Today marks three months of law school [Yee Yee!] But I am three weeks away from finals (no no…)
Now, here you’re thinking, what’s the catch?
You’ve probably heard horror stories about law school, either via the Internet or through friends. Stories that sound like they came off of r/lawschooladmissions. You know:
Law school was the worst mistake I ever made!!!
Don’t go if you don’t like heavy reading, cold calling, competition, and learning Latin.
Unless you’re top of your school, don’t even bother. Not worth the Debt.
Goodbye to your social life, friends, fun, and passion…
Basically, stories that make law school sound like one dystopian season of Black Mirror.
So …
Are the stories and rumors true? (Not really.)
{myth 1} Is law school gonna be extremely difficult, soul-sucking, and near-impossible? (No.)
{myth 2} Are you even gonna have a social life? (Yes, of course.)
Are you making a bad decision?? (Absolutely Not.)
Here’s the thing…
Law school is not easy, but it doesn’t have to be extremely difficult.
Yes, there is a good amount reading; there is some stress and frustration here and there; and there may be some weekends dedicated to finishing/catching up on work.
But law school is not this life-draining, miserable, Herculean task. You can do this.
The fact that you’re reading this post means you care. You’re passionate about the law, or at the very least, have an interest in it. That (surprisingly) is a lot more than what some people going into this career can say.
With that said, 70% of what makes law school difficult (I think) is pressure from peers and the profession.
The “curved” grading system, which is based not on doing well, but more so on doing better than your peers.
This idea that you must be top of everything to be successful.
And possibly, the constant looking around at others to make sure that you’re doing the right things.
Truth is, if you go in and be yourself, figure out what you love about the law, and do your best. You’ll be fine.
Even so, law school is really about time management. Treating law school like a 9-5 job helps. So, in other words, when you have 5 hours of class for one day, you read/outline for 3 hours that day. 4 hours of class equals 4 hours of reading, and so on.
I really can’t give anything further about the legal field; I’m in the same boat as you.
But the most important piece of advice I have: stay true to yourself.
The people who end up doing okay are the genuine individuals. The ones who are unapologetically themselves all the way through.
Become you with a law degree, but don’t let the law degree become you.
Case in point, I’m still cosplaying and collecting figurines. All while in law school.
