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Your ‘first steps’ checklist

updated on 29 August 2023

If you decide that a career as a lawyer is for you, there are a few things you should be doing even before you start university. Here’s a brief checklist to get you started:

  • Talk to your careers adviser at school to go through your options.
     
  • Research the different paths into law – university, chartered legal executive, paralegal, apprenticeship (read The Law Apprenticeships Guide) – and decide which is right for you.
     
  • Get some practical work experience at a law firm, barristers’ chambers or legal advice centre; it’ll help you to decide what suits you best and will also improve any applications you make later.
     
  • Work hard at your academic studies. Good grades are important.
     
  • Think about the kinds of extracurricular activities you can do, or have done, to make yourself into a well-rounded candidate. Think sport, volunteering, drama, music…
     
  • Sign up to LCN Weekly on LawCareers.Net. Our free weekly email newsletter delivers news and information about the profession, plus advice and calendar reminders, straight to your inbox.
     
  • Read the business pages of newspapers to improve your commercial awareness and get you starting to ‘think business’.

 

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