JAG Girl Summer
I know it’s only April 11, but I’m just one month away from starting my summer job. Crazy, right?!
The summer job thing is one of the biggest differences between myself and an average law student. Where my friends have spent hours crafting cover letters and resumes, selecting firms, and struggling through interviews and callbacks, I’ve vaguely wondered where the Air Force is going to send me in May.
(Side note - I had to send a resume to a professor in January, and I’ve rarely been so stressed about an email. Had to poll several friends to figure out how it should look.)
Since I’m still active duty, I get paid a normal salary during law school - which means the military absolutely wants to get its money’s worth. Along with a six-year commitment, the terms of my program state that I have to work in a base legal office during the 1L and 2L summers. And when they say summer, they mean summer: the internship begins two days after my last spring final and officially ends two days before classes start in the fall. Therefore, I’ll end up working about a month longer than my 2L friends at firms or doing public interest work.
But again…getting paid to be here, so no complaints on my end 💁♀️
While I knew I had a job, the specific assignment and summer ‘21 location were up in the air for a while. Unlike my civilian compadres, I had next-to-no control over this (which is normal for the military). But I recently found out that I’m staying in Boston and working a second summer at Hanscom AFB! I’m pretty pumped about that for several reasons:
I’m familiar with the office and younger JAGs at Hanscom, so I can skip the “intro” stage and just jump into legal work this summer.
I also feel WAY more confident about my legal prowess after a second year of school (still have a long way to go, but I do not miss being a clueless 1L)
Boston and surrounding areas were pretty shut down last summer, and next summer will be All Bar Prep, All The Time - so this is the summer to live it up!
My husband and I will be separated for a few months later this year, so it’s great to spend this time in the same place.
ALWAYS a hassle to live out of a suitcase - I’d much rather have access to my full closet!
My work will be very similar to last summer - I’ll do a mix of civil stuff (advising airmen and retirees on legal questions, filing tort claims, performing legal reviews and approving commander memos, drafting and executing wills, etc.) and criminal stuff (looking into new allegations, advising commanders on taking action, and prepping those cases for whatever the commander decides). I’m slightly biased towards the criminal side of the house - I want to get as much practice/experience before I’m in the courtroom myself! - but the civil side is equally important for new JAGs.
I’ll be fully vaccinated by my start date (woohoo, Moderna crew!) and the internship will likely be a hybrid of in-person and virtual work. This is also different from most of my 2L friends, who have already been told they’re working virtually this summer. As a “loves to mess around with my co-workers” type of gal (while still getting our work done, of course) I’m relieved to be on base at least a few times a week. And hopefully, this summer is a good transition for getting back on campus in the fall.
I have my doubts though - I’m not kidding, I think picking an actual outfit every day will be the real challenge come September. And the ole Air Force is no help on that front!
