Those of us who have worked in the Law Faculty for a few years have learned a few things about our students. And one of the things that has become most apparent to all of us is that law students are…just…people. They are just people who have every bit the same amount of life happen to them as everyone else. They receive inheritances, get married and divorced, have babies, lose loved ones – just like anyone else. They have mental health issues, as well.
Life events cause all sorts of issues. Inheritance often accompanies grieving. New babies frequently mean time off. Getting together and falling apart create new financial and emotional obligations and consequences.
Unlike in other parts of life, law students are limited in their ability to work more to make up for lost finances. So real life events with financial consequences can have devastating impacts.
Over the years, those of us who have worked in the Law Faculty have learned another thing about law students. Sometimes (though not always), they are “not great” at bringing forward their issues to people who can potentially help them. They want to still be the strongest and the smartest, even when life throws them a curve ball.
We understand that law school is hard. We understand that law students are limited in how they can react to life events.
We make clear to all students that we have robust support that is confidential and non-judgmental. There are also resources available outside of the school. We cannot solve all issues, and we do expect students to take ownership over their own well-being, too. But sometimes even talking out a situation will make sense of things in a way that makes it easier to deal with. Not dealing with issues or asking for help can often make things worse.
However, we cannot help students who don’t say anything or make us aware of issues.
This post is just a little note to encourage you to:
- Recognize when you need help;
- Ask for the help you need; and
- Don’t try to fight every battle alone.
Law students are generally high achievers. Sometimes this means wrongly assuming that they are simply weak for having a difficult time – for any reason. The opposite is true actually. Law school is hard, and life will inevitably keep happening while you are a student. Knowing when you need help and asking for help is actually the strongest and smartest thing you can do.