Law Schools

How To Get The Most Out Of Joining Student Organizations In Law School

There is a lot of value in joining and participating in these organizations. Pick your favorite club and join today.

By  
on

I wasn’t much of a “joiner” in undergrad. I went to a largely commuter school, so I usually attended my classes and headed home immediately after they ended each day. I’m pretty sure I didn’t even study in the library until my junior year.  I must admit that I regret that. I graduated college with the same one friend I had started with. She had lived on campus and had become way more involved with student organizations and activities, and consequently, she had way more friends and experiences. I felt like I had missed valuable social and networking opportunities by failing to get involved.

When I started law school the following year, I vowed to not let that happen again. But, like the true type-A lawyer that I am, I may have gone a bit overboard. I joined every student organization I could and fully overwhelmed myself. Here are some ways for you to get the most out of joining student organizations without going crazy.

1L Year

Your first year of law school is stressful enough without layering anything else on top of it. However, I still recommend joining and participating in a few student organizations. They offer great opportunities to get involved in the law school community, network, find internships, and make friends. Sometimes student organizations even run special programs for 1L students to learn more about law school, test-taking, and the bar exam.

Don’t be afraid to “try on” a few different organizations before making your final decision about which ones to join. Often, schools will have some kind of student organization fair or other event that showcases the different groups and what they do. If you can’t check that out, or your school doesn’t have one, go to a meeting of each of the groups you are thinking of joining to get a feel for what each does. Then, choose one or two that you will enjoy the most and will get the most out of in your first year.

Once you are part of the group, don’t sign up for high-time commitment tasks, such as chairing a subcommittee or planning a big event. Instead, volunteer to do smaller tasks. For example, “tabling” to sell baked goods or spread the word about an event.  This will help you stay involved without sucking up all of your time.

2L Year to Graduation

Sponsored

After you survive your 1L year, you can increase your participation in student organizations by running for an executive board position of your favorite organization. This looks great on your résumé and is a way for you to make an even bigger impact on your community. Post-1L year, you also have the opportunity to join other groups that you didn’t have time for in your first year or to start a new student group that doesn’t currently exist at your school.

In addition, being more involved with a few organizations allows you to offer input about their activities. You can help decide what kind of networking events to have, what speakers to bring to campus, etc. You can also continue to use your position within the group to leverage internships and job opportunities.

Post Graduation

The benefits of law school student organizations don’t have to end with graduation. After graduation, they can be a great resource if you are having trouble finding a job. You can reach out to the students in the group who graduated the year ahead of you to see what opportunities they may have available, and you can continue to attend networking events as well. If you are employed, you can pay it forward and use your prior student group affiliations to find interns and associates. Finally, returning to your law school student organization as a guest speaker on a career panel is a great way for you to get speaking experience and start to establish yourself as an expert in your field.

As you can see, there is a lot of value in joining and participating in law school student organizations and that you don’t have to give all your time and energy to make it worth it.

Sponsored

Kerriann Stout is a millennial law school professor and founder of Vinco (a bar exam coaching company) who is generationally trapped between her students and colleagues. Kerriann has helped hundreds of students survive law school and the bar exam with less stress and more confidence. She lives, works, and writes in the northeast. You can reach her by email at info@vincoprep.com.

Topics

, , ,