Law school is the perfect time to try out as many different practice areas as possible. But keep in mind: the legal experiences that you pursue will shape your resume, impact your references, and ultimately determine which doors may be open to you upon graduation.
As such, if you know that you want to pursue a career in civil rights, you should be taking steps to position yourself for it while you’re still in law school. There are many ways to go about this, but here are my primary pieces of advice.
Join Civil Rights-Oriented Organizations
As a 1L, you almost positively won’t have an opportunity to get involved in any hands-on clinicals at your law school. Most schools wants 1L’s focused on learning the fundamentals that make up the first year curriculum, and clinicals are usually only available to 2L’s and 3L’s. In those circumstances, what you can do is join the law school organizations that really speak to you and that have an association with civil rights.
For example, at HLS there are organizations ranging from Alliance for Reproductive Justice to Child & Youth Advocates to Environmental Law Society to Lambda. The list goes on and on. The best part is, as a 1L without clinicals, you have time to attend multiple meetings or events of a variety of groups you find interesting. From there, you can choose one or two to join and become more actively involved in, the ones that really spark your passion.
It’s important not to join too many groups. If you do, you may only have a surface role in each one. And that would interfere with your ability to use the experience to develop connections with similarly-minded classmates as well as with the speakers you bring to campus.
Personally, I am also skeptical of a resume that appears to suggest a student has done more than what is possible with the amount of time you have. If you have six organizations prominently displayed on your resume, I tend to think you are either exaggerating your role in each group, that you joined each group just to later list them on your resume, or that you did not take the academic portion of law school seriously. Or a combination of the three.
Selecting a few groups that you are passionate about and within which you can take on leadership roles will be far more beneficial than not having a strong role in any organization you join. You will become associated with the cause of the groups you are involved in, and that can help open many doors as you begin to pursue a career outside of law school.
Apply for Internships and Externships in Civil Rights
The next piece of advice I have is probably pretty obvious: choose internships and externships focused on civil rights. That means looking for positions at non-profits (the most well known being the ACLU), private civil rights firms, and certain government agencies like the EEOC or the consumer protection branch of your state AG’s office. As noted in previous articles, I also include the public defender’s office as a form of civil rights law, even though it’s in the criminal sector.
Of course, many other internships can be helpful to your growth, even internships at big law firms or government positions that are not seen as being in line with civil rights (prosecutors’ offices, many divisions of the AG’s office, etc). I’ve met many people – myself included – who have learned what they did not want to pursue through these positions.
That said, I would caution that what is on your resume can have a direct impact on whether you can achieve your goal of obtaining a civil rights job out of law school.
When all we (civil rights employers) have to look at is a resume with the limited number of experiences you can achieve in law school (a couple of clinicals/externships and two summer positions), you are now competing with all of those students whose interest in civil rights almost leaps off the page.
Of course, it can be done even if you take a non-civil-rights position. For example, I split my 2L summer between a firm and a non-profit. That way I could always explain to potential employers that I was so interested in civil rights law I worked a 14-week instead of a 10-week summer so I could experience both externsihps.
And I know many people who have entered civil rights even after going to a firm their second summer without splitting. It certainly won’t close a door forever. However, it can make the job search process a bit more difficult, so make sure you know how to explain how those positions have been helpful to your future career in civil rights.
Start Networking with Civil Rights Attorneys During Law School
You should also never waste a moment in law school being too shy to network. I wasted ALL of law school far too shy to network, and as you all know, I ended up in my dream job through many happy accidents instead of strategic planning. I don’t recommend the model.
Instead, you should start getting to know civil rights attorneys in your community as soon as possible. Especially if you plan to stay in the state after you graduate or if you are open to working in that market upon graduation, even if not forever.
The best way to meet civil rights attorneys in your community is to join the associations and bar sections they are part of.
I will admit, I had no idea what “bars” – meaning the local bar associations – were until long after I graduated from law school and entered the private sector. Even then, I was so confused by the concept.
But it’s pretty simple: every state (as far as I am aware) has a bar association. Some require you to join, whereas others (ex: Colorado) do not have mandatory membership. Whether you are required or not, the state bar association includes in its membership the vast majority if not all practicing attorneys in the state.
From there, the state bar association will likely have many sub-groups and committees that specialize in different practice areas, such as real estate, disability and elder law, labor and employment, and civil rights. Join the civil rights section/committee if there is one.
Beyond the state bar association, there are usually smaller bar associations connected to its members either by location (ex: Denver Bar Association) or by interest area (ex: Women’s Bar Association, LGBT Bar Association, South Asian Bar Association).
Join the ones that interest you, even if they are not purely civil rights organizations. It would be surprising if any of these groups somehow did not include representation from the civil rights bar, and becoming an active student member of these associations is a fantastic way to become known in the legal community before you even graduate.
This type of networking is precisely what will propel you at the start of your career when you are competing for a limited number of civil rights positions with other similarly-minded graduates. Plus, it will also help you learn more about the various types of civil rights legal positions, the reputations of the local non-profits and private civil rights firms, and the job opportunities that may be available when you graduate.
Develop a Relationship with a Mentor Who Supports Your Goals
Mentors are key to your success. Instrumental, really.
As I would describe it, mentors are people with experiences greater than your own who truly care about your success and are willing to give you deep and honest advice when you ask for it.
As a friend illuminated for me recently, you can and should have different mentors for different parts of your life, as opposed to expecting each and every one to be a mentor for each and every experience you may encounter. For example, you can have a career mentor as well as a personal life/relationship mentor, and even a different mentor to help you if and when you decide to start a family. The list goes on and on, and of course you are not limited to one mentor in each area.
With respect to pursuing a career in civil rights, look for a mentor (or mentors) through genuine connection. It may be that you find a professor at the law school, an internship supervisor, or an attorney you met organically – or any combination of the three – who you really connect with. Develop that relationship and then turn to that person when you truly need advice. Listen to them and let them help guide you.
When it comes to mentors, do not seek out relationships based on what you think you can get from them. Do not look for people based solely on their position or prestige in the community. Your interest will come across as transactional.
Find people who are respected in the community, of course, but who you truly connect with. Mentorship is a two-way street, and if you don’t really connect with someone, they won’t become your champion. It is also likely they will not give you the best advice since your lack of connection will make the advice more generic and less personal.
I am lucky to say I have many amazing mentors in my life. People I go to when I am in need of specific advice and who steer me in the right direction because they truly care about my happiness and success.
You will not meet every future mentor of yours while you’re in law school. But you can certainly forge a connection with at least one person, if not two. And you should.
Because those are the people who will fight for and champion you as you head into the job market. And they are the people who will support and guide you when you make your first big mistake at work. They are the people who will have your back through it all.