Eleven Alternative Paths You Can Take With Your Law Degree

When entering law school, many are led to believe that there is only one traditional path that can be taken upon graduating. Yet, many fail to recognize that a law degree is not just a piece of paper. A law degree is a representation of three years of transformation. Law school does not just teach you the law, it teaches you to think differently. The way that your brain thinks upon graduation is a tool that can be used to open many doors.

Below we discuss some of the awesome paths you can take upon graduating law school besides the traditional law firm path:

1. Entrepreneurship

A legal education allows your brain (if it wasn’t already) to be risk averse. You think about the potential things that COULD go wrong and learn how to take steps to not only prevent those issues from arising but also to protect yourself (or client) from those issues if they do arise. This skillset is essential when creating a business. An entrepreneur must plan for growth but also be able to handle setbacks and manage those setbacks in order to move forward.

As out-out-of-the-box, analytical problem solvers, lawyers and recent graduates have the potential to be incredible entrepreneurs. If you know from the outset that you want to be an entrepreneur, then going to law school is likely not the best next step to getting there, as the thousands of hours spent with your studies could be spent building the business and there is no need to take on the debt. However, if you are able to receive a scholarship and find yourself able to manage both your studies and building your company, then it could be extremely useful.

2. Academia

If you loved the doctrinal, theoretical, and teaching elements of law school, then academia could be a great path for you. This could be a great path for those who were a research assistant or teaching assistant and you loved completing those types of assignments. Not only will your legal education make you a potential candidate for a job at a law school but also at many undergraduate colleges.

Many undergraduate colleges have pre-law or dedicated legal courses where your knowledge, experience and skill set can help you stand out amongst other candidates. Teaching can be an incredible pathway to inspire future generations of lawyers.

3. Journalist or Content Writing

Many people go to law school with a strong writing skill set. Yet, law school makes you an even better writer by helping you hone in on persuasive writing. Journalism is an attractive profession from many law school graduates, as the same skills learned in school, such as research, outlining, and article writing, are required and utilized when writing.

Investigative journalism can serve as an extremely rewarding profession as well, as exploring, investigating, and ultimately, informing the public on a specific topic are the end goals of this sector.

Further, many law school graduates can find successful paths being a content writer. Many law firms, legal journals, and businesses alike all search the Internet for advice and content on legal and non-legal topics. Law school graduates, again, have the required writing skills to be able to assist anyone who wants high quality content to post on their blogs, websites, or newsletters.

4. Policy Advisor

Understanding which policies should be in effect requires a strong fundamental background of the statutes, regulations, and policies that were created in the past and currently exist. Going to law school not only provides you with a full understanding of the laws and regulations that created this country, but also provides you with the tools to understand how our government functions and potential ripple effects of decision-making policies by governing bodies.

This familiarity with the law is vital for policymakers seeking advice. You can also use your research, analytical and writing skills to help convey this information for the policymakers.

5. Mediator

Alternative dispute resolution measures are an incredible resource that help so many rather than having to go through litigation. Often, legal disputes can be resolved through mediation. If you were fond of the notion of avoiding litigation and resolving disputes outside of the court, a mediation position could be great for you.

A mediator must understand not only the law but also humans in general. Helping adverse parties find a happy middle-ground is an essential role to play.

6. Coach

Many former lawyers are now coaches for lawyers themselves. This could be an extremely rewarding career path, as these types of coaches know what it was like to be in the positions of the “coachees” and can provide invaluable advice for them to make decisions to move forward.

7. Compliance Specialist

As mentioned earlier, going to law school allows your brain to be wired to analyze and mitigate risk. A compliance specialist is an incredibly necessary tool for most companies to ensure that they are complying with all policies, regulations, laws and standards. A compliance specialist understands the implications of each role of a business and the requirements for such roles and law school allows you to have the necessary eye for detail for this role.

8. Legal Marketing

One thing that is essential for all firms is marketing. In order to gain more clients, get leads to potential cases, close on potential clients, and have an ongoing flow of work, the marketing of that firm is key. Having a legal education, being within the legal world and understanding the way the legal mind words is essential to marketing. While going to law school is not essential for this role, it is definitely useful and a viable alternative career path.

9. Entertainment or Sports Agent

Many people are passionate about sports or entertainment and begin their careers as entertainment lawyers. However, another route that can be taken is being a talent agent. With a law degree (and after passing the bar), you would be able to offer your clients an extra resource, being able to authenticate, authorize, analyze, or certify legal documentation. You also will have a greater in-depth knowledge as to how the contracts work, what is involved in negotiating the contracts, and what specific legal jargon means in those contracts to better protect and advocate for your client.

Many talent and sports agents are lawyers or were formerly practicing lawyers. Reach out to lawyers turned agents to find out more about how they made the jump.

10. Lobbying

A common reason people go to law school is to be able to be an advocate or voice for others. Being a lobbyist, especially in government relations, is an incredible alternative to practicing law. You are able to advocate for legislation and the legislative process for causes you believe in and can use the skills you’ve learned throughout law school to do so.

11. Consulting

Completing law school is no easy feat. It demonstrates that you have the work ethic and drive to be able to understand the complexities of systems. While you might not start out having the exact skills required to be a management consultant or a general business consultant, just having your law degree shows that you are capable of learning.

Being known as smart and capable can take you far, however, it is up to you to learn about the specific type of consultant you would want to be, network and learn about the potential roles that could be a good fit, and go for it!

One of the reasons gigLAW was created was to help law students understand the type of work for various types of law firms and businesses to be able to confidently decide where they want to go with their career. On the other side, gigLAW allows for firms and businesses to hone in on what they actually want to do and the work they want to complete by handing our students assignments they want taken off their plates.

At the end of the day, no matter how you use your law degree, the most important thing is that you are happy and excited every morning when you wake up and get to work.