How much education, training, and experience do I need to be a lawyer/judge?
I am in High School in the 9th grade and I have 2 career choices, a teacher and a lawyer or judge. #lawyer #judge #magistrate
3 answers
Sumathi’s Answer
You need to have a good GPA in High school, at least 3.5 or above.
It is good to have debate clubs/experience in your extracurriculars.
College - you will take a humanities coursework mainly arts. I suggest political sciences or international relations because they require honing your debate skills and presentation skills. They also focus and build your reading and writing abilities, note taking efficiency, and socializing skills.
However, I know many who have taken a science or engineering background and acquired the same skill set. Take note, the STEM majors are usually more rigorous and mathematical in nature. You will have less free time to study for the LSAT in your junior and senior year of college. However, it can be done through planning ahead of time. You need good grades, again 3.5 or above is ideal.
Your LSAT will be taken your last year of college. Study hard, score high. Then, you will apply for law schools. The applications can be tedious but they are looking for applicants that can express themselves well on paper as well as in person.
During law school, you will intern with law companies to gain legal practice. Ideally, these internships will give you a place in the company later. Take these internships very seriously.
Good luck.
Teresa’s Answer
Hi!
I am a lawyer. I'd like to share with you how I became a lawyer. Law school requires critical thinking, analysis, and reading comprehension skills so I took courses in college that I believed would help me improve these skills. There are also some colleges that provide pre-law courses that can help you improve these skills. Law school admissions will look at primarily your LSAT scores, your undergraduate grades, and your extracurricular activities. I studied hard in college, served in leadership positions in various extracurricular activities, and prepared for the LSAT by enrolling in an LSAT prep course. When I was preparing my undergraduate and law school applications, I had several peers and mentors review and critique my applications.
Once you get into law school, you will find that it is different from undergraduate. Law schools generally have one exam per course which you will take at the end of the semester and the exam score will generally be your final grade for the entire course. So the exam is the most important aspect of each course. The law school exams are also different from undergraduate exams. For the typical law school exam, you will be expected to analyze several legal issues.
After law school, I prepared for the bar exam. I took a bar exam prep course and studied hard to prepare for it. The bar exam is slightly different from the typical law school exam so the bar prep course helped me properly prepare for it. Once you graduate from law school and pass the bar exam, you will get a bar license that will allow you to practice law.
Being a lawyer has been a rewarding experience for me and I love being able to help people. I hope this information is helpful to you! Good luck and study hard!