Five Law Student Winter Break Ideas To Keep You Busy

Five Law Student Winter Break Ideas To Keep You Busy

For better or for worse, you’ve made it through the semester and you’re ready for winter break. You’ve attended class, outlined until your brain was fried, and prepared for and taken finals. Now that the first semester of the year is over, you’re probably feeling like something is missing. All of a sudden there’s no outlining? No flashcard review? No brief moments of panic 20 minutes before your next final? Ok, we’re just kidding! Now that you have a couple of weeks off from the rigors of law school, it’s time for some fun. This is the opportunity to enjoy time with friends and family, celebrate the holidays, and destress from the previous semester. Here are our top tips for what you should be doing over winter break.

Five Law Student Winter Break Ideas To Keep You Busy

Recharge Your Batteries

Winter break is the perfect opportunity to recharge your batteries for the semester to come. You’re probably tired and worn out from the hours of class, notetaking, studying, and preparation. It’s understandable and totally normal to feel this way after the first academic semester. Take this time to catch up on sleep, binge watch Netflix, or play video games until your heart’s content. Spend time with friends and family that you might have given the radio silence treatment. Basically, take winter break to enjoy the activities that you probably didn’t have time for during the semester.

Apply For Jobs

The winter break is a great time to apply for jobs next to the fire and while sipping hot chocolate. This is especially true if you’re a 1L or 2L and don’t have anything locked down for summer. With all of the spare time you have for the next couple of weeks, check out some job postings. Winter break is also a great time to update your resume with any experience you gained from the previous semester. That might mean adding any law journals, academic club positions, or other relevant experiences.

Plan For Next Semester

Winter break is also a great time to reflect on what went right and what went wrong in the previous semester. Did you start outlining too early or too late? Were you satisfied with your approach to studying for finals? Did you take advantage of office hours? These are all things to think about during winter break that will help you succeed next semester. If you’re a 1L who recently completed the first semester of law school, this is highly recommended.

Let Last Semester Go

Similar to the previous piece of advice, take winter break as a time to look forward, not back. There’s no point in anxiously wondering what grade you received in a certain class or about incorrect final exam answers. This is only going to stress you out, which is the opposite of what winter break is really all about. Learn from your successes and failures last semester in order to enter the next semester stronger and more confident.

Don’t Academically Prepare For Upcoming Courses

Just because you know next semester’s classes, doesn’t mean you have to begin studying for them. Avoid studying and preparing for your upcoming classes because, in all honesty, you will probably just end up confused. There’s no need to begin reading textbooks early, buying supplements, or reaching out to professors to explain future subject material. You’ll still have plenty of time to read before class begins. For now, take the advice mentioned above and have a wonderful and happy holiday season with those closest to you.

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