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Maddie Smith

May 9th, 2018

Marketing yourself – and your LLM

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Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Maddie Smith

May 9th, 2018

Marketing yourself – and your LLM

0 comments

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Your LLM provides you with a new or deeper specialism and offers a stepping stone to career transition or progression as well as enhancing your academic record. There is a prestige associated with your studies at LSE, and the LLM year offers a capacity building experience which also demonstrates your commitment to invest time and money in your legal education.

Undertaking the LLM has doubtless exposed you to new thinking and knowledge of a different jurisdiction, enhanced your language skills and broadened your cultural and professional awareness. For you, personally, the LLM will have helped you to expand your network and have provided you with a range of transferable skills such as research, analytical and critical thinking, organisational and time management skills and of course, resilience and flexibility – but how do you market these to employers?

The three “R’s” approach is a great way to market yourself and your LLM.

  1. Research and explore your opportunities  
    • Questions to ask yourself: Where are you targeting your search for opportunities? Are you using digital and social media? Have you made any speculative approaches or asked for informational interviews?
    • Are you thinking laterally and exploring a range of options? Is your job search confined to responding to advertisements or vacancies? Have you registered at recruitment or search agencies?
    • How are you utilising your networks? E.g. By creating a stakeholder map, attending seminars, conferences and talks that hold a personal interest for you, or may help you meet people in your target firms or organisations? Hand on heart – are you making best use of your contacts?
    • Are you giving something back as well as asking for help or advice e.g. offering to support others via mentoring, tutoring, speaking at events, blogging, carrying out research projects utilising specialist knowledge or your dissertation findings? What else could you do to give yourself some positive publicity?
    • Do you need to engage the help of a coach or mentor to help you work on your interpersonal skills, assertiveness and confidence?
    • Are you keeping up to date with the latest news, current affairs and legal developments? Keep up-to-date for dynamic news stories and for commercial awareness articles.
    • Things to do: Review the SRA (Solicitors Regulation Authority) for information about the qualified lawyer transfer scheme
    • Look at the following web sites for further information on qualification in the UK : lawsociety.org.uk and www.lawcareers.net
    • Diarise a brief visit to Career Hub once a week to look at upcoming events and opportunities
    • Visit Law careers page for more resources
  2. Read!

  3. Review…
    • Your marketing materials (CV, LinkedIn profile, cover letter, blogs, publications etc.) and be clear about what you have to offer a potential employer
      Think about…when you last updated and tailored your CV and your cover letter emphasising your international and inter-disciplinary legal expertise, your transferable skills, experience and extra curricular activities –  do these need a review and refresh?
    • Your job search strategy.
    • Your networks.

If you present your unique and wide ranging legal experience specifically, articulately and persuasively, along with your academic achievements and your motivation to join a specific firm or organisation, and follow the three “R’s”,  you will be able to generate interest in an increasingly competitive field.

If you need guidance on applications or any stage of the career planning process, book an appointment with one of our dedicated and friendly careers consultants on CareerHub.

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About the author

Maddie Smith

Careers Consultant, LSE Careers

Posted In: Career planning | Law and legal services | Postgraduate Taught

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