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Job Title: Adjunct Professor Of Law
Type of Company: I work for Northeastern University School of Law.
Education: BA in Politics, Bowdoin College •• J.D., Northeastern University School of Law
Previous Experience: I worked as a law clerk for the Massachusetts Appeals Court for one year, a small firm for three years and the employment law unit at a legal services organization for six years.
Job Tasks: I teach a required first year law school course in legal research and writing. This requires the preparation work necessary to teach the two hour class every week, commenting on the students' written work and meeting with students individually.
Best and Worst Parts of the Job: The best part of my job is that I have the flexibility to do the work on my own schedule. I am also a mother of three small children and so I chose this job primarily so that I can do the work on my own time. Apart from the classes themselves where I obviously have to be present I can do all of my preparation and commenting on my own time. I also really enjoy teaching a subject that I enjoyed doing as a practicing lawyer - researching and writing. I teach at the law school where I myself went to school, so I enjoy interacting with the students and acting as a mentor to them as they make and pursue their own career choices.
The downside of the job is that as an adjunct professor I don't have very much contact with other faculty, which can feel isolating. Adjunct professors are also not paid as well as full-time faculty, and do not have any say in school administration. Also, I do occasionally miss actually practicing law. These are definitely trade-offs for the flexibility the job provides.
Job Tips: In order to teach legal research and writing you need to get some experience first, so this isn't a job that one could get straight out of law school. One of the best ways to get the required experience is to complete a judicial clerkship. Many lawyers work as adjunct professors in addition to their full, or part-time jobs. This is a great way to get teaching experience if you think that you might want to become a full-time professor at some point.
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