Favorite Parts of Working in the Legal Industry As a Law Student
Isabel, a Stanford Law student, most enjoys the legal field's versatility, stating, "there's just so much you can do with it," from nonprofit work to high-paying law firms, while also appreciating the "superpower" of a legal degree, enabling its holder to readily assist others in need, as seen in the aftermath of the Uvalde school shooting.
Career Exploration, Job Search, Career Development, Nonprofit, Public Service
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Isabel Mendiola
Law Student
Stanford Law School
Claremont McKenna College 2018
Stanford Law School (JD Forthcoming)
Psychology
Law
Legal
Honors Student, Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. The broad range of career paths available with a law degree, including nonprofit work, civil rights advocacy, and high-paying firm positions.
2. The ability to use legal skills and knowledge to help others, regardless of the specific career path chosen.
3. The feeling of empowerment and having a "superpower" to assist those in need, as demonstrated by lawyers providing pro bono services after the Uvalde school shooting
Transcript
What do you enjoy most about being in your industry?
I think the thing I enjoy most about being in the legal field is that there's so much you can do with it. I'm someone who doesn't really know what path I want to take for my career. Being able to see that I can use these skills and this degree to fight for people's civil rights or for my students' rights, or to go the nonprofit route, is amazing.
Or, if I needed to take care of my parents, I could also go the route of working for a law firm and making a good salary to support my family. That's something I feel so thankful for. It's rare to find a profession where you have all those options.
The other thing is, no matter what you do with your legal degree, you always have it. It almost feels like a superpower you can use to help people. I think about the families affected by the Uvalde school shooting in Texas.
I know a lot of local lawyers volunteered their legal services to those families for free. They were lawyers who worked at law firms, for the government, for nonprofits – whatever they did, they were able to use their degree and their legal skills to help where they saw a need. I'm really excited to have that superpower for the rest of my career.