2. The first day I was at Kaufman and Canoles my Supervisor, Barbara Jennings, told me that she wants me to experience all aspects of a law firm and that is what I did. I learned about their records department, marketing section, human resource department, library, and the different areas of law that they practice at the firm (environmental, medical malpractice, corporate, tax, and etc). I learned a vast amount of information and I am grateful to be able to gain this experience.

3. For my informational interviews, I interviewed two attorneys at the law firm, Karla Soloria and Elena Blanks. From my interview with Karla Soloria she told me that I should start studying for the LSAT’s as soon as possible because that score is extremely important to get into a good law school. By that, it has motivated me to start looking more at possible law schools that I would like to attend and to start preparing for the LSAT’s

4. My second interview was with Elena Blanks. She is a tax attorney and I got a lot of information of what that entails. When she started going into detail I was fascinated. She said a part of her job is helping clients that have either messed up or put themselves in difficult situations. When this happens she tries to find ways to help them, however there is so much she can do because one way or the other the IRS is going to get their money. I believe she primarily helps them not have to pay it all off at once. Ever since this interview I feel that this is the area of law that I want to get into the most.

5. I feel that many of the skills that I possess directly relates to many of the skills that I saw in the law firm. A few example being, a lawyer has to be able to delegate work either with the secretary or paralegals or both. And with delegation you can also include team work. A lawyer needs a lot of help and no one lawyer can possibly do all the work by there self. They also have to be able to listen, since they work for their clients they have to completely understand the problem that is being presented. And with the problem they have to be able to problem solve and figure out the best way to help their client. However, there are some skills that I know that I need to improve. One being public speaking. I feel a lot more comfortable doing it but I still feel like I can get better.

6. I feel that this externship has come at the right time. I was starting to doubt what I would want to do as a career but I feel that is different know. I knew that I wanted to be a lawyer, but I had no clue what type of lawyer I wanted to be. However, the externship has allowed me to sample many areas of law and now I know I want to become a tax attorney. After graduating from Virginia Wesleyan I want to attend law school and then start practicing law.