Government (Law IE Pre-Grad Intern) Junior Gabriel Sepulveda
Throughout someone's college career there are many decisions that
must be
made, like majors, minors, and future plans. Unfortunately none of
these
decisions are ever easy and some students are left with perplexing
dilemmas. In order to best facilitate such difficult choices there
are
steps students can take to help guide them to hopefully the right
decisions. In all the tools available to students nothing can compare
to
this internship. The benefits of this internship can not be understated.
One of the hardest aspects of studying to become a professional in school is the decision of which path to take. In the realm of crucial decisions this one is in the upper echelon. How is someone supposed to decide something with usually nothing more than fleeting aspirations spurred by childhood dreams or wild passions? It could lead to a multitude of stress and even some lost time and money. It is far from uncommon for a large number of undergrad students to change their major once if not multiple times. I personally have changed my major once and it has lost me some time that I unfortunately can never get back. The only way to really know if you will truly like something is to experience it first hand. I had to take a few psychology classes to learn I would rather not make a major out of it. Although psychology is a subject that I still find interesting, it took exposure for me to realize that it was just that, an interest. I could not fathom making the same mistake on a higher level. My dream to be a lawyer is quite a bit stronger than my interest in psychology but how can anyone be certain?
This is why I am happy I had to the opportunity to be a part of something so unique and beneficial. The idea of having a program like this is a great innovation in the tools students have to make the right choices in such a pivotal time in a person's life. A career is something that requires a great deal of consideration, preparation, and research. In order to fully understand what if is you want to do after your undergrad is complete, a first hand look is the absolute best way to know as much as you can about Grad school short of a recent graduate of law school thinking in retrospect. Without some sort of internship like this students have to rely on the information from recruiters, websites, rumors, and if they are lucky some, some surface scraping advice from someone who knows.
When I first heard about this opportunity, I was immediately excited. If I only knew just how much it would exceed my expectations. It was all a fulfilling experience led by my mentor Toni Anderson. I could not have asked for a better mentor. She did a sensational job helping me understand the inter-workings of law school here at Texas. I was fortunate to have her because she was very active in school. It seemed that she knew everyone she passed as well as having the respect of the Professors. Every question I had she was able to answer to great detail. So having a good mentor was a great situation for me to help form so real ideas about law school.
My prefabricated impressions of Law school weren't too far from reality but through this internship I was able to obtain a look into the actual environment of Graduate school. It also helps if you have a good mentor to give you insight to the real culture of Law school. I had the pleasure of attending a class regularly with my mentor all semester long. I enjoyed sitting through an actual Law class at such a high level. Before this internship my only exposure to some sort of legal material was in my Business Law class.
Agency and LLP Partnership at the Law school: So it helped me understand what was going on. It was helpful to see the everyday procedure of a law class. I was glad to see that no one was sent out of class for failure to answer the professor's questions. However, there is a significant amount of student participation expected in class. Although, the expectations of a class like this is higher it doesn't change students' reluctance to speak up. Sitting through, what I swore was five minutes of awkward silence after a proposed question make me realize that fact. All together through, I thought this class was fantastic. It was good to see that even though I was listening in on, what I hear is not one of the most interesting subjects, I still maintained a fierce interest in the material. This portion of the internship was great at asserting my desire to master this field of knowledge. The chance to experience an in-depth class on one aspect of the law was second to none. I was able to reaffirm my passion of pursuing law school. In the absence of this internship I wouldn't be able to do something as legitimate as this until I was actually in Law school and if it turns out then that none of this material strikes my fancy I would be at a loss.
Before, this semester I thought that I would like to practice Corporate Law, but all I knew prior to this class about Corporate Law was that it was the legal application in the corporate world. Pulling vague descriptions from titles is one thing; the ability to actually learn its intricacies is another. I now have reassurance that I could do corporate law. The possibility that I could possibly find something else that intrigues me even more is out there. Which excites me even more about Graduate School. With all doubts about my interest of increasing my aptitude in law squashed, I now feel a great deal more comfortable about this very important decision. Sitting in class with my mentor was not the only thing about this internship that I got to exploit. My requirement to interview a professional in the law field turned out to be one of the most memorable and impacting conversations have had with any individual. I had the opportunity to interview Professor Jay Westbrook. Who teaches some of the most challenging classes at eh University of Texas Law School. It is rare that I remember every minute of dialogue I have with another person but I sincerely remember every second I had with Professor Westbrook. His tremendous credentials as both a lawyer and a professor gave him the perfect background to answer all the questions I could have possibly had. Not to mention he was one of the smartest people I have ever had to pleasure of meeting.
One thing Professor Westbrook opened my eyes up to was the thought of eventually become a law professor myself. I before hand had never consider teaching after becoming a lawyer, however his depiction of what he does, why he does it, and how he became to be, really got me thinking that this could be something I could see myself doing. I was especially drawn by the chance to do research on a constant basis and if I am lucky I could possibly turn out highly respected publications like Professor Westbrook. The thought of producing work that other people would read and discuss aroused my interest. Through this internship I was also able to attend outside the classroom law school events as well. One such event was a TMLS (Thurgood Marshall Legal Society meeting with my mentor: It was great to see such organizations in action. I was lucky to sit in while they were having a panel discussion with two corporate lawyers. The lawyers both gave quick presentations about their careers, followed by some Q&A from the members. It was great information. Not only were they both corporate lawyers but the members asked some great questions as well. I got a real perspective of what it is like to be the type of lawyer I want to be.
This internship has provided so much for me. It truly helped me solidify my interest in a career in law and more specifically my desire to be a corporate lawyer. I do not know how I could have amassed this wealth of knowledge about Grad school without this internship. This program is a great idea that I feel gives students everything they could possibly need to know about pursuing higher learning. I would recommend that anyone that has the opportunity to participate in this internship should seize that chance immediately. It is probably one of the wisest things I have done at UT to prepare me to further my education.