I formed relationships with professors/professionals…