5 tips for surviving law school
Getting into law school can be incredibly tough in the first place. Once you have your place secured, you can start to focus on getting the most out of your experience. You will likely already have an idea about the difficulties you will face; however for most people, it can be even harder than they imagined. Many people don't even make it through the first year, which shows just how intense law school can be. It is designed to be competitive, rigorous, and incredibly stressful. Only the best students and hardest working ones will be able to come out on top and live out their dreams of becoming a qualified lawyer. Luckily, we have spoken to former students to find out the top 5 tips for surviving Law School.
1. Set Time Aside to Relax
Law school is incredibly demanding, which means it can be easy to get caught up in a routine of constantly thinking about work. However, in the long-run, this will lead to burnout. Instead, you should set regular time aside to simply relax. Be sure to maintain relationships with your family and friends. It can be easy to get a bit isolated, but you should never neglect the value of these relationships. Be sure to spend regular time with them, even if it is only for a short while.
You can also take a break from electronics entirely and focus on your hobbies such as cooking or hiking, for example. Exercising can be a great way to let go and simply burn off some energy. Building a hobby that is unrelated to law is important for maintaining your society. Once you are in the middle of a law course, it can feel like your entire life revolves around it. This makes it crucial to give your brain a break once in a while to allow you to re-focus.
2. Stay Focused on your Lectures
Some law lectures can be tedious and incredibly law. It can be easy to start dozing off and losing focus. You may think that missing out on a few minutes of a lecture is ok, but this can start a vicious cycle where you start missing out on more and more material. A lot of crucial material for your law course will be covered in the lectures. This means you should stay highly active and engage fully with the lecture.
You should take regular notes, and you can test yourself after the lecture to see how much you understood. Every lecture should be treated as a mini quiz, so you need to stay attentive at all times. Turn off your phone and log out of your social media. You will thank yourself at the end of the semester when you realize you have a good grasp of the material. One way to prepare for lectures is by reading ahead of the class. This will allow you to re-engage with material that you have already gone through, and it allows you to clarify parts that you may have struggled with.
3. Stay Organized
The demon of procrastination is one that is all too common for any college course. However, Law is one course where it must be dealt with in the harshest way possible. For other courses, you may be able to get away with the occasional dose of procrastination. However, the intense workload of law means that you simply cannot afford to slip behind. Even one small dip can quickly transform into being significantly behind in a semester. You can stop procrastination by being well-organized and having a plan that you stick to.
Be sure to complete assignments well in advance to take the pressure off. Just remember to never punish yourself for failures, that’s a bad motivator. Law school is difficult, so there’s nothing wrong about using a writing or editing service to help you keep up with all the deadlines. This also leaves time to get some help if there are parts that you don't understand. Even if you don't feel like doing something, just remember the good feeling you will get when you realize the assignment/reading has already been completed.
4. Don’t Ignore Sleep
When the pressure is at its greatest, there is always the temptation to stay up much later to get everything done. But, this is a bad idea in the long-run. One or two late nights a few times a month won't hurt, but it can quickly become a habit. Sleep is incredibly important for being able to focus and generally to be at your best. You should try and maintain a regular sleeping schedule since this will allow you to function at your best. Students who succeed are those who can build consistent habits.
5. Have Good Time Management Skills
Finals season will quickly approach once you start law school. The experience of law school is more than just attending classes and learning material. You also have to juggle this with managing extracurriculars, doing writing assignments, building your resume, and applying for internships. This makes the life of a law student very busy. The key to succeeding is to have effective time management skills. The best law students are those who plan ahead and stick with their plans. You simply can't afford to waste any time. By balancing your priorities efficiently, you can get the best marks in your finals and secure the top internships that will help you start a very successful career in law.
Closing Thoughts
Surviving law school won't be easy, but the first step you can take is to have the correct mindset. You will need to build this mindset and let it remain consistent for the entirety of your course. By taking all of these tips into account, you can settle into law school more easily and be fully aware of the difficulties that lie ahead. The best way to get through law school is by taking your responsibilities head-on and dealing with them in a calm manner. Law school will make you feel like giving up at times, but you can stay focused by remaining fixated on your end goal of becoming a fully qualified lawyer.
