kaiser wrote:Derek- I see myself possibly going the route of recruiting, or law school administration (possibly in admissions or career counseling) one day in the future. Can you elaborate on what lead you into recruiting/admissions, and maybe share some ways that a practicing lawyer can lay the groundwork for a down-the-road shift into law school administration? What are the pros/cons of such a move?
Hi there. My initial interest with regard to law school was to work in politics/government (in a policy or lobbyist type position). I worked for 4 years as a legislative aide in the Ohio Senate (actually while going to law school) and then 2 years in the Ohio Attorney General's office after getting my JD. By that time, my interest in working in politics was waning. When I decided to make a transition, I wanted a job that combined what I loved most about my jobs in the Senate and AG's office: writing, public speaking, assessing clients' issues and counseling them. That led me directly to law school admissions and career services, so I began applying for jobs in both departments at law schools all over the country and networking like crazy. My first job was as an Assistant Director of Admissions at William Mitchell College of Law in the Twin Cities. I learned the admissions business, loved it, became very involved with the Law School Admissions Council, and kept networking. And about 3 years later, I started working at Penn. Landing the first job in law school administration can be tough (there tends to be a lot of competition for those jobs and it's not always easy to find them when they're open). But once you get a job in law school administration, if you do well and make a name for yourself, you can move up the ladder relatively easily (either within the office, or transition to another department at the school, or to a different school).
As far as laying the groundwork, you need to be very involved in anything admissions or recruiting related. So, as a law student, it is important to be a student leader/ambassador, to volunteer for the admissions office, serve on the admissions committee, etc. As a practicing lawyer, you need to get involved with attorney recruiting and/or attorney development (via mentorship of law students, on campus interviewing, callback interviewing, summer program planning and training, development/mentorship of junior associates, etc.). It's also really important to network and build relationships — starting with your college and law school. Volunteering as an alum in any sort of admissions recruiting/outreach would be beneficial, speaking on campus on career services panels, and just getting to know (or staying in touch with) the deans of admissions, career services, student affairs, etc. Law schools LOVE hiring their alumni in these positions, so building those relationships is crucial (plus they also will know every other law school that is hiring and could refer you, and that's how most people get hired into these positions). Essentially, they want someone who is charismatic, interpersonally savvy, and presents well, is an excellent writer, great at building relationships and working as part of a team (but also proven, demonstrated leadership skills), keen intuition, analytical skills, and judgment — and, of course, an ability to relate to students from diverse backgrounds.
As a practicing lawyer, you obviously will hone many of the more technical skills, but you have to balance those with the interpersonal skills. That is where all of that other stuff comes in (i.e., getting involved in anything that allows you to speak to, mentor, train, develop, recruit students).
The pros and cons. Well, the first con can be salary. Most practicing lawyers looking to make a change are shocked at the salaries for assistant director and associate director level positions at law schools—which is usually the level at which you must start, unless you have many years of experience that included managerial or high-level responsibilities. (Of course it also depends on where you are working as a lawyer. Since I was coming from the public sector, the salary wasn't that shocking for me.) The assistant dean and associate dean level jobs pay much better. So know that you may have to take a lower-level, lower paying job in the beginning, at least to get your foot in the door. You have to be open with that first job. (Minnesota was never on my list of places to live, and I had never even been there or heard of William Mitchell until I got the job interview. And my second time there was when I moved for the job! But it paved the way for the rest of my career.) Another con is simply the state of legal education and the legal market. It is a tough time to be in admissions and career services. You're always under pressure in those jobs, much of which is tied to the US New Rankings, but that pressure has never been greater than it has these past few years. And there is very little down time, especially in Admissions. It is somewhat slower in the summer, because students are gone and your class is usually pretty well set by then, but you still have to deal with the waitlist, transfer admissions, continuing scholarship negotiation, and working on everything else that you can't do during fall, winter and spring (i.e., all the marketing stuff, i.e., website, publications, planning recruitment strategy, etc.). That said, there are many pros - it's so great to work with and mentor students, and to be in an academic setting and on a university campus. It truly is rewarding. I still keep in touch with many, many students (now alumni) that I admitted to Penn. Also, the camaraderie of the admissions and career services communities is second to none. I remain very close friends, not just with people I worked with at Penn, but also my counterparts at schools all over the country. It also is incredibly rewarding and exciting to be part of the leadership at an academic institution, to be influencing policy and change there. I could go on and on but I'll stop there... feel free to PM if you have any other questions!
