Even though one third of the law school journey still remains ahead, law school has already been one of the most amazing and transformative experience of my life. I came to law school full of anxiety and trepidation. Am I smart enough? Will I succeed? Will I still have a life? And who has not met those members of the bar who absolutely loathe law school and being a lawyer? I came to law school despite of all this because I wanted more than a 9-5 job. I wanted a career that is intellectually challenging, personally meaningful, and financially stable. I knew the dangers of proceeding ahead with law school (though they were greatly exaggerated in my mind) but I also knew the danger of remaining still in life.

When I was looking for a job after college, one of the interviews I went on was for a non-profit marketing position which sounded like a perfect combination of learning real life skills while helping to advance social justice. When I got to their loading-dock type of office, I was told that this interview involved an on-the-job component. The next thing I knew, I was being driven to Harvard Square to solicit donations from people on the street on behalf of a non-profit organization I had never heard of in 15 degree sleeting weather. I remember feeling grim and dejected and an urgency to find a real job. Less than three years later, not only am I learning law from incredibly bright and intellectually curious law students and professors, I have assisted a federal judge in drafting judicial opinions, helped non-profit attorneys in litigating the biggest sexual discrimination lawsuit in history, and gained a world of business law knowledge as a summer associate at one of the best law firms in town. This winter, the coop system will take me even further to the Beijing office of the American Bar Association’s Rule of Law Initiative. I will be working with the staff there to promote good governance and increase public interest advocacy in China. And this is just what my law school education has afforded me so far. I could not have imagined better things for myself.

This is my last entry on this blog. I have accepted a post as a teaching assistant to the incoming 1Ls this year and thus will not have adequate time for blogging. It has been a pleasure to share with you my lessons and adventures, victories and defeats. Thank you for reading it. I hope it has provided some insights into the life of a law student at Northeastern University School of Law.

Posted by Wen at 7:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

My second to last day as a summer associate went something like this. I took the commuter rail into South Station and got into my office around 8:15 AM. I realized that throughout the countless hours of orientation, training and q&a this summer, no one ever told us our official “working hours.” It is usually the first thing they would tell me at my previous jobs (your hours are 9-5 or we expect to see you 9 in the morning). It dawns on me both the trust and responsibility that have been placed on my shoulders. We are professionals and are treated as such. Instead of official workings hours, attorneys follow established practices within their practice area. Most arrive between 9 and 10 in the morning. I come in a bit earlier than that because the 45 minutes of solitude in the morning is crucial for me to have a good rest of the day. I set out and prioritize tasks to be completed that day, focus my thoughts, and mentally prepare myself for a productive day all while eating a healthy and nutritious bowl of oatmeal.

This day was no different except next to my 11 AM slot the words “final evaluations” stared back at me. I wrote about mid-summer evaluation in my previous entries. The final evaluation is similar to that except this is the time when summers learn whether or not they will receive a permanent offer to come by in the fall as an associate. Even though our small class of 18 was assured in the beginning of the summer that we each had an offer, performance warranting, it’s still a big day. I tried my best to focus on the tasks on hand wrapping up a couple of projects until about 10:55 AM. At about 11:10 AM, after going through the feedback from my supervising attorneys in the second half of the summer, the hiring partner said to me “so it is with great pleasure that we extend an offer to you to come back in the fall of 2009.” That was it. I expressed my gratitude and felt happy, relieved, and excited. I sent a text message to my parents and my boyfriend telling them the good news. I then decided that I should have lunch with my boyfriend to celebrate. My boyfriend actually works in the same building as I but because this summer has been so action and lunch packed; I only had the chance to eat lunch with him once. So today was the perfect opportunity to spend some time with him.

After lunch I finished a couple more tasks before heading out to our farewell party at 4PM. I walk into venue one three, our version of a large auditorium, and could not believe that the white stately room has been transformed into a tropical celebration with delicious food and chocolates of every variety. I talked to the staff and attorneys I worked with, the legal recruiting folks who made sure we had an absolutely amazing summer, and of course my fellow summer associates. It was a bit surreal that it was all coming to an end. I was talking to another summer associate when I heard cheers and squeals from another corner of the room. I went to investigate and found out that a fellow summer associate just accepted her offer and everyone was overjoyed. At that point, accepting the offer that day had not occurred to me not because I had reservations but because I thought it was a pen and paper type of thing where the firm sends me a letter and I sign on the dotted line. So I said to another summer half jokingly that had I known it was such a big deal, I would have accepted on the spot. The truth is it never crossed my mind that I would work anywhere else after graduation (if I received an offer). I truly believe that it is one of the greats when it comes to big firms and the right place for me to start my career. I guess someone heard what I said and mentioned it to the hiring partner. In no time at all, there were cheering, squealing, and hugging all around me. And that’s how I accepted my offer.

Posted by Wen at 6:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)