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CAREER CORNER
Productive Summer Vacations from Law School [by Rachel Daniel] As summer winds down, it’s time to examine what you did with your time off and what —if anything— you can do with the remaining month.
While it is a given that summer vacations
friends and parties. What will you gain from
Even some menial but unusual duties for
away from law school are far too short, they
this? Well, for starters, you’ll be ahead of
an interesting case will look better on your
can still be productive. But such productivity
your law school peers who may have taken
resume then the “same old” research and
usually does not just come naturally; instead,
some time off. Secondly, you’ll also be pre-
writing work. Consider your competition at all
we must plan and make ourselves do what is
paring yourself for what your career will be
times. Some of them will be relaxing all sum-
needed to ensure a fruitful time off.
like. Attorneys do not get 3 months off at a
mer, so you’re already ahead of them. But
time to vacation, and you are vying to become
others will have internships just like yours,
Now what constitutes a “productive sum-
one. So why not start getting yourself into
so it’s up to you to do something outstand-
mer” can be a highly subjective matter. Some
that frame of mind by continuing to work? Of
ing during your internship to make yourself
would say that working and studying are the
course, this line of thinking does not allow
stand out.
only ways to remain productive. In that way,
your brain to get its R & R time, but in the
you can stay on top of your game and be
competitive, dog-eat-dog world of law school,
Now for the other side…taking the summer
ready for the competitive world of law school
you might be able to persevere without taking
off. We’ve just extolled the virtues of working
come the fall term. An internship or clerkship
those rests.
hard all summer, but the drawback of that,
will definitely fall into this “work-now, rest-
of course, is there will be no break for you. Besides just studying, you may also be hard
Instead of three separate years of law school
at work at an internship or clerkship. While
with enjoyable breaks in between, you’ll be
Others would contend that you should forget
these duties definitely take away from your
caught in one (very) long semester that will
about your studies. Perhaps relax and hit
study time, the benefits are enormous. You
last 36 months. Your summers will be a break
a beach resort for a month. Or just rent a
receive real-life experience, albeit at low or
from the classroom, but not from work and
few dozen movies and get caught up on your
no pay, and you get to see and experience the
studying. Can you handle that?
relaxation. Anything to give your brain a
inner workings of a law firm or perhaps of a
break from the intense studies that you just
judge’s chambers. But once you get an in-
If your answer is no, then it’s not the end
endured and that are about to follow. Such a
ternship or clerkship, you still must maintain
of the world. There is no shame in taking
break in and of itself does not sound produc-
hard work and discipline.
some time off to enjoy your life. There is no
later” plan.
tive, but in the long run, it could very well
escaping the fact that some of your competi-
serve as a brain refresher that will benefit
One thing to keep in mind here as you finish
tion may have jumped ahead of you in their
you greatly come next semester.
up your work this summer is that many other
studies or in real-world experience, but think
law students spend their summers doing
positive and focus on the advantages that you
Still a third method is a combination of both
this exact same thing. The fact that you have
yourself now have because you took time off.
studying and relaxing…maybe a study-abroad
“internship” or “clerkship” on your resume
program in the South of France. But these
is not that rare. Common duties here include
You should be more refreshed, more ready
dual plans often fall short on both ends,
dispositions and filings and research, for
and able to begin again in the fall term. You’ll
where you get both too little work done and
example. Granted, those are important du-
have a revitalized approach and a sense of a
far too little relaxation. So we’re left to exam-
ties, but they are also duties that appear on
new beginning when the first classes begin
ine the pros and cons of what to do with your
virtually every resume of law students when
again…just like we all felt on the first day of
summer…a summer that, by the time you
they try for that all-elusive first job.
school growing up. To someone who worked all summer, the first day of school will bring
read this, will only have a mere four weeks or so left of it.
So instead of spending your summer intern-
less excitement because that first day of
Let’s begin with the first example, where you
ship just doing the basics, take your last
school will be merely a continuation of the
continue to study and work hard…ignoring
month and ask for some duties that will
hard work they put in all summer. Just ask
the summer sun and the beaches and your
differentiate yourself from your competition.
anyone who had to endure summer school
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CAREER CORNER
during high school. Almost everyone who took summer classes will tell you how they stared out the window, watching enviously as their friends played in the sun. There is also the possibility, either by chance or by your making it happen, that your summer vacation yields some productivity after all. You may encounter something—either in or out of the legal realm—that could make good fodder for a law journal article. Sometimes if you go out looking for a story or theme, it will not come to you; but if you sit back and relax and just go through your summer, that theme may hit you. So whether you read this in retrospect for this soon-ending summer or consider it for next year, the choice is yours. It all depends on the individual and what you need to accomplish. Your remaining year(s) in law school and then getting a job afterwards will be very competitive ordeals for you, and only you know the best way to for you to prepare for those. And planning your summer can be just as important as planning your in-school time.
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