The Perks Of A Student Mentor
For those who have already graduated from law school, imagine yourself on your first day of law school. Remember the nervousness, trepidation, and feeling of utter cluelessness. Then, imagine yourself in your last year of law school, cool, calm, ready to take on the world as an attorney-advocate. Well, almost. Imagine if, as a first-year law student, you had the older, more experienced you as a mentor to answer questions, clarify legal concepts, and just tell you where to get a good pizza in town.
There are many perks of having a student mentor whose studies are advanced beyond yours. There are more than a few occasions during law school that you just need to talk to and confide in a friend. The California Desert Trial Academy (CDTA) builds, fosters, and promotes a learning environment where a legal education is not a competitive exercise but a collaborative one.
A student mentor has been there before and walked in the shoes of his or her apprentice. After attending your initial classes on the first day of law school, a truly monumental day in any lawyer and law student’s life, a law school newbie has an abundance of thoughts, questions, concerns, and fears. Who better to trust at this moment than someone who has already seen the scenario play itself out.
A good student mentor should minimally be an informal tutor and provide help when a protégé has difficulty with a certain case, legal concept, or statute. How reassuring is it to know that after attending a particularly difficult contracts class that your student mentor has a good understanding of promissory estoppel.
Another positive aspect of having a student mentor is that he or she is likely more available than an attorney mentor, professor, or teacher’s assistant. A student mentor may reside in the same dorm or a nearby off-campus living complex. An apprentice may be able to reach a student mentor by phone at almost any time of day, contrary to when other mentors are available.
Ensuring that a student mentor is comfortable with being a student mentor is important. After all, the student-mentor is still in the middle of and about to complete his or her studies – a very important time in the career of a young lawyer.
Of course, a student mentor is not a substitute for a mentor who is already practicing law. And when it comes to clarifying legal concepts, the professor teaching the subject area that contains the problematic legal topic is any student’s best alternative. But when you need someone in any formal or informal circumstance, i.e. a pinch, who better to seek out for guidance than a student mentor.
The California Desert Trial Academy focuses on providing an academic experience that emphasizes a practical approach to becoming a lawyer. We believe this is the most efficient and expedient pathway to a successful and rewarding legal career. At CDTA, we train, educate, and develop students to be exceptional attorneys and trial advocates. Call us today at (760) 342-0900 or find out more online here.