Hi everyone! Heading off to college in a matter of weeks and I would sincerely appreciate words of guidance. Not per se on the college experience but guiding lights as I come of age. :) I would love to hear what you now wish to have known beforehand. In other words— what’s the best life advice you have received or gleaned? For a bit of context, I am 17, female, and will be pursuing law as a profession. Thank you immensely, in advance.

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Be careful of vice. Learn your character defects early.

Sincerely,

A now-sober, now-Christian former frat boy turned alcoholic/degenerate. It’s easier to make healthy habits to start than unlearn bad ones once they’ve become a problem.

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Well noted! ✍️
I love this C1, thank you and God bless! ☺️

1) Try to live a life without regret. Normally this will come from wondering “what if”, so when faced with the opportunity to do something, try something, or go somewhere, take the chance, especially if there’s a way to “undo” or come back from it. Try that study abroad, kiss that boy, say yes to that scary but exciting opportunity.

2) Do things scared, especially public speaking.

3) Always keep your name, money and the ability to walk away. (And before people get snide about this, I’ve been with my childhood sweetheart for 24 years, married 13 years. We choose each other every day)

4) if you do go into law, remember that your reputation is really the only thing you have to sell. Don’t let anyone pressure you into doing anything that you’re not comfortable with or unethical, ever. It is never worth it.

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This is incredible, thank you so much for taking the time! Humorously enough I’m heading to London for undergrad so the first point really echoes my current position. :)
I will bear these gems in mind P1!!

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Major in something employable in case law does not work out.

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Yes, surely — currently planning to get a masters in economics before law school because I fell equally in love with the subject!! 😅 Thank you very much A4!

Grades matter. What you do now can be the difference between a full ride to law school and a $1500/month student loan payment for 20 years.

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Got it! Thank you so much.

Work hard but don’t forget to have fun and appreciate this time in your life. Everything tends to work itself out in the end.

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Well noted. Thank you so much! :)

Wish someone had told me to explore other career paths first in the first few years before deciding to go instead of just doing things that would pigeonhole me on this path

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Ahh I see A2, I am undertaking an incredibly interdisciplinary major for undergrad so hopefully that would open my mind a bit more before I have to make a set commitment to any given professional path.

I would say though— and this might be my naivety speaking— but it’s never truly too late to explore other career paths. Everyday above ground is a chance to change something if you’re not perfectly content where you are. The grass is greener where you water it, but if you feel pigeon-holed you might be watering a cactus or any other drought-tolerant plant for imagery sake. 😅

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Choose your friends wisely! Friends can make you or break you.

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Noted! Thank you :))

If you want to be a lawyer, work in a law office before going to law school so you know for sure that it’s what you want to do. Being a lawyer is nothing like what you see on TV, so you want to make sure it’s the career for you before spending the time, money, and energy on law school. Also, don’t go into a huge amount of debt to get your law degree. Go to a good state school or if you want to a private school, make sure you have scholarships lined up. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter where you got your degree, you’ll still have a good career.

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I see I see, thank you very much A5! I have been looking into internships at law firms/in legal departments of various firms but unfortunately my lack of experience has been a barrier— I will keep shooting for further exposure in the years before law school. My goal, really, is to get through Ba-J.d. debt-free so scholarships are definitely a consideration, and inquiring early on is essential—hence this post. :) I appreciate you taking the time! Thank you again!! ☺️

Main advice: Don’t take advice from wackos on the internet.

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😅😂…Thank you P2!

Don't do law thank me later

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LOL! Thank you! 😂

College was such a good experience. I couldn’t tell you very much I learned in classes that I use in my daily life, but it was fun to be an adult without all the bills. lol. Take the weird fun class—art history of the guilded age or basic plant biology… anything interesting to you.

Study abroad if you can—my time in London was so amazing. I have started doing summer road trips 3 years ago (I’m almost 20 years post college graduation but I SWEAR! I’m still a young person lol) and these are comparable to that amazing time (Though obviously with more obligations and less fun time lol)

Do ANY job between college and law school for a year or two. I feel like I missed out socially on having a silly entry level job I barely cared about in my twenties since
I went straight through and then started BigLaw.

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Aww, I love this so much!! I mentioned in another reply that I’d be heading to London for undergrad so it’s great to see you mention that aswell. 😎
Thank you for taking the time to capture these reflections, I’ll certainly bear them all in mind. :))

1. Know yourself and don’t let other people’s opinions of you define you. 2. Never take anything at face value 3. Make friends and have fun- my group of Univeristy friends are incredibly influential people today, and everyone work together. You will naturally gravitate towards those that are the most similar to you value-wise, lifestyle-wise, goals-wise. These people are your future network, discard those that are unreliable early on and stick to the loyal, decent, hard working people, you will get far together. 4. Be passionate because that will keep you curious and will make you stand out sooner or later. 5. Stand out in the way that works best for you.

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Just a point of clarification about advise 5: Find something in which you can be outstanding- no need to be the best, just be noticeable. It can be politics, a field of law (international, economic, human rights, constitutional, etc), a specific language or region. The only way to find out what’s your ‘thing’ is by trial and error. Remember you can always pivot into something else if your initial election end up not being of your liking.

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Watch your debt and be wary of golden handcuffs in post grad careers.

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P1- 100% agree. Hence the warning to OP.

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Don’t take hard classes, don’t double major or anything stupid like that? just get a marketable degree (in case you cool on the law school idea) and get the highest GPA possible. Also have fun. Best four years of my life

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Lol on the double major bit— and thank you very much!! In view of this comment, and a number of others, I will certainly guard my gpa jealously. 😅

Work at a law firm before going to law school! So many people I know did this and the majority of them realized it wasn’t for them. Better to do that than go to law school, spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and realize it’s not for you.

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Wellll noted! Thank you so much. :)))

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