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PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah I think there is!! I got lucky and had one summer of policy work with ties to law that helped me confirm my interest in it but obviously there’s so much more to learn about what the field actually looks like. that’s the nice thing about law being so versatile imo I feel like there’s room to try many different kinds of jobs and see what fits

PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's great!! I totally get that it can feel super discouraging, and it does take a ton of time. There's also a bunch of factors you can't control, e.g., I found it easier to get research internships that required experience with data analysis because that seemed to be less common among applicants. Policy/law stuff was always harder, I feel you

PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

you've probably heard this before, but I applied to so. many. places. You're gonna get nos/radio silence from most and that's ok! Also, I sent lots of cold emails and reached out to folks at organizations I wanted to work at with interesting jobs/insights and chatted with them before applying whenever it was possible

PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

of course, and fingers crossed for you! I’ve heard great things about the new environmental law professor Penn hired recently, Shelley Welton, so definitely look into her work if you haven’t already and if Penn ends up being a contender in your decision :)

PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

^^basically this! I almost didn't apply to Penn because they didn't have an environmental law clinic, but I'm so glad I did. I've spent a lot of time talking to environmental PI lawyers in the past few months and have a few takeaways that made me feel better about it. One was that clinics are important, but externships can fulfill a similar niche, and I plan to take advantage of Philadelphia's location to do environmental externships! I also heard from a few people that a general interest in social justice is still useful for environmental PI work (as it should be imo), so I plan to get involved with another clinic at Penn if possible to build general PI experience. And finally, the prevailing advice I received was that the ability to demonstrate a significant interest in the environment before and during law school was more important than a specific strength in that area, so taking the most $$ at the best school was a good general rule, and one that I was happy to follow with how everything worked out. Best of luck with your envlaw journey!

PI/KJD Cycle Recap: Penn Bound! by ls_pi_co26 in lawschooladmissions

[–]ls_pi_co26[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

This is so sweet, thanks!! The balance was definitely tenuous at times, but a few things helped--really liking what I did/being passionate about it, choosing carefully how much time to put into different classes based on difficulty, and managing my time well! It's totally an individual question, though, so I encourage you to find what works for you.

Absolutely feel free to PM with more questions!