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Take Back Your Summer: How to Respond If Your Summer Internship Isn’t Providing You the Experience You Need
You have two summers to make it count. Your 1L and 2L summers allow you to intern in legal spaces in an in-depth way that develops your skills, builds a professional network, and provides guidance on how the beginning of your career will look. At least that’s what we think—the reality is that you may experience an internship or two that is clearly not a fit. And when it happens in the summer, it can feel especially frustrating because this times feels so valuable. When I think back to my internship my second summer, I feel frustrated at myself for not being more active in making sure I gained better…
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Adjusting to Office Work: What Every First Gen Needs to Know
As summer is getting closer and closer, I’m thinking a lot about my summer experiences in law school. My 1L summer was also the first long-term exposure I had a professional/office setting and I’m so grateful it was in a small social service agency, focused on Latino community because it let me “ease in” to those office standards and it didn’t feel so jarring. Looking back at my other experience, I do think one reason I always felt out of place in the other internships—and thus, didn’t really make the most of my experiences—was because I felt like I was playing a role of a professional rather than being one.…
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Prepping for Your Summer Internship
As many of you celebrate the end of the semester, take a sigh of relief to be done with finals, one thing you may also be looking forward to is starting your summer internship! My 1L summer internship was a complete fluke and yet it changed the entire trajectory of my legal career. It opened doors to new opportunities and helped reignite my passion for law and justice after a somewhat turbulent 1L year. I hope that whatever you’re doing this summer, you love it and it adds to your professional development. Thankfully there is not much to do but wait for the internship to start, but, if you’re like…
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Summer Series: Rising to the Challenge
Another Summer Series Post! Today we hear from Stephanie, a rising 3L in Texas who is clerking for a Judge. Clerking is such an important experience that not enough Lawtinas get to experience! Stephanie gives insight on what it takes, the challenges she’s facing, and her dedication to meet the standards set by her Judge. What I love most about this is that Stephanie is recognizing the challenges in her work and does not shy away–in fact, she’s leaning into it, knowing it will make her a better, stronger writer. Que animo, Stephanie! Makes us all want to work harder! My name is Stephanie Gutierrez, and I am currently a…
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Summer Series: The New Normal
Another Summer Series Post! Today we hear from Lizette Rojas, a Rising 3L from California who is interning (remotely) with an immigration nonprofit. I love this post because you can see that Lizette has found her legal passion and finds joy in client interaction. While working remotely has created a new normal, even during this time she sees the difference her work and advocacy make in the lives of her clients. I am currently interning with Oasis Legal Services, a non-profit organization in Berkeley that provides legal services to LGBTQIA+ immigrants. I had always planned on working in criminal or immigration law, but once I began working with Oasis, it…
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Making the Best of Your Internship
We are gearing up to start a summer that will be incredibly unique–many of you will have found internships that will be remote or staggered hours or completely different than what you imagined (or different than what you were first offered in the Spring before this pandemic hit the US). At the same time, things are the same–life keeps ticking, people still need legal support, and this internship–whether it’s your 1L summer or you were hoping to get an offer as you entered your last year of law school–this internship and summer matter. I’ve shared my first legal internship before but for new readers a little summary–I had no clue…
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Law School Lingo: Terms Law Students Should Know
Starting law school is excited until you feel like a fish out of water–you’ve never read so slowly in your life, you’re confused about the process, and often you’re confused about terms and phrases that other people just seem to know. I’m not talking about the latin phrases in case law, but rather a classmate talking about joining a white shoe firm. Like, what even is that? No fear, today, we’re sharing some law school lingo to review and refer to that will hopefully help explain this new world you’re joining. As you review these phrases you’ll notice I mention “prestigious,” “elite,” and “competitive” a lot. And well, welcome to…
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Summer Series: Fighting for the Environment
Summer Series 2019 continues! Today we have Natasha Viteri, a rising 2L who decided to use her first summer working on environmental issues. Environmental law lacks enough of us in the space, which is a shame because Latinx suffer so much from harmful environmental policies. Knowing this, Natasha hustled to get her internship and shares with us the tips that worked for her to get her internship! ¡Hola Hermanas! My name is Natasha Viteri and I am a rising 2L at the University of Colorado Law School. I am originally from Quito, Ecuador and I lived in Houston before moving to Boulder. This summer, I am interning at Earthjustice, an…
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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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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:…