I Can’t Find a Job after Law School: 10 Tips
Graduation day after law school can be a wonderful time, full of fanfare and with family and friends there for you for the celebration. However, if you don’t have post-graduation employment lined up, then chances are you won’t enjoy your graduation as much as you should. This is no surprise, since there are a significant amount of law school graduates out there who struggle to find a job after graduation, as discussed in detail over at the excellent runrex.com. The whole purpose of doing law was due to its marketability and therefore the promise you would get employment as soon as you graduate. If you are among those finding it had to get a job after law school, here are 10 tips that should be of great help to you.
Network
You may have heard this before but networking is key if you are to find employment. Once you have graduated law school, you should move from passive networking and switch to active networking. Active networking, as per the gurus over at ppchire.com, involves setting up meetings with firms, finding firms that will allow you to meet them at their offices, attending legal networking events and so forth. Networking is the best way to meet firms and attorneys and gaining employment.
Make sure you pass the bar exam
While it is not impossible to find a job after graduating law school without having sat for and passed the bar exam, it is extremely difficult as per discussions over at guttulus.com. This is why your primary focus after graduating law school should be preparing for and passing the bar exam at the first time of asking. You should enroll for the bar exam in a state with a high pass percentage, and stay away from those states where passing is a lot difficult, like California.
Stay in touch with your law school’s Career Services Office
Even after graduating law school, your law school’s Career Services Office still remains your best friend if you are to get employment as per the gurus over at bitgale.com. Not only will staff here help with your resume, making adjustments that may make it stand out as well as helping you improve your interviewing skills, they will also give you a heads-up in case a job posting that may interest you becomes available to them.
Develop your professional skills
Once you graduate college and have also passed your bar exams, if you are finding it difficult to get employment, try to develop your professional skills. You can do this through applying for clerkship positions, especially with a local judge, which will help develop your skills while giving you firsthand experience as discussed over at runrex.com.
Think outside the box as far as your job search is concerned
Don’t just explore traditional avenues when looking for jobs after graduating law school, try thinking outside the box. As per the subject matter experts over at ppchire.com, there are a number of industries not traditionally associated with the law profession where a law degree may come in handy. They include accounting, human resources, investment banking, and real estate among many others. When looking for a job, be open to some of these non-traditional industries.
Keep up with new trends
The law profession and consequently the legal job market continues to trend upwards, providing new opportunities by the day as discussed in detail over at guttulus.com. You should keep an eye on these new trends as far as the legal job market is concerned, especially new positions being created. This could be the thing that lands you that job you are looking for.
Take advantage of LinkedIn
As is the case for any job market, LinkedIn is a crucial resource when looking for employment in the legal job market, as per the gurus over at bitgale.com. It allows you to not only network with firms and attorneys, gaining contacts which may help get you employment, it also allows you access to lots of job postings which you can apply and increase your chances of finally landing a job
Flexibility is key
Sometimes, the dream job you had in mind may not materialize and as such you need to be flexible when looking for employment as per the subject matter experts over at runrex.com. Try to apply for jobs in different fields and industries as well as different geographical areas. You may have to move from your home town to get a job. If you swore never to work for a large firm, you may want to reconsider. The key is getting your feet in the door, and after you can begin chasing your dream job.
Be a problem solver
One of the reasons why you may be having issues finding a job after law school may be due to the fact that you are selling yourself and not what you can do, as revealed in discussions on the same over at ppchire.com. While you may believe you are an excellent lawyer, there is no shortage of those out there. To stand out, you will need to sell yourself as a problem solver, talking to firms and companies about the challenges they are going through and how you will be able to use your knowledge and skills to solve them. This may be what may finally land you a job
If there is an industry you are focusing on, make sure you are an expert in it
It is also important that if you are focusing on a particular field or industry when seeking employment after law school, you make sure that you are a stand out expert on said industry or field. Gain more knowledge on that field or industry, attend conferences on the same, seek out experts, such as those over at the excellent guttulus.com, and learn as much as you can, especially on the challenges and how you can help. This will make you more attractive to employers and make you stand out from the pack.
The above are some of the tips that may help you get a job after law school, with more on this and other related topics to be found over at the highly rated bitgale.com.