Some people are morning people; others prefer to get things done at night. Some people are full-time students and others are part-time. Some people work in addition to attending law school and others don’t. Some people are in multiple student organizations, some are in one, and others aren’t in any. We all have pretty hectic schedules in law school. It’s important to make sure that we are all doing everything that needs to be done. I myself juggle school, work, and student organizations, so it was extremely important for me to sit down and figure out when I’d be getting things done. I had to schedule work around classes, study time around work, and my responsibilities to student organizations around everything else. However, I still make sure to reserve time time to myself away from all responsibilities. I make sure I have time to go to the gym, occasionally visit home, and sometimes just do nothing. Having a schedule for yourself ensures that you stay on track with everything that you may have going on and allows you to make time for yourself. I strongly suggest that everyone makes a schedule that they are able to stick to!

It doesn’t matter in what year you are in law school, if you’re regular division or evening division, everyone has to go through the interview process at multiple points during their law school career. 1Ls and 2Ls alike will be interviewing for summer intern/extern positions come winter into spring; 3Ls will be interviewing for full-time/part-time positions for after they graduate, and many students will interview for fall/spring positions that run through Widener’s normal academic year.

There are several important points to keep in mind when preparing for an interview. Firstly, make sure you know exactly who you are interviewing with, research the firm/office that you have an interview with and be sure to have some relevant points/questions to bring up during your interview. You never want to finish an interview without asking any questions. Secondly, dress professionally, pull out your blazer, tie, dress, slacks, or skirt and make sure that your clothes are appropriate for a business setting. Thirdly, it’s always good to take a few extra copies of your resume with you; there might be an extra interviewer present that does not have a copy with them. Lastly, be confident in yourself and honest about your abilities. Take a few deep breathes before walking in; everyone gets nervous before an interview, there’s no need to stress too much! Share what you want to get out of the experience, talk about your strengths, and don’t feel the need to lie about any weaknesses. The question of, “What are your weaknesses?” is a dreaded question that is asked in almost every interview. After doing a mock interview during my junior year of college I was told by a faculty member to not answer this question with a strength in disguise, “I guess my greatest weakness is caring too much” or “I’m a little too organized” is not what the interviewer needs to hear. Be honest and admit to needing a little more practice with Microsoft Excel or say that you sometimes need a bit of extra time when it comes to handling contracts cases. Tell them something that you need a bit more practice with, and assure them that you are working on improving. And remember to thank the interviewers for their time!

Good luck with any future interview that you may have!

It’s that time of the semester. The time where many law students shut themselves off in their apartments or the library to study, and because we’re online this year, actually take the final exams. Many students have just finished wrapping up their last exam while others still have another one or two to go. Whether you’re done with finals until next semester or you’re still studying for that last exam at the end of the week, here are some things to keep in mind when preparing for finals.

Firstly, everyone is nervous about the exams; it’s not just you. Take a deep breath and remember that you can handle it. You made it to law school for a reason, but you may need to tweak those old college study habits. Not all students have the same study routine, and that’s expected; here are some tips that I have found helpful.

1. Make a schedule. I personally function better when I have a plan of what I need to get done. A week before exams started I wrote myself a detailed schedule of when to study for what exam. Once it’s down on paper (or on a screen) you can see that you do have more than enough time to study for your exams and you actually do have time to get out of your house.
2. Exercise. It may be exam time but resist the urge to close yourself off in your house and not do anything but study. Let’s face it you’re not studying for 12 hours straight; after a certain amount of time your brain stops absorbing the information and you’re just sitting there staring at your computer screen. It’s totally okay to take 30-60 min to get up go for a walk or to the gym, and get some endorphins flowing. Clear your head for a bit and then get back to studying.
3. Color coordinate your notes/outline. This has been extremely helpful for me, if it’s not something that works for you that’s totally fine! It’s important for everyone to find a way to organize their notes that most conducive to how they study, find what format works for you!

Remember everyone finals are not the end of the world. They’re a necessity to the law school experience and every student goes through them. Just remember to study and try your hardest! And when it’s time for that test I wish you the best of luck!