Top Law Schools

.

TIKITEMBO wrote:Just wondering. It's not as hands on as maybe getting an internship with a smaller firm or group, but it's still legal oriented and assisted with filing court documents in court and document construction. However, I'm thinking of holding out for something more hands on...not sure and don't want to be too specific.

It's an okay soft. Generally, unpaid internships are not the kind of things that are considered "good softs". They don't detract, and they help your resume to not look like a blank void of laziness.

If you're talking about a paying job with the ACLU, please tell me your secrets so I can have one as well.

I'm curious about this as well. I've had two year-long paid internships, both with nonprofits from my area. I was paid hourly and worked 25-30 hours a week. Also, I was just hired as a full time file clerk at a local law firm, but will still be a student through December. Will any of this count as actual work experience on my law school application? Or just mediocre softs, if that?

Sorry to hijack your thread, OP.

Pocahontas wrote:I'm curious about this as well. I've had two year-long paid internships, both with nonprofits from my area. I was paid hourly and worked 25-30 hours a week. Also, I was just hired as a full time file clerk at a local law firm, but will still be a student through December. Will any of this count as actual work experience on my law school application? Or just mediocre softs, if that?

Sorry to hijack your thread, OP.

Typically, when people talk about "work experience" as a soft, they're talking about post-UG, full-time work experience. This doesn't mean that working during UG isn't helpful, it just means it's not helpful in the same way as the "years of WE" that is often discussed on here.

I'm a Resident Assistant at my college. The perks include a (small) salary, a single room, no housing costs whatsoever (which is good, since housing costs a TON at my school), and money for my meals.

Is an RA considered Work Experience? I haven't considered it a real job, but my friend whose an RA put it on his resume and said his employers at other jobs consider being an RA a really big leadership perk.

Ty.

Helicio wrote:I'm a Resident Assistant at my college. The perks include a (small) salary, a single room, no housing costs whatsoever (which is good, since housing costs a TON at my school), and money for my meals.

Is an RA considered Work Experience? I haven't considered it a real job, but my friend whose an RA put it on his resume and said his employers at other jobs consider being an RA a really big leadership perk.

Ty.

Please note that there are number of former i-bankers, managers at prominent companies, engineers of many sorts, PhD holders (even former professors) , etc. that apply to law school. Your RA "leadership" pales in comparison. It's an okay soft, but it won't give you much of a boost.

bhan87 wrote:

Helicio wrote:I'm a Resident Assistant at my college. The perks include a (small) salary, a single room, no housing costs whatsoever (which is good, since housing costs a TON at my school), and money for my meals.

Is an RA considered Work Experience? I haven't considered it a real job, but my friend whose an RA put it on his resume and said his employers at other jobs consider being an RA a really big leadership perk.

Ty.

Please note that there are number of former i-bankers, managers at prominent companies, engineers of many sorts, PhD holders (even former professors) , etc. that apply to law school. Your RA "leadership" pales in comparison. It's an okay soft, but it won't give you much of a boost.

I know all this. What I'm wondering, though, is if being an RA counts as work experience. I.E: do I put RA under Work Experience, or something else, on my resume?


Thanks for trying to answer my question, though, even if you were a sarcastic little b**** about it who assumed things I didn't say. I even said "I haven't considered [being an RA] a real job."

Helicio wrote: I know all this. What I'm wondering, though, is if being an RA counts as work experience. I.E: do I put RA under Work Experience, or something else, on my resume?


Thanks for trying to answer my question, though, even if you were a sarcastic little b**** about it who assumed things I didn't say. I even said "I haven't considered [being an RA] a real job."

Sorry if you took offense, but considering your comment seemed like a response to vanwinkle's post regarding what types of work experience constitute a good soft (made me think you were asking whether it falls under the same category) and you mention how your friend's employers considered it a good "leadership perk", it seemed like you had a somewhat inflated view of how useful RA positions are as a soft. Just trying to put things into context.

But, yes, you would put it under work experience on the resume because strictly speaking, being an RA is a job.

bhan87 wrote:

Helicio wrote: I know all this. What I'm wondering, though, is if being an RA counts as work experience. I.E: do I put RA under Work Experience, or something else, on my resume?


Thanks for trying to answer my question, though, even if you were a sarcastic little b**** about it who assumed things I didn't say. I even said "I haven't considered [being an RA] a real job."

Sorry if you took offense, but considering your comment seemed like a response to vanwinkle's post regarding what types of work experience constitute a good soft (made me think you were asking whether it falls under the same category) and you mention how your friend's employers considered it a good "leadership perk", it seemed like you had a somewhat inflated view of how useful RA positions are as a soft. Just trying to put things into context.

But, yes, you would put it under work experience on the resume because strictly speaking, being an RA is a job.

Great, thanks for the answer.

And sorry for my spasm. I'm in a bad mood today because I lost all my Powerscore
Books that had notes, etc in them .

.

My resume includes an ACLU internship as well. I agree that probably all these nonpaid internships qualify as "okay softs," but I think that what makes them more impressive is if they fit into your narrative for your LS application. So if the ACLU internship is one in a long string of nonprofit/volunteer work that you've done, it certainly reinforces your dedication to the field.

Confused7 wrote:My resume includes an ACLU internship as well. I agree that probably all these nonpaid internships qualify as "okay softs," but I think that what makes them more impressive is if they fit into your narrative for your LS application. So if the ACLU internship is one in a long string of nonprofit/volunteer work that you've done, it certainly reinforces your dedication to the field.

I agree with this. As a random line on a resume it means little (and if you're doing it just for the resume line then you're wasting both your time and theirs). If it's part of a package and fits in with the rest of your resume, it can bolster your dedication to a certain goal or purpose.

OP: It doesn't matter at all, in law school admissions, how "legal oriented" your prior experiences are. The ACLU would help as showing your commitment and dedication, not because it gave you any kind of law-related experience. Every law adcomm will treat you like you know nothing about how to practice law and will learn everything after you start law school, and no internship will change that. Right now they're looking for good people with good traits. Law-related experiences can show that, but so can a lot of other things.

Short version: If you want to work for the ACLU, then do it. Doing internships and getting involved honestly matters more than what specific place you do it. Do whatever is best for your interests and future goals, and it ought to fit in with the rest of your resume that way.

You can still PM me details if you want, but these are my general thoughts right now.