Let’s not beat around the bush here: Lots of smart people go to law school because they don’t know what to do with their lives. Three more years to decide? Sign me up!

Unfortunately, that’s not the way things actually work. The reality is that you basically need to know what job you’re aiming for, within a few months of starting school. Why? Because your summer jobs are critically important in law school — much more so than internships you might have had as an undergrad.

 

Let’s look at a few options:

• I want to work in a large law firm when I graduate. If you think you’re going to work in BigLaw when you graduate (which lots of students still do, despite the dismal BigLaw hiring numbers in recent years), you need to work as a summer associate after your second year of law school. No worries, that’s still two years out, right? Not exactly. The summer associate position you’ll have after your second year (which, hopefully, leads to a permanent offer to return after your third year) is acquired by applying and interviewing before the second year of law school even starts. (This is OCI, or on-campus interviewing for the uninitiated. You’ll find a full guide to OCI here.) You’ll typically bid on firms to interview with the summer after your 1L year — meaning you need a pretty good idea where you want to work after graduation, and what type of work you want to do, at that point. Which is…less than a year after you started law school.
• I want a public interest job. “Okay, fine,” you say, “I have no interest in BigLaw and want a public interest job when I graduate. Surely I have time to figure things out a little?” Sorry! Your summer jobs are critical, too. Hiring for public interest work is extremely competitive. (What, you thought being willing to work for peanuts would ensure you lots of job offers? Nope.) To be well-positioned for the jobs most people want, it’s critical to start building relationships early. That means 1L and 2L summer jobs in a related area (preferably geographic area and subject matter area). And…you probably need to apply for public interest summer funding, which happens early. (It’s not unheard of for public interest summer funding applications to be due in November or December of your 1L year, for funding the following summer.) If you’re thinking you want to do public interest work, make sure you understand your school’s funding deadlines! Far too many people snooze until January, to find out they’ve missed out.

• I want to be an academic. First, good luck with that. Second, if you have any shot at being an academic, it’s critical to start building relationships with your professors from day one. Why? Because they’ll write the letters that get you the prestigious clerkships, which can lead to academia. They’ll also (potentially) hire you as a research assistant, and supervise your Note or other paper, which you’ll need to present at your “job talks” when you go on the market. And you’ll need strong references when you apply for jobs. 3L year is too late to start building these relationships. Start early for best results. 
• I want to go solo when I graduate. Who do you think is going to be more successful as a solo attorney: Someone who spent three years planning their business, learning practical legal skills, and making connections, or someone who decides to focus on “all that business stuff” after graduation? I’m going to go with the former. It’s always intimidating to go solo right out of school, but the folks I know who’ve done it successfully were ready to get started as soon as their bar membership was approved. How? They’d spent most of their time in law school positioning themselves to be ready.

Of course, it’s fine to experiment in law school and change your mind about what to do (that’s life, sometimes). The takeaway point is this: Figure out what you (at least think) you want to do before you start, and you’ll be far more likely to end up where you want to go!