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You Are Not a Failure
By Raven Moore • July 06, 2018 •Law School, Other Law School Issues
I came to law school thinking that if I worked hard, I would get good grades. I wasn't prepared for the anxiety, the panic attacks, or the overwhelming struggle with Imposter Syndrome. I put a lot of pressure on myself to be successful. Partly because I'm a first-generation law student and because good getting grades were never hard for me. Needless to say, when my first semester grades turned out to be less than stellar, I felt like a failure. Bad grades were something I always associated with not working hard but I knew that I gave my first semester my all.…
The Barred Life: A Series of Indefinite Length - Part II
By Jannet Matthew • June 27, 2018 •Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Other Issues, Features, Advice on Passing the Bar Exam
PART II Lessons and Realities from the Pass List Let’s get housekeeping out of the way. If you read my last post you know I took the California February bar exam and I was waiting for my results. So here’s the update: I didn’t pass. I sat on my living room floor with my laptop on my thighs. After navigating to the Cal Bar website, I carefully typed in my applicant number. Then my file number. I scrolled through and didn’t see my name on the pass list so I refreshed the screen. Again, I very carefully typed in my…
The Barred Life: A Series of Indefinite Length - Part I
By Jannet Matthew • May 30, 2018 •Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life, Other Issues, Features, •Advice on Passing the Bar Exam
PART I A Personal Thing, but a Family Affair I’m a December graduate of Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles and took the February 2018 California Bar Exam. The month is May but I've been an emotional wreck since February. I write this post sitting two days away from knowing my fate and an alien feeling has come over me - my emotional wreckage is finally settling. The closer I’ve gotten to the result date, the more I let go of my anxiety, fear, numbness, and desire to control. This is a major breakthrough I'm profoundly proud of because I've…
Selfie with no Filter: the 1L Life - Academic Advice
By Brittany Wiegand • May 29, 2018 •Writers in Residence, Law School, Pre-Law, Curriculum and Classroom Dynamics, Other Law School Issues
Whew. It's over! Finals ended over two weeks ago and I still have days when I'm still not sure that I completely feel it yet. Sometimes I think I do, then (like the other day) I'm driving to meet friends for lunch, see someone with a backpack crossing the street, and automatically think "sh*t I've gotta get back to studying!" Though the feeling is still sinking in, I've received grades and gotten a chance to reflect on what I would do differently. Since I can't go back, my hope is to shed some light for future students. I did a good bit…
Ms. JD’s Report Card: 2018 Annual Conference “Her Story”
By Kerriann Stout • April 25, 2018 •Ms. JD, Conference, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Other Issues
On March 8th and 9th of 2018, Ms. JD hosted its annual conference at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law. The theme of the conference was “Her Story,” and many of the talks and panels focused on the different journeys of the speakers. This was my first time attending a Ms. JD conference, and I was not sure what to expect, as I was attending by myself. I must say I was pleasantly surprised! It was a very welcoming environment, the Ms. JD staff was extremely kind, and there were lots of opportunities to meet and interact…
You’ll Pay for This: Choosing The Right Repayment Plan
By Kerriann Stout • April 18, 2018 •Ms. JD, Writers in Residence, Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Pre-Law, Other Law School Issues, Issues, •Other Issues
After going to law school, I like to think that I have a pretty high threshold for the “I have no idea what I’m doing” feeling and can ultimately figure most things out with enough research. However, when it was time to figure out which repayment plan I should use to start paying back my law school loans, I was in tears of confusion in 5 minutes flat. I was immediately paralyzed by questions, such as “Why are there so many options?”, “Why do they all sound the same?”, “How do the payments range from $0 to $3,000?”, “How do…
To be a Woman and to be Workplace Ready
By Ava Lee • April 18, 2018 •Ms. JD, Conference, Ms. JD Book Reviews, Ms. JD Weekly Roundup, Writers in Residence, Careers, Firms and the Private Sector, Other Career Issues, •Law School, Choosing a Career and Landing a Job, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life, Mentoring and Networking, Sexism, Sexual Harassment, and Other Forms of Discrimination, Women and Law in the Media, •Features, Guest Bloggers and Profiles of Women in the Law, Myths & Truths, First Women, Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them
For a man, the common mantra is “seize the day.” For a woman, the common mantra is “act accordingly.” The ideal woman projects grace and cooperation. She is to complement situations, not challenge them. She is to follow rules, not make them. Easy to smile and easy to laugh, she is to sidestep her wants and needs for the greater good. One must be assertive, firm, and steadfast to reach personal and professional objectives, however these traits are downplayed at the for fear of being rejected or unlikeable. I remember my first day as a law clerk. It was standard protocol to listen and take notes during meetings. No one wanted to…
You’ll Pay For This: It Is Time To Dig Out Of Your Financial Hole
By Kerriann Stout • April 03, 2018 •Writers in Residence, Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Other Issues
Welcome back! So far, we’ve covered the bleak reality of the student loan crisis and learned how to read our student loan statements (all highly riveting, I assure you.) This month, we are ready to discuss how to start digging yourself out of the financial hole in which you find yourself. Now, you may be wondering why you should take any advice from me -what with my $200k+ student loans and all - about paying debt off. Well, my husband and I used the following 6 tips to pay off over $60,000 in 2 years (and managed to save money towards…
The Mindful Mindset: Managing Anxiety the Mindful Way
By Pia Das • March 24, 2018 •Writers in Residence, Careers, Other Career Issues, Law School, Other Law School Issues, Issues, Balancing Private and Professional Life
"Fear keeps us focused on the past or worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we can realize that right now we are okay. Right now, today, we are still alive, and our bodies are working marvelously. Our eyes can still see the beautiful sky. Our ears can still hear the voices of our loved ones." - Thich Nhat Hanh Mindfulness encourages us to pay attention intentionally to the present moment and non-judgmentally observe what is happening within and around us. It is not uncommon to be living on autopilot where our responses become an automatic reaction…