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Selfie with no Filter: the 1L Life - Cut the Comparison
By Britt Wiegand • January 28, 2018 •Writers in Residence, Law School, Other Law School Issues
The Trap I just finished my first semester of law school (woohoo!) and felt great. I had set a goal for a gpa (despite knowing that gpa goals aren’t the best type of goals) and beat it by .09! I know, beating something by not even a tenth of a point sounds like a tiny achievement. But, given the law school grading curve, I was pretty pumped. After getting grades back, I felt proud. I told my parents and fiancé, and I was feeling excited about heading into semester number two. And then (dun dun dun)… I went back…
The Best Way to Leave the Law When You’re Burned Out? Don’t.
By Amy Impellizzeri • January 26, 2018 •Ms. JD, Writers in Residence, Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Choosing a Career and Landing a Job, Other Law School Issues, Issues, •Women and Law in the Media, Other Issues
In 2009, I took a one year sabbatical from my 13+ year law career. I turned out the lights in my 42d floor office at 4 Times Square and left. Just a year. Nine years later, I often joke that I’m still on that one year sabbatical. The truth is, I’ve transitioned away from the active practice of law, and nine years has given me a fair perspective to understand how and why that transition has been so successful. In nine years, I’ve worked on the executive team of a pioneering start-up company, negotiated publishing contracts and a literary agency contract, launched…
You’ll Pay For This: The First Step Is Admitting You Have a Problem
By Kerriann Stout • January 25, 2018 •Writers in Residence, Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Other Issues
I owe $226,020.79 in federal student loan debt for my legal education. Let’s start at the very beginning. I was extremely fortunate to have my undergraduate education paid for through a mix of scholarships and parental-aid. When I graduated with my shiny new B.A in Modern Languages and Cultures (yeah, I know), I had no clue what I wanted to do, and I had no concept of how different my life would be with student loans breathing down my back. In my infinite 21 year old wisdom, I decided “I don’t know what I want to do, so I will…
Becoming a Pre-Law Leader on Campus - #MsJDPreLaw Mentoring Hangout (Ep. 02)
By Gennie #MsJDPreLaw • January 20, 2018 •Ms. JD, Writers in Residence, Careers, Firms and the Private Sector, Legal Academia, Law School, Pre-Law, Choosing a Career and Landing a Job, •Curriculum and Classroom Dynamics, Internships and Clerkships, Other Law School Issues
Watch the second episode of our #MsJDPreLaw Mentoring Hangouts on "Becoming a Pre-Law Leader on Campus"! This will be live-streamed at 12pm ET on Saturday, January 20, 2017, at tiny.cc/msjdprelawepisode2. Guest speakers are: Erin Callahan: Ms. JD Board Member. She was the President of Women in Law and The Student Bar Association at Dedman School of Law. Erin recently left the insurance industry and is now in private practice at a small firm in Houston, Texas. Moniel Sanders: Class of 2019 undergraduate at Indiana University Bloomington. President of the Pre-Law Black Law Student Association at Indiana University Bloomington. Margaret Zhu: Class…
#MsJDPreLaw at the NYC Bar’s LSAT/Law School Prep Series
By Gennie #MsJDPreLaw • January 05, 2018 •Ms. JD, Conference, Careers, Firms and the Private Sector, Legal Academia, Nonprofits and the Public Interest, Law School, Pre-Law, •Choosing a Career and Landing a Job, Other Law School Issues
Ms. JD was thrilled to co-sponsor the New York City Bar Association - Diversity and Inclusion Committee's LSAT/Law School Prep Series, held on January 5, 2018. In addition to a Law School Fair with representatives from schools around the country and workshops on the LSAT and personal statements, the event also featured two panels on "What to Expect & How to Succeed in Your 1L Year" and "How to Select & Apply to the Right Law School." #MsJDPreLaw spoke with a few of the law school admissions professionals at the fair and asked them: "What's one thing you'd like our pre-law readers to know about your school?"…
Burning the Midnight Oil
By Brenda L. George • December 16, 2017 •Writers in Residence, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life, Other Issues
I stayed up until midnight writing a paper. As I was writing, I was intermittently caring for my two week old son and my two and a half year old son. My oldest had a hard time getting to sleep tonight (of course!) and we were in and out of his room until 10 p.m. My youngest was sleeping - the newborn life! Every time I looked over at him sleeping I thought about the classic advice you get when you have a baby: "sleep when the baby sleeps." Yeah, I would have loved to do that instead...but law school…
Finals with a Newborn
By Brenda L. George • December 14, 2017 •Writers in Residence, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life
I took a final exam on Tuesday - the only regularly scheduled exam I was able to make. My baby was just 11 days old. This was honestly the hardest exam I have ever had to take (and not in terms of content). Usually when I take an exam, the time flies by, but this time it was the longest three hours of my life. Not only was I away from my baby for the longest amount of time since his birth, but I also was fighting sleep (in a freezing cold room!). I'm going to be honest, my desire to…
How to Become a Top Lawyer and Love Doing It
By Tsion Chudnovsky • December 13, 2017 •Careers, Firms and the Private Sector, Nonprofits and the Public Interest, Politics and Government, Other Career Issues, Law School, Choosing a Career and Landing a Job, Internships and Clerkships, •Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life, Mentoring and Networking, Features, Myths & Truths, Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them
If you do good work and can promote yourself, career doors will open for you. As a new female lawyer or soon to be lawyer, there are many things to learn as you develop who you are and what you will do in your career. One key facet that has helped me at Chudnovsky Law is to learn how to promote myself at work and build a book of business. As a lawyer you will need to learn how to market yourself and communicate your expertise to clients early in your career. If you can do that effectively, you will be an…
My Bar Exam Journey: From Pregnant to Pissed to Passing
By Shanti Brien • November 18, 2017 •Law School, Other Law School Issues, Features, Advice on Passing the Bar Exam
It felt good to have the Bar Exam on the calendar, even if it was four months away. Lilli was nine months old; she had slept through the night about three times. I looked forward to using my brain to master legal subjects I never learned in law school. And then I discovered I was pregnant again. So began the winter of endless, excruciating, pregnant drudgery. I pulled myself out of bed and spread Cheerios on the high chair so I could get dressed. I schlepped to the conference room on the second floor of a beige building next to…