So you got into law school, and you are freaking out about what happens next. Entering law school is extremely intimidating as it is a big learning curve from most students’ previous academic experiences and going into the unknown can be scary. You may be wondering how you should spend your summer before starting law school and what you can do to prepare for the journey ahead. In this post, I will give a few suggestions and tips on how to best spend your summer before 1L to hopefully ease some of this stress.
RELAX!!!
The number one piece of advice I would give to my former self spending the summer before 1L stressing about the semester ahead would be to relax. You just completed a huge accomplishment by getting into law school that was likely a very busy and stressful time and you should spend time celebrating that accomplishment! More importantly, law school is tiring and stressful regardless of how prepared you are. There is much less time in law school to relax and take time for yourself so you should ensure you enjoy your time off and take advantage of it as much as you can. Enjoy the time that you have to relax and unwind before the business of 1L starts to take over. However, if you are keen to do something during the summer to ease your worries about starting law school, I will give some more serious recommendations below.
Keep up with your Basic Skills
If you want to do something to prepare for the workload in law school, keeping up with and fine-tuning your fundamental skills can be extremely useful. This can include keeping up with your basic reading, writing, and analytical skills. Do not feel that you need to do this in a way that is related to the law. Try to make this process more enjoyable by reading books you are interested in or writing on a topic you are passionate about. It is generally not recommended that you try to read and learn about legal concepts prior to reaching law school because every school and every professor has a very different approach to how they want you to think about a concept, so coming in with preconceived ideas can lead to confusion. However, if you are really interested, you can try to look up any random case and give it a read. It is helpful to become familiar with how judgements are written and organized as you will be reading a lot of cases in law school.
Network
One of the most helpful resources I utilized in surviving my 1L journey was the network of peers I developed who supported me along the way. Networking is very important in the legal community and can help you throughout your education and career in many ways. However, getting started with networking can be scary and intimidating. I believe the best and most important place to start is with your peers. Most law schools will create a Facebook page or some other platform where students entering 1L can connect and get to know each other. I would highly recommend reaching out to as many people as you can and trying to develop some friendships with others in your class. Developing relationships with your peers is extremely important because they will be the ones supporting and helping you in your classes. These relationships are extremely valuable not only to get you through law school but also for your future career as these individuals will be your future colleagues. The friendships I developed before and during 1L were extremely helpful in providing a support network when I needed notes for classes that I missed or did not understand a concept or simply needed to talk to someone about what I was going through. Networking could also include reaching out to upper year law students from your school and asking about their advice and experience.
Students who recently went through what you are about to experience can provide extremely helpful insights and tips on how to navigate first year. A great way to find students to reach out to is on Linkedin by searching up your school’s name. Don’t be afraid to reach out to students because they were in your shoes a very short time ago and are most likely very happy to help. Another great resource is the Legally Bright mentorship program. You can sign up for this program through the website and get paired with another student from your school who is there to help you with any questions you may have.
Maintain Health Habits
As you start 1L, it can be extremely easy to get caught up in all of the work you need to do and to let go of some of the important healthy habits that you have used in the past. Developing these habits throughout the summer and planning how you will maintain them during the school year can be extremely helpful. This can be something as basic as your cooking and cleaning schedule. Utilizing the summer to try different methods such as meal prepping or using meal delivery kits can be helpful to find out what works best for you prior to the school year. This could also include making a schedule for yourself and planning when you will take time off of school, when you will cook, when you will work out or do other physical activity, etc. It is very easy to prioritize school over all else, however, taking care of yourself is extremely important and learning how to balance all of these priorities can be one of the most challenging parts of 1L.
Overall, there is no one thing you must do to prepare yourself for law school. The truth is that everyone enters law school a little bit afraid and not knowing what to expect. Remember that all of your peers are likely feeling the same way that you are and that you will all be learning and figuring it out together.
Author
Daniela Hartmann
J.D Candidate (2025)
Osgoode Hall Law School