Identifying Transferable Skills From Law School To Your Career

This week on the Law School Insider podcast I had the pleasure of interviewing Romando Nash, Associate Vice President for Student Services at San Jose State University. Today Romando shared his law school experience as well providing insight into other ways in which you may use a JD degree, outside of a courtroom. 

Romando Nash mentioned that he started off having an interest in the law through watching Perry Mason shows. While he did watch this, he was also a very inquisitive individual who feels comfortable being he he is. He read a ton and would ask a ton of questions too. It was the autobiography of Thurgood Marshall that changed his perspective on the law and really made him want to study the law.

During law school in his last year he was able to work on campus and he found that he could pay for many of his law school experiences though being a graduate hall director. This experience gave him direction and purpose and allowed him to stay focussed on completing law school.

Upon completing law school he had the chance to work for law firms but chose to apply for a full time hall director position at his institution. The institution took a chance on him and he has stayed working in higher education ever since.

Even though Romando Nash may not be working in a position that is in the courtroom everyday, he does see a number of transferrable skills that are there for him that he uses on a daily basis. He uses his ability to research and analyze situations all of the time and he credits these skills as ones that he learned in law school. 

Now in his career he finds that he sees things and analyzes things in different ways from other professional around himself. The way in which he was trained has allowed him to be an asset in many ways because of the way that he thinks.

In thinking back to his own law school experience he states that he wishes that he participated in the JD-MBA program while a part of his law school. Romando Nash stated that joint programs like this would have really opened him up to much more in his career. Other than this he felt that he took advantage of many of the opportunities in law school and he encourages other law students to do the same.

Some of the skills that Romando Nash stated were very important for law students to develop in law school included:

• Developing strong writing skills
• Analyze your legal texts deeply and broudent this analysis across your life.
• Develop critical thinking sklls in all that you do through your legal career.
• Make long lasting friendships and build a network that you can sustain throughout your career

Did you like this interview? Do you have a question for Romando Nash? Leave a comment below to let me know!

Are you a practicing lawyer? A law student? Would you like to be a guest on an upcoming episode of the Law School Insider or do you have a topic you would like to hear about? Send me an email at lawschoolinsider@cooley.edu