The beauty of the summer following your 1L year is that you can pretty much do whatever you want. In fact, law school administrators will often encourage you to explore your interests: do something you never thought you’d do or work in a new city, state, or country. It’s the 2L summer placement that really counts towards your career, so why not enjoy this first summer?
As a ChildLaw fellow and a dual JD/MSW student, I was slightly limited in my options for this first summer. I needed to find a placement that was child and family law related, but local as I had to begin my social work curriculum immediately following 1L. Since I love Chicago and plan to enter the field of child and family law once I graduate, these limitations were minor.
I accepted a position as a law clerk with The Family Defense Center, a legal advocacy organization that advocates on behalf of families involved in the child welfare system. This is a small organization with only three full-time attorneys, including the executive director, and only 2-3 law clerks at any given point. Its small size, however, afforded plenty of opportunities to utilize the skills I had gained through 1L and apply them to real cases with real clients. The majority of my position was to conduct legal research and manage the initial intake processes with prospective clients. Over the course of three months, I interacted with over 50 clients, mostly from Illinois with a few from other states, with a variety of legal concerns. After 1L year, it was incredible to see how my legal education was allowing me to advocate for my client. It was also incredible to actually work with real people, instead of reading case law all day!
Of course, this was all while taking three social work classes in the evenings. Now, my busy summer is most likely going to be different than yours. Most students decide not to take a class, allowing them to travel away from Chicago. Unless you are limited by your program, do that! Take a position with an organization or firm that you love and want to be a part of or want to learn more about a particular issue. Travel the world. I had classmates spend their summer in New York City, Africa, California, and in Beijing or Rome through Loyola’s study abroad program. At this point, you have survived the dreaded 1L year of law school, so take the time to enjoy applying what you’ve learned.
Plus, it’s the summer. You’ve got to enjoy that, right?
Cheers,