The Pros and Cons of the Gap Year

Many law school hopefuls understand all the steps needed to get into law school when their undergraduate years are coming to a close. Some of these students know exactly what they want to do and take all the necessary steps to ensure the best chance for themselves to pursue their law degrees right after they finish college. However, more and more students in recent trends are not experiencing this same process and are faced with tougher decisions. Many pre-law students have been taking a year or more off between the time they graduate and the time they enter law school, a concept known as a gap year. Why do people do this? Here are the pros and cons for taking gap years before entering law school:

Pros:

1. Find your passion and direction- Taking a gap year gives the opportunity for students to delve into the legal field and discover if law is right for them. Law school is a large investment and time commitment, so before students admit into them they should be totally aware that this is truly what they want to do. These gap years give time for students to gain experiential learning in other fields outside of the law to discover passions for specific careers and jobs.

2. Gain experience- Students who are set on pursuing law still can benefit from taking a gap year. Gap years provide these students to seek out opportunities in working at firms as assistants or paralegals. These opportunities can teach you about the inner workings of firms and also have you better prepared to practice legal procedures in law school classes compared to other students.

3. Have extra time for a better application- Gap years give students time to sure up their applications and take time to make sure every requirement is met. Students can retake the LSAT and have more time to study without the stress of schoolwork.

4. Get some rest- Undergraduate education requires a lot of diligence and can be very tiresome for many students. Students are often overworked and could use a break in order refresh their minds for another tough three year journey through law school.

Cons:

1. Delaying your career- Taking a gap year means being a lawyer one year later. Some people are not in positions to waste a year due to possible living expenses or debts. Hence, students taking gap years must be really careful and make sure they are doing something productive during the time off, in order to make up for the lost time.

2. Lose focus- A year without school can cause students to be out of practice when it comes to being mentally and physically prepared to the tasks of students. It may be hard for some people to transition back into being a student and managing studying and writing papers as well as they did in their undergraduate years.

Taking a gap year is becoming more and more common for J.D. hopefuls and can serve as a beneficial option for some students. These situations apply case by case as personal circumstances facilitate whether or not a person is inclined to take a gap year. The important thing is to know you have the option of taking a gap year before entering law school, so it can give you some time to set a plan and make sure you know what you are getting into.

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