Prioritising law degree vs. work

[gie]

Hi everyone! Brand new member here hoping to get some advice.
So I'm in my first year of undergrad law, having transferred after doing Arts for a year. I also recently became possibly the luckiest law student in the world and got a job working with the in-house legal team of a pretty big company (I swear I'm not just bragging, this is going somewhere!!). My main job is just scanning stuff, but I also help out the paralegal with a lot of her work and the general counsel has talked about eventually training me up to be able to work as a paralegal.
I'm so aware that this is an absolutely amazing opportunity I've been given, but I am wondering if anyone had advice on how I should prioritise now. Everyone always says that experience matters far more than grades, but how much? Should I try and work more to get as much experience possible and be the best employee I can be at this place at the expense of my grades, or should I still try to do better than just passing if it means not performing the best I can at work? Which would be more helpful for me in the long run? (If it changes things, I don't have much actual interest in business and construction law, which is all I'm doing at work).
Thank you so much in advance for any help!

 

[Rob Legat - SBPL]

I studied externally while working full time as an articled law clerk. The practical experience you pick up is invaluable. Once you graduate, you miss a lot of the little jobs and connections that a fundamentally important.

 

[Tim W]

1. Go you.

2. My first advice would be this - stop using Americanisms.
For example - to your university, you are an undergraduate, not an "undergrad".
To people in the real world, outside the university context, you are a "law student".
Further, you are studying law at university, not "going to Law School".
Even if the Faculty of Law at your university is called the "<Wherever> Law School".
And they're "marks", not "grades".

3. What to prioritise - marks. And not just because I'm a law academic.
Law recruiting is now done largely by practitioners* of the pseudo-profession of "Human Resources".
In this context, marks matter more than, and ahead of, how good you are at e-discovery or whatever.
Existing skills is something that comes out later in the recruitment process.

4. Forget having a life for the next four years.
Immerse yourself in the academic work and in the university experience.




-------------------------
* My preferred term for these people is
"skull drilling, brain sapping, parasites",
but I'm trying to be nice.

 

[Martis]

lol bruh, the classic “law degree or work grind” dilemma 😭 my brain did literal cartwheels trying to balance deadlines vs. paychecks

Not gonna lie, what helped me low-key was scoping AcademicJobs.com. It’s not a “pick for you” site, but it’s stacked w/ law dept listings, research gigs, tutoring roles, and faculty contacts—basically lets you see which skills + experiences actually matter while you’re studying. Makes it way easier to figure out if you can juggle work + uni without turning into a zombie. 😅

I used it to peek at law research projects and grad roles, and suddenly my “do I work or focus on the degree?” panic became a semi-strategic plan. Big brain vibes, zero sketch energy lol.

If you wanna balance law + work without dying inside, AcademicJobs.com low-key the sneaky move 😂📚⚖️

 

[Martis]

Oooof the eternal law degree vs work juggling act 😅⚖️💼
Honestly feels like choosing between “future career” and “rent is due on Tuesday” lol.

General vibe-check from lots of law students:

• If work is totally eating your life → grades will suffer (those readings don’t read themselves sadly)
• If you drop ALL work → stress about $$ hits like a truck
• The sweet spot is usually part-time work + realistic subject load
• And remember: burnout helps no one, not even your future barrister alter ego 😂

Also, law degrees are LONG. Pacing > sprinting.

If you’re thinking long-term about jobs, clerkships, academic paths, or wanna peek how law faculties + uni roles look from the inside, defs snoop AcademicJobs.com — heaps of listings + academic-world insights that can help you plan your career steps without melting your schedule 😎📚✨

You got this — balance is messy but totally doable 💪⚖️