Monica Valencia

The Best Career Advice I’ve Ever Received…

By Monica Valencia • October 17, 2017 •Careers

The best career advice I have ever received was my from my mother, who sat down next to me to talk to me right after I graduated law school. I was feeling nervous and doubtful about passing the bar exam, which was only a couple of months away. My mother has always been my number one supporter. She is the person that stands next to me whenever I take any step forward and behind me whenever I take a step backward. She pushes me onward and reminds me that it does not matter what I do, what kind of career I…

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Former Ms. JD Fellow Sonya Passi Starts Domestic Violence Organization

By Monica Valencia • November 21, 2016 •Features,  First Women

Sonya Passi is a 2012 Ms. JD Fellow and the Founder & CEO of FreeFrom. Sonya received her B.A. and M.Phil from the University of Cambridge (Trinity College). While at Cambridge, she founded the Cambridge Domestic Violence Action Group, which educated college and high school students about issues of domestic violence. Sonya went on to receive a J.D from UC Berkeley School of Law. During her second year of law school, Sonya founded the Family Violence Appellate Project ("FVAP") which, in less than four years, has fundamentally changed the legal landscape in California by providing, for the first time, free appellate legal…

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So You’re a 3L Now? Tips on Securing a Post-Bar Job

By Monica Valencia • September 13, 2016 •Law School,  Pre-Law,  Choosing a Career and Landing a Job,  Curriculum and Classroom Dynamics,  Internships and Clerkships,  Other Law School Issues

The time is finally here. You’re a 3L now. The last two years as a 1L and 2L may linger a little, but they are far gone now. After the initial excitement of returning to law school, you might begin to fret a little at the thought of having only two semesters left before you graduate and take the bar exam. Within these last two semesters, your schedule will be booked before you know it. There’s class, externship work, moot court, law review, student activities, networking events, going to the gym, bar night, oh and bar prep – we can’t…

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