Freshers take note
So, you’ve made it to law school. Congrats. You’re one step closer to realising your lawyer dreams — whether they’re hopes of making big bucks as a City solicitor, defending clients as a wig-wearing barrister or simply wanting to hear the ‘oooh’ noise when it’s revealed how you earn a crust.
But before you get there, young fresher, prepare to wade through at least three years of undergraduate drudgery.
To ease you into student life, Legal Cheek has summarised the life of a law fresher — with a little help from aspiring lawyer and social media superstar, Kim Kardashian.
‘So you’re saying I have to read all of this?’
Don’t be fooled by words like ‘suggested’, ‘recommended’ or ‘further’ on your reading list. They all mean one thing in lecturer speak: read me or expect a 2:2.
Spending your entire student loan on textbooks
Your lecturers are still sticking to good ol’ fashioned textbooks — the kind that not even the library has enough of. Get ready to fork out a fortune unless you want to fall behind.
Expect the occasional all nighter
It’s 2am and you have a land law lecture first thing, but your law society wants to keep the social going. A committee member recommends simply pulling an all-nighter — no sleep? How preposterous!
The dreaded 9am lecture
And if you’re living the all-nighter life, don’t expect to make it to your 9am lectures — awake that is.
We do get our own library, though
Like an academic kingdom built exclusively for law students, relish your degree for it will bring you years of feeling elite over the university masses. It’s okay, you can say it: law is the hardest, but most rewarding degree than any other ever to have existed.
Which is great until you find a non-law student taking up your desks and precious plug sockets endowed to you by your elite degree. Get away, this law student needs to study!
Awkward networking
You’re only halfway through your first networking sesh and you’re already struggling. Better run through your checklist: Dressed to impress? Check. Firm handshake? Double-check. Follow up question? Trible-check. Paying attention to what the person is actually saying so that you have something to add once they finish their sentence? S**t!
Leaving tasks to the very last minute
Your seemingly endless supply of weekends and reading weeks have run dry and you’re faced with the modern dilemma: can I write a criminal law essay, revise for my end of year contract law exam and apply for vac scheme applications all before the caffeine wears off?
Reading R v Brown for the first time
‘They did what????’ is exactly the response you should expect after reading this well-know piece of case law. The famous 1993 House of Lords’ decision concerning actual bodily harm inflicted during consensual sadomasochist activities will stay with you forever. FOREVER!
‘Why can’t I stop crying?’
It will all be over before you know it. Whatever your final first year grades, you can look back in relief, maybe even with pride. But, you’ll probably just cry. Get used to those tears, there’s two more years of those to come.
