From First Year to Final Year: Beyond the Syllabus
By Rachel Abraham
Third Year Law with Business Student
This article is for first, second or even third year students who feel overwhelmed, behind, or unsure whether they’re “doing law school right”. Looking back, these are the lessons I wish I had understood earlier.
1. (Sounds cliche) but Law School Is a Marathon, not a Sprint
In first year, it’s easy to panic when you don’t immediately understand everything. Concepts like statutory interpretation, tort, or contract can feel abstract and intimidating at first. What I didn’t realise then is that clarity comes with repetition, not perfection, and that it’s completely okay not to “get it” straight away.
I was fortunate to have studied both law and business at A-level before starting my degree, so you might assume I’d be set for first year. While that background did help me at times, I was reassured by seeing the students who hadn’t studied law or business before were understanding the content just as well, if not better. It quickly became clear that prior knowledge doesn’t determines success, engagement does.
Understanding develops gradually through lectures, seminars, discussions, and revisiting topics in different contexts. By final year, you realise that confidence in law comes from consistency, not instant mastery.
That’s also why I’d strongly encourage everyone to attend seminars. Attendance really does matter. If something is timetabled, it’s there for a reason. You’re already halfway there if you attend your lectures & seminars and considering how much we pay for this degree; you may as well make the most of it by attending.
2. Extra-Curriculars Aren’t Really “Extras”
The extra-curricular opportunities that are available to you are some of the most valuable learning experience our law school offers, such as firm work, mock trials so engage in them if you can.
Interestingly, some of the most transferable skills I’ve developed didn’t come from my most obviously “law-related” role. Being on committee, particularly as Secretary of the Falmouth Christian Union has developed me into such a more confident person and one of my highlights at my time at university. Beyond admin responsibilities, I helped lead ‘Alpha’, an eight-week discussion course, took responsibility for creating and organising society hoodie merchandise, and supported outreach events across campus. None of this was law on paper but helped me develop and gain so many transferable skills.
You can gain valuable skills from anything whether that’s working in retail, McDonald’s, dog-sitting, volunteering, or being on a society committee. What matters is what you do in those roles, not just the title you hold.
That said, As Director of Mooting, I introduced an additional semi-final stage to competitions, helping expand the structure and opportunities available. The scheme has since grown even further thanks to Ollie (now Director), but it just shows how student-led initiatives can continue to evolve beyond your own time in a role.
I’d also strongly encourage students to get involved academically through roles like Course/EDI Rep. It directly affects your experience, teaching, and cohort. But don’t just sign up for those roles if you can’t commit or else it’s just pointless. And if something you’re interested in doesn’t exist yet just start it.
Engaging with the opportunities available to us as students is also key. I’ve found Camilla’s emails particularly helpful; honestly half of my CV achievements came from opportunities she advertised. So, keep an eye out first, second & third years as you never know which opportunity might lead to another, or the connections you’ll make from it.
3. Make Commercial Awareness a Habit!
Your guaranteed to have heard it or soon will. Commercial awareness can feel like a buzzword reserved for corporate lawyers. That changed when I started engaging consistently with resources such as the ‘AllAboutLaw Commercial Awareness Compass’, including their weekly newsletters and live streams.
Commercial awareness isn’t about knowing everything that’s happening in the business world. It’s about curiosity, context, and consistency.
Setting aside even 5 minutes a day to read or skim current legal and commercial issues are so beneficial. A practical tip: use your university email. Many legal platforms, newsletters, and resources offer free access or student discounts through university sign-ups. Make the most of what you already have.
Over time, this habit quietly shapes how you think, speak, and apply the law both academically and professionally while making you more up to date. (Think of it as killing two precedents with one judgment ;))
4. Do the thing that make you uncomfortable.
When I first signed up for mooting, confidence was the last thing I felt. In the days leading up to my first moot, I remember thinking: I have free will, why am I doing this to myself!?
But I did it anyway and to my huge surprise I got awarded the Best Mooter in my moot. Which then pushed me to run as the Director of Mooting the following year a role I never would have imagined myself in had I not mooted.
That experience taught me that confidence is a skill built through repetition and exposure. The things that scare, embarrass, or make you uncomfortable are often the very things that help you grow the most.
So, make use of any opportunity you get. If you don’t, someone else will.
Closing Reflection
Law school is not just about putting your head down and getting that degree. It’s the added skills you develop, gain and connections you make too. It’s just as important as your academic results.
If I could give one piece of advice to my first-year self, it would be this: engage early, stay curious, and don’t underestimate how much growth happens quietly over time.
Your journey will not look like anyone else’s and that’s exactly how it should be. So, from first year to final year, the real education happens beyond the syllabus, no footnotes required ;)
All the best, future legal legends, and to those who decide to take their skills beyond the law!
