For many aspiring law graduates their journey to become a legal professional was not without a meticulous and well thought out plan. For others dreams of being the next ‘Rudy Baylor’ from John Grisham’s novel, The Rainmaker was their ultimate goal and inspiration. And then there are all the others, who may lay claim to being what I have coined ‘the accidental law student’. If the latter resonates with you, then you may be one of those whose university entrance score was far better than expected, yet medicine was far too stomach churning to bear. On the other hand you may have been talked into choosing law by either family or friends; teachers; school leaders, all of whom had your best interests at heart and truly believed they knew better!
Regardless of how you got here, for some of you a career in private practice doesn’t necessary appeal and the question still remains ‘what else can be done with a law degree that doesn’t involve billable hours?’ Well fortunately over the last 10 -15 years the career opportunities for law students have multiplied and in fact, the LLB is now regarded as one of the most versatile professional degrees available. Some would suggest that not working as a ‘lawyer’ may be ‘wasting your law degree’. In my mind there can be no waste. A law degree is so much more than the law. A law degree teaches you to think differently; to challenge and debate; to research; to form decisions based on facts; to negotiate and obviously to operate within a legal framework and that’s just the beginning! You can definitely breath a sigh of relief; these are all very transferrable skills that can be taken into the corporate world as well as a range of different professions.
The real key here is to identify a career where you can capitalise and even build on your qualifications or
experience. From careers in stockbroking to human resources; commercial and business management; politics to business entrepreneurs to life in academia, the opportunities are truly endless and nothing is beyond your reach. Our Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Duncan Kerr, both former lawyers are certainly examples of that. Check out The Lawyers Career Change Handbook :More Than 300 Things You Can Do With a Law Degree for more ideas!
And yes, it takes guts to move down some of these career paths but if you are truly passionate about working in a particular industry or field then surely the desire to succeed is motivator enough.
Whether you are still unsure as to what you want to do after graduating or you have some ideas but remain undecided its time to start researching some professions. The best way I have found is in sharing a coffee with someone currently working in either the industry or profession you are interested in and simply asking them some key questions. The aim is to uncover some fundamental information, which will assist you in determining whether this career path suits you or not.
10 Questions You MUST Ask! 
What does a Stockbroker actually do?
What is a typical working day like and what are the average hours worked?
What are some of the highlights of working in your profession or field?
What level of interaction do you have with clients and peers to working on your own?
What are some of the challenges or personal dislikes of working in Stockbroking?
What is the career path of a Stockbroker?
What are some of the essential skills required to become a Stockbroker?
What kind of further study or training would assist me to gain entry into this profession/field?
What if I wanted to work overseas, is this a profession/field that is easily portable?
What background do I need to succeed in this industry/field?
As you can see these questions can be easily tailored to any profession or even to a specialization in private practice. If you are struggling to find whose ‘brain you could pick’ consider tapping into your wider network including lecturers, friends, family or even previous employers. If not them, who do they know? To go one better, work experience is an ideal way to get this type of information so make sure you are on the look out for those types of opportunities. Another way might be to do some personality tests which take into account occupation preferences. Some of these you may have heard of including Myer-Briggs but there are so many now available online at now cost. A simple search of ‘personality tests for careers’ will yield some decent results.
Regrettably in my line of work I see many dissatisfied lawyers who in one way or another didn’t properly investigate the career options available. For many of these lawyers who are now accustomed to, if not ‘locked’ into a certain income level, the decision to make a career change is by no means an easy one and one that becomes much harder with the passage of time. Needless to say, the more informed the decision the better the outcome and the more fulfilling your career will be.
Further information + official websites
Alternative Careers For Lawyers
Lawyers Weekly – Alternative Careers
