Self-paced
Hi! I am a prospective applicant who just graduated with an undergrad degree at the end of May. I was planning to take a gap year before law school and have been applying to jobs while I study for the LSAT (which I am taking in August). But so far, I have struck out in the job market. Does anyone know how long is too long before a gap off work is a red flag? And does anyone have any advice on how to land a job that could help my application?
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5 comments
Look for tutoring jobs! Or take on creative projects that could give results. Even volunteering is great.
there is a teaching shortage, so you can always torture yourself for a year as a teacher! jk, i love my job (a lot, actually). you don't have to have a certification for all schools...
also, if you take it somewhat seriously, you can learn really valuable communication, time management, and work ethic skills that will help you in future careers.
I'm also taking a gap year! I don't have much advice but I hope you feel less alone. I've been applying to jobs for months and still nothing. I hope admissions takes the current status of the job market in consideration! I feel like the only people I know that got legal related jobs lined up for their gap year is from connections they made while in college, or their parents connections. I think location also plays a part, bigger cities might have more job openings. I wouldn't worry about how your job search would look on paper during your gap year. You graduated in may, have been studying for the lsat, taking the lsat in august, taking the time to job search. That is showing admissions you are putting in the work! Good luck on the lsat and with applications!
I am in the exact same boat as you, just graduated may and taking august lsat for fall 2027 cycle. Also have had little luck in the job market this summer. However, I have heard directly from admissions counselors at my undergrad school (Boston U) that law schools do not necessarily expect a legal or office related job before law school. As long as you can cover yourself doing anything work related (resaturant, retail etc.) while obv improving your lsat score, you should be good. At the end of the day, it seems to be about your lsat score and gpa, along with extracurriculars in undergrad. Hope this helps, I know how tough the pressure feels.
@8ball This did help thanks so much! How long of a gap in employment do you think would be fine --- right now, I have been studying for the lsat/ applying to jobs so not working, but I was thinking that after the August lsat I don't have a job I will just go back to my high school/ early college hometown job at a bakery. I would feel bad starting up with them again and then quitting if I find a more career-related job, so I had been giving myself until the end of August to try and find another path, but is that a bad idea?