The First-Year Essay Topic

The First-Year Essay TopicCalifornia bar essay topics are often one of the most important aspects of a legal education. Having a good set of essay topics can help you win the admissions interview and demonstrate your academic and work experience skills. Although some people are given very specific topic ideas, they are often advised to bring a wide range of topics so that they can match their reading comprehension skills to their essay writing abilities.In the past, the focus of California law schools was primarily in the areas of criminal law, immigration law, and corporate law. But in the past few years, some schools have been making more emphasis on admission essays focusing on general legal topics. It's not just the sheer volume of topics that have changed - it's also the guidelines, tools, and strategies to be used in essay writing.Students and professors alike have begun using the popular writing software known as 'thesaurus' to help them come up with essay topics. Using this a s an opportunity, California law schools are urging students to think beyond the subject of a court case or the application of a corporate law firm. Students are now asked to describe their careers as they relate to the courtroom as well as how they would have applied those skills in their current job.Since so many students now seek a professional, legal career as opposed to simply a teaching position, a newer trend has emerged as well. Because law firms today are required to hire a significant number of lawyers, they are also now requiring these students to put together a comprehensive resume that addresses their prior work experience as well as their training, education, and skills. This is called the 'joint hiring' strategy.A huge change has also occurred in California bar admission essay topics over the past few years. Previously, the focus was almost solely on the legal job application itself. As statedabove, law firms are now requiring the same things for interviewing as they do for hiring.The California bar is requiring the law school application essay to present an extremely detailed picture of the applicant. Therefore, the idea is to draw the applicant's attention as best as possible and to let them know why they should consider your candidacy for admission. The following trends will help you achieve this:Since law school applicants are always looking for a glimpse into what they could do for a law firm if they were hired, focus on showing current skills and experiences that are relevant to the job. For example, in a recently released piece on the NALP blog, those who were asked to present an essay about the 'Challenges of Successful Law School Students' talked about their in-demand skills such as team building and leadership as well as their leadership aspirations.Showing experience in the first year or junior year of law school is a good way to approach things. You can also draw some inspiration from the NALP blogs, which outline the traditional and contemporary topics. This information will provide you with a head start in writing the California bar essay topics that will get you noticed by a California law school.