Working as a lawyer can be a rewarding career. Whether you want to represent clients in court, handle real estate transactions, help people deal with challenging situations like bankruptcy or divorce, or go after criminals, there are a lot of different paths that you can take.
The section below provides an overview of the primary steps needed to become a lawyer:
Step #1 – Get A Bachelor’s Degree. Before you apply to law school, you need to have a bachelor’s degree. Your degree can be in any field regardless of whether or not it is related to the law. Typically, however, it is best to focus on an area of study that helps you refine your written and verbal communication skills or that allows you to hone your ability to conduct research.
Step #2 – Pass The Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). This standardized test is designed to evaluate applicants based on their ability to think critically, reason, and comprehend what they are reading. Schools usually evaluate applicants based on both their college GPA and their LSAT scores when deciding whether or not to admit them.
Step #3 – Earn Your Law Degree. Once you pass the test and are admitted into law school, you then can begin working toward obtaining your law degree. Typically, law school takes three years to complete. During that time, you will usually study a variety of different aspects of the law. You can also take specialized courses that focus on the areas of the law that you are most interested in.
Step #4 – Pass The Bar Exam. After you graduate from law school, the next step is to pass the bar exam for the state where you want to practice law. The exam typically takes two days to complete. One portion of the exam includes multiple-choice questions, while another portion includes essay questions. Assuming you pass the bar exam, you can then begin practicing law in that state. If you want to practice law in more than one state, you will need to take exams for each state.
This overview highlights the primary steps needed to become a lawyer. The process begins by earning a bachelor’s degree. From there, you need to pass the LSAT test and apply to law school. Once you are accepted into law school, you can then pursue your law degree. After obtaining your degree, the final step is to pass the bar exam in the state where you want to work as a lawyer.