Are you one of the fresh grads who originally planned to go to law school straight after graduation? Are you one of those who spontaneously decided to go to law school after years of pursuing your career path? Whoever you may be and whatever makes you decide to go to law school, whether it’s a dream that keeps you haunting every night, it all takes a leap of faith and courage.

Months or years before enrolling

When did you decide to go to law school? When did the first though of law school go to your mind? Before going to college, I got my whole life planned ahead of me (UST AMV -> CPA -> WORK -> SAN BEDA LAW SCHOOL) LOL. Did I follow that path? Not exactly. I graduated in the province (University of Batangas), became a CPA, worked in SGV and pursue law one again in UB. Maybe, I was afraid then but it was a practical decision. While studying in college, I have totally abandoned the idea of pursuing law school. I decided then that I would become a corporate accountant or pursue a business, more likely. While working as an associate auditor in SGV, I felt something was missing. I felt that I can still do more. A blessing came spontaneously from above which changed our lives forever. When Andrew (my bf) became a CPA after trying three times, I finally decided to law school, I have set aside practicality and started pursuing an abandoned dream.

In short, when I decided to go to law school, there were a lot of considerations: my family, financial status, my current work, long term plans, cost, opportunities and many more. In fact, I even take to consideration the travel time, the work location and school location if ever I would decide to keep my current job and study in Manila.

Studying in the Province

I decided to study in the province. The Pros of studying in the province where you live with your family is that it saves time, effort and money. Travelling time won’t consume more than an hour, thus, you’ll have additional hours for studying. You are more likely to stay away from night outs and Friday nights.

The cons of studying in the province is you’ll more likely to give up working in a big company in Makati/Manila. This may vary depending on the place, since there are other cities in PH which are really progressive. However, in Luzon, most corporate offices or head offices are based in Manila or Makati. So yes, I give up my CPA career for a while.

Be emotionally prepared

I don’t know if it’s just me being idle for about a year of not studying or law school is just really different from a typical college set up. In the first few weeks of the semester, some will drop out a subject, or even drop the whole class. Well, my advice is “you may cry, but never give up.” “Kapit lang.” Don’t be pressured.

Prepare for every class and for upcoming exams

That’s the key. Don’t be discouraged. Be with the right people. Develop a study habit.

Do not believe every advice higher year gives you.

You may consider but do not totally depend or believe on them. At some point, you’ll end up feeling nervous, but one thing I realize, some stories are made up and some are exaggerated.

BEST ADVICE: BE HUMBLE.