By Finding a job straight out of law school is pretty much the same as finding a job after university in any profession: incredibly hard. And although the number of opportunities for law school graduates has improved over the last few years (thank goodness), it can still be quite difficult to land a job right after you graduate.
So what can you do in order to put yourself in the best stead to landing one of those much desired graduate jobs?
Here’s some tips that, if used correctly, will certainly help you end up with one of the most coveted situations of finding a job right after graduating:
Make sure you shine in law school
The easiest way to land a job when you graduate is to ensure that you stand out in law school. Professors take notice and they will open doors for you. This doesn’t just mean that you must achieve excellent grades, it is also great on your resume if you take part in extracurricular activities like pro-bono work, publish articles and hold a high ranking roll in your law school’s association.
Look at non-traditional ways to use your law degree
While most of your class graduates will be going in search of traditional jobs within the law sphere, you could do yourself a favor by thinking outside of the box. You can use your law degree to get into a variety of different jobs such as consulting firms, working for private companies, banking and finance, conflict resolution, counseling and working for various government agencies.
Try a whole lot of different avenues
You aren’t going to walk straight out of law school and into a job without even trying. You need to approach the search for a job through many different angles, and this will create a larger chance of you finding something. Person to person networking is incredibly important and you should create connections within the law sector and with your lecturers and other school colleagues. An online presence is also imperative and as well as applying for jobs through advertisements, you should also create a great LinkedIn account that potential employees can find. Join professional law groups and you can use a recruitment agency to find one too. As agencies will be in contact with all the best firms and have direct access to companies looking for graduates with law degrees.
Your career services officer is your friend
There is a reason that most tertiary education establishments have a career office, and that’s to dispense advice on where, how and who upcoming graduates should be contacting to look for a job. You should use your career services officer to the best of their abilities, because if there is anyone that is completely clued up on the job market then it is him/her. They can help you get good internships too, which are a massive bonus when it comes to your resume, as all employers are looking for some form of experience in their graduate choices.
