2L Brandy Barnes split her summer with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for the City of Colonial Heights and the Suffolk Public Defender’s Office.
Which CDO resources were helpful during your job search?
For me, the CDO was the most help when something went wrong. I had a summer opportunity lined up that fell through at the last minute, and the CDO was excellent in how they handled the situation. Instead of making me feel l had to start completely over, they helped me think through my options and what I could do next. That experience made me appreciate the CDO as more than just a place that deals with beginnings. Having people at the law school who understood how stressful it was to lose an opportunity and who sympathized with me with their own emotions made it so much better. It showed me that I could actually use resources available at the law school, and that you do not have to navigate the summer job search completely on your own.
What did you learn in your summer internship? What was your favorite part?
I had the opportunity to work in both a Public Defender’s Office and a Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, and getting exposure on both sides of the system was probably the favorite part of my summer. Law school teaches you how to read cases and analyze legal issues, but working in these offices showed me what those cases look like when there are actual people behind them. I got to be in court every single day, and I saw that criminal law is never as simple as the scenarios we are given in class. There are emotional victims, defendants, families, attorneys, and circumstances that do not always fit into “guilty or not guilty.” Specifically, everything I learned came from observing the courtroom and the attorneys themselves. I loved seeing different advocacy styles and watching attorneys make decisions in real time, which usually occurred in split seconds. Being able to experience both prosecution and defense also meant I was not seeing the system through only one lens. I was able to talk to victims, defendants, and witnesses. With that, I could see how each side approached the same process with very different responsibilities.
How did you land your 1L summer job?
My faculty mentor was a huge part of how I landed my 1L summer opportunity. He connected me with an opportunity that I may not have found on my own, and that connection ultimately decided my entire summer. I think being open to different opportunities, and polishing my resume and cover letter through the CDO, made a huge difference. Additionally, I was flexible about the type of position I would take and the time frame I could work. I was not approaching the search with a long list of requirements about exactly what I wanted my summer to look like. Although that is fine, I just wanted experience, and I was willing to take advantage of opportunities when they came to find a job as easily as I could. Between the support I received from CDO and the connection from my faculty mentor, I ended up having the opportunity to experience both a Public Defender’s Office and a Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
What advice or information would you like to share with other students?
Use the resources around you. Talk to your faculty mentor, talk to your professors, talk to your CDO advisor, talk to anyone who will listen. Go to the CDO. Let people in that office know what you are interested in, but also let them know what you are open to, and you will be set. My faculty mentor directly connected me with my summer opportunity, and CDO was there for me when another opportunity unexpectedly fell through.
[Do not] get so attached to what [your] summer is “supposed” to look like. I was open to different positions and different time frames, and that flexibility ultimately worked out in my favor. Your 1L summer does not have to be perfect, and it does not have to determine the rest of your career. Be willing to say yes to opportunities, build relationships with your professors and mentors, and ask for help even if you do not think you need it. Also remember, sometimes the opportunity you did not originally plan for ends up helping you the most.