<p>Do you have to have some law experience already on your resume? I've read that people who apply to law school can major in anything, but what about their work experience/internships/extracurriculars?</p>
<p>You don't need any legal experience to get into LS. However, sometimes it can help you write a better personal statement. Sometimes, it may convince you that law isn't what you ought to do after all. So, I think it is a good idea to have it, but it certainly isn't required.</p>
<p>Some post-law school employers, prefer people with pre-law school work experience in a relevant field. For example, Wachtell likes people who have spent 2 years at an Investment Bank--preferrably doing M&A. </p>
<p>Internships are an opportunity to explore, do something you'll find interesting.</p>
<p>I think an internship may be more important to you in determining whether practicing law if for you. I would like to see every prospective attorney spend some time in a law firm. Internships may be more telling than a summer clerkship since many of the clerkship time is spent towards recruiting the student. Getting as realistic a look as possible is helpful. Having said that, if you can get an internship, then it won't hurt. If you need the money though, and the internship is unpaid, then I don't think giving up a paid job is worth it. </p>
<p>I don't think anyone has to worry about getting those investment bank internships now.</p>
<p>I think that law schools and legal employers, for that matter, would much prefer to see solid post-college full time work experience on a resume than summer internships. In other words, I wouldn't worry too much about the type of summer internship you pursue, whether in a law-related field or otherwise, but I would be sure to actually have some work experience on my resume before asking legal employers to take a chance on hiring you as an attorney. Make sure to work during the summers, during the school year or for a couple of years after college. It helps to build credibility and establishes that someone has a clue about what it is to live in the real world.</p>
<p>"I don't think anyone has to worry about getting those investment bank internships now."</p>
<p>:) -- I think you'd be surprised. Considering that IB interns got paid pro-rated base salary and no bonus, IB interns (and, yes, some banks are still recruiting, albeit only a handful of "cream of the crop" students) will get paid as much as interns have been paid for the past few years. There'll be really not much of a difference for interns in this market in terms of compensation. Additionally, on the positive side of things, interns will no longer be heading home at 3 or 4AM every night; on the negative, they'll probably learn less than they would when interns were going home at 3 or 4AM. In my opinion, interning at an IB right now, would still provide valuable experience (for those who can actually get the internships). Full time offers, of course, should not be expected.</p>
<p>I would, however, hesitate to encourage people to take a full-time 2-year analyst gig at an Investment Bank right now--esp. if money is a concern, as they'll likely get no bonus and will only have job "stability" during their first year (i.e. when they are labor at its cheapest). </p>
<p>Nevertheless, one could also argue that spending 2 years doing M&A at, say, BoA, when the market is dry for M&A deals would actually be great preparation for when the M&A market booms again, regardless of whether one is on the banking or legal side.</p>
<p>I know this thread is old but I’m just curious about the logic that this thread was using. </p>
<p>Summer internships < sales position at Macy’s.
Internships = negligible edge in the LS admission process. </p>
<p>Am I missing something here? Law internships are extremely competitive, at least where I live (Bay Area). There are so many good schools around here (Berkeley, Stanford, UCSF, USF, Santa Clara) that it is almost impossible for a Community College student like me to get one, yet after two years I finally did. With my EC’s and GPA I could easily get any sales position in the area. </p>
<p>I think if a law firm or an attorney is willing to allow you to be an intern, that is saying you’re unique and worthy of his/ their time.</p>
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<p>What has that got to do with law school admissions? The internship will help you personally in that you will see what it is like to be a lawyer, but it doesn’t inform a law school as to what kind of student you will be.</p>