Tag: education

Evening Students: Embrace Opportunities

I began my educational journey later in life and had to balance a full-time job while pursuing education to begin a new career. While doing so, I took advantage of various opportunities to attend conferences that focused on my interests. At one conference I met a successful Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and after speaking about internships and getting involved with the profession, they said, “If you want to enter the profession, you need to get involved. If this is what you want, you need to prove it?” In the moment, the words felt harsh, but with the passage of time, how right he was. I needed to come to terms with the path I was seeking and knew it would require more involvement. Did involvement require the use of vacation time, evaluation of other commitments, and additional investment of my time? Yes, it did. However, getting involved has been the best investment ever, the return on investment continues to compound. So how to apply this life lesson to law school?

The reality of many evening students is we work full-time, have families, are involved in numerous activities, and are now trying to fit reading, briefing, attending class, reviewing class notes, outlining, and writing that first-year paper into our already busy, if not, overwhelmed, schedules. Here I am now encouraging evening students to embrace opportunities to get involved and recommending to get involved early in your time at law school, do not wait to you are a 2L or 3L. Four years sounds like a long time, but we all know how short of a period it truly is, law school will be over as fast as it began. I have noted, there is the passage of time in the real world and then there is the rate in which time passes while in law school. It is funny we use the same calendar, the same clock, and have the same number of hours in a week, yet time passes much more quickly.

As an extended division student, attending in the evening, working full-time, coaching my son’s baseball team, spending time in the gym, involving myself with the Student Bar Association, attending various programs on campus, maintaining a social presence, and, last but not least, making time to play guitar, I am busy, may be an understatement. However, the words of that CPA continually flood the frontal cortex of my mind, “If this is what you want, get involved.” My reason for stating this is, despite how busy we are as evening students; we can and should carve out time to get involved in events that will support our journey towards entering the legal profession. Where did I start and where do I suggest you start? The answer, the calendar “Campus Events – Master Calendar.”

The Campus Events – Master Calendar is a great place to begin planning your involvement. If attending in the evening, classes will be held on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday (as a 1L). Perusing the Master Calendar and identifying events that are held on the same nights as class allows for taking advantage of the fact you are already on campus. Most events begin at 5 pm, with a presentation on a particular topic. If you can attend an event prior to heading to class, you will benefit. You will be provided opportunities to network with fellow classmates and potentially with the speakers, prior to their presentation, if arriving early enough. Further, if living closer to campus, take advantage of an event that is perhaps on a Wednesday and stay for the reception. Receptions are the best time to expand your network and to speak with not only attorneys, but with your professors, fellow students, and the dean outside of the academic environment.

As I write this, some key social events have already been added to the calendar, the Dean’s Picnic, September 20, 2025, and the Harrisburg Heroes Run, October 11, 2025. These events will certainly afford opportunity for networking, conversation, and some relaxation. Please note the calendar fills in as the year progresses, I personally found it beneficial to review it for updates at least every other week, there will be a plethora of events to choose from. I cannot encourage everyone enough to make plans to attend at least one professional event in addition to attending at least one social event per semester. Time is a precious commodity, and through proper planning we can manage our commitments and embrace available opportunities.

Tips for 1L Students

As a rising 2L Evening Division student, I wanted to share some of the helpful tips that I wish I knew at the beginning of my 1L year…

Law school is a marathon, not a sprint. School should be your priority; however, burn out is very real. If you give 120% of yourself to school, and don’t make time for your mental and physical wellbeing, your law school education will suffer. It is important to find a balance! For some people, that means sticking to a very rigid calendar and scheduling time for classes/homework/studying, as well as some sort of time for family/friends/fun. For other people, that means taking one night “off” from school work most weeks. Find the balance that works best for you.
Comparison is the thief of joy. There is no need for constant comparison with your law school classmates. What works for others might not work for you, and that is okay. You will likely have different study habits (alone vs. in a group, flashcards vs. re-writing rules, etc.). As long as you are doing your readings, keeping up with all assignments, and studying/outlining in a way that works best for you, you will do great!
Your classmates are your friends and future colleagues. Bond with them and be kind to one another! These are the people who rant to you, laugh with you, cry on your shoulder, study with you, celebrate with you, and ultimately help you through this journey. Nobody truly understands the struggle of law school more than your classmates, so lean on them, and don’t burn any bridges!
Have fun! Law school is what you make it. Join a new group, become a student member of a local Bar Association, attend networking events, enjoy social events, and take the opportunities that come your way! You will meet amazing people, including attorneys who you might turn to for advice, refer a client to, or see in a job interview one day.

Make changes as you go to find what works best for you!

Endeavoring into law school can be completely overwhelming as it often requires a lifestyle change. Although this often includes having less free time to do the things we ordinarily would like to do and focusing more on the path in front of you, learning to appropriately manage the workload along with out-of-school challenges is something that won’t come naturally to most people. However, as I have learned from my three years here, what is most important is to find what works best for you and not base how you structure your time in law school off of what someone else does.

Everyone has different ways of learning and managing their time, and from my experience, even an individual’s strategies can change drastically from semester to semester. This can include changing where, how, or who you study with and that is perfectly okay as long as you are figuring it out as you go.

On a broader note than simply changing your study habits, implementing an entire lifestyle change while in law school may be required for you. An example of this stems from a personal anecdote of mine; before attending law school I was working full time as a paralegal, which I fully intended to continue doing while going through law school because I lived on my own and fully supported myself. Before law school, the idea of quitting my job, going to school full-time and taking loans to cover my living expenses seemed like the wrong personal choice for me.

I initiated my law school path at Widener Commonwealth in the extended (night-time/part-time) division and continued to work full-time as a paralegal during the day. As I quickly found out for myself at the end of the first semester, this was not going to work for me. The next semester, I let my job know I needed to focus on law school, switched into the regular (full-time/day-time) division, and took loans to cover my expenses. This was a huge lifestyle change that I went through, but it was what worked best for me and now I am flourishing in law school.

All of this to say, if something isn’t working for you, it’s totally acceptable to make changes as you go! When people say it’s a marathon and not a sprint they really mean it, so take it one day at a time and don’t feel bad about changing things as you go!

Your Mental Health is More Important Than Your Grades

I have been in higher education for well over a decade now. I went straight from undergrad to graduate school, took a short sabbatical to work odd jobs to pay my bills, went back to grad school to finish, and then immediately went into law school. In all that time, I’ve realized the worst thing in higher education is the amount of pressure there is to essentially work 60-hour weeks in order to be successful. Whether it be from the professors themselves who often preach the age old adage: “for every hour of class time, you should be studying for three!” or from your classmates bragging that they were up until 3 am last night studying while chugging their fourth caffeinated drink of the day, everyone is always being pushed to work longer and longer, to the detriment of their mental and physical health, all in the name of getting a good grade.

Now, here’s the thing. You do not need to drown yourself in work to be successful. Studying for 12+ hours a day will not help you in the long run. Sure, your grades may flourish, but a good grade should be the least of your worries when your mental health is so bad you want to die.

Truth be told, I don’t actually think your grades matter all that much. I’m aware, it’s basically sacrilege for a graduating law student to say that grades don’t matter (that much). But it’s true. In fact, I think your grades are the least important thing, not just in law school, but in your life in general. Not even a year out from graduating, I can almost guarantee that not a single person will ask what your GPA was in law school, all they’ll care about is whether or not you passed the Bar and your ability to do the job.

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t be striving to do the best you can, because you absolutely should work hard, but you don’t have to work yourself to the bone to be successful. It is important to not make this your entire life. Never sacrifice your mental health just to achieve a good grade. This time in law school will fly by so don’t waste the limited time you have on this planet pushing yourself to your breaking point just for a grade, because how many people are going to what grade they got in a class 20 years ago?

And don’t be afraid of making mistakes! It is better to make your mistakes where you have the safety end than it is to make your first mistake out in practice where a mistake could mean the difference between your client walking free or spending the rest of their life in prison.

And remember, at the end of the day, a grade is just a benchmark that tells you how much you knew about a subject at that point in time. That’s all they are. It is not a moral failing to do below average in law school.

You know what they call the person who is at the bottom of their law school class (assuming they passed the bar)? A lawyer.

Student Involvement

One thing we are not short of at Widener is student organizations. Signing up for an organization or attending organization events are not only a great way to network, but it is also a helpful way to determine what type of law you would like to practice one day. I remember in my first year, the first student organization event I attended was hosted by the Business Law Society. The Business Law Society invited Widener alumnus, and adjunct professor, Todd Shill to speak with students. Todd is a practicing entertainment lawyer, TV and film producer, who also founded the media production company, 75|77 Entertainment. During that event, Todd presented an episode from Netflix’s reality series, Deaf U, which he was production counsel for. Todd explained the legal issues he faced in the production of the series, and how he dealt with them. As a first year student, I not only found the presentation exciting, but also rather inspirational. Todd emphasized to students that a JD is practically a springboard for whatever you wish to pursue in your life. He explained that when he was a student at Widener, his wish was to become an entertainment lawyer and one of his closest friends (who, coincidentally is also an alumnus and adjunct professor) wanted to become an NFL agent. Spoiler alert, both Todd and his friend are pursuing their dreams now while inspiring students.

After taking Sports and Entertainment Law (which I highly recommend), Todd offered me an externship position. An externship is a student’s experiential requirement for graduation. I began working with Todd this Fall and have been assigned exciting projects. Researching artificial intelligence litigation and previewing unedited films for potential copyright infringements have been among my favorites thus far. Not only did that single Business Law Event pique my interest in entertainment law, but it also inspired me to be an active member of the Business Law Society. As a first-year Business Law Society representative, my duties were limited but still allowed me to be an active member. As a representative in my first year, it allowed me to earn the Social & Events Chair position during 2L. This year I have been elected to serve as the President of the Business Law Society. It is sort of a full-circle moment in my law school career, one attendance at an event lead to leadership positions within the student organization, and an incredible externship.

In short, I cannot recommend attending student organizations’ events enough. Not only does it help you navigate your legal career and network, but it also shows your peers support for their hard work.