Cliff Notes: 3 Years of Law School

I was in law school from 2019 to 2022. Weird time. Let me show you what it’s like.

First year, you’re split up into sections because the cohort is too big, and we all take the same classes. This is sometimes considered the hardest year because everything is so new. There’s usually one final exam that’s 100% of your grade, so you better learn quickly. These are the fundamental doctrinal classes—contracts, torts, constitutional, criminal, and all the other good stuff to get a basic understanding of what law is and to get you thinking like a lawyer. Which just means you’re structuring your analysis of a bunch of cases—usually into issue, rule, application, conclusion—and being generally annoying about giving straight answers. You say, “it depends,” to signal that there’s more nuance, and then you create this convoluted argument that comes to the same basic conclusion: don’t break your promises or don’t stab somebody in the face.

Second year. Oh yeah, first-year grades are really important for your job—for some reason. In the second year, you have on-campus interviews, or OCIs, where firms come and try to hire a bunch of students for a summer job that leads to a full-time position after you graduate. But due to the timing, the only grades you have so far are your first-year grades, and firms basically use that as a proxy to weed out candidates, then use the interview to further weed out weirdos.

In your second year, you can finally choose your courses, and you need to start thinking about your career, areas of law to practice, and which clinics, courses, or extracurriculars to take. You’re starting to get a handle on how to read cases, how to manage the stress, and how to write law school exams. The stress of 2L is mostly about finding a summer job so that you’ll have a job after you graduate. The interviews, networking, and grades are a weird system based on historical contingencies, random circumstances, and so much luck.

Third year. Three-LOL. If you’ve secured a job, you’re not doing much. Grades don’t matter anymore—you already have a job. You take the easiest courses and actually enjoy your time in law school. But the big thing you’re stressing about in this last year is studying for the bar exam. Honestly, you could get rid of the third year in law school and nothing much would change.

I did my law school during COVID, and everything was virtual. I got extremely lucky in many ways in law school that led me up to here. It’s given me a lot: it made me financially secure, it was a good education, and people raise their eyebrows at parties when they hear what I do. But I still don’t like the idea of a career practicing law.