|
Written by Stacey Scorza
|
|
Wednesday, 12 September 2007 09:47 |
|
You may think it is too early to begin thinking about your resume. You may not even sit for a bar examination for what feels like years from now. Well, think again. It is never too early to start engaging in activities that make your resume more attractive to future employers.
Law students are expected to cultivate certain basic lawyering skills in law school. These basic skills include, among others, legal research and writing skills, client advocacy skills, and client-attorney communication skills. In an ideal world, your resume will reflect these skills and you will land a string of interviews. If you are lucky enough that a senior partner is reviewing the resumes for a particular position, you may be safe with the basic resume showing your pre-law school work history, summer internships and good grades. However, that is not always the case. Often the firm's recruiting coordinator will select candidates to interview or an outsourced recruiting firm will be hired to take charge of this task. The recruiter may only be looking for certain associations or certain accomplishments, such as moot court experience, rather than reading into your resume and understanding that you have or don't have similar experience from another source. You do not want to make the recruiter "study" your resume to determine if they should bring you in for an interview. You need to catch their attention within 30 seconds or risk no interview at all. With a little bit of planning and initiative on your part now, you can rest assured your resume will be on the top, rather than the bottom, of the pile.
The following are a handful of suggested ways to build your resume by way of extra-curricular activities in law school.
(1) Law review/Law journal
A law review or law journal is a scholarly journal published by an organization of students at a law school. It is a serious commitment that entails assisting in the publication of a Law Review volume and working on your own article for possible publication. This is one of the most significant resume-boosting activities of an academic nature in which law students can be involved.
(2) Moot Court and Mock Trial
Moot court refers to a mock appellate case where mock trial is usually a simulated jury trial or bench trial. Moot court is an activity where students take part in simulated court proceedings. This usually includes the drafting of brief and participating in oral argument. Students draft a brief or prepare for an oral argument or both. The students research and prepare as if they were actual lawyers assigned to the case.
Moot court competitions are typically sponsored by organizations with interest in a certain area of law and the problems are chosen with that particular field. Sometimes the problems mimic actual current cases and sometimes they are completely fictitious to address difficult areas of law. The competitions are typically judged by legal practitioners or sitting judges with expertise in the particular area of law.
(3) Student Bar Association
The Student Bar Association (SBA) is always a great way to build your resume. It is the student governing body of the law school and acts as a liaison between administration and the student body. The SBA often is broken up into different councils for planning events such as social and educational activities. If you are the type who enjoys socializing and responsibility of planning group events then this may be a very good choice for you.
(4) Intern or Volunteer
Now this one is my favorite. I know you may not want to volunteer, especially when that paid summer internship looks so tempting. But, don't throw out the idea just yet. Volunteer work does not only give you great experience, it demonstrates your true interest and desire to practice in a certain area of law. Employers want to know that you have an interest in the area of law they practice and that you are not interviewing for any and every job because your loans are coming due.
As an evening student myself, I found it difficult to fit the time demands of extra-curricular activities into my schedule. I was working full-time and also in a serious relationship, so I had a hard enough time working around those commitments. However, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to research and write an article for a friend's business on copyright law. I was able to work at my own pace, on my own time, and without deadlines or a heavy commitment. It may not be the traditional way to build your resume, but it says something about you and your ability as a lawyer-to-be just the same.
|
